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The Grand Crossover RP - Pathway to Origin [IC/PG-16/Apps Closed for Finale]

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Note:

This is a roleplay imported from YCM!

~ YCM IC ~

~ YCM OOC ~

 

~ New NCM IC ~

~ New NCM OOC ~

 

 


 

 

hosted by Merciful Idiot

 

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أنا لا يموت. أنا لا أعيش

كل لها قصة. لدي جود فقط

أن تكون أو لا تكون

هذا هو السؤال

أمشي الطريق إلى الأصل

Far away...

There is a conversation.

Greater powers reflecting on previous events, on this out-of-control disaster called the "Origin War".

Spoiler
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THE THRONE OF HEROES

 

It doesn’t matter what they are.

 

 

Or whether they are aware of it.

 

 

All lifeforms subconsciously possess a singular, united trait.

 

 

We call it the will to live.

 

 

It is this will, shared by endless universes, which has powered the creation of a system ensuring that the omniverse will never fall. Very few know of its existence. Fewer still are granted the tremendous honour of meeting one of its chosen warriors. After all, an encounter with a single Counter Guardian can only mean that countless universes face certain doom. Should an an uncontrollable threat ever arise, an invincible force, an existential crisis, the power of the Throne of Heroes will act to counter it at once.

 

 

And yet, in the midst of this Origin War... Not one but two of their finest heroes have failed at their duties. Two heroes shouldered responsibility for all existence, and yet they dared to fall.

 

 

First their primary unit, the Counter Guardian of Wrought Iron. EMIYA had been directly exposed to the Shadow Realm’s corruption during combat with a Maximus. Although he resisted at first, it appears that he fell in the battle against the Witch of Infinite Possibilities. Trusting his iron perseverance was a mistake.

 

 

Then their secondary unit, the Counter Guardian of War. Mysterious interference had somehow cut off PENDRAGON from the Throne. Although she’d still remained a capable fighter, it appears that she has since fallen upon entering the Pathway. Her spirit is now irrecoverable. Trusting her fiery determination was a mistake.

 

 

The Origin War has escalated to such an extent that Protheus Maximus and his Divine have successfully brought the Key into the Pathway to Origin, a realm that exists outside of reality, residing beyond even their reach. Evidence suggests that Isamy may not be gone either. The weakened PENDRAGON led her forces into that same realm, but now that she is dead, there is only one certainty to be determined from this: That the opening of the Door by a Maximus, and the destruction of reality, is imminent.

 

 

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The spirits of the Throne of Heroes are coalescing around one another, at a loss for this improbability, this repeated failure, this unprecedented situation. Their chaotic, neutral, and lawful energies meld together to create what may only be described as a conceptual alignment of the greatest warriors.

 

 

Much of their resources are being expended solely on containing the endless incidents triggered by the distortions left by Isamy. The only convenience they have is that the distortions have mysteriously stopped spreading, and even that is not a comforting fact considering the heavy universal casualties they face. The Throne remains incapable of sending any further units into the area. The future’s status is beyond prediction. Although there were once those who believed destroying the Key was the simple and straightforward solution to this dilemma, the best course of action is no longer obvious.

 

 

At the very heart of the maelstrom, a man walks out. He captures the attention of every Counter Guardian currently present, of all the stars in the sky. Why would he not? For all they are concerned, he is the one responsible for all this.

 

 

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“...”

EMIYA says nothing at first.

To greet him, another man drops out of the sky. Wielding the Kingdom Key in one hand, and the Kingdom Key D in the other, he is none other than the Counter Guardian of Hearts. “Hey man… Uh, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but if you’re gonna try and explain yourself, that’s not a very good idea. You failed. Nobody here’s going to listen to an apology.”

“Why hello, Sora.” The man greets back, responding playfully. “I appreciate the concern, I suppose? Thankfully, I haven’t shown myself just to do something ridiculous like that. I just couldn’t help but notice that everyone seems a little more on edge than usual. Decided to pay a visit. Find out what’s making all these great warriors of justice so upset.”

SORA crosses his arms. “You look relaxed. Isn’t any of this worrying you?”

“Not really.”

EMIYA simply shrugs.

His response instantly causes the manifestation of the Throne around him to stir. Endless wisps shimmer, with more and more of the nexus of heroic spirits beginning to notice this warrior at the center. He, who was originally tasked with maintaining the Origin War, is that calm in the face of inevitable disaster?

HOLMES chimes in, his face forming from the surrounding crimson clouds. The Counter Guardian of Investigation is known for many feats, but holding back on his opinions is not one of them. “Shirou Emiya. Looking at all the existing facts of this case, this was preventable. Painfully preventable. You should have been far more aggressive with your actions. The Throne granted you the power to traverse the distortions as you pleased. You could have used it to track down the Key of Origin quickly and efficiently, but instead, you used it to recruit random warriors. Looking at the events of the three worlds you visited, the ‘Counter Corps’ contingency you presented has proven to be a precious waste of time and resources!”

“Are you sure about that? We haven’t seen the results just yet. Even with the anomalies like LERNA and Protheus’s interjection into this timeline, I’d say it’s been a remarkable success so far.” EMIYA responded, calmly. If anything, he was amused at how unusual it was to see the normally-composed HOLMES so agitated. “You should have some more faith in your companions, you know.”

More voices begin to enter the stratosphere, as though invited by his words.

“Pendragon found a way, but by nature, us Counter Guardians are incapable of entering the Pathway to Origin. This is no laughing matter. We aren’t simply talking on a scale of universal clusters anymore. At any given moment, all of existence could be wiped out.”

“Don’t tell me you actually trust in that contingency squad? They’re too weak to deal with a situation on this scale! Even the vast potential Lydia Armstrong and Arthur Ancyl possess is simply that. Potential, requiring time and practice to hone. That means little against the Hero Killer Protheus. It wouldn't be the first time he's dispatched of promising candidates.”

“We trusted your ideology, Emiya. In return, you have forced the Throne of Heroes into an impossible position. Thanks to the unprecedented failures from you and your old friend, we have been locked into a state we are unused to. Powerlessness. What the hell?”

“I’m not sure what kind of idle, fantasy world you lived in, but this is the reality of the situation. Pendragon lost against an Omni despite having territorial advantage. You were outclassed by the same Omni twice. Are you expecting some strangers to do any better?”

“Let’s say they do win. The issue of using the Key of Origin remains. Since the Pathway to Origin awakens an individual’s innermost desires, dozens of these ‘awakened’ warriors will be at the Door. Any one of them would be capable of realising their own foolish, selfish dreams, at the cost of reality. And with those Divine in the mix, the very own recruits of the Omnis, it's practically guaranteed!”

“Considering the psychological profiles of many of the members, and the nature in which Pendragon was terminated, the evidence is pointing towards the fact that everyone turned on her. That they actually betrayed their own leader. Much of their members have gone through extreme hardships over the last week, and thus, we simply cannot rely on our original evaluations of them to predict what they’ll do now. I sympathize with their plights, but they're naught but children right now, led by their emotions!”

Despite the barrage of criticism from his contemporaries, Emiya remains unphased.

If anything, he feels a little amused that he’s attracting so much attention from a near-infinite amount of other Guardians.

“And you wouldn’t have? We opted for efficiency over honesty, lying to the Counter Corps about our actions and our intentions. I understand it; if any one of them had refused our initial offer, we would have sacrificed their world to the distortions for nothing. Regardless, our solution was not the best available solution. They knew that. You all knew that too.” Emiya makes no attempt to hide his distaste. “I know why I was summoned. Because I'm similar to Isamy, aren't I? Because I was once a lot like her. Because I can understand her. The idea was that I might be able to reach out to her, reason with her. If not, then she might hesitate long enough to let me kill her. We had one contingency established beyond that point: Destroying the Key. You all know I hated it, and you all know that’s why we established the second contingency. The Counter Corps. The belief that another solution would emerge if we put together a group of remarkable people... who fulfilled certain conditions.”

He stares up at the galactic sky. “To have the mental fortitude to adapt to the Origin War. Most of them wouldn't have known alternate worlds even existed, and just like that, their thinking needed to be flexible enough to adapt to the multiverse and its ever-changing scenarios in an instant, to endure tragedy, to charge into alien fields of combat without fear."

The surrounding stars stare back. “To have talents that could be useful against Isamy Maximus. If they ever came across the Omni, then if nothing else, they would have a chance. Pooled together, perhaps they could perform what a Counter Guardian alone cannot."

Had such a major event ever happened in the Throne of Heroes before? “And finally, to be trustworthy enough to wield the Key of Origin. Should it ever come to that worst-case scenario, should the responsible Counter Guardian ever be incapacitated inside the Pathway to Origin, we would still have a path to victory. We all agreed on that idea. That perhaps, together, a team of strong souls and good hearts could accomplish a miracle. But looks like I’m the only one who still thinks it’s a good idea, eh?”

Hearing this, Sora comes forth. The Keyblade Master's brown hair flutters in the wind, revealing the scar over his left eye. Many more cover his arms under those baggy sleeves. The Counter Guardian of Hearts is more than familiar with this idealistic way of thinking, and in his own path to Guardinship, he has suffered for it.

“We allowed the team, but don’t forget-that third condition was yours alone. It sounds just as silly now as it did back then. We never intended on letting this plot escalate to the point of reaching the Pathway to Origin. Now reality's in danger. And everything's a mess. What are you trying to imply by telling us this? Why have you stepped out to converse with us? I believe in the power of hearts and never giving up just as much as anyone, but this sort of thinking... You're being naive. We're supposed to be the protectors of the multiverse, and this kind of thinking is, well, just way too naive for a Counter Guardian. This isn't a storybook, Emiya. Are you seriously... seriously hoping to place the HOPE OF ALL REALITY in the hands of UNQUALIFIED WARRIORS?!"

"Oh? Seems like I upset Sir Voice of Reason himself.” Emiya’s eyebrow raise, making no attempt to hide his own smug smile.

"Well, you’re certainly not wrong. That’s exactly what I’m doing. I believe in the Counter Corps. In fact, I’m also willing to believe the Divine will rise to the occasion, to support them.” The Throne stirs ever more. Surely he wasn’t serious. "I'm trusting my sense of judgment, and I'm trusting them to do their job. That’s all."

Yet, he walks forward with a confident smile.

“You heroes worry too much, you know. Maybe it’s time to let you all in on a little secret.”

The former leader of the Counter Corps knows he can rest assured. He tells them why.

”The thing is, even if they should fail…

 

Fka8Nuo.jpg?1

 

 

...we still have her.

 

 

 

 


 

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The Illusive Sky

Amongst the dreamlike Illusive Sky, with its rainbow clouds and strange properties, Nobody Isamy was proving to be extremely difficult to engage in direct combat.

The warriors-Lydia, Hapshiel, Dorian, Jace, Chandra, Nero, Reimu, Alexander, Alister, Red, Bayonetta, Jeanne, and Ratchet-all fought hard, although their enemy was a cunning one. The Nobody gradually appeared to be gaining intelligence over time. Its Void Inclusion transformations improved, until it was apparent that it was invoking both the skills and the personalities of their loved ones, as well as their own past selves, evading their attacks at every turn. Separating the characters, engaging them one at a time, it was essentially playing mind games with them all...

It was a mentally exhausting battle, and despite the damage and wounds they kept succeeding in inflicting upon it, there appeared to be no end in sight. However, as it progressed, the warriors may have noticed that time was beginning to slow down. Everyone’s movements, attacks, even speech were growing duller, gradually deaccelerating in intensity.

"Oh.”

When Nobody Isamy itself appeared to realise this, it suddenly ceased combat, returning into its original form. With a hint of understanding in that one eye, its calm gaze moved up, towards the heavens.

"I’m sorry… I have done what I can, but it looks like this must come to an end.” The being looked sad, but also resigned to its fate. "Salvation… At last, salvation has arrived.”


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The Shadow Cavern

Amongst the unforgiving Shadow Cavern, with its bloodstained earth and nightmarish design, Heartless Isamy was proving to be extremely brutal towards all who opposed her.

The warriors-Butler-Ragnarok, Rhadamanthys, Darcy, Bel, Koishi, Satori, the short-haired Tenshi, Atsuko, Gabriel, and even Kyros-had to be constantly on edge due to the aggressive approach their enemy was taking. The Heartless did not shy away with her Void Inclusion, choosing the strongest targets to invoke the powers of, and abusing them as much as she wanted...

The problem was only worsened by the presence of the last remaining Herald of Order, Finite. The man once known as Kenpachi. With both Killua and Gon murdered in a tragic turn of events, it was taking Kratos everything he had to hold the godlike Finite back - and if that Herald started backing the Heartless, then there’d be no hope for the others.

It was a physically gruelling battle, and despite the damage and wounds they kept succeeding in inflicting upon it, there appeared to be no end in sight. However, as it progressed, the warriors may have noticed that space was beginning to warp. Everyone’s movements, attacks, even speech were taking far more effort, as though an invisible pressure were pressing back, harder and harder.

“Ha… Haha…”

When Heartless Isamy herself finally noticed this, her dracolich form momentarily paused the onslaught. With a hint of acknowledgment in that one eye, its piercing glare moved up towards the ceiling.

“Finally. Finally. Finally she comes! Come over, Finite! Come, watch!” For the first time, the creature was delighted. She beckoned her servant to join her. “Our Happily Ever After! With this, it can all… It can all finally be… over...”


Then, all of a sudden,

the end came.

Countless cracks in the fabric of reality, of time and space, formed abruptly, and proceeded to flooded everything within an instant. Physical distortion that ought to be avoided at all costs, high in the skies, below in the cavern, there was nowhere to run. Cracks were forming, growing everywhere, and they couldn’t be stopped as they spread further and further, widening into ‘nothingness’, threatening to consume anything and everything in their path. Gravity was fading away, and the very laws of physics were failing. It was almost like someone had picked up a divine sledgehammer, and slammed it into both worlds.

There was nowhere to run, no exit to retreat into, and no way to resist. For all their power, surviving something like this would be utterly impossible. Those who’d been there in the Inner Periphery knew all too well what this horrific occurrence was-the dreaded feeling that one had when the very realm they existed in was about to break apart.

Within that destruction, a few may glimpse of that otherworldly phenomenon, that Anomaly, tearing into the reality from outside.

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And just like that,

both the Illusive Sky and the Shadow Cavern shattered.














 

 


 




 

 

 

[INTERLUDE IN OBLIVION]

Spoiler

 

 

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oh.

 

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how unexpected.

 

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someone is still here?

 

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why did you come? you’ll find nothing on this page...

 

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on this domain.

 

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on this pathway.

 

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was it a notification? a message? a link? you must be mistaken.

 

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I’m exhausted

 

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so exhausted

 

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so very exhausted

 

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This is it, you know. “The End.”

Everything ends. This should come as no surprise. This sort of ending, abrupt as it may feel, occurs everywhere. All the time. Sometimes, it just takes a bit longer, and the only thing that can be done is to meet the end with acceptance.

The Counter Guardians could do so: Emiya Shirou and Arthur Pendragon, in their final moments, gave into their inevitable fates with a bittersweet smile. 

The Omnis could not: Protheus Maximus spent millennia running away from his fate, only to finally meet his end screaming. Isamy Maximus clung onto every shred of her own life, and has since lost all sight of her original mission.

YCM, like everything else, is susceptible to this "End" as well.  

 

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Right now...

 

The best course of action you can take is forget about all the time you spent on this little roleplay, and click away.

 

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it's not even... the same site anymore, you know?

 

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So why...

 

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Why  are you  still here?

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All this time and effort dedicated solely to reaching ‘THE END’, where is it really going?

I tell myself ‘it’s so close’,

and advance onwards.

And advance onwards.

And advance onwards.

And advance onwards.

And like a fool, advance onwards and onwards-

 

I keep telling myself ‘it’s so close’, again, and, again, and again and again and again and again. How many times has that been? But instead of reaching the end, the hours and days and weeks and months and years have only passed. And in that passing of time… My feelings changed. My ideals changed. I changed. So much has happened that it feels unreal I’m still here.

Wasn’t it supposed to be close?

The further I go, the more my time is consumed. And in turn, I see others falter and fall, and disappear, and know for a fact that that’ll be me someday. I have lost so much pursuing this nonexistent ideal. Besides. In this state of rust, having lost all these people already, isn’t the perfect fulfilment we once dreamed of impossible now? My motivation, my reasons, my sense of fulfilment… It’s all slowly fading to dust. I can’t quite remember why I first started, and I’m not really sure why I’m still here. Maybe it’s because I feel a sense of duty. Maybe it’s because I would’ve felt some degree of dissatisfaction if I left it here. Or maybe I already quit long ago, having lost whatever fire there was to drive me.

There’s no doubt about it-I grew up. Yet still, here I am, unable to make that final step.

Every rational thought tells me I should move on.

‘I want to give up.’

‘I want this to be over.’

‘I just want to MOVE ON ALREADY.’

No one would blame me for it, just like no one blamed the others. This has been dragging on years ago, after all. Especially when every last drop of time we can afford in our lives is too precious to be used on something as miniscule as this, I need to move on, and you need to move on, and we all need to move on as soon as possible.

Yet, because I kept telling myself ‘we’re so close’,

I kept advancing onward.

Yet here I am.

Just like that, there’s no doubt---

 

I’m a complete idiot.

 

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But, for reading this far, for being my guests this long…

 

Could it be, are you an idiot too?

 

...

 

If that’s the case. Then I just can’t give up yet, can I?

 

Thank you all for keeping me company on this insane, insane, insane journey. The fact that you’re still here, that very fact that you’re still humouring me with this worthless narrative, adding to this worthless narrative with your own colourful, multi-layered, complex plots and characters and lives, has made me feel so eternally grateful. By all means this story should have crashed and burned, but thanks to each and every one of you, we’re here.

 

I have no right to ask this. It all probably sounds so pretentious, I’m sure. But, if it’s alright with you, I’m going to take one last gamble here.

 

May I ask for your help, just once more?

 

One last time.

 

One last spark.

 

One last attempt to do this right. And I mean, right.

 

Shall we invite these old characters of ours... to dance to the Grand Crossover RP?

 

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[/INTERLUDE IN OBLIVION]

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The many warriors of the multiverse started to awaken, finding themselves surrounded by absolute darkness. What had just happened?

Only moments prior they’d been fighting for their lives, facing either the Nobody or the Heartless Isamy. However, after time started slowing down, and the realms shattered, everything after that was a blank. Even the memory of their conflict with the two Isamys were faint, wrecked, missing pieces. And now, with seemingly no solution, the warriors were drifting equally across oblivion.

They were powerless, barely conscious. It felt like they were in a fading dream. Unable to move, unable to think, lacking the strength to defy their fates. Merely existing. Drifting. As the emptiness and nothingness dragged on, there was some innate understanding in each and every one of them that they were slowly fading away. That this was how they were going to perish.

Still. In the far-off distance, the voice of some young, British-accented male could be heard, resonating across this empty, desolate space.

His words were faint, strange, and may not have made sense to any of them even if they could discern what he was saying. Eventually, it seemed as though he had reached a point and concluded his statements with a positive, hopeful request. Surely this wasn’t aimed at them. ‘Years’? ‘Narrative’? ‘Grand Crossover RP’? Was any of that supposed to mean anything?

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Then,

When it was all supposed to be over, the oblivion was overcome by a bright light, a beautifully warm energy. A new sound emerged. An almighty sound, filled to the brim with an unparalleled radiance. The holy voice of an unusually-frustrated goddess-

Dammit Merci!

You had one job. ONE job. All I wanted was to watch a good victory, and pass on peacefully… But how exactly am I supposed to have a nice rest when everything’s been left in ruins like this? Seriously, where’s Dan when you need him? Who’s gonna stop Isamy now, huh?  Who’s gonna save these people from oblivion, HUH??!?!?

This... This is cruel.

It should’ve just been a squabble between me and that man. Isamy and her Divine, the Counter Guardians and their Corps-this wasn’t supposed to be their battle, their war.

But they were forced out of their own lives, dragged and enticed into this mess, and now they have to pay the price.

Is there really no one left?

Thy really don’t have anyone else?

So, it’s just like Emiya said.

Fine. Fine... I GET IT, FINE!!

Then I guess I’ll just have to

DO IT MYSELF!!!!!!!!

 

 

SN0MmEW.jpg


With that declaration, golden light effortlessly pierced through the emptiness of this oblivion-and in an instant, they were all swept away.

 

 


 

Epiloguous

Moments afterwards, the warriors of the multiverse found themselves floating in space. Breathable space, in fact!

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When they looked around, they would see that all the other survivors of the Illusive Sky/Shadow Cavern were with them. Curiously enough, Team Eria was there too - looking like they came from a huge battle of their own. As a whole, it seemed like everyone had been gathered here.

The warriors would feel as light as a feather, capable of moving about just by thinking about it. A colourful, rainbow nebula surrounded them, and although the stars looked so close that they could reach out and grab one, those stars were indeed light years away. It was a bizarre, yet majestic sight.

Still, it must’ve been hard to tell what exactly just happened. For all they knew - particularly those who’d never heard that voice before - this was just the work of another enemy.

That is, until a being materialised at the heart of this galactic realm.

There was no intense pressure radiating from her. No world-ending energy like there was with Isamy. Just this random, out-of-place lady. Her hair was a vibrant crimson, her eyes were heterochromatic, and she garbed in a kimono elaborate with gold and red designs mimicking flames that, with each movement, made them resemble a burning fire. Despite this relatively mundane stature, the being didn’t seem in the least intimidated by the massive assortment of seasoned warriors surrounding her. If anything, she was oddly calm for the situation.

“Well, let’s on with it, shall we?” The woman said, smiling as she twirled her umbrella at the center of all these warriors.

“Hi! I’m Itsu Fudo.

Blessed Mother of Hearth, Divine Sovereign of the Ryuusei Cluster, and your friendly neighborhood Sun Goddess. If this is your first time meeting me, it’s a pleasure.”

Itsu Fudo.

The name of that divine woman, who'd been involved in the Origin War since the very beginning.

For those who’d previously fought by her side, there had always been a sense that she knew far more about the war than anyone else - even the Counter Guardians. Yet, despite her vast array of knowledge and her personal connection to Protheus and Isamy, not once did she give away the answers. Then, when they entered the Pathway to Origin, she vanished just like that. Leaving her friends, her daughter, and everyone else. Just like that, she’d disappeared.

“Of course, most of you probably already know me. I was a member of the Counter Corps from the start. My physical form went through a lot of changes though, so I don’t know what you’d remember me as - so I became this familiar, then got split in two, then got mashed together in this unstable form. That last one wasn’t stable though, ended up breaking apart in the Pathway to Remembrance. Kinda died. Embarrassing. Well, looks like I’m back for one last go…or at least I think I’m back.”

The lady paused, a little confused about what to say next, but then proceeded to gesture towards her surroundings.

“When I fell, my divine essence found its way here. The place calls itself Epiloguous. It’s a bit weird, kinda like a observatory. Some sort of secret location in the Pathway to Origin. I’ve got a bit of a link to Isamy, so maybe, maybe that’s why.” Glossing over that fact, she moved her hand, and screen materialized around her - they showed chunks of ice, and cherry blossoms, stone monoliths, all floating in darkness. The remains of the Pathways. “Basically. I’ve been watching you guys all this time. So no need to introduce yourselves or get me up to date. It’s been one hell of a time, huh? Your journeys, your fights, everything that’s been going on… I was powerless from here, but dear me, there are so many things that frustrate me... Those Counter Guardians especially! Damn I wish I could’ve decked that Arturia in the face myself, the hell was up with that?!” Snapping all of a sudden, she felt the need to punch the air, before calming down. “Anyway…”

Itsu waved the screens away. With a sigh, she proceeded to start spinning, and her eyes started to go over the many warriors. Observing them, one by one, in a moment of silence.

You’ve all had it really rough, huh?“ She said, gently.

To Atsuko, she gave her daughter a smile. To Eria, Arthur, and their friends, she gave them a small, sad nod. To Nero, a thumbs up, telling him not to feel guilty over what happened. To Butler-Ragnarok and Darcy, a shrug, as if to say ‘guess you’re here too, oh well’. To Kratos… a silent look of apology. To Alister, Dorian, and Nanashi, her eyebrow raised with a certain level of intrigue at what they were. And towards Gabriel and all the others, a simple look of encouragement. Although she said nothing, it felt a bit like Reunion when they’d each been singled out and analysed. However, this time, there was a clear difference.

“Hey. It’s okay. Between all that tension, all that adrenalin, it’s okay to relax for a little while. Give me a second.”

This lady just genuinely wanted to make sure they were all okay.

Raising out her arms, she chanted a small spell. A wave of high-level magic healing followed, proceeding to wash over the warriors of the multiverse. Their wounds, and their exhaustion, were refreshed.

“It’s really easy to lose track of time in the Pathway, but at the end of the day, you’ve all been at it for seven hours now. Seven hours! Seven hours of travelling, personal introspection, and battling titans. Aren’t you guys exhausted? Itsu pointed out the most the obvious fact in the world. ”Whether it’s been three days or several years, a war is a war. It couldn’t have been easy. I’m sure you lost many allies, and I’m sure there’s a lot for you all to process too.”

Sure, there may have been warriors here and there with incredible amounts of stamina, with self-sustaining powers, with a degree of immortality. But the vast majority of them probably weren’t like that - they were normal, living people who just happened to know how to fight. Thus, without even noticing, they might’ve stretched themselves to their limits. They might’ve even strained themselves far beyond that.

“Epiloguous is disconnected from the Door’s timestream, so as far as Isamy is concerned, time has frozen. We can’t chill here forever, obviously… But for a while, I’d say there’s no harm in one last break, you know?”

However, as much as taking a break was a pleasant thought, there was an important duty to attend to.

All of reality was at stake. Their greatest enemy had the Key of Origin in her possession, and without anyone to stop her, it was all but guaranteed that she’d rush to open the Door of Origin the instant she had that opportunity. They could relax for now, and yet, taking it easy was absolutely not an option.

“Hey. Isamy needs to be defeated, that’s for sure. But I’ll be honest, considering what was about to happen out there… When you return to the battlefield, the very act of defeating her could be difficult.” Itsu stated bluntly. “Before you entered oblivion, did you see ‘that’? It’s an Anomaly made of distortions that entered Origin a little ago, and has since wrecked all the Pathways on its way here. I think... I think somehow, that’s the other part of Isamy. That is what’s left of Isabella, who led the Divine. That she followed us all here. It’s the only thing that would make sense.”

The original Isamy had two components - Ameliorer and Isabella. Ameliorer split herself into the Nobody and Heartless in an attempt to hold everyone back, but ultimately, they were both still Ameliorer. As for Isabella, all the distortions she’d spread everywhere may have wrecked her very existence, but ultimately, she was still Isabella.

“If I’m right and both components have met, your final enemy may very well be the complete, original Isamy Maximus. I struggle to imagine to imagine anything more dangerous than that.” From the beginning of the Origin War, right up to this final battle, the warriors had only ever had to face one half of Isamy. But now, “We’re talking about a Herald who surpassed Protheus long ago. She thinks of herself as a hero, but even before the Origin War, the Neighborhood Watch knew her as one thing and one thing only - an unstoppable catastrophe. I’m afraid she’ll be far tougher than any enemy, any monster you guys have ever faced in the war so far. With reality at stake, I can’t afford to be cheap about this. I’m sorry but… I’m not sure if it’ll even be possible to beat her. There’s a real chance you guys will lose in your current states.”

Then,

after a heavy, tense silence…

“Of course… that’s just in your current states, anyway!” Itsu grinned, and clicked her fingers. Prepared to give them the opportunity of a lifetime.

At first, nothing happened.

“You know. I’m willing to bet there’s not a single person here who didn’t get some power-up since joining the war. Each of you have learned, and grown, and probably gotten a lot stronger too. But! Even if it feels like years, the Shadow Realm was only three days ago. The Desert Seth was two days ago. The Sphere Forest was yesterday. And again, despite its many trials and hijinks, we’ve only been on the Pathway to Origin for seven hours!” When she pointed it, it really felt ridiculous. Everything must’ve felt so long ago to the characters. “There’s only so much anyone can change in such a short, insignificant amount of time. The fact you all came so far in just three days in incredible.”

Then, as if on cue, a single, shining star left the galactic sea around them, and it started to approach the group of warriors. Then another followed.  And then another. They were like tiny wisps, leaving behind trails of light. Star-wisps.

“If that’s the case, then imagine if you had months to hone your abilities? Years? A lifetime, even? You win the war, and live out the rest of your life, growing stronger and growing stronger - imagine you could skip all that time, and make that potential of yours real?” She said, raising out her arms. “Alternatively, I’m aware some of you are like me - people who were once gods, who have grown weaker - in which case, imagine if you could regain that former glory? Recover a level of strength lost to time?”

The goddess proceeded to hold her umbrella up into the air, as if beckoning the star-wisps forward.

“The power of the future, and the power of the past. It may not be much in the grand scheme of things, but I can at least do this much for you guys.” Itsu offered, before proceeding to explain. “I’m linked to Isamy due to...complicated circumstances that happened in the past. Thanks to that direct link to the Key of Origin, I can access its power to open miniscule holes within the Door—you probably know a bit about the power of ‘Void Inclusion’ she kept abusing throughout her battles. Well, that was her taking advantage of those gaps, invoking other people’s Origins. However, she doesn’t comprehend its true potential. I don’t think she ever will.”

In moments, there must have been about forty of them wantonly zipping about, filling the air above the cast with hopes and dreams. For each character, one specific wisp seemed to be especially drawn towards them.

“If you embrace it, you’ll tap into your Origin, and perform your very own Void Inclusion. Might feel funny, but you’ll momentarily transcend time and space. You can reach into your future and retrieve the power of your prime future self. Gain abilities that you have yet to hone, weapons that you have yet to obtain, a level of experience that you have yet to earn. You won’t have their memories, but everything will be yours to command. Or, if you want… you can reach into the past instead, and regain the power your past self once had. Whichever suits you better.”

All of the star-wisps proceeded to fly down, at which point it was clear that there was one for every single character present. Each wisp stopped directly before their correspondent user.

“Considering the amount of potential you guys have, and considering how strong I know so many of you already are, I can only imagine the differences it’d make. Of course, if you get weaker, don’t blame me!” She continued cheerily. “I know it must sound pretty scary. To change. To become someone different. Well, you know yourself more than anyone. I have no idea what your pasts were like, or what your futures are gonna be. At the end of the day, this is all totally up to you.”

The stage was set, and an opportunity to level the playing field had been given. There was a good chance their enemy would be the original Isamy Maximus. The Isabella version alone had brought the multiverse to a standstill by spreading her distortions, and the cast had experienced plenty of the trouble that came with the Ameliorer, as a psychic ghost, Hollow, as well as Heartless and Nobody.

One could only imagine how their experiences would combine, and what sort of terrifying force that would create. The mere thought of it was worrisome. Thankfully, at least, the majority of the cast could rest assured that they weren’t immediately launched into that battle after consecutively facing Isamy’s multiple forms.

After some time, Itsu spoke again, now seeming drained as she clutched tightly onto her umbrella. “For now, time has been frozen. If any of you have any lingering questions, now is your final chance to ask. Questions about Protheus and Isamy, the history behind the Origin, and more are welcome too. I’ve been, well, quiet. About a lot of things. And you guys, you’ve suffered more than enough that you deserve this transparency. I won’t be cryptic. I promise I’ll answer everything to the best of my ability.”

If anyone was paying particular attention to her form, then they might have noticed a certain that, from the feet up, it almost looked like Itsu was beginning to fade away. It was only natural. She hadn’t merely been offering some help, but actually used up what remained of her own power to make the smallest of differences, for the sake of the multiverse. Without drawing attention to it, she continued.

“Once everyone’s ready... you’ll be returned to the Door of Origin. My essence can’t exist outside anywhere else, so ‘fraid I won’t be able to help much more than this. ” Itsu said sadly. “Whatever happens from here on out, let me just say this—”

Finally, she took a step back, giving the warriors of the multiverse their own well-deserved space.

“Only through change are we going to win this. Good luck.”

 


 

This was Epiloguous—their last chance.  Between the potential for power and the potential for answers, it was clear that this was it. The endgame. The place where they would determine the finale of the Origin War.

The characters had no idea whether they would survive the final battle.

Accessing their own futures may be possible, but the nature of time didn’t apply to the Pathways. And even if they did survive, they had no idea what would happen next, and whether they would ever see one another again. There was no telling what would happen. Hence, if there was anything they had left to say, anything they had to resolve, then it was clear this would be the final opportunity to do so.

The characters may have any lingering questions, or may want any further information to prepare for the final battle.

A lot of otherworldly phenomena had happened during the Origin War. Confusing plots, inexplicable events, and in just three days, a lot of things had happened to keep track of. Even when there’d been a supposed ‘guide of Origin’ in Byakuya, all his answers were mysterious and unclear. Hence, with Itsu Fudo making herself readily available, the goddess was in the best possible position to give those difficult answers.

Finally, the characters had an opportunity before them.

A star-wisp hovered by each individual, following them wherever they went. There was something about the star-wisp itself that was simply—beautiful. Captivating. Magical. To the point of eliminating all doubts. Something in their minds stirred, as though this were a part of them they never knew they had, and there was something so utterly amazing about it that drew anyone in. If they embraced it, they could attain the Power of the Future, or the Power of the Past.

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Yet, that was ultimately their own choice. They could go for it immediately, they could take their time and maybe talk with the others, or they could refuse altogether. That was the beauty of the freedom of choice.

 

Warriors.

It’s time to act.

 

 

 

.

.

.

 

 

IF EMBRACED:

Spoiler

 

[upon embracing the

Power of the Future /// Power of the Past]

 

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Should they embrace the star-wisp,

they would find themselves enraptured by ultimate purity, and enter a corridor of time.

On the outside, it would look as though they had disappeared completely.

Their whole life would flash before their eyes, laid bare in the corridor, as they stood in a nexus outside of the confines of existence. A clear vision into the past before the war. Glimpses into a future after the war.

A brimming future was beyond them, filled with unlimited potential.

A long-lost past was behind them, filled with what once was.

This individual had the potential to reach out their hands in either direction, grasp hold of either their former self or the self that they have yet to be—

 

—and then,

become one with them.

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

Prologuous

A pillar of light would form in Epiloguous, letting the warrior descend back down.

Overwhelmed with a sense of triumphant power, one that was entirely theirs, they would feel something had changed about themselves. Rather, everything had changed. Their appearance, their abilities, the very atmosphere around them. It was an incredible crossover between two time periods possible only due to the power of Origin. In this unique, impossible instance, even if it was only temporary, they had reached the pinnacle of their potential. The realisation of their dreams. One might even call this their Grand Form.

For once in this Origin War, filled with tragedies and bittersweet victories, it finally felt as though they had a chance.

For once...

...it finally felt like they were heroes of the multiverse.

Edited by Merci

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Dorian: Final Chapter Redux

It's been an exhausting time. Fighting boss battles and fighting more boss battles and after that fighting more boss battles. It was definitely a stretch and it was getting daunting to say the least. But it seemed someone somewhere in Dues es Machina land had smiled upon him and the team and decided that it would be best if there was one last power upgrade and give it to everyone. Dorian woke up and saw nothing but white. The stereo typical white room. It seemed a little anticlimatic but Dorian was getting used to such at this moment. 

"Soooo this is where my story ends I see? A little disappointing. I had such grander plans. I guess." Dorian said in the vast void of nothingness. 

"Well let's not say that now." A mysterious voice said as the white room turned into the vast emptiness of space. Dorian looked confused as it seemed a bunch of people in robes seemed to just appear out of nowhere. 

"Now this is weird. I could've sworn the whole multiverse was gone thanks to our shenanigans. What pray tell is this?" Dorian asked to his mysterious new friends.

"Oh lower life forms...you do not want to get into the scemenatics about ethereal concepts and 10th dimensional beings etcetera etcetera." One of these beings spoke. Dorian raised his eyebrows and nodded in approval. 

"How can I help you all? It doesn't seem like we're about to do combat so what are we here for?" Dorian said at this council of higher beings.

"It seems you've been given infinite time to master the infinite wealth spring that is Cosmos and we feel like it would be better if just cut all the noise and and talk about what will happen after that." The council surrounded him and then they chuckled. 

"Ohhhh I can definitely subscribe to this. I can definitely subscribe to this." Dorian replied.
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rhadamanthys: Final Chapter Redux
 

Rhadamanthys had a somewhat different experience and it seemed like he was back in the underworld surrounded by Thanatos and Hypnos. He rolled his eyes and he was thinking that this was yet again another trap set by the final nuisance. However once he turned around he would see the original visage of his Master. The Original Hades. As Rhadamanthys turned around and looked in shock he immediately took the knee. 

"What reason would a God have to bow?" Hades said as he looked down upon Rhadamanthys. Non-verbally telling him to rise. As Rhadamanthys stood he couldn't figure out what was happening. "My Lord, for what reason could you even have for being."

"I have no real idea...but it seems you are not as strong as you should be. And we need to fix that. There is no reason for you to be having as much trouble as you are if you have realized your divinity. So let us make sure you are the best Lord of the Underworld you can be."

Rhadamanthys smirked as this definitely meant going toe to toe with Thanatos and Hypnos for a while. This was a good thing and it looked like it was going to be fruitful.
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Butlerok: Final Chapter Redux
 

Butler and Ragnarok were seemingly floating in an endless void of Black Blood. This was definitely different. 

Genryuusai, Hades and Gyoukuen all looked at the pair and the two did not know what to say. 

"So you've grabbed your future form huh?" Gyoukuen said snickering. "Well I guess we are going to give you your future form."

Genryuusai held up what looked to be a random ragdoll. "Instead of using someone else's power we will show you the future of your own."

Hades seemed to be exuding an even more powerful aura and his chains were transforming. "Let's customize this Mad Blood of yours I gotta pretty cool idea I was thinking we can talk about in the future."

Edited by BailasGale

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Two paths lay before Kratos.


The Past

His selfish indulgences. His reckless abandonment. His self-destructive behavior. His greatest peak of power. All of it was laid out before Kratos on a bed of nails. It was his past in which Kratos had been his strongest. He led armies. Conquered nations. Killed gods. Kratos was the most feared entity of his time. Each challenger was destroyed, no matter the power they held. Even the seemingly immortal Sisters of Fate -- whose control of time itself -- could not bind Kratos.

But he had changed... hadn't he?

He had forgiven himself for his past. He had reconciled with his family. He had even found a line of his own blood in the very war he was fighting right now. So then, what did the future offer him?


 
The Future
 
A... cradle? A woman. A boy. A giant serpent. A winged warrior. A blue... dwarf? Two blue dwarves. A mountain. A forest. An axe.
 
This axe. It was very cold. He could feel the magic of this weapon running through his fingertips as he gripped the pommel tightly. It felt so natural to wield it. It was second nature only to breathing. It was familiar. But it wasn't the only familiar weapon present. His blades--no. Athena's blades. Even Athena herself was present. They followed him into this new world. His past had lingered, long and far away. Kratos lament was obvious as he glared at the two paths laid before him.
 
The past gave him power. He would be at his strongest if he turned back. But the future...
 
The future brought his path with him. Nothing had changed. He was still the same monster. But he would be a monster of the past no more. Kratos made his choice and reached forward to the future.

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Arthur Ancyl

Was this the end? Would they finally be able to killl Isamy, and end this war? After surviving Protheus, he wasn't sure how much of a fight left he still had in him. Perhaps, if Aetos could be formed again, they would have a chance, but Aetos was created for the sole purpose of battling Protheus. Who could say if the same could be done against Isamy? He was sure that a song was not going to carry the same power of stopping Isamy like it did with her father.

The Void Inclusion that Itsu promised had to be Arthur's own power. Just his. But if he could tap into it, would that mean they could win? It wouldn't be too different than Protheus's sword; they would be putting the effect before the cause. The only way they could realize the future was by using its power to make it come true.

Arthur chuckled, but he felt he had to force it. "Making our future with our own hands is everything I've had on my mind since we defeated the Madara." And yet, it didn't feel right. It wasn't the power of the future that he desired. Just knowing that he could even use it at all was enough to satisfy him. There was another power he needed. It wouldn't be Aetos, but it would bring him just as much satisfaction.

MirageGaogamon

MirageGaogamon was afraid. Of facing Isamy. Of what the future could hold. Of saying goodbye to Arthur. No matter how many times he knew he had to accept it, no matter how many times the Pathways themselves showed him that he had to let Arthur go, MirageGaogamon simply could not accept that. Sure, he'd say as much, and Arthur would hear him. But did either of them actually accept that? The Digital World was no home for Arthur. It was an anchor.

Arthur was a demigod. He already had to choose between living at Camp Half-Blood, or getting his old life back. Before meeting Apollo. Before meeting MirageGaogamon… or rather, Strabimon. MirageGaogamon had accepted his new form, but he could never shake the feeling that this body was weaker than he had been before, no matter how stronger he got. That even the Burst Mode has only a candle to MagnaGarurumon's flame. The Pathways to Truth and Remembrance made that clear.

MirageGaogamon reached out, hoping to see what the power of the future offered ahead of him. Gazimon, Strabimon, and Gaomon. He had lived three lives, and who was to say that a fourth laid ahead of him? A life without Arthur. Where they could both let go. Where they could live their own lives, and still be happy.

"MirageGaogamon." He stopped. It was Arthur approaching him. "I know what you're thinking. We could both take the power of the future. It's what you and I have both been needing, after all. But… we've only made it this far because of the past. I thought I was running from my life. Using you as a shoulder to cry on. So it's always felt like… I have to keep telling myself that throwing you away is the only way I can grow up. If you were to take the power of the future, what kind of future are you expecting?"

MirageGaogamon couldn't answer. How was he supposed to? Should he have said it would be a future without Arthur? It wouldn't be any different from what Arthur was saying. It would mean he would have to give up Arthur, too. That wasn't letting go. That was giving up.

"Would it be any better if we used the power of the past instead?" he asked, but the words tasted bitter. "Sorry. That came out wrong."

"Why are you apologizing?" Arthur replied. "You know I'm never the one people apologize to. That's my job. But… I do think the power of the past is what you and I need. As a reminder that even if our futures take both of us on different paths, we'll always be a part of each other. It isn't about letting go. It's just about accepting that we don't have to be together every single second of the day."

MirageGaogamon stared at Arthur for a moment. "You make it all sound so simple. How many promises like are we going to keep making?"

"Depends on how many times we have to keep asking each other that question." Arthur held out his hand. "I know it might sound empty, but I truly believe that we'll be fine. Human, demigod, having you for a partner, and holding the Keyblade. I'll handle all of it. None of that is in competition. I'd rather we used the power of the past, to remember why we even got this far. Not as a crutch for myself. Not to keep holding myself back. I just don't want to think that finally growing up means I'll have to start running away from you, too."

MirageGaogamon sighed. "And you're sure you're fine with that?"

"You know what I loved most about when we were Aetos?" Arthur smiled. "The Bio-Merge. Fighting by your side as one… I've missed that. But thanks to the Demon Lords, we've never been able to do that again. It's like we're… incompatible."

"So you wish to use the power of the past to see if we can Bio-Merge again?" MirageGaogamon crossed his arms over each other. "That could work, judging by what Itsu is telling us. Are you sure you're okay with this? There's one thing I can't help but notice you didn't mention."

Arthur pursed his lips. Eria. Neither of them had to say it, but Arthur was more worried about her. Even before the Origin War, Arthur's world was already connected to the Digital World. He had no way of knowing if there was a similar connection to Eria's world, but he was certain that none would exist without either Isamy's Distortions, or Megiddo's power.

"Whatever the future has in store for Eria and I… we'll figure that out, together."

"I understand what you're getting at with using the power of the past for our sakes, but why not see what the power of the future could do for you and Eria?"

"I don't know if I'm ready for that."

MirageGaogamon smiled. "Then I think I understand now. Arthur, you're brave enough to balance everything else the multiverse has to offer. But love? You're still learning about that. How about this? If you want to use the power of the past, then I'm willing to do that. If we can, perhaps we'll be able to become MagnaGarurumon once more. But I think you should talk with Eria about the power of the future first. We should have enough time to make a decision. We've been separated from too many of our allies here long enough, so I'm going to see if there's anyone I can catch up with."

Arthur nodded. "That sounds like a plan. We'll catch up in a bit."

Edited by Phantom Roxas

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Two paths lay before Kenpachi.


The Past

To see his glory days again. That was a dream in an of itself. His name rang out in the hearts of Shinigami everywhere. They knew Kenpachi for his unmatched raw strength and superb combat. He was feared.

But that wasn't the past he longer employed for. Kenpachi was loved too; and by a spirit much stronger than his own.

He had forgotten her. He had forgotten her sacrifices. He had forgotten her strength. He had forgotten her love.

He could recognize her by her smile and her bright pink hair. What was her name?


The Future

Future? Did that really matter to him? Any concerns he had about power or control were clouded by the past. He had given his heart up for strength. He was nobody now. He didn't even have his own name. He had been rebranded as an enemy. And the one person who could have saved him was gone.

Those paths... they're one and the same,  aren't they?

It didn't matter now. Nor would it matter later. He stretched backward into the past and made his decision. He wanted to have his heart back. One last time.

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Team Dorian: The Final Final! 

Their respective futures converged. Finally attaining and achieving something grand. Each of the three had become something far more powerful than they initially thought they would be when they started this journey. And that included Dorian the meglomanic with a God Complex who was after a trading card. The three converged in some some other space, some other white room at some other space and time. What seemed to be an endless epoc turned into a very fun reunion that was filled with hugs.

Butler and Dorian both looked at Rhadamanthys and chuckled before they bowed. "Lord Hades I presume. It is nice to see that you have gone full God mode on us. We probably could've used a little bit of that earlier. I mean how are you even able to contain all of your raw power." Dorian said looking at a Rhadamanthys that was simply oozing with power. 

"Hmph do not make light banter around me boy. I instantly recognize the rest of the Pantheons cosmos surrounding you? How were you able to make contact with them?" Rhadamanthys quickly retorted.

"Can't keep nothing from you I see. Well I guess one of my infinite futures I meet them. Or as it was explained to me. They each grabbed one of my futures where I meet them and just compiled them into this one opportunity. Like reading a choose your own adventure book but instead of actually picking a path you just pick up the whole book instead. Kinda cool if I say so myself. I've learned sooooo much in such a long and expansive amount of time."

Dorian and Rhadamanthys both then looked at Butlerok who was...quiet. Just very quiet, almost to the point where he would be lost in thought. They simply stared at him. It was like looking at lake that was completely still. It was peaceful, serene almost. But that was what scared the two Cosmos masters. Still waters run deep. Still waters are the deadliest ones because beneath the surface that is where the current sweeps you up and you suffer painfully in the depths. That was what Dorian and Rhadamanthys were looking at. An undercurrent of madness that was truly frightening. "This is one of those best not to ask situations isn't it?" Dorian said looking somewhat worried. 
 

Ragnarok's chibi body popped out from Butler's back and it softly landed on the man's head. They both quietly nodded and the group just let that one go.

"So what are we waiting for? Isn't last stand at the okay coral time?" Ragnarok shouted. 

"I guess we're just waiting for the rest of the cast to finish doing what they have to do in order to all make one final stand." Dorian said and the rest of the group nodded. Thus another waiting game would commence.

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Hope

Kratos settled in the White Room, trying to allow his mind to adjust to the things he had just witnessed from his past and potential future. Though, potential was the wrong word now. He had chosen the future over the past, but he still wasn't sure of exactly what waited for him.

From his back, Kratos drew the Blade of Promise. It hummed in his hands, softly at first, until Kratos held it out before himself. The weapon glowed a bright light, causing a shadow to etch it's way through the White Room, to the other side. Inside the shadow of the Blade, an image of a young man took shape. 

Kratos lowered the Blade from his face and stared into the light and shadow. He recognized the young man before him.

He could almost place his name.

"Atr--."

Kratos found himself unable to speak the name. Perhaps it wasn't right.

"... Arthur?"

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Before Arthur could meet Eria, a different voice called to him. "... Arthur?"

Arthur approached the Spartan. The first of his other allies that he had really seen since the Pathway to Remembrance. "Hey," Arthur answered. He knew he had been late. They all had been. He still didn't understand everything that had happened while they lagged behind. "Sorry we're all late." He tried to be sincere, but he said it with a bit of a chuckle.

"I have a lot to ask you, but I don't know if we'd have the time. I need to talk with Eria and figure out how we're supposed to win this. But first..." He felt the grip of Hopeless Black at his side. The sword wasn't his to use, despite what the Madara said. "I found this in that hallway before I came here, and I should probably give it back to Lydia."

Arthur waited for Kratos to answer, but there was only silence. He couldn't just focus on the fighting, and making sure everyone was prepared for the battle. So why couldn't he just talk to them? The Counter Corps were certainly allies, but there still had to be friends among them as well.

Before either of them could break the silence, Arthur ran to Kratos and gave him a hug. He was so short and thin compared to the mighty Spartan. "Gods," Arthur cursed under his breath. His hands were trembling. "All things considered, I need to tell you this if we don't get another chance. You're my... you're family, Kratos."

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|_)Echoes of Love & Peace(_|

Hapshiel followed the words of the charming geisha well, and he knew full what her offer entailed. His past was something he had long forgotten in his endless war, but he dare not know his precious future. Oh yes~ It made him all the moister to know his future was within is grasp, and yet he dare not take it. The tease alone was spine-tingling. But no, there was something far more important he required; something he had sworn to give up.

Taking the light, his heart was cast back to the long distance past, back to the War of the Divine from eons ago. The perverse angel walked the line of his past, all the way to where his desire for Love & Peace began. For it all began, with an angel in plate mail, and a grandiose flaming sword matched only his by his fierce expression and flaming wings. His gauntleted hand rested on the tip of his sword as he regarded this fruity mockery of himself. And yet, he could not deny who he was, despite themselves being night and day; War & Peace. Hatred & Love. "I require your assistance" Hapshiel said to his former self.


|_)What Will I Become?(_|

Lydia walked a lonely path. She had taken Itsu's offer without a second thought, and now she walked a path filled with darkness, with just a trail of starlight to guide her. And by her side floated a long golden eastern dragon to keep her company. And yet, Lydia had to stop. "What is it girl?" Avalon demanded.

Turning around, the sorceress looked back down the path, wherein at the end a small star of light shone. The dragon followed her gaze, and yet he said nothing, the dialogue of her internal struggle as clear to him as it was to her. "I can't" the girl spoke, and turned back to her path.

There was nothing left for her back there. That life was over now. Everything back there was gone, and the power brought by her past would hold her back. She had to talk forwards. There was nothing back there that could help her anymore. But it didn't stop her hands trembling, or her legs from weakening as each step took her further away from everyone she loved and cared about. They couldn't help her anymore. Which is why she went towards the Future, to when the bonds were broken and she was free. And yet the path was endless, a walkway of a million stars heading towards more darkness.

It felt like an eternity as they moved along the path, an eternity of nothing until a stage before them. The only solid platform in a future of nothing. And upon it, a figure. They bore golden wings as she did, and yet there were longer feathers hanging from them. There were six per wing, and each hung blanched white, with black markings and tips. Their armour seemed dull too, or perhaps it was because there was no real radiance to show how truly golden it was. But regardless, the figure's golden tail twisted about, and they turned. Lydia and Avalon stared at the armour they themselves wore, now dulled beyond belief, and matched by the grim sheathe of Impure Future the figure rested their hand upon. "You've come a long way just to be disappointed" they declared.

"I suppose I have, if this is what my future holds" Lydia said back.

The figure chuckled as her dragon helmet was removed, a wave of dark crimson hair falling down her shoulders, and the sorceress and the dragon felt a bit repulsed. The Lydia of the future had very pale skin, with what clearly appeared to be flecks of scale woven neatly with the skin of the sides of her head. Though what was most unnerving were the black sclera of her eyes that did nothing to balance the brilliant gold of her pupils. "How bout now?" she asked.

"What happened to you girl?!" Avalon demanded.

"Hello Avalon," the future sorceress greeted with nostalgia, "it's been so long since I've heard your voice."

"Why?!"

"I did what I needed to do Avalon. You yourself know that, because by now you've already had those thoughts as well. Though it is sad that there is simply no trust in you to admit it" FL commented.

"Avalon what have you kept from me now?" Lydia demanded. The dragon was silent as he pulled back from the two. "AVALON!"

"Leave him be. You know what he's like when he's in a mood" FL pointed out.

"Like you can talk. What are you? How did I end up like... like this?!"

"I accepted despair, at long last."

"WHAT?! You mean after all this, AFTER ALL THIS?! I... just give up?! I throw in the towel?!"

"You tell me if that's the case."

The future Lydia's armour faded away, and the current Lydia almost wanted to run away. While her, far more feminine than current self's attributes were covered by thick scales, it really didn't help how black they were, or how she was far more pale than ever. How she had gone this far into the dragonic was a mystery, though the golden scaling and claws on her arms and legs were more of a give away. "You fused with Avalon" the sorceress uttered.

"It was his call. We needed the power but only one mind. I had the body, so it was his decision to make to grant me the power to take on Isamy at her full power."

"And what? It still wasn't enough, so you just gave up?!"

"You're really not getting it, are you?" FL smirked as her armour reformed. "I accepted despair instead of constantly rejecting it, like you are. I stopped lashing out against the one who needed my sympathy most."

"LERNA? How does she demand our sympathy?"

"Well, it took it being explained to me, but really, we should have shattered her Soul Gem when we should have, to give her peace. She's been forced to exist far longer than she was meant too."

"I... I guess?"

"Yeah, I remember when I made that response."

"I guess I never really thought that she was quite alive, but when she was Hopeless Black...."

"It scared us. She was trying to force her will on us at our weakest, but she's really not that bad when reasoned with in the right way."

"So... what are you? Are you even a Lydia anymore? Or are you some weird fusion of me, Avalon, LERNA, and the Madara?"

"I am exactly like you. We learned to co-exist, and in return we will gain the power to finally fight Isamy on an equal footing. It allows everyone to have their rest, and make sure we're strong enough to fight anyone else who dare threatens the Omniverse."

"That's a scary thought."

"And it frustrates me to know I made that decision!" Avalon snarled.

"You've already made it Avalon. You're being too- Heh, your pride is your best attribute, isn't it? But look, you know this is the only way. You and her can't co-exist as you do without one finally consuming the other. You know it's going to happen, and you could never deal with being female, could you?"

"Avalon!"

"I choose to ignore that. But, it is clear my mind is made up now, as I will clearly always make it. So, because you know what happens next, what do we do?"

"I considered taking the power and knowledge of my future self too, but...."

"We need to do this ourselves, without interference. I... I'm still scared, but if you survived the process, I know I can too. And I know I have someone I need to apologize to now. Avalon, come on, we have to go back."

"Hmph, I have no choice do i?"

Lydia nodded and she turned away from her future, fading away back to the reality marble. And in the spare few moments Avalon had, he looked towards the future sorceress. "I'm proud of you" he said, and was gone too.

"I always knew you were Avalon. Goodbye."


Back in Itsu's reality marble, Lydia returned alone, and ready. Holding her hand out, she called for Hopeless Black, in the hopes of summoning it like a Keyblade. But no dice. Could she have messed up? Had abandoning it in the tower caused it to wind up getting destroyed.

"Girl."

That was... that was LERNA! Looking for the source of the voice, it was located with that guy she had lent Fire Fox to that one time, who somehow had Hopeless Black in a sheathe. How the heck did he get that? Well, it didn't matter. Passing by the Counter Corps, Lydia approached Arthur diplomatically. "Excuse me, but I think you have something of mine."

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Team Dorian: The Final Final

The team slowly realizes that they are in the same empty blank space with the others. All Dorian had for the people was a shrug. Did they grow? Did they not grow? Did it matter? In the grand scheme of things probably not but everyone was here now. This included a very old yet familiar face, Arthur. The old over arching antagonist to Dorian's story. From the attempted murderers, to the digimon wars, to the whole turning her girlfriend into a perverted doll bent on driving all of existence into state of insanity and depravity, these two have certainly been through a lot. Dorian smirked as the good guys over there had joined together and were probably going to come up with some strategy together to fight Bossamy

"I definitely wonder if there is anything we can do for Boss lady at this point? While I am sure this is going to be some final close out for whatever story this is I just cannot help but think these guys are truly capable of getting hit with the true death." Dorian inquired. 

"If it was something simple as having a soul put in another body then I sure think we would have a myriad of options. But there seems to be rules tied to her existence and we are only allowed to do so much with all of these future possibility powers we have access too." Butler added. 

Dorian tilted his head and was slightly disturbed by the answer Butler gave. "Have you seen the hierarchy?" Dorian asked and his manservant nodded. "My God! What exactly was your future?" Dorian said somewhat shocked.

Well I had 4 or 5 to choose from. Butler responded. Being private bus for souls that retain consciousness kinda gave me access to all the possible futures that I would have available if I would've had just one. I must admit Hades' does not end well...not in the slightest. That being said I cannot breach dimensional barriers that seems to be something reserved for you two. Butler said pointing back at Dorian and Rhadamanthys. 

This waiting bores me. Rhadamanthys said as he somehow sat on a Throne that was made of Mad Blood. Of course he paused for a second and poked the throne. He shot Butlerok a look and Ragnarok simply responded with a cheesy grin. Cheeky aren't we!

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Future

Arthur finally settled in Kratos' vision as the White Room became clear. It was then that Kratos realized he wasn't speaking. Words couldn't form on his lips. But he could hear and understand everything Arthur was saying. But why now for Arthur appear to be so... important? The young man's aura filled Kratos' vision, and reminded him of something. 

"God's," Kratos heard Arthur swear. "All things considered, I need to tell you this if we don't get another chance."

Kratos remained silent.

"You're... you're my family, Kratos," Arthur said at last.

A stir of never before seen images suddenly flashed before Kratos' eyes. The world was engulfed by flames. And at it's center, a pale figure wielding a mighty sword stood. It was Kratos.

He gasped harshly, suddenly falling to a knee. The weapon he saw... it was the Blade. He couldn't be trusted with this kind of power. And if Kratos sought the future to change, he had to entrust it to someone else.

He stood finally, taking a deep breath. That's why Arthur was here now, wasn't it? Who was it that laid this path before Kratos? Who had written this destiny into action? 

"... Boy," Kratos said finally. "You're one of them aren't you? A god."

Kratos' words were, surprisingly, innocent.

"It seems, no matter what lands I travel to, I cannot escape my past. Perhaps that is why you're here before me. The gods and their kin... they follow me." 

Kratos was smiling.

"I understand now," Kratos admitted. His father had set him free. Now he had to set himself free.

"I have been bound by my sins of my own accord. I have chosen to live as a monster. I have chosen to live as a slave to my past." Kratos outstretched both his hands with the Blade of Promise toward Arthur.

"No more." Kratos' words were honest.

"Arthur. You are here for a reason. And I believe that entrusting you with this power is best for both my universe and yours." 

Whether or not Arthur would reach out to take the Blade was unimportant. As Kratos' hands stretched out, the Blade hummed once again. It loftily floated out of Kratos' hands and hovered inches away, upright, from Arthur's face.

And now, a different weapon took it's place in Kratos' palms. A sheer cold ran up his palms and took the shape of the axe from his visions. This was the Leviathan Axe.

"Arthur," Kratos began. "Will you aid me in securing the future?"

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Gagagigo reached out into a dark void. What good had the past brought him? There had been nothing but blind rage and anger that set him on the path to joining Kozaky. He didn’t expect to see a future waiting for him, but even if he would not have his future self’s memories, he needed to know what he could become.

He felt himself falling through cold water. He tried to swim to the surface, but the ice had frozen over above him. It was like he was back in the Pathway to Remembrance again. He struck the ice, hoping to break through, but he couldn’t find even the smallest crack. Water poured into his lungs, but he didn’t feel in danger of drowning. The water was passing through him.

Was this a vision? If this was how the Void Inclusion was supposed to work, it was another cruel trick. But this was what the Pathways had to show each and every one of them, after all. To recognize their past, present, and future all together. What Itsu was offering was a chance to realize why the Pathways had tested him.

"It isn’t just me," he realized. Looking into the ice, he start to make out his own reflection. Golden armor reflected hints of red light along his body. It wasn’t just his past self. This was the face that the other Eria’s Gagagigo had before she had slain him. Gagagigo for that other self, too.

There was no point in a future where he could not earn Eria’s forgiveness, and there was no point in earning that if he could not manage to forgive himself either. That had to be true in both universes. There was an entire multiverse of Gagagigos and Erias out there who needed their chance to survive. Among all the Charmers and their Familiars, it had come down to Eria and Gagagigo. Why did it have to be them? Why did his sins have to put the fate of the entire multiverse in their hands?

They were all a team once. How many years had it been since he last saw them? His hand rested on the ice, and finally the first crack started to form. It was just enough for some of the water around him to start leaking through the ice, and shooting up through to the surface. His reflection kept staring at him. There was no anger in its face, but no sorrow, either. If he could actually talk to his other self, what would he say?

Gagagigo felt his body shift again. He slammed against the ice as the world seemed to turn upside down and the lake crashed down like a wave around him. He could barely lift himself up through the falling water. Suddenly, his reflection finally moved, punching the ice just as Gagagigo himself was just minutes ago.

“Stop it,” Gagagigo muttered to his reflection. “We’ll be alright.” But the reflection didn’t stop trying to get through the ice, even though his punches seemed to do nothing. Gagagigo placed his hands on the ice. Three rings of golden light wrapped around his body, and his reflection roared.

“You’re not here, so maybe I’m talking to nothing. But the power of future isn’t just for me. It’s for both of us. For a future where the multiverse can never lead us to a dark path ever again!”

Ice shattered and water evaporated as the golden lights coalesced around both Gagagigos. Together, they could both hear Eria’s voice, casting a spell that was completely unfamiliar to Gagagigo.

“Rank-Up-Magic Tears of the Ocean Dragon Lord!”



Eria braced herself as a tower of water that stood before her spun rapidly. Raindrops let loose from the tower seemed to fade as they touched the “ground”. She was waiting for Gagagigo to choose his Grand Form, but she still needed to decide on her own. The easy answer was the future, but it had to be for the future for both of her original selves. Not the future of this… thing that Megiddo had transformed them into.

The Door was sure to have the power to split her back up again, but that was only if they could defeat Isamy. Perhaps the power that Itsu offered was a self-fulfilling prophecy? That by taking the power of the future, they would able to make the future come to pass. So why? Why couldn’t she find the power of her futures?

“You still don’t get it, do you?” she asked herself. “You think I can just go back and stop the War of Darkness from ever happening, and when I finally go get my happily ever after, I’ll just follow the same path as you, right?”

“That’s not true!” she snapped back. “I know you have to live your own life-”

“Cut the crap.” Eria sighed. “Gods, are we really the same person? I’m starting to think that if Megiddo had fused me with Hiita, it’d make more sense than this. There’s no ‘right’ path for either of us. You’ve got Gagagigo back. You’ve got Arthur. And you’ve lost Mom, Dad, Wynn… even with everyone gone, you’re keeping yourself together because you’re hoping we’ll get a do-over for everyone. But if we both make it back, neither of us are going to forget any of that. It can be twenty years from now, and maybe we’ll be able to kick back and laugh about this. You and Arthur will probably have a kid-”

“I get the point.”

“Sorry,” Eria chuckled. “This is what Megiddo wanted, right? For us to think alike. But even if I stop the war, I’m not you. I can’t be you. Not again. Whatever life you want to lead, it probably won’t be my style, you know? So let me give it a try.”

Eria turned away from the tower of water and held both of her hands out. Two blue doors appeared before her. One was lighter in color, and the other was dark. “Obviously we can’t walk into both while stuck together we’re like this. But the problem is that you’re trying to pull off one last transformation, and become our future selves. Think about it this way.”

Eria gathered water around each of her hands, and shaped them into whips. Lashing each of them at the knobs on the doors, she pulled both doors open. “Let our futures come to us!”



Six lights were traveling among the stars glittering the space aroound Epiloguous. At least, Kairi thought there were six of them. One of them seemed to flicker on and off, before fading altogether. It had nothing to do with Kairi’s own future. It was someone else’s future, one that was now never going to come true.

How many of the Counter Corps were still left? There were a few who had joined after the Aeon escaped from the Rejected World, but it seemed like several of them hadn’t made it. She never even had a chance to learn all of their names. So what was so special about the five or six lights that she had seen? What was the multiverse trying to tell her?

“What we are to be when all this is over?” Kairi needed the power of the future. It wasn’t like she had done much in the past herself. And yet, she was afraid of the future. For a moment, she was happy, but the moment was all too short. She needed that happiness to last just a little longer.

She slumped to her knees and buried her face in her hands. “Is this all I can have? All I can be?” She didn’t feel any different. There was no “Grand” Form waiting for her no power which power she took. But what else could she do? She reached out to grab the future, but all she could feel was the wind.



‘Nothing you could say can stop me going home,’ huh? I hope you’re right, Arthur.” The Ultima Weapon appeared in the air beside him, followed by Two Become One. Holding both of his hands in front of him, he waited for one more weapon. His clothes began to glow pure white, as he could the power of the future gathering in his hands.

The χ-blade. He still didn’t quite understand what it was supposed to be, other than Xehanort dedicating everything to forging it. Two of Sora’s own Keyblades were interlocked with each other, their guards melded together to form a grip for Sora to hold onto. A single blade extended from the overlayed shafts of the original Keyblades.

As Sora held the χ-blade above him, ten more Keyblades surrounded him. “Wow,” Sora chuckled. It was hard to believe that he could have this many Keyblades at his side. He dismissed the majority of them for the moment, save for the χ-blade. He still felt that there was one last power awaiting within him, but he would have to save it for Isamy. With all the power he needed in his hands, Sora returned to join the others at the heart of Epiloguous.



"Excuse me, but I think you have something of mine," said Lydia.

Arthur jumped back from Kratos, and his hand slowly reached for the sword at his side. “Right, sorry about that.” Unsheathing Hopeless Black, he presented the sword to her. “I should thank you,” he said. “Eria and the rest of us would probably have never been able to kill Protheus without your help,” he added. They were only able to defeat him because they were able to survive so long. Arthur didn’t want to consider how much worse their chances would have been if he was using his own sword against them.

Once Lydia took the sword, Arthur turned to Kratos. He seemed almost at peace. Arthur could hardly begin to imagine everything that Kratos had been through, but he suspected that his own past must have seemed small and petty compared to Kratos’s experiences. “I’d say we’ve both been slaves to our past,” Arthur told him. “Once we kill Isamy, we can still looking forward to our future. Of course I’ll help you.”

As honored as Arthur was that Kratos offered him a sword, it felt strange. First Sora, and now Kratos. They both trusted them with new blades because they saw potential in Arthur. The only difference now was that Arthur could understand why Kratos would trust him. Why anyone could trust Arthur with making the future come to pass. Arthur reached for the Blade of Promise, but he felt another blade in his free hand. His own Keyblade. Not just what Sora had promised him, but what Arthur had forged with his own power to defeat the Madara. The Keyblade shimmered in his hand, resonating in the presence of the Blade of Promise. At first, Arthur wondered if his Keyblade was jealous, but it wasn’t that. Somehow, he could tell that the Keyblade “wanted” him to take the Blade of Promise.

“Let’s take the future,” Arthur answered at last as he accepted the Blade of Promise. As soon as he did, both the blade and Arthur’s Keyblade vanished, as white and gold lights gathered in his hand. A gust of wind pushed him back a few feet from Kratos, but Arthur held his ground. The light was gathering into the shape of a new blade before him. His Keyblade and the Blade of Promise had become one; all Arthur had to do was take it. His heart skipped a few beats as he tried to grab the blade. It was still made of light itself, and so he had to give it form.

“My future is with Eria,” he said. Small streams of water flowed through the light, followed by twin vines that settled into place.

“But chasing that future doesn’t mean throwing away my past. I wouldn’t want the future if I couldn’t accept everything that’s happened to me.” Two blue arcs formed the Keyblade, each adorned with a golden sickle.

“Father… I promise you that I won’t run away this time.” Between the vines was the semblance of railroad tracks, twisted together in a spiral, and at the end of the Keyblade, the spiral branched back out into the heads of twin howling wolves, each facing the opposite direction. One wolf was white, while the other was black, and nestled between their heads was a spoked wheel.

Arthur took the Keyblade, but it felt heavy in his hands. It nearly slammed to the ground before Arthur corrected his stance. “United Horizon,” he said. “I think that’s what I’ll call this.” He took a long, deep sigh. “Thank you, Kratos. Just a little bit longer, and we should all be ready.”

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Grievances

Kenpachi had returned to the White Room, but strangely, no one else was there.

...

...

...

...

This wasn't the White Room. This was the wrong room. He turned left and right searching for a sign of anyone else. There was nothing to his west. Emptiness to the north. Loneliness in the east. Then, there came a bounding wind from the south, carrying cherry blossoms.

"Head Captain," Byakuya called suddenly.

Kenpachi turned around slowly. "It's good to see you, Kuchiki."

Byakuya maintained his usual, stoic composure. "You've strayed from your path."

Kenpachi remained silent.

"You were once a man of pure, unswaying loyalty. Yet, you experienced loss and betrayed your comrades. It's unbecoming of you and unfitting of a man who holds the title that Genryuusai Yamamoto once held," Byakuya commented.

"I'm nothing like him," Kenpachi retorted.

"Clearly," Byakuya snapped back. "She gifted you great strength in her absence. She sacrificed for you, and you have desecrated that gift. How did your heart become so easily corrupted?"

Kenpachi balled a fist. He quickly let it go. "To be honest, I don't know."

Byakuya placed a hand on the hilt of his weapon. "That is the answer, Captain Commander. Because you do not know, you fell to the darkness."

"Don't talk to me about turning to darkness, Kuchiki," Kenpachi growled. "You were dying in that castle, and you got desperate. You broke your loyalty, same as me."

"You are correct," Byakuya said quickly.

"Then why are you here right now preaching to me when you're already guilty?" Kenpachi asked.

"I'm here to turn you back, Captain Commander. I refuse to allow you to stray any further," Byakuya said, his hand still on the hilt of his blade.

Kenpachi scoffed. "Any path I choose is my path," he declared. "But..." Kenpachi said solemnly. "You're right. I gotta fix this."

Byakuya rested his hands and lowered his guard. "You're already on the right track, Captain Commander." He turned on his heels, turning his back to Kenpachi, and vanished from plain sight.

"Tch. Prideful bastard, even in death," Kenpachi said softly.

"Kenny?" Yachiru called from Kenpachi's back.

He turned around with a jolt. "Kid," he said solemnly.

She sprinted toward him and Kenpachi stooped down. They embraced one another tightly, with Kenpachi's eyes welling up with tears. "Ah, Yachiru. I was sure I'd never see you again. When you died--ow!"

She punched Kenpachi squarely in his head. A frown formed on Yachiru's lips. "Don't go killing me off so soon!"

Kenpachi rubbed his head. "Huh?"

"Don't you get it yet, Kenny? I'm your Zanpaktou spirit," she said as she bounced on her toes. "I'm not dead. I'm riiiiiiiiight here!" Yachiru said as she snatched Nozarashi from Kenpachi's back. "I hated to part from you, but I didn't want to see you go so soon. It took me a long time to learn to care for you, ya know."

Kenpachi smiled. "So you're still here, huh?"

Yachiru nodded with a big grin.

Kenpachi's smile faded. "Then that means you saw everything, right?"

Yachiru's smile faded as well. "I did."

Kenpachi folded his arms. "I betrayed them. The Corps. Killua. Gon. They were all counting on me for my help."

"And how do you intend to fix it?" Yachiru asked.

Kenpachi scratched his head. "I don't think I can."

Yachiru nodded. "That's step one."

"Huh?"

"Now, you need to let go," Yachiru continued.

"Of what?"

"Me. Those boys. Byakuya. You're tearing yourself apart because you haven't coped with the loss of your friends, whether they died by your hands or not. You can't let that pain tear you up and turn you to the darkness, Kenny," Yachiru stated. She stretched out her hands and returned Nozarashi to Kenpachi. As he received the Zanpaktou, Kenpachi held it lightly in his palms. "I can't get them to trust you again. But you can give yourself to the right cause, and go out swinging."

Kenpachi gripped Nozarashi tightly now, before storing it on his back again. "You think if I throw myself at the enemy and die for my friends, they'll forgive me?"

Yachiru shook her head. "No. But I think if you die trying to do the right thing, you'll learn to forgive yourself." She smiled at Kenpachi, who had just finished wiping his tears from his eyes.

"Damn it, Yachiru. I miss you so much," Kenpachi admitted finally. She ran to hug him again and Kenpachi gladly accepted it.

"Go, Kenny. You've got a lot of work to do," Yachiru said as she finally let go of Kenpachi.

"I hope to see you again soon, kid," Kenpachi said as he stood up straight.

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“Ariel” was a name chosen to avoid a life better off forgotten. As long as she could defeat the darkness once and for all, the world didn’t need to remember Eria, the Water Charmer. The Gishki taught her powers that not even Lady Doriado could. At least, none that she would have dared to. That was what Ariel liked to think, for a time.

Her body was cold. She couldn’t feel her legs, but she knew that there was something skittering along the ground, carrying her towards her prey. Not yet, she told herself. Now wasn’t the time. Not until Isamy was here.

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“So this is the future…” Ariel couldn’t quite explain why, but she was somehow disappointed. Even with Itsu’s Void Inclusion, would this be enough? “No, this isn’t it. There’s still something more. Something even further ahead. So why? Why can’t I reach it?”

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“This is plenty,” Eria answered. She was wearing dark blue armor, and her Keyblade had transformed. It still looked like a rapier, but the guard was covered in barnacles, and the edge of the blade was stained crimson on one side, while the prongs of a trident extended from the other. Fins decorated her gauntlets, though the left fin extended past her forearm.

She looked at her hand. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and removed the glove. Slowly, she opened her eyes again. She saw nothing in her hand. No marks. No l’Cie brand. “A future free from Megiddo,” she smiled. “Maybe this is what the Void Inclusions are. The wishes we make on the Door will decide our future. And if these powers are what we’ll gain in the future, we can use them to make that future possible."

Eria turned around, but a monster was staring her right in the face. It looked like an angler fish, but the face alone was as big as Eria herself, and that was before getting to the six legs that held the creature up, or the leathery wings that it proudly displayed. Eria stepped back instinctually, but the monster bowed its head. Ariel’s upper body was attached to the forehead of the beast, though Eria wasn’t quite sure that was where the monster ended and Ariel began.

“Well, that’s probably a good sign for you,” said Ariel. “Sticking to the optimist routine? Better than moping around, I guess.”

“You sure you’re still supposed to be me?” Eria teased. “You sound more like Hiita.”

Ariel smirked. “Maybe I’ve just learned why she hated our guts so much.”

For a moment, Eria almost felt like laughing. But the other Hiita had just died during the batte in Remembrance. She shouldn’t be joking at Hiita’s expense like that. After a few stutters, she added, “We’ll bring back them all back, okay? I don’t think we can say our future is secured until we’re all together again.”

Ariel nodded. “Somehow, I think you might be right about that.”

The two Eria’s shook hands, and the world around them began to change. The rain was gone, and they were back at Epiloguous once more.


Gagagigo awoke in Epiloguous with a stir.

“…gigo?”

His head was aching as he lifted himself up from the ground. He stumbled for a moment as his eyes adjusted to his surrounding. Eria was standing before him. Two of them, though vastly different. One was merged with some kind of monster, while the other looked more like a knight than an apprentice mage.

“You look like a real hero now,” Eria smiled. She held her hand beside her, and a mirror of ice appeared. Gagagigo was startled; he almost didn’t recognize himself at first. His body was clad in silver armor, and red-orange tatoos marked his body. He put a hand to his heart, and sure enough, when he looked into the mirror, he could see himself mimicking the motion.

“This… this is me?” He looked down to her, trying to understand what had happened himself. “I had heard your voice. You had called upon the power of the Ocean Dragon Lord.”

Eria tilted her head. The name sounded familiar, but she didn’t know too much about it. “Daedalus, wasn’t it? Something to ask Doriado about once we’re home.” If Doriado was could be alive again by then, she had to remind herself.

“Yes. Whatever spell you acquired to accomplish this must certainly be powerful.” As he continued to admire his new armor, he noticed Ariel staring. He wasn’t quite sure if it was a good stare or a bad stare. “I… I know I am not your Gagagigo-”

“I know, you’re sorry,” Ariel interrupted. “It’s not your responsibility to apologize to me. You and Eria already patched things up. I’m… not quite sure I get to hold a grudge after siding with Protheus. I’d rather just wait and see if my Gagagigo has even half as much sense as you. But I don’t mind working with you. For now.”

“So… partners?” asked Gagagigo.

“…I suppose I can agree to that,” said Ariel. Her beast half crawled over to Gagagigo, and Ariel extended her hand. “Don’t worry, he’s not going to bite. Much. And only Isamy, I assure you.”

“That’s…” Gagagigo watched anger gnash its teeth expectantly. “I’m not sure if that’s actually reassuring.”

Once Gagagigo and Ariel reluctantly shook each other’s hands, Ariel looked around Epiloguous. “Now then, where is the boyfriend?”

“I’m right here,” Arthur answered. He and MirageGaogamon approached Gagagigo and the Eria’s, though he was looking around for someone else. “That just leaves…”

"Don’t worry, I’m here,” said Sora. Kairi walked beside him, her hand in his. Kairi took a deep breath, but Sora nudged her. “We’ll be okay, Kairi."

“Right,” she said nervously. Kairi looked the same as she had before Itsu appeared. A single glance was enough to tell that Eria, Gagagigo, and Sora had all changed, but Arthur didn’t have the same feeling about Kairi. Had the Void Inclusion changed anything? Compared to the magnificent Keyblade that Sora now held, Arthur was concerned that Kairi didn’t receive anything similar.

“Arthur and I wouldn’t have these powers without either of you,” said Eria. “Let’s all show Isamy what we can do."

Eria’s smile was so infectious, Kairi couldn’t help but smile back. She felt more at ease listening to Eria. “I’m sure I could show you a thing or two myself.”

“Eria, you’ve got a moment?” asked Arthur. He nodded, gesturing to Eria to follow him away from the rest of the group.

“Sure,” Eria complied. Her heart was beating faster. There was something else to the power she now had. Even thought Itsu said she wouldn’t have the memories of her future self, Eria could feel something that she was sure she would one day have. More than just a longing to be with Arthur, or the attraction she had, there was something more relaxed. She knew it could be distilled down to a single word, but it was just on the tip of her tongue.

“Everyone looks ready,” said Arthur. “Except me and MirageGaogamon, I mean. I’m still not sure if I want the power of the future or the past."

Eria shrugged. “There’s no easy way to break this to you, but from everything you’ve told me, I think the past is the last thing you want for this.”

“I know,” said Arthur. “I guess I just… we’ve all had our fair share of illusions lately. Of how things could end for us, good or bad. I want something I can believe in. The past… as terrifying as it was, it has a bit more certainty."

“Are you sure it isn’t that you don’t trust what might happen if you pick the future?”

“There is that. It’s more like…” He glanced over at Ariel. “I don’t want to look at some other version of myself and not like what I see. If it’s just some stupid dream, and I’m not good enough to make it come true, then I’d just be setting myself up for disappointment.”

“Then don’t leave it up to chance. Don’t gamble on what your future might be, and walk away thinking you won’t deserve it. Look at me. Look at me, and tell me the future that you want. Not the future that someone else says you could have. The future that you, Arthur, want for yourself.”

She pulled Arthur towards her, looking directly into his eyes, and daring him to react. Her heart beat heavier and heavier. She wanted Arthur’s answer. “You told Isamy that you want everyone to forgive you. And you’re here, helping me bring my friends back. I’ve already forgiven you, Arthur. At the end of Remembrance, you said you want to start running towards your life.” Eria showed Arthur her hand. “Megiddo’s brand is gone. I know that as soon as we kill Isamy, that brand will come back, but until then, this is all the proof I need to know that I’ll beat him. I’m not sure what I’d do after that, but knowing I can get that far? To even be able to ask myself, what tomorrow might have in store? That’s enough for me. So for you, maybe you need to ask yourself what you would do when you’ve made things right for everyone you can.”

“You just said you don’t know what you would do next,” Arthur sighed. “If you have no clue, then I doubt I’d have a better chance.”

Eria pursed her lips. “Point. I suppose I have no business asking you a question that I can’t answer myself.”

“I know I want a way for us to stay together,” Arthur answered. “Without giving Megiddo what he wants. It’s… it’s how we get there that I can never figure out.” He tried to find something more to tell her, but there was nothing. She was still waiting for him to give her a proper answer. “That’s what the problem is,” Arthur sighed.

Eria smiled. “Go on.”

“We’ve only just discovered that we could become Aetos, but once Itsu showed up, I started think about whether I could become something even better than Aetos.”

“We managed to kill Protheus," Eria reminded him. "And we thought that was supposed to be impossible. What could possibly be better than that?”

“Exactly. When the Demon Lords fused with MirageGaogamon and I, it exploded pretty much immediately. And when you had merged with that Leviathan, and I tried to save you… Actually, I never told you about him. In the Digital World, I wasn’t the only human who fought the Demon Lords. Most of the others ran away before we even got to the Demon Lords, but there was one other human. Ytidens. He actually managed to convince some of the Demon Lords to work on his side, and turned the Demon Lords against each other. I talked with MirageGaogamon about this earlier, but at first I thought that we had just survived the war instead of win it.”

“And you’re wondering what you could do if you had the chance to use that power.” Arthur froze. MirageGaogamon was standing behind him. He sounded curious, but Arthur he was more disappointed than anything. “Merging with the Demon Lords is what set you on this path to begin with. It’s hardly a path worth revisiting. I know that, as I am now, perhaps I’m still not as strong as we were back then. But the difference between us now, and who we were then? Back then, you and I were simply chosen to survive because the Demon Lords needed us. We were their anchors to keep on living. We got lucky. But this time, we won. We actually deserve to be heroes now. All of us are already on the right path. Whether it’s Megiddo or the Demon Lords, you both have a future where you no longer need to be haunted. That should be the destiny you both must chase.”

Arthur nodded. “Right. Instead of trying to trying to one-up Aetos, we need to try it again, and push that to the limit. With all these powers we’re getting now…”

“We use them with Aetos,” Eris said, “And then, goodbye Isamy.”

“Yeah,” Arthur sighed. It seemed so simple. He shook his head, cursing his brain. No matter how many times the easiest answer was standing at him right in the face, he had to keep finding to worry about. MirageGaogamon. I think you’re closer to being as strong as every Demon Lord combined than you think.” Arthur raised his Keyblade, as the Digivice within it began to stir. “Itsu! I choose the future!”

At first, Arthur couldn’t see anything. MirageGaogamon hadn’t changed, either. And yet, there was a sound. A quiet hum, one that Arthur couldn’t decide if he was imagining or not. His hand was trembling. Looking to his side, his Keyblade now had an orange glow. Small sparks of light dance along the glow, but he could still hear the humming. The dance almost seemed to be in rhythm with the hum. Perhaps it wasn’t random humming. It was a song, flowing through the Keyblade. The time it took to make it through all of Famous Last Words, just to gather all the power he needed to destroy Protheus, now endlessly coursed through the Keyblade.

“Are you ready?” MirageGaogamon asked.

“I am now.” Arthur look at his Keyblade. “Thanks, Dad. I’ll see you soon.”

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Closure

A whirl in the room and a rush of wind caused Kratos to turn around. Returning to the White Room, Kenpachi kept his head down. But it wasn't long before his name was belted out and he felt eyes on him.

"KENPACHI!" Kratos barked.

He didn't reply.

Kratos stormed toward Kenpachi, his weapons drawn. "TRAITOR!" he screamed.

Kenpachi raised his head, a smile on his face. "You're not wrong."

There were no more words to be exchanged. No words could describe how Kratos felt. Nothing more could be said that could soothe his rage. Just moments ago, a heartfelt moment between family gave Kratos a feeling of relief. But seeing Kenpachi again, after what he had done, woke the old fire within Kratos.

"Kratos! I'm sorry!" Kenpachi exclaimed while he braced Nozarashi from Kratos' twin blades.

"Liar!" Kratos retorted.

He kicked Kenpachi in the knee and broke his guard. Kenpachi fell to a knee and lost his grip on Nozarashi. He raised his head and found himself neck-blade with Kratos opposite him. "This is something you're used to, isn't it?" Kenpachi asked.

Kratos slugged Kenpachi. "You don't get to be the victim, Kenpachi! Not until I kill you!"

Kenpachi, however, couldn't allow that. "Not gonna happen," Kenpachi snarled, his reiatsu flaring to life again. "I made a promise, again. I won't break it this time."

Kratos swung his blades this time, fully intending to kill Kenpachi. Kenpachi saw the strike coming and parried, then headbutted Kratos, causing him to stumble backward. Kratos recovered quickly and spat blood at Kenpachi's feet. "You'll break it. Just like you broke your promise to us, those boys, and Yachiru!" Kratos was engulfed in magical flame and charged at Kenpachi.

Kenpachi charged back and swung Nozarashi overhead at Kratos. The blade that could cut through anything met the one thing it couldn't cut through: the Golden Fleece. Parrying the blow, Kratos threw an uppercut at Kenpachi and caused him to stumble. Then came a lashing of his blades down through Kenpachi's chest. Another spin and Kratos threw four more gashes through Kenpachi's torso, driving him backward. Kenpachi was bleeding profusely, but he was very resilient.

Kratos' persistent quick attacks formed a pattern, and Kenpachi had begun to read it. Catching Kratos' chains mid-swing, Kenpachi pulled Kratos in and spun him around, capturing Kratos by the neck and wrapping him in his own chains. Kenpachi kicked Kratos' legs out and forced him to fall to his back. Then, Kenpachi held Nozarashi over Kratos and pointed it at his chest and began to push. Now, Kenpachi also intended to kill Kratos. It seemed neither of them would let this go. But Kratos had been in a similar situation before, and he was not ready to die.

He seized either side of Nozarashi's blade and shoved it to his left, taking Kenpachi with it. Using Kenpachi's momentum, Kratos followed with a kick to Kenpachi's stomach and sent him flying into the air. Kenpachi righted himself quickly as Kratos stood, but hovered in the air and waited for Kratos to make a move.

"You can't win, Kratos," Kenpachi said boldly.

Kratos tightened his grip on his weapons. "You're the only one bleeding."

Kenpachi placed both hands on Nozarashi's hilt, and space time began to warp around him. Kratos had felt this energy before. "Don't do it, Kenpachi!"

Kenpachi remained silent, but his energy continued to climb. He was going to keep his last promise to Yachiru. He was going to do things right this time.

"Kenpachi!" Kratos roared.

"Bankai," Kenpachi replied.

There was suddenly silence as Kenpachi's energy stopped climbing abruptly. Instead of unleashing his bankai, Kenpachi was met with a violent burst of energy that sent unbearable pain coursing through his body. He screamed in agony before falling back to the ground. His body was smoking, but Kenpachi was still conscious. "She... she said no," Kenpachi muttered

Kratos kept his weapons drawn. "She? Yachiru?"

Kenpachi grunted. "She still lives in this weapon, Kratos."

"Then you owe it to her to never draw it against your allies again," Kratos snapped.

"I'm not gonna let you kill me, you bastard," Kenpachi said as he stood to his feet.

"You don't have a choice," Kratos replied.

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|_)A Twisted Fate(_|

"You're welcome" Lydia said quietly in regards to Arthur's thanks in his team's attempt on Protheus.

Truthfully she hadn't intended it that way, or rather figure that the rat bastard was still alive. But regardless, there was a whole new matter. Hopeless Black felt cold in her hands, but errant sensations of despair drifted from it in minute vapours. What had she even done in creating that thing was impossible to comprehend, but what's done is done, and now she needed to face it. Away from everyone else, of course. Lydia took herself away from everyone present, to a less-populated segment of Itsu's reality marble, and she held the cold blade up. She could feel it, she could feel the raw despair emanating from it. "The witch's Barrier merged with the blade, and thus it became a physical existence due to the Madara" Avalon noted.

"Meaning within it is where we'll find him, and her" the sorceress added.

"Indeed" the dragon agreed, albeit hesitantly.

"Are you frightened Avalon?"

"Nothing frightens me, girl. However, I am still coming to terms with certain matters. But here I make nothing uncertain. We will descend into that dark ocean, and we will make that witch's power our own."

"That's not what we're doing. But, here we go" Lydia sighed, embracing the blade and letting her mind in to the depths of the barrier.

 


 

~~Into the Depths of Despair~~

It was just as she remembered, albeit... different. Flying above sea level, the black waters of despair ran like a river across the ruined structures of some form of vaguely Japanese-inspired buildings, and the remnants of a castle. "It's Camelot" she realized in recognizing a structure. "Camelot, and something I'm not sure what it is. I don't know these buildings."

"that does not surprise me, as you have never been to my world before."

Twisting her head, Lydia found the centauric Madara existence slowly cantering along the air next to her. "Madara!"

"once, perhaps. but i have forsaken the rights to that existence. the shinobi i was born from is gone, and i remain" the existence muttered with some bitterness.

"So why are you still here?" the sorceress asked while landing on one of Camelot's ruined turrets.

"i had hoped to find someone whose ideals would resonate with me. i worked with ARTURIA PENDRAGON in order to see through her ideals. but she failed. you interested me, and yet, you abandoned us both when HER power became too much. and thus we fell through a PLOT HOLE and came to the one i had hoped to crown as the rightful king: ARTHUR ANCYL. and yet, he too has rejected me. but now i ask this; why are you here? our power frightened you, and so you let go of us. so why are you back?" the centaur inquired, still standing on thin air.

"Because I'm not scared anymore" Lydia answered.

The energy being tilted its head. "and yet you are terrified."

"But not scared" the girl asserted.

"you seek to abuse our powers, again? mine of ideals, and HER'S of Infinite Possibility" the Madara asked, folding its arms. "my existence as of now may be worthless, but i can still find offence in such selfishness."

"I'm not here to use any of you as tools, not anymore Madara" Lydia insisted. "I'm here because I want to make it up to both of you for dragging your lives out way longer than you were supposed too!"

"then destroy the blade and be rid of us both. unless there is something you desire of us?" the energy being deduced.

Lydia sucked at her teeth, and sighed deeply. "Yes. I still need your powers to fight Isamy, which is why I'm here. I'm here, to shoulder both of your burdens, and let you rest. To sleep forever within my own soul."

The centaur seemed partially dumbfounded by this, its form wavering until it became that of the aged shinobi Madara, clad in black robes. "You presume to devour our souls and gain our powers all for the sake of fighting Isamy?" he demanded indignantly.

"In short, yes. Just not specifically in that way. I want to apologize to both of you first, for forcing both of you together like this. It can't be good for either of you when LERNA's lingering power keeps you existing just for that little bit longer, and for you keeping her world and thus her power alive. You can't honestly tell me you are happy about this arrangement!" the sorceress insisted.

The shinobi shook his head sadly, reverting back to his energy centaur form. "no. i am not happy to exist like this. i intended to die with the king i had chosen, and instead the only ideals i feel are ones of hatred and loathing for everything. she keeps me alive just as much as i keep her alive. but the ideals she has? they're ones i had forgotten millennia ago. i'm tired of feeling vengeance, and hatred, and despair. and yet, you promise to rid me of these feelings?" he asked.

"I forced you two together, so I should be the one to end both of your lives peacefully" Lydia vowed.

"that does not fill me with confidence. but i will hold you to your word, as i can feel the genuineness in your ideals of making this right. thus, i will lead you to LERNA. but do not expect to sway her easily" the Madara intoned, galloping off into the air.

"As far as I know, you're the easy one" Lydia muttered, taking off after the centaur.

Ruins upon ruins of buildings and chunks of Camelot repeated endlessly across the ocean of despair, the waters churning, wearing down the buildings one by one. In the distance the supports of a tower crumbled, and it collapsed into the ocean. "Are the two of you trying to destroy each other?"

"it is a game of sorts. by being held by you i gained the ideal of hope, which juxtaposed her ideal of despair. she is wearing down everything, to return her barrier to what it once was. she will not succeed. but her efforts are nonetheless commendable" the Madara explained.

"Is that why you are helping me?"

"i am helping you so that this maddening existence may end. but yes, i have some small hope that you will succeed in your attempt. if anything, perhaps you are the only one who will get through to her, as i rarely have. we agreed on some things yes, like saving you from HOLLOW ISAMY. but beyond that, we have been in a stalemate" the former shinobi explained. "we even crafted two new FAMILIARS to aid us, but they proved little help. expected yes, but disappointing all the same."

Soon the buildings began to lessen, and lessen some more, until very few stood above the waters. The rest drowned in the darkening waters, whose depths became unfathomable. And yet, up ahead there was a circle of rubble, almost like a nest with makeshift pipes gushing black water below. "Think this is the place?" Lydia facetiously asked.

"it is good that your sense of humour remains. it is perhaps the one thing that will save you from HER."

Going over the top, the two landed at the lip of an enormous basin of despair water that gushed from deep below. "LERNA! SHOW YOURSELF!" the sorceress demanded.

"there is little need for shouting. she knew we were here before we were even here" the Madara pointed out as the water rippled.

The basin bubbled and churned, waves splashing over the rim as one of LERNA's titanic heads breached the surface. it was far smaller than in her prime, but still quite large nonetheless. "You have come" it declared. "Why have you come?"

She was certainly a lot less eloquent this time around wasn't she. "Yes, I've come. I've come to end this once and for all!" Lydia asserted.

The titanic hydra head tilted, and soon two more heads emerged, each glaring as well as they could with their milky eyes. "You refused the call to serve. You refused and abandoned us. And now you wish to finally destroy us? Like you destroyed our physical body with your... hope" LERNA spat. "Then what are you waiting for? Fight! End us! And when you fail, we will drown you in despair. Drown you like we failed to do before!"

"I'm not here to fight you, LERNA. I've come to apologize and finally put this whole situation right" was the correction.

The heads were momentarily confused, for they came in for a closer look in spite of their hazy vision. "What madness speaks you? Apologize? You have come to apologize to us? For what? Ending our glorious despair? For using us as your plaything? You have many sins girl, so which will you apologize for?"

"Dragging your life out. I'm not sorry for defeating you and setting Galina free LERNA. You attempted to drag everyone else down into your misery, and I nobody wanted a piece of what you had" the sorceress declared.

"Understandable. There is nothing you could do for ruining our beautiful plans. Our beautiful despair! And yet, you assume I will concede to you? To accept any worthless apology you can muster? No, I think we will just destroy you instead" the hydra decided.

Darkness poured into the three mouths, aimed directly for the girl and consequently the Madara. "Do NOT even attempt what you are doing, Witch."

"Avalon? Where, where are you? Where... are...."

Lydia's voice trailed off as all three looked to the sky, which opened up to reveal a single golden eye, its slit pupil glaring down and illuminating the darkness with the radiance of the sun. LERNA shrieked and plunged her heads beneath the water, to escape that dreadful light. "i was wondering where the dragon had gotten too" the Madara casually remarked.

"Please!" LERNA's barely surfaced head begged. "Make the light go away! We cannot stand it!"

"I will relent for now, Witch. But know this: Attempt to harm the girl again, and I will grant you the death you crave" Avalon promised, his eye closing, bringing back the gloom.

"He is way too dramatic for his own good" Lydia sighed, shaking her head as the hydra's quivering head emerged.

"It sickens us that you would coerce us with light to accept your apology" she snarled.

"It's not like I couldn't handle you myself. But you should probably listen to me, since when Avalon is riled he won't listen to anyone."

"Fine. We accept your apology. NOW LEAVE!" LERNA shrieked, sinking back into the depths.

~~Wait~~

"WAIT!"

Perhaps it was out of cautious self-preservation, but the hydra obeyed, its head rising up from the depths. "We have given you what you desire. Now you can leave us in peace" she insisted.

"And you hate that, don't you? You hate being told what to do just like you hate being forced to live with only half of yourself!" Lydia declared.

The beast hesitated, and yet its many heads rose up and got close. Merely a foot way so every last blinded eye could stare. "What did you say?" each mouth demanded.

"I'm saying you hate being bossed around just as much as you hate only being half of who you are, don't you?" the girl asked.

The beast's many eyes narrowed, and yet they spoke nothing. "I'm right aren't I? Without Galina you're only half of yourself, a ghost that existed because the part that was Galina went on to find peace, and yet the Soul Gem remained with your barrier trapped inside it, with you as well. You still exist as the lingering fragments of a divided soul. And you hate it. You know you're missing a part of yourself, and because you hate giving up your life, you've been trying to fill it. To make yourself whole again!"

"YOU KNOW NOT OF WHAT YOU SPEAK!"

"I think I do. You're stuck between wanting to die and find peace, and clinging to life from sheer spite! Which is just like you! You're the Witch of Infinite Possibility. So of course you would find it possible to keep on living just as much as you find it possible to find a way to die!" Lydia asserted.

"You should have faded away in the ocean when you had the chance," LERNA sullenly hissed, "because then you wouldn't be here to lecture us."

~~Oh My God~~

"What are you...," the girl said quietly, her eyes widening, "oh my god" she quietly realized. "That's why you tried to break me, isn't it? You wanted to complete yourself, but you couldn't complete yourself with a human soul, could you?" The hydra pulled away, not looking in her direction and slowly sinking into the water. "You didn't need to break my spirit to turn me into one of your Troys, did you? You just needed to wear me down enough so I would be weak enough for you to consume my soul so you can fill out ours. Because... I'm already, in some small part, a Troy!"

For once the Madara seemed deeply interested, as its head gyrated between the girl and the hydra. "you are part familiar?"

"I am, aren't I, LERNA!" the sorceress roared at the top of her lungs.

"You would have been better off drowning, so you could live your empty life in the beautiful bliss of despair" LERNA said quietly.

"ANSWER HER WITCH!"

LERNA flinched from the meager rays of light. "Yeeeesssss. You are partially a Familiar, and you would have been beautiful. You would have served us well, like the others. THERMOPYLAE! XANSVITA! TITANOMACHIA! YOU FOOLS RUINED THEM! THEY WERE PERFECT! AND YOU RUINED THEM ALL!"

"THEY WEREN'T PERFECT AND YOU KNOW IT! They were failed attempts to recreate your failed ideal of despair!"

"THEY WERE CLOSE ENOUGH!"

"I get it."

The hydra hesitated. "You get what?"

"I get it. Witches seek out other souls to draft into their forces, or their souls to devour. Because deep down, you crave the bonds you lost falling into despair, don't you? You acted as if they were expendable, but you still care about them long after they're all gone. I bet you felt it too, when Itsu Solace was outside of the sword. You felt Thermopylae, didn't you? And you want her back, right?"

"You assume too much while knowing too little. We valued them as they were avatars of my dream: To spread despair across existence. They were perfect for their task, and you fools destroyed them all. You yourself destroyed us. And you destroyed the souls of the Troys yet to die. You used them against our last hope. You used them to harm Xansvita. We hate you. We hate you for wasting the souls we collected. We hate you for aiding in destroying Xansvita, the last of our Familiars. We hate you."

"Then I'm sorry you hate me. But right now, right this moment... we're just repeating the talk we had before you lost. You told me hope was a lie, and I proved you wrong. I took away all your despair and filled it with hope. So now, why don't you do the same for me?"

"Change your despair into hope? Preposterous."

"No, change my hope into despair. So I may change it back into hope once more. Lend me your power, let me become the witch who decides hope and despair. So your broken soul, your broken existence can find rest!"

"Why do you assume we desire that?"

"Because you need a magical girl to fill the other half of your soul, don't you? You have so little fight in you because you lack one thing. The most important thing: The reason to FEEL despair. Without Galina, you no longer have her despair. You're just an empty shell. So let me fill that shell, lend me that power so we can bring about the greatest despair the multiverse has ever seen! Help me RUIN Isamy Maximus' happy ending."

For the first time, in a very long time, the Witch's eyes widened, their milkiness lost as they stared with full, unmoving attention. "You ask of me my power so you can DENY all of reality a happy ending? To deny them the eternal hope that would destroy all despair? It would appear I was right, after all" LERNA mused, quite satisfied and excited.

"About what?"

"You really would have made a good Familiar, with a plan like that. I still hate you, Lydia Armstrong, but I cannot deny that I am absolutely delighted at the prospect of ruining an infinite number of happy endings. And to make that pathetic wretch Ismay Maximus feel true despair? That is all the sweeter to me. Very well, I will rest, safe in the knowledge that my successor will achieve what I have desired since my conception. Yes, yes Lydia Armstrong. I think you will indeed make a fine Witch" the hydra gleefully uttered.

"Then what shall we call ourselves?" Lydia inquired.

"if i may" the Madara spoke up, earning their attention. "given the situation, it seems only fitting for our new form to be called ULTIMATUM, the WITCH of ENDINGS. it seems perfect for the battle that lies ahead."

"That name is agreeable. It is only fitting to be called that, which is more the pity. If only you were this agreeable on other matters. We could have achieved so much more, if you only saw things my way" the Witch sighed.

"So I have your support?"

"Begrudgingly. I will concede my existence, so long as you hold up to your promise, which I know you will. Otherwise that wretched girl will ruin everything by erasing despair. So to it that despair lives on!"

"i will put my faith into your hope. hope that you will save the multiverse from ISAMY MAXIMUS."

"Then prepare, as there is one last thing I must do, before we face Isamy."

"We will be ready. Hmm, yes, it has been a while since I've felt this way. To have felt this overwhelming desire to destroy the hope of others. To make them wallow in the despair I languished in. Yes, this will be enjoyable."

"Well, glad you will be enjoying yourself" Lydia shrugged, taking to her wings and flying up into the sky.

 


 

The girl's eyes fluttered as she returned to herself, the sword she had embraced now once more a Soul Gem blackened with despair, and surrounded by an aura of crimson energy. "It is amusing that you got the Witch on her side by offering her the one thing she loves most. If we knew she was that easily swayed you should have opened with that."

"Avalon...."

~~Avalon....~~

"Yes, I know what you are going to say. Save it, as I will happily do without your sentimentality."

"You know what this means, right?"

"It might come as a surprise for you to know that I am far more intelligent than you are girl."

"Condescension aside, are you really okay with this?"

"You saw your future self. I clearly am as you saw what she became."

"Avalon."

"What do you desire me to say girl!? "Don't do it?" "There must be another way?" The future is clear as day, so why concern yourself with pointless trivialities?"

"Why did you break yourself up to begin with?"

"What nonsense question is that?"

"You seem okay being yourself, and yet you're just as happy to be broken up. You're happy losing yourself. Why?"

"The answer is unimportant, because it changes nothing. But if you must know, it is because I have lived for so long living is meaningless to me, just as hope is meaningless to that despicable Witch or having nothing to believe in is as unimportant to the shade. I broke myself up so that I could live differently, without worrying about being powerful. The fragments, as you know, were exceedingly strong, but not invincible. Perhaps I craved that. Craved no longer being invincible. Whole I am insurmountable, a God. But apart a lone human tamed my elements. And in turn... I gained what they learned, and took it to heart. It's why I allowed myself to co-exist in you. I learned the value of things that aren't me, though I show it less than my feebler fragments. In the end... I tire of existing. I have done it for so long there is little for me to care about, which is why... no, it doesn't matter why."

"You envy my ability to care. You can't care because you no longer see a point to doing so. So you envy people because even if it's for reasons you can't possibly understand, they care."

"Yes. You understand. Just like you understand we cannot co-exist for longer. My soul would devour you unless I give mine to you freely. There is no other way."

"You could manifest outside of me, and fight Isamy in your physical form."

"No. I care not for the battle ahead. All I desire now is to fade away, like the others. In that you are lucky, gaining so much power through others who no longer wish to live."

"That's not why I'm doing this."

"I know. The thought alone brought fleeting amusement. Fleeting, yes. I am tired girl. Tired of waiting. If we are to end this, let us do it now, before you lose your nerve."

"I lost that ages ago."

"Very well. Goodbye, Lydia Armstrong. I wish you luck in this battle."

"Thank you, Avalon...."

 


 

~~This World of Mine~~

Within everyone, there is a soul. Within this girl, there are two: Her weaker blue soul burning away, with the overwhelming majesty of a glorious gold soul surrounding it, protecting it from harm. And finally, it has relented. Wearing down, after so long, it stood opposite the blue soul, waiting. And what it was waiting for was a new soul to enter the fray, one born of the crimson light of ideals, and the crushing blackness of despair. Hope. Despair. Ideals. And finally, Determination. Before each other stood the blue soul, now the form of a girl way in over her head, and yet still determined to continue. And another the flickering black form of a hydra and a girl, who sought to fill the world with despair, and now is using that despair to bring hope. And another still being the flickering crimson form of an ancient shinobi, and a centaur. One born of the ideals to make the world better, and yet now had naught but one. The desire to bring about the ideal of hope and despair. And finally, the golden soul of a dragon too long lived. An existence from time immemorial, now waiting in earnest to vanish, to allow his creation to fight and bring about light to the darkness.

They all looked to each other, and floated forwards, each form overlaying themselves. Flickering between girl. Dragon. Hydra. Shinobi. Centaur. Again and again, glowing brighter and brighter as the colours changed, birthing one hue of pure whiteness.

And on the outside, a column of light erupted out of Lydia, consuming her in it as the light bent, forming a sphere of intermingling black and white. And even then the light broken out, shattering the sphere with golden, scaly wings flying the long, phoenix-like feathers of white and black. Flapping, the sphere broke, and the Witch of Endings was born. Their armour of gold, dulled not by time, not by dirt, not by famine, but dulled by holding back a sea of despair within it. The armour a cradle for the new world of despair to be dumped on Isamy. The one known both as Lydia and as Ultimatum stood, the column of light fading away, her senses expanding outwards.

Tossing her head back, the powers that once were LERNA's and the Madara's were her own, and the stories of her allies were laid bare. The reasons why. The reasons when. Each story to be told, for another time. The senses retracted, and Lydia took her first step forward, a new might flowing from her. An aura of hope, of determination, of ideals. It was an aura to bring despair only in Isamy Maximus, to fool who would dare try to ruin her precious multiverse. No longer will this be allowed. The Sorceress Supreme. The Witch of Endings. Heir to the Throne of Heroes. She was all of those things, and she was ready. With her hand resting upon the hilt of Impure Future, Lydia now waited, standing before Itsu Solace for the final battle to begin, her tail gently coiling about on the ground. She was ready, for finally, at long last... she was complete.

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~          a reprise before the end           ~

Itsu Fudo, Epiloguous

It was almost time. Not long now until everyone would be ready… at which point the final battle would commence.

Itsu stood calmly, with warm light radiating from her figure where she stood, as if to separate herself from this reality. Having distanced herself somewhat from the others, she observed, focused on maintaining her connection to Origin, and made herself available if anyone sought any information from her. By now, the warriors had fought hard enough that they deserved to have any lingering questions answered at last. It was the least she could do.

While twirling her umbrella about, the golden eyes of the former sun goddess locked onto someone’s approach.

“Oh?” Itsu spoke, her expression devoid of surprise. “Heh, of course it's you guys. So how was embracing your Power... be it the Past or the Future, were they what you expected?”

Then, with a smile, she relaxed her stance to welcome them.

“And also, Warriors of the Counter Corps, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

“Glad to see you’ve made it,” Sora smiled. Eria approached Itsu as well. They had been part of the Counter Corps since the very beginning of the war, and as such they greeted her as if she were an old friend.

Eria had brought the Staff of Armadyl with her. From Sliske to Xansvita to Itsu to Sora and now Eria, it had traded hands many times. Countless others in the war had boasted of being gods so often that the word itself started to lose its meaning, and the staff had certainly enabled that. But out of anyone here who could truly be considered a “god”, Itsu was one of a handful who could actually live up to the title. The power that Itsu had taken from Xansvita seemed to pale in comparison to the aura that radiated from the woman - if she could be addressed so simply - who now stood before them. It was silly to even worry that she may not have survived.

“It’s actually more than I would have expected,” Eria answered. Her eyes were transfixed on her hand, still clean of Megiddo's brand. “The future you’re showing us… it is real, right?”

Edited by Phantom Roxas

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Itsu Fudo, Epiloguous

“It’s as real as the future can be.” Itsu nodded, noting the Staff in Eria’s hands with some amusement. “Obviously, the future is made of potential. Time is a flowing ocean, whether it’s here in this realm or out there in the multiverse. It’s not like things are guaranteed—otherwise, we may as well consider victory over Isamy Maximus to be guaranteed. Wouldn’t that be nice?”

Eria’s smile faltered at that remark. 

“However, it’s the future you found. The future that the trials of the Pathway to Origin set you on, and the future that awaits you on your own current path. At least, assuming you survive. If you consider that to be real… Then yes. It’s real alright.”

In response, the goddess raised her hands and materialized more wisps of light, at which point they proceeded to softly circle around the group. “Is this the answer you seek, Eria?”

 


 

Edited by Merci

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Eria was silent for a moment. There would be no point in surviving all these trials if the future that they had laid out was unattainable. However likely it was that Eria could truly see the future that Itsu’s power was showing, Itsu at least seemed confident that the odds were in their favor. “Yes,” Eria nodded. “I can accept that.”

“Itsu.” MirageGaogamon spoke up, though his tone was bitter. “You said we could ask you anything about Protheus, and I have a few questions myself.”

“Sure thing. You’re the one who entered the realm within my Pure Edge blade, aren’t you?” At that, Itsu briefly closed her eyes. Although she wasn’t sure what the Digimon was going to say, she had a few good guesses. “I saw that much during your fight. Although, I don’t know what you encountered inside my digital domain… Still. As promised earlier, I’ll be transparent about anything you wish to know.”

MirageGaogamon began to pace around Itsu. Within Pure Edge, he only had a glimpse of Itsu’s history with Protheus. It was impossible for him to even begin understand the nature of their relationship, but it was all he had to go on.

“You’ve known Protheus longer than anyone here. I understand that you…” MirageGaogamon shook his head. He could hardly bear to look meet Itsu’s eyes. “Against Protheus, we used everything we could to teach Protheus regret. In the end, I believe the only thing he could feel was fear. He was afraid of death. And I cannot blame even the likes of him for that. However, his last words were nothing more than pitiful screaming. Begging for a chance to escape. He had no guilt for his actions. All those years ago, when you and Protheus found a chance to work together, what did you see in him? Why would you let that… that demon survive all these years? For all I know, none of this would have happened had you stopped him long ago. If you could, knowing everything that’s happened, do you think you made the right decision?”

Edited by Phantom Roxas

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Itsu Fudo, Epiloguous

"Why would you let that… that demon survive all these years? For all I know, none of this would have happened had you stopped him long ago. If you could, knowing everything that’s happened, do you think you made the right decision?”

“Yes.”

It was a simple answer. Itsu Fudo didn’t even hesitate.

“I mean… I can’t say you’re wrong about many things, MirageGaogamon. I can’t say you’re not justified to feel the way you do. Although, even if I’m not sure how much you managed to see within the Library of Solace, I’m willing to guess there might’ve been a bit more than you had time to look through. I won’t apologise. But the least I can do... is explain myself. This one’s going to be a long answer, mind you.”

The expression she had looking at MirageGaogamon was one that was difficult to decipher - there were a mixture of complicated emotions behind this simple conviction of hers. In MirageGaogamon’s eyes, she only a pure raged, barely restrained.

“The first thing you should understand is that... I wasn’t always the hero, or the goddess, people consider me to be now. I’m far from innocent. If you think I’m guiltless, you gotta dispel notions like that now.”

Around them, the floating lights briefly turned a crimson red.

Some of them displaying scenes of horror - a android-like being standing above her opponent, torturing her opponent. A lady in white, laughing amidst a sky fortress while the city below her burned. 

“Believe it or not, the first time the Herald of Darkness and I met, really met, our positions were reversed. He was one of the heroes of ‘C3’, the Continuum Conservation Collective that would eventually become the Neighborhood Watch. On the other hand, I was at the head of the enemy forces. Did you see this in my Library? It was a disaster that would later be known as... the ‘Paradox War’.”

They morphed again, showing a masked woman, standing still as she pressed a button; watching as several universes were caught in the fray of a superweapon, dragged in, absorbed. 

“The Paradox War: A destructive anomaly preceding the Origin War, a multiversal catastrophe of the worst proportions. There was a being named Paradox who rose up, seeking to replace the multiverse with a single, utopian universe for him to rule over. A Garden of Eden. From beginning to end, I stood by his side.” The lights showed scenes from the Paradox War. Across worlds, warriors from various universes were fighting one another, brutally engaging in combat. “Maybe Paradox wouldn’t have gotten so far if it wasn’t for my loyalty, my assistance... In fact, maybe I was the true villain all along. Thanks to us, the multiverse was nearly annihilated.”

“How did you stop Paradox?” asked Eria.

“Getting there.” Itsu said, smiling gently. “At the crux of the Paradox War, things seemed lost for our enemies. Our MacGuffin, a reality machine powered by my Emerald Eclipse Amulet, was preparing to activate. In a desperate, last-ditch attempt to end it all, C3 brought the battle to Paradox himself. A force consisting of their best fighters invaded the Malefic Station, and many fell in the ensuing conflict. Their leader Sarin, Princess Judaihime, and a weakened Protheus were the only ones left, managing to break into the throne room where Paradox and I awaited them. It was a simple confrontation at first, with us guarding the MacGuffin and them hoping to break through. Sarin and Paradox kept each other occupied. Meanwhile, I took on the other two in a card game, with Judaihime focused on a brute force strategy to whittle my life points down and Protheus focused more on corruptive attacks to invade my mind, weaken my ability to play. Naturally, both fights were futile.”

The lights came together, forming a screen that recreated her description of the events. Amidst a mechanical recreation of paradise were two beings with broken masks on one side, and three exhausted warriors on the other. They recognised the war-torn Protheus and Judaihime among the warriors, but opposing them, Itsu was almost unrecognisable in that black regalia. It was truly a different era, totally alien and unfamiliar to them.

“Sarin and Paradox critically injured one another, but Paradox’s immortality kept him going. Meanwhile, the duo’s assault on me was hard-fought, but ended in their loss. With that, the Emerald Eclipse Naughter - a hypergalactic MacGuffin capable of fusing or splitting spacetime - was fully charged. With no one left to stop us, I let Paradox climb the steps to take his rightful place. The first thing he did was point the weapon at me, and fire. After all, Paradox had no need for anyone to rule by his side, didn’t he? Just like that, my story should have ended-”

An incoming flash of brilliant rainbow light. Be they men or gods, mortal or immortal, the light was a force beyond this reality. For all anyone knew, it guaranteed certain death for anyone who happened to be caught within, and here it was beaming towards a Itsu who possessed neither the effort nor the drive to resist. As it approached, her eyes had simply closed, as if to acknowledge ‘this is retribution for all my sins’, resigning to her end like the fool she was.

Yet... it never came. 

Her eyes had shot open, and to her shock, an almighty force was taking on the entirety of the blast-  No, it wasn’t a force... IT WAS A BODY?! But who- hold on- that silver hair- it-  It… IT WAS HIM OF ALL PEOPLE?!?!?!

“That madman... jumped in front of me. The man I’d dismissed as just another egotistical warrior, another villain too afraid of our utopia, had just absorbed the entirety of the blast. Of all people, that utter edgelord was saving me?  There was no guarantee his immortality would’ve held up to such a ridiculous weapon, and yet, he didn’t even hesitate. It was reality’s sickest joke. I couldn’t fathom it. I really couldn’t. Seriously, who could?!”

Indeed, there he was. Standing his ground, shielding her against the greatest force currently known in the multiverse, all the while letting out an evil, maniacal laughter, a booming sound that was all too familiar to the very Counter Corps watching on. Yet this time, in this one unique instance in history, the Herald of Darkness was doing the unfathomable:

“Protheus took a direct hit from the Emerald Eclipse Naughter. Turned to me. And before his soul shattered into a thousand pieces, he spoke the dumbest line I’d ever heard.”

Placing his life on the line for someone else.

“You understand now?! LIVE FOR YOURSELF, IDIOT!!!”

In the projection of those memories, they watched as the Herald smiled softly - an expression they had never once seen on the man. And with that, he was utterly overwhelmed by the light of destruction, sacrificing himself in a selfless act, as if to defy every single character trait assigned to him.

“Why did he do it, I wondered? Why did that self-centered, overglorified Dark Signer variant throw away everything he stood for… for someone he ought to have despised more than anyone else? Him, of all people, was saving me, of all people…! It was so ridiculous!”

As if those words alone were something worth dying for.

“Up until that point, I had abandoned my memories for power, gave up on everything, and entrusted it all to another, following through with their desire for a Garden of Eden. Many people tried to reach out to me during the wars, and yet, the idea of atonement was simply too overwhelming to turn back. It’s not like Protheus was the first to try and reach out to me. And yet… His sacrifice was the tipping point that finally snapped me out of my trance. ‘Live for yourself’, he told me. If even someone like that decided to die to tell me something so simple, what does that say about the person I was? I must’ve been a sorry sight.” Itsu sighed, reaching the end of her recollection. “It was the last straw. With that, I finally came to my senses. I stopped Paradox before he could disassemble me as well, hijacked control of half of the Naughter. He tried to appeal to me-and when I refused, we ended it in a final, climactic duel to prevent the Convergence Point. Then, at long last, the Paradox War came to a close.”

The light changed one last time, revealing an iconic image. A bloodied Itsu Fudo, having finally come to her senses and ended the war, resting on the floor amongst a severely damaged throne room. Awaiting the arrival of C3’s remaining warriors. Awaiting her own uncertain, yet hopeful future.

“That was a point in time where I lost myself. It took countless universes to drag me out of that mess, but you know… They succeeded. I seriously didn’t deserve it, but rather than be imprisoned, I was being hailed as a hero of the Paradox War. All I could do was try to live up to it, dedicate myself to making up for my actions. It was the only thing I could do. To try and rediscover the hero I once wanted to be.”

Itsu sat down before MirageGaogamon and the others, while the light of her memories faded.

“Wanting to thank the man who saved me, I searched across the many universes and started putting the many pieces of his soul back together. It took a millennia of effort and time, but soon enough, we managed to bring Protheus Maximus back to life.” She carried on, letting out a tired sigh. “I mean, we didn’t get along straightaway. It became pretty obvious that Protheus blamed me for his ‘death’. He used some weird, circular logic to try and justify his hatred. And frankly, his aggressive attitude really annoyed me, especially at first! But eventually, I found out why he did what he did at the end of the Paradox War. Why he went against everything, why he sacrificed himself for me of all people...

...because he was just like me. Because he understood the terrible, insurmountable weight of my sins, and yet wanted to say ‘that doesn’t mean your life no longer has value!’. The idea that my feelings might still matter, despite everything I’ve done? The idea that I can still turn back, and earn the life I want? Precisely because Protheus was just as despicable as me, he could afford to tell me it was fine to carry on with my life. It’s the sort of thing only a villain would do, but... It let me become the person I am today... So just like the way he saved me, I wanted to save him, you know?”

It must’ve been a lot of information flying over the heads of the warriors before her. She might’ve been shattering their perception of her as a ‘great hero’ more than a little bit as well. Even though she'd once been a terrible villain herself, she was essentially saying it was fine to live your life without the pressure of atonement. That it was fine to be a little selfish like that. 

“He was hard to deal with, sure. I know he had a dark past in his younger days. But that doesn’t mean that’s all there was to it. When we put him back together - I’m honestly not sure if I could call that man evil. You guys never met him. We butted heads, and we had our conflicts that escalated over thousands of years, but you know? He was starting to listen. He became a dear friend. And soon enough, he, I might even say he was on the verge of becoming a decent person like me. When our illusory Kugena City collapsed, when Pandora threatened universes on the Ringworld, when the comet Faust was about to crush my home... He was insane, arrogant, a Herald of Darkness through and through, but I found I could always depend on him. That’s the Protheus Maximus I knew.” The individual she was describing barely sounded like the sadistic monster they battled on the Lake of Remembrance. The Herald of Darkness they fought, that cruel terror, wanted to be good? “Despite all that... His fears caught up with him. He heard that prophecy, and proceeded to throw away everything we built away. He reverted to the villain he once was, kickstarted the Origin War, did what he did here. I didn’t manage to meet him even once. Just like that, it seems the prophecy was self-fulfilling, forcing his story to end exactly the way it was foretold.”

Arthur shrugged. “That’s how prophecies usually work, don’t they? They tell you some horrible fate, and the harder you try to stop it, the more likely it’s going to come true. Understanding that is how we were able to kill him.”

“Looks like it. Just like Oedipus, uncertain futures like prophecies are better left unheard.” Itsu responded, nodding in turn before turning back to the Digimon. “But yeah. MirageGaogamon, I let him survive for one simple reason. I’m not Arturia. I’m not the kind of person who thinks sacrificing someone is all you need to do to make the multiverse a better place. Because I’ve been Protheus, I know what it meant to be like him, and I know he had the capacity to become a good man. More than that, I’m certain he must’ve wanted to be one.”

She stared up at the galactic sky, letting the lights surrounding them fade.

“With one apology, Judgment may be no more.” Itsu uttered quietly.

It was a line from the prophecy. The critical line, one which had originally terrified the previous Herald, as Arthur and MirageGaogamon had seen in their flashback.

“In the end, Protheus Maximus wasn’t even living for himself anymore. He was just living for an idea of what Protheus Maximus is supposed to be like, too afraid to overcome his fear of atonement… and I failed to help him overcome it. If he only tried, maybe he could’ve been something other than Judgment. Maybe even something better. What a dumbass.” It was hard for anyone to believe, and yet, Itsu’s words seemed to be filled with nothing but honesty and understanding. “If anyone thought he was beyond redemption, then I deserve to be struck down just as much. That’s all there is to it, really.”

With that, the former sun goddess stood back up, bringing an end to her long tale.

“I hope I was able to shed some light on the Protheus Maximus I knew. I won’t apologise for my decisions. I also don’t fault you guys for doing what you did, not in the slightest. If anything... Your actions might've let him find some peace at least.”

Edited by Merci

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“Peace is the last thing he deserved,” MirageGaogamon snarled.

“MirageGaogamon, calm down,” Sora warned. The others were silent, with Arthur and Gagagigo unwilling to answer either Itsu or MirageGaogamon, while Eria and Kairi watched expectantly.

“Sora, I understand that you started this on her side, and Arthur and I have no place to judge if any of you see her side of this. Itsu may have a point about being better than Arturia, but that is a low, low bar. As for you, Itsu, I’m sure you heard what Arthur and I were just talking about. He and I had no right to be considered heroes to the Digital World, and yet we were honored regardless. Even now, we are still trying to live up to what our peoples expect of us. We share that much in common with you, but if you had thousands of years to change Protheus, and he cast aside all your help the moment he began to fear for his own life, then I cannot imagine that you would have ever made him the man you hoped he could become.”

Rather than respond, the person in question only fixed a silent look upon MirageGaogamon. There wasn’t much she could say to change his mind, but he’d asked, and she’d answered. Nothing was left for her to say in that regard.

“That’s enough,” said Arthur. “I get what you’re saying. Both of you. Itsu, you tried to help Protheus the same way MirageGaogamon and Eria have helped Gagagigo and myself. Protheus sure as hell wasn’t worth it, and he isn’t someone we can just ‘agree to disagree’ on, but I don’t see any point in treating you the same as him. He’s dead, and Isamy is next. After that, if we can somehow get the Key back from Isamy, then the Door is ours.”

“If you reach the Door,” Eria asked Itsu, “What do you intend to wish for?”

To that, Itsu shook her head. “The Door of Origin isn’t for me-not anymore. The moment I fell in the war, in the Pathways, I forsook my opportunity to attain it. Right now, I’m just a shell of my former self.” Then proceeded to shrug. “No worries though. When you guys emerge victorious… if you do anyway… I have no doubt the victors will restore the fallen universes back to the way they were. I myself lost friends and family to Isamy’s antics, you know. As long as everyone comes back and the multiverse carries on, I’ll be satisfied.”

And, after thinking for a bit, a radiant smile grew on her face.

“You know what? Looking back, I think I’ve come pretty far. Dan did tell me I was basically a Mary Sue, didn’t he? Hated it at first, but well, it’s not so bad to have a fulfilling life. Friends and family. Successful projects and countless happy memories. The people I met? The worlds I saved? I don’t even know what to say about the religion built around me. Everything I never had, I fought for and I gained. Not bad for someone who started out as a motorcycle struck by lightning... if I do say so myself!”

She chuckled to herself. In other words, Itsu Fudo was essentially admitting she was an old woman. Someone who’d lived a fulfilling life all the way to the present.

“So yeah. All my wishes have already been granted, Eria.”

That this was enough for her.

“Except maybe...” But she stopped herself. “Well, there is one thing. But it’s not something I need the Door for. I’ll keep this one to myself.”

Arthur and Eria shared a glance. She spoke so casually, but they could barely begin to understand everything that she must have experienced. “I’ll trust you on that,” Eria told her. She was a little certained about whatever Itsu may have had in mind, but she wasn’t afraid. MirageGaogamon’s unsubtle huffs were enough to show his own feelings, but he didn’t push it any further than that.

Being worshipped as a goddess and having a whole religion seemed like far too much, but Eria admired Itsu. This Origin War was, at least for Itsu, a chance to finally lay old grudges to rest. In the Pathway to Remembrance, Arthur had compared himself to Protheus. Considering that, it wasn’t hard to understand why Itsu could care about Protheus, even if she was the only one in this whole war that would dare to do so.

“You won’t end up like Protheus,” Eria told Arthur.

At first, Arthur blinked, not sure what to say. “Thanks?” he answered. “Sorry, that was a little random.” He rubbed his eyes; they looked a little red. He was trying hard not to show it, but Eria knew that he had been crying when he thought no one was looking. He could only put up with so much more.

“Well, at least you’re not beating yourself up right now,” Eria giggled. That’s probably a good sign that you’re feeling better.” Arthur smiled, so she knew she must have been doing something to help.

“Let’s not worry about what might go wrong in the future,” Sora reassured them. “We just need to make sure we can still survive, and see all the good stuff still waiting for us.”

Arthur rolled his eyes. “Okay, you guys can stop with the corny pep talk. Itsu, I appreciate everything you’ve done, even if I don’t know what you’ve been through. I don’t even want to know what you meant about being a motorcycle. We all have a wish to make on the Door. I just have one last question. If we kill Isamy, what happens to the Omni Principle? From what Chardonnay told us, killing Protheus means that Isamy is the only Omni left now. So does that mean if she dies, there won’t be another Omni? Because I don’t think this war can truly be over if there’s even a chance that power can just go somewhere else. It doesn’t matter if it’s Protheus or Isamy. Whatever happens, the Omni Principle is what we need to destroy. Right?”

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Itsu Fudo, Epiloguous

"I just have one last question. If we kill Isamy, what happens to the Omni Principle?"

To that, Itsu only stared onwards. So the fact hadn’t escaped them.

"From what Chardonnay told us, killing Protheus means that Isamy is the only Omni left now. So does that mean if she dies, there won’t be another Omni? Because I don’t think this war can truly be over if there’s even a chance that power can just go somewhere else. It doesn’t matter if it’s Protheus or Isamy. Whatever happens, the Omni Principle is what we need to destroy. Right?”

Despite her promise for transparency, it wasn’t something the goddess had been sure about bringing up with the rest of the warriors. Was the concern regarding the Omni Principle something worth dealing with now, or risk leaving to the future? However, when she thought about it logically, there really was no point in keeping secrets. She promised honesty, so here it was.

“Yes, Arthur. I’m afraid your logic is perfectly correct. When you overwhelmed and destroyed Protheus’s soul, the Omni Principle simply transferred over to its next successor. Hypothetically, if you do succeed in destroying Isamy’s soul, the same phenomenon will happen once more.” Itsu ultimately answered, affirming their speculation. “And unfortunately, I have a very good guess as to who would inherit the power next. A fanatic named Minerva Clearstream. Protheus’s firstborn son, calls himself the Tao King. To be honest, I’ve been able to sense him keeping tabs on the war up until our battle with the Madara. I suspect he’s been doing this because he expects to attain the Omni Principle as soon as Isamy is out of the way. Wish I could call him harmless, but considering his convictions, well.” Itsu hesitated. “It wouldn’t surprise me if that kid tried to seek out the Door of Origin too eventually…”

Even in death, it appeared the Herald of Darkness had left quite a legacy for himself, with the potential for someone else as troublesome as Isamy to rise up. With their luck, chances were there were other candidates after Minerva as well. The sheer amount of background information that Itsu had been keeping quiet about up until this very moment had to be overwhelming to some extent.

However, with everyone being at the end of reality, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that they deserved to learn this much.

That they deserved the absolute, straightforward truth.

“Alright.”

~           the truth, and only the truth           ~

“I’ll tell you the secret to eliminating the Omni Principle once and for all.”

Itsu focused her gaze on Arthur and the others. If the warriors were serious about doing this, if they seriously wanted to take extra responsibility on top of the grand final battle they were about to enter and end the One Master’s overreaching influence right here, in the worst possible location to do so, then they might as well learn the exact method.

Then again, perhaps there was nothing to say. After all, between their epic battle in Remembrance and learning the prophecy, this team of warriors had already gained all the answers they needed. Perhaps they'd already figured it out.

With one apology, Judgment may be no more-

 

“Isamy... needs to change.”

“An Omni’s immortality is held together by the intensity of their ‘core desire’. Once the holder gives up their core desire, the Omni Principle will vanish from existence-their souls will no longer be frozen in time, and just like that, they will revert back to being regular mortals.”

“Isamy’s desire is to live for others and help as many people as possible."

"It's the opposite of Protheus, whose desire was to live for himself and make the most of life. Despite wanting to be a good man, Protheus was simply too afraid of death to turn back on his own selfishness. Trapped in a paradox, he could only escalate his ambitions in an effort to keep his Omni Principle for as long as possible, clinging onto life right to the very end. His daughter's bound to be just as stubborn."

"In other words, 

unless you make Isamy give up everything she stands for...

...the cycle will never truly end.”

 

“For a seemingly nigh-omnipotent sorceress who terrorized the multiverse, ruined countless worlds and ended countless lives thanks to her distortions, you wouldn’t think the source of her ridiculous powerset would have such a simple flaw, would you? Unfortunately for the multiverse, she’s thickheaded.” Itsu chuckled solemnly. “Everyone may be better off trying to simply destroy her soul, and risk passing it on to the next successor. With the power you warriors have gained, that much might be feasible. If she assumes her true form, it’d put all your lives at stake, but at least you have a fighting chance - her soul would be left exposed, capable of being targeted and destroyed. ”

While musing on the possibilities of how to defeat their final enemy, the goddess turned around and proceeded to walk away from the group of warriors. “Changing her mind though… It sounds straightforward, but you don’t gain those powers without having an extreme desire. I don’t know if she’ll listen to what anyone has to say. What would even change her mind? Is there some flaw she won’t acknowledge? Some memory, truth, or knowledge buried so deep they got past the Pathways? Personally, I don’t get Isamy that well, so I haven’t the faintest idea. I’m afraid I can’t offer you any real advice there.”

Around them, the stars were beginning to dwindle and fade. In their place, tremors spread in intensity across all of Epiloguous. The end was nigh.

“Beyond this, all I can offer is good luck. Whichever path you guys choose, the final battle will be far from easy. After all, Isamy is an Omni.”

Itsu Fudo twirled her umbrella while approaching the rest of the warriors, as though the moment, the battle for the Door of Origin, was almost upon them.

“Or should I say…

...an Omnibound Immortal?”

 

 

 

 

Edited by Merci

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~~Her, the Ultimatum~~

Lydia was quiet as she overheard Ther- Itsu talk with Arthur and the others. They spoke of things irrelevant, and relevant, depending on one's point of view on the matter. "Therm- Blast, I hate doing that. Itsu, if and when Isamy dies and the Principle passes long, it won't matter if this "Tao King" would seek out the Door as the next Omni. It won't matter because the smartest thing for any one of us to do would be to fix the damage Isamy has done to the multiverse, and then destroy the Door to deny any other fool their mad quest in attempting to acquire it" she spoke in a direct tone.

"The madness of the Origin War is one that does not need to be repeated. What we need to care about is, even if it's with a fool's hope, we change Isamy's mind. That isn't going to happen unless we break her so utterly she can't ignore our point further. Alternatively, we may as well just break her and cast her ashes on the winds. The Tao King can be dealt with in time, if need's be. Either way, we get what we want, which is denying Isamy's "happy ending"" she added, speaking those two words with adequate levels of disgust.

Stretching her wings and flapping away a few loose feather, the Witch of Endings stared directly at Itsu through her helmet. "The question is: How hard will it be to finally end her delusions of grandeur? Honestly, I look forward to finding out what it means to bring an Omni to despair. Which reminds me," she remembered, turning to Arthur, "now that LERNA is a part of me I really do regret not seeing Protheus despair in his last moments. I imagine it must have been even more glorious than when he fled from me after I stole his sword."

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The Hunted

Those final moments were very somber. The world seemed to slow down. The bells stopped ringing. The silence became deafening. The satisfaction of death seemed to come too soon. As he lay there dying, he clutched his slit throat, clinging to life by sheer will. He gargled and felt the heat of his blood drip between his fingers. His head hanged low as he stared into his reflection in his own pool of blood. He smiled and accepted his fate. He kicked away his weapon with the last of his strength and passed it along to another. An unusual contract was now forming in this death. A dying man's final wish could neither be stopped nor rejected. All the while, the end of their journey had revealed itself. Yet, he would not see this through to the very end. Instead, someone would take his place and fulfill the role he could not.


BGM: The Hunter

 

"You cannot will me a weapon such as this," Kratos said as the hilt of Nozarashi bumped into his heel.

"It's... not... my will," Kenpachi managed to spit up.

Kratos' twin blades dripped behind his back with Kenpachi's blood. He felt no remorse for his foe. That is all Kenpachi was. But even a Spartan could not refuse a dying man's wish. Kratos kneeled and picked up Nozarashi in his hands. It hummed just as it did when Kenpachi. He stared into the blade, his reflection staring back at him.

b64f3fd73c63d8dde2728f233cc7592f-1059547

The ash on his skin had returned. His scars were sharpened and the mark that branded him glowed brightly. Without warning, a bright, golden light erupted from Nozarashi and engulfed Kratos and Kenpachi both. It dimmed as suddenly as it appeared. Nozarashi took upon its Bankai form and showed no signs of reverting. Kratos resented this.

This weapon was an eyesore. It infuriated him. With all of his might, Kratos let out a scream and swung Nozarashi down upon Kenpachi, cleaving him in two. He waited patiently as Kenpachi stopped moving, for Nozarashi to disappear. However, it remained tightly clenched in his hand. Kratos frowned as he stared into the bloody mess that Kenpachi once was. While his bout with Kenpachi was over, it was clear his duty here was not. Still holding Nozarashi, Kratos turned around to face whomever he must. He had heard every word spoken behind him.

He threw Nozarashi over his shoulder with ease and stood still. He huffed once and balled his free hand into a fist.

"No one is truly immortal," he declared.

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Alexander, Red, Ratchet and Clank

Inside Alister’s Soul Room

 


 

“I know you were just looking for a way to distract Gaius’ Troys, Ratchet,” Clank chimed in as he watched a small herd of Troys chase after him and Ratchet with spears in their minimalistic hands, “but did you honestly have to run by and slap all of them across the face like that?”

“It worked at least, didn’t it?” Ratchet chuckled as he wove his way around the spears being thrown at the pair.  “Say, doesn’t this remind you of anything, now that I think about it?”

“Are you perhaps referring to the Patapon that invaded the lair of Hades?” Clank asked.  “Now that you mention it, these Troy do have some similarities to them, their penchant for wanton spear-throwing being the most apparent.”

“... I have surrounded myself with idiots,” Gaius grumbled wearily as he clashed tridents with Aligore.

“That’s no way to speak of your “children”, Gaius,” Aligore taunted in an Alisteresque tone.

“At least I can make “children”, Aligore,” Gaius hissed back.

At this, Aligore was taken aback briefly, a baffled and somewhat wounded expression flashing across his face for a second before switching to anger.  “Why I oughta...!”  Parrying Gaius’ next swipe of his trident to the side, Aligore forwent using his own weapon in favor of slamming his fist into the Witch’s midsection, blasting Gaius away with a small explosion released from the impact.

Meanwhile, the remaining Troys that didn’t get aggro’d by Ratchet were being dealt with by Alexander and Red, the former dashing from Familiar to Familar while striking each with either his rapier or Ice magic, while the latter was rapidly casting Shock spells for massive damage to the Troys, either destroying them with each hit or weakening them just enough for Alexander to finish them off.  Though try as they might, they had to deal with more Troys which were conjured to replace their fallen brethren.  “If you have any bright ideas, Alex,” Red called out to the lombax, his arms beginning to tire from all the rapid symbol-drawing he was doing, “you had better bring them out, NOW.”

“And me without any of my cards,” Alexander grumbled, cursing himself for not having at least kept a Deck on himself before delving into Alister’ Soul--all of his cards were currently in Umbris and Gabriel’s possession.  “... but maybe I don’t actually need them after all….”  Pulling power from within himself, Alexander began to glow a vibrant red, along with the Mark of Burning Soul on his chest.  The glow quickly changed to a pale white as Alexander cast his replicated Spell: ”Swords of Revealing Light!”

A twinkle of light in the “sky” signalled the rapid cascading of numerous cross sword-shaped lights descending upon the Troys, each Familiar restrained with at least one sword that either harmlessly pierced right through them, or otherwise caged them in with numbers alone.  “YES, IT WORKED!” Alexander cheered, satisfied and elated with the execution and result of his first Cardless Spellcasting.

“Very much so, Alex, well done!” Red nodded in congratulation, before looking with intrigue at the Light Swords that now restricted the Troys, specifically taking note of their shape.  “That… could be useful, huh?”  Keeping his backup plan to himself for the time being, Red quickly got to work on another plan of attack; quickly scrawling multiple “=” signs in the air, Red focused on the disarmed Troy spears littering the floor around him. “Move!”  At his command, the Troy spears were lifted off the ground by the Dragon Magic and hung in the air for a brief moment before flinging themselves in the direction of their target: Gaius.

The Witch, seeing this rapidly approaching hazard, proceeded to conjure more Troys to block the spears with their bodies, as well as put some distance between himself and Aligore.  “A clever tactic,” Gaius taunted the dragon, “yet one with a glaring flaw--”

♫♪”EVERYBODY DANCE NOW!!!”♪♫

Everyone froze in place as music suddenly started to play in the vicinity, glancing around in confusion as they tried to locate its source.  As soon as the second yell of “EVERYBODY DANCE NOW!!!” echoed, things started to get… strange.  It started with the Troys jerkily moving in sync with the music and each other--even the Troys bound by the Swords of Revealing Light and those with spears now pierced through their paper-thin bodies.

“Are… are they dancing?!” Alexander stammered as he observed this bizarre development.

“If those convulsions can even be considered “dancing”, Alexander, then yes,” Red snarked in response, oblivious to his own haunch and tail swinging back and forth in time with the music now blaring throughout the Soul Room.

“Someone deployed a Groovitron…!” I.T. monotonally exclaimed as he and his fellow Altisters found themselves joining the Troys in dancing against their will--though, granted, their own dancing was much more refined and experienced than that of the Familiars.

“Well, if it helps to keep the Troys from being a factor long enough, then I say, let the music play,” Aligore shrugged while tapping his foot in time with the music.  “Thanks for being our DJ, by the way, Ratchet.”

“But, uhh,” Ratchet stammered as he and Clank shimmied into view next to Alex, “that wasn’t me this time, Aligore.”

“Wh--then, if that wasn’t you--?” Aligore stammered.

♫♪ Song Change → “Rhythm of the Night”/Corona♪♫

“That would be us, Aligore.”  Further off, a few spotlights snapped on out of nowhere, focused on a rather peculiar posing pair: Kaden… and Kaden?  “Sorry it took us a while to get here,” Kaden #1 apologized as he and his double proceeded to literally waltz over towards Ratchet and Alex.

“We just had to make sure of something before we could make ourselves known,” Kaden #2 chimed in as he spun and dipped Kaden #1 with a flourish.

DAD… S?!” Ratchet gagged as he did a double-take.  “Okay, I know Alister might be a bit obsessed with you--”

That is understating it, Ratchet,” Clank snarked.

“--but how else are there TWO of you here?!” Ratchet finished his thought while ignoring Clank’s comment.

“Also, your footwork could use some improvement,” Alexander suddenly quipped with a critique to the two Kadens, causing the two to pratfall in confusion and shame.

“... why am I not surprised that that’s the thing you go and point out first, Alex?” Ratchet facepalmed while still shimmying in time with the Groovitron’s music.

“Speaking of footwork,” Aligore smirked as he watched Gaius trembling violently, as if the Witch was desperately fighting the compulsive urge to break into a dance.  “You look like you could loosen up a bit, Gaius.”

“I… will not… surrender to… the Reebok or the Nike…!” Gaius grunted as he fought desperately to reclaim control of his body.

“Aww.  Too cool to dance, are we?  That’s fine, Gaius,” Aligore purred as he firmly planted his Praetorian Trident into the ground before assuming a dance-like combat pose, as a pair of faint silhouettes appeared before him in a similar manner.  “We wouldn’t mind showing you how to dance!” he declared as he rushed at Gaius, engaging the Witch in hand-to-hand combat, doling out dance-like strikes with much greater ease than his large frame should otherwise allow.

All the while, Red seemed transfixed on Aligore’s display, watching the way the Amalgam King’s muscular form twisted, swayed and rippled with each movement he made in time with the music, almost as if Aligore were two individuals dancing as one unit.  “Uh, Red, not to be rude, but uhh,” Alexander chimed in, causing Red to snap out of his trance and notice the small trail of drool running down his chin, “could you maybe, I-I dunno… how can I say this in as nice a way as possible… … ah, this’ll do, I guess: if you’d like to help Aligore, you can try and use my Swords of Revealing Light as Arena Hazards against Gaius.  I’m sure you’ve already figured out one way to do so.”

“Oh, guh--yes, yes, of course I do Alexander, I’m not a whelp,” Red snapped irritably, the scales on his cheeks somehow turning a brighter shade of red.  “And yes, I would like to--and will--assist Aligore in fighting Gaius, thank you very much!”  On that note, Red shuffled off, his tail swinging to-and-fro in time with the music.

Kaden #1 couldn’t help but give a chuckle as he watched Red leave.  “Well, with that said, I suppose you guys are wondering why there are two of me here--”

“If I may, Kadens,” Alexander interrupted in a more serious, inquiring tone, “I’d like to give my own hypothesis as to how you came to be a resident of this Pocket Watch.”

The Kadens glanced at each other briefly, mulling it over.  “Okay, Alexander,” Kaden #2 complied, “we’ll let you make your guess.”

“When Aligore perished in his timeline, his death didn’t give birth to an Altister and yet he was drawn into the Pocket Watch nonetheless before it returned to the past, because he wasn’t truly an Alister, correct?” Alexander hypothesized.  “I’m… going to guess that this Watch is somehow able to draw in the souls of those who died around the same time as the Alister of any given timeline, acting like a sort of Time-Traversing Arc for those Souls… so… … is that what happened with you, Kaden?  … and my father, too?”

“... yes,” the Kadens replied in unison after a shared brief moment of startled hesitance, with Kaden #2 giving an odd glance to the side.  Kaden #1 continued on his own: “The same with Galen, too, as well as... a few others….”

“You mean…?”

“Yes… even from that timeline.”

“... … well, at least that now explains why Dad and Galen’s souls were around to help us,” Alexander spoke after his own brief, cold shudder.  “If they’ve been in the Pocketwatch this whole time, that would explain how they were able to appear in my Soul Room, as well--when Alister entered my Soul Room to save me.”

Upon hearing Alexander’s hypothesis, a thought crossed Ratchet’s mind: “Did the same happen with me?” he asked his father(s?).  “Were one of you… travelling within my Soul, too?”

“That’s correct, kiddo,” Kaden #1 chimed with a nod and a small smile.  “One of us Kadens--myself, specifically--transferred out of the Pocketwatch and into your Soul Room, back when you and Alister briefly reunited after the battle against LERNA.  And I’ve been with you ever since.”

“... you really were watching over me,” Ratchet quietly uttered, subconsciously running his hand across the casing of his pocketwatch still hanging from his neck, specifically over the dent made by Bad Future!Ratchet’s rifle round.

“... so, I’m gonna make another guess,” Alexander spoke again, “and say that since this Kaden is back because of Ratchet being in this Soul Room--”

“--then Artorius and Galen have returned to the Pocketwatch, too, since you’re here,” Kaden #2 replied, finishing Alexander’s thought.  “And they, too, were helping us with, uh, our prior endeavor.”

“Which is…?” Alexander asked, with a tone of voice and facial expression that told the Kaden’s that he had no time for any run-arounds.

Getting the hint, the Kadens nodded slightly as they replied in unison: “Finding Alister.”

“And?!” Ratchet gasped anxiously.

“He’s actually close by, even if we can’t see him as of current.  However,” Kaden #2 continued, his tone now foreboding, “it seems that Gaius’ awakening will not be the only obstacle to getting Alister out of this.”

“... ‘cuz of COURSE there’d be more complications!” Ratchet huffed bitterly--

Ratchet’s irritation was cut short, as a deafening crash erupted from the direction of the Gaius battle; Bayonetta and Umbris had arrived right on cue, the Umbra Witch having caught the Witch’s Familiar off-guard by spinning his helmet backwards, blinding Gaius long enough for Umbris to knock him down with a single, giant fist formed from his cape, the impact shattering some parts of Gaius’ armor.  “We were wondering what was taking you boys so long,” Bayonetta scoffed as she landed next to Red and Aligore, “and here we find you playing beat-’em-up with a Sentai Villain-of-the-Week wannabe.”

“Nice to see you too, Cereza,” Kaden #2 spoke up bluntly.  “I’m afraid Gaius over there isn’t even the least of our concern, yet he’s still being quite troublesome--”

“--do I… know you?” Bayonetta adjusted her glasses as she eyed Kaden #2 suspiciously.  “I don’t recall telling you my real name, much less giving you permission to use it.”

“Eh-heh… I, err, we’ve been in here for a long time,” Kaden #1 explained, observing a flicker of nervous light flash across his doppelganger’s eyes.  “Naturally we’ve observed numerous iterations of the Origin War, and you were in quite of few of them, Bayonetta.  We just happened to pick up on your real name during a handful of those times, is all.”

“Still doesn’t give you permission to use it yet, even if you are Ratchet’s father… s,” Bayonetta admonished the Kadens, partly confused as to why there were two of them.  “... if you say that Gaius isn’t the biggest issue at this time, I suggest you boys deal with the root of the problem; Umbris and I will help Red and… What’s-His-Name-Who-Looks-Somewhat-Like-Alister deal with that Sentai Villain Wannabe… … who looks suspiciously like Alister without his armor…,” Bayonetta slowly realized as she glanced back at Gaius, noticing that without his helmet, the Witch of Second Chances had some distinctly Alister-esque features despite appearing to be formed from various photo-realistic paper cutouts.  “… … is every person within this Watch--aside from us--related to Alister in some way?!” Bayonetta surmised incredulously.

“Almost everyone, but yes,” Kaden #2 replied.  “Alright, enough Q-and-A, let’s get goi--!”

The entire Soul Room began to tremble violently, interrupting the current battle.  “Wh-What’s going on now?!” Kaden #2 snapped.

“I’m picking up on energy readings.  Very dark energy,” I.T. uttered apprehensively.  “It’s gathering closeby….”

Gaius darkly chuckled.  “So… now it makes its appearance….”

“What is making its appearance…?” Red questioned angrily.

“Alex!”  Artorius and Galen appeared once more as they rushed over to Alexander, followed by a small group of other distinguishable individuals, some of whom included the Cetra Flowergirl Aerith Gainsborough, a Magical Girl named Homura Akemi, a “Crystal Gem” known only as “Pearl”, a Furret Pokemorph who went by the name “Admiral Vivi”, and…

“... I knew it,” Alexander uttered in a stunned yet not-surprised tone as he stood face-to-face with the soul of his alternate self, a bloodstained scarf wrapped around the other Alexander’s neck.  “So, even that version of me ended up in this Watch.”  He watched as his other self appeared to struggle with uttering a reply yet stopping just as blood began to spill out of his mouth instead of words, opting instead to simply nod solemnly.  “This Alexander must be from when Alister was under an illusion of Sayer’s made to believe I was a darker version of him, and he….”  Alexander paused as he remembered how it happened in this timeline, and what would have happened had Ratchet not somehow intervened.  “... that… that’s how we have the “Trigger” Altister….”

“Alex, this really isn’t the time to get analytical!” Ratchet warned.  “You heard I.T. and Gaius--something’s coming--!”

“--but I need to know something,” Alexander interjected in spite of the imminent danger, glancing at the group of Souls that had gathered with them, noticing a glaring detail in their numbers.  Realizing that detail, he chose to direct his attention--and next question--towards his own father.  “Dad, aside from me, this is the only Alexander here, correct?”

“It is, yes,” Artorius answered without hesitation.

“And is that the same for all the other Souls in this Pocket Watch?  There is only one you?  One Galen, Aerith, et cetera?”

“Yes; as long as we’ve been in this Watch, we’ve not seen any other versions of ourselves or each other, either being drawn into this Watch or already being here when we were drawn in,” Galen confirmed before taking a glance at the two Kadens.  “I suppose that helps establish the point you’re trying to form, huh Alex?”

“Yeah, but we can deal with that detail later,” Alexander declared as he noticed a gurgling, shadowy mass beginning to form above the area, with various dark chains emerging from within and anchored to the outer edges of Alister’s Soul Room.

“Anyone else picking up on that overwhelming feeling of dread, self-loathing and guilt coming from that shadow?” Umbris chimed in as the shadowy mass grew more dense.

“Thought it was mine for a second,” Red snarked in spite of the situation.

“Same,” Aligore shrugged, “although it does feel familiar… but it’s much stronger coming from the core of that mass.”

“… there can only be one reason for that feeling,” Alexander uttered, just as the shadowy mass condensed into a defined form, shackled by the mass of the numerous chains:

“ALISTER!!” Ratchet cried out in horror upon seeing the state the General was in; the chains weren’t so much binding Alister as they were crucifying him, with some ending in hooks that were embedded into his limbs and torso, despite the wounds being oddly devoid of any blood or viscera, and yet the General appeared to be unresponsive to any of this.  Worryingly so.  “Alister!” Ratchet called out again, immediately fearing the worst, “Al, wake up!”

“He… he can’t be…,” Red uttered fearfully, glancing back and forth between the comatose Alister and Alexander.

“If he were dead, this Soul Room would’ve collapsed,” Alexander explained as calmly as possible, in spite of his own dread.  “Then again, this isn’t exactly a normal Soul Room right now--”

“--so an Altister would’ve been created instead,” Kaden #2 cut in.  “And we would know if that had happened, so given that neither scenario has occurred--”

“--then something else must be amiss,” Bayonetta finished.

“... why….”  Team Lombax and the active Altisters all jumped at the sound of the voice calling out weakly.  “... why… would you... come in here…?”  The bound Alister feebly lifted his head, his eyes barely open as he spoke in between shallow breaths.  “Why… couldn’t you all… just stay away…?”

“WHY would we stay away?!” Red snapped at the General. “We’re here to pull you out of this mess--!”

“--no one asked you to come here!!” Alister shouted back, this time in a single breath.  He glared in Red’s direction, his now fully-open eyes almost lifeless yet burning with rage and self loathing.  “No one ask you to drop what you were doing and come here to rescue me.  You all should’ve just--!”

“-- “left me here to die”?” Alexander cut in, filled with a horrible sense of deja vu.  “Are you kidding me right now with this?!  Al, you and I went through this--”

“Er-hem.”

“--ah, sorry, Umbris,” Alexander apologized before backspacing himself.  “You, Umbris and I went through this same situation just a few hours ago, but now you’re the one in the spot I was in!”

“And I have good reason for being in this spot now, Alexander,” Alister persisted.

“Why? because you feel responsible for having a hand in the current state of the multiverse?” Ratchet snapped.  “Alister, that only happened because Isamy screwed with you by making you a distortion!  You couldn’t have known the consequences that would have, it’s not your fault!”

“But my actions were still tearing the Multiverse apart!!” Alister howled remorsefully.  “How are we supposed to fix any of it now?!  How am I supposed to make up for this?!!”

“Not by having a severe meltdown, for one thing!” Red suggested.  “I must say, I thought what happened to ME was bad, but you’ve certain outdone yourself by one-upping me and Alex with whatever’s going on here!  For the Ancestors’ sakes, Alister, you have chains hooked into your body!”

“It’s all I could do… to keep myself from ruining anything else,” Alister explained, his earlier burst of energy starting to deflate.  “I’m... no good to anyone, or anything… I’m--”

“--if you call yourself “nothing but a failure and a jinx”, Alister, SO HELP ME!” Red spat furiously while Umbris held him back by the tail to keep from charging at Alister, despite having no means (i.e., a properly functional pair of wings) of reaching the General who was currently suspended in the air.

“How deliciously ironic,” Gaius spoke up, witnessing the scene unfolding before him with a twisted, uncannily realistic smirk.  “The one who helped the two of you overcome your trauma and despair can’t even overcome his own!  Or rather, he simply doesn’t wish to--GAH!!” the Witch of Second Chances recoiled from taking a bullet non-lethally to the head.

“You keep your photorealistic mouth shut, or I’ll shut it for you,” Bayonetta scoffed as she kept her red-gemmed Love is Blue pointed at Gaius.  “Unless you would like a good reason to keep it open?” she added as she also aimed the grey-gemmed gun at Gaius’ crotch.

“Tcheh! No internal organs to hurt, my dear,” Gaius pointed out helpfully yet tauntingly.

““Hurt”... wait, those chains hooked into Alister should be hurting him,” Clank pointed out, “but he is not even showing any signs of discomfort.”

“A valid observation, Clank,” I.T. nodded.  “What concerns me more, however, is the gradually growing reading of dark energy… coming from the General’s direction.”

“What…?”  Wishing to observe this himself, Alexander focused his attention squarely on Alister, concentrating so intently as if he were trying to peer into the General’s soul.  “... that’s not right…,” Alexander uttered aloud in confusion and horror.  “I can sense that Alister is there, but… I also feel a second presence, almost overlaid on him… or is it the other way around…?”

“What’d’ya mean, “other way around”?” Ratchet asked.

“I can’t…,” Alexander slowly stammered, shaking his head, “... I can’t tell which is which…!”

“... oh no,” Umbris blurted out in realization.  “Oh, I hope this isn’t what I think we’re dealing with.”

“That being…?” Bayonetta pressed.

Alexander gasps upon realizing what Umbris meant.  “We’re dealing with one of those?  Here?!  Oh, but that would make perfect sense--!”

“--would the two of you ever so kindly explain what this THING we’re dealing with IS so we’re not all in the dark about it?!” Red snapped again.

“What we are dealing with,” Umbris ever so kindly explained, “could very well be Alister’s Shadow.”

“... well, that doesn’t sound very threatening,” Ratchet shrugged.  “I mean, it’s not like this place has a strong enough light source to even produce one that’s solid enough.”

The awkward silence that followed for the next ten seconds was almost mortifying, broken only when Aligore, Aerith, Homura, Pearl and Vivi all blurted in unison, “Uhhh… no.  I don’t think that’s right.”

“I--I…,” Umbris stammered, his twitching right eye being the only feature of his blank face that betrayed his inner thoughts as he stared dead center at Ratchet’s face.  “I… honestly can’t believe you could be. That. Stupid. At a time like this.”  The facepalm Umbris gave himself shortly after make a loud enough SMACK that reverberated throughout the Soul Room.  “I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT HIS ACTUAL SHADOW YOU FUCKIN’ BOLTHEAD!!!” Umbris hollered at Ratchet with such force that the young lombax was blown off his feet and flew right into Red’s gut.

“OOOPH-UGH...!  Ow, not again...,” Red whimpered meekly as he rubbed his midsection, which was once more spasming slightly.

“A Shadow, or in this context, a Shadow Self,” Alexander explained as calmly as possible, knowing full well the sort of situation they were about to be in, “is a representation of an individual’s repressed negative emotions and qualities, the side of oneself that they feel must remain hidden.  And unlike the Mirror Selves we dealt with back on Truth Path, Shadow Selves are generally much more malevolent and hostile by default, especially towards their real selves.”

“Are you saying Alister’s Shadow did that to him?!” Ratchet fretted, once more pointing out the chains hooked into the General’s body.

“No, not… not quite…,” Alexander replied slowly, the horrible realization dawning on him.  “It’s said that sometimes, a Shadow and their original self may become indistinguishable from each other, even to the point of… …”

“... of becoming one with each other…?!” Red finished Alexander’s sentence, having arrived at the same conclusion.

“... well… it certainly took you all long enough to come to that conclusion… but, better late than never, I suppose….”  The voice that addressed them echoed with a sinister reverb, just as a sickly purple aura began to radiate off the General’s body.  “You know, I’ve always wondered why any of us felt the need to give these drawn out expositions and explanations.  Such an enormous waste of time, really,” the echoing voice pondered aloud as Alister opened his eyes, revealing piercing, glowing irises: red on the left, yellow on the right.  “Getting straight to the point would be much nicer, wouldn’t you agree?”

♫♪ (Borderline of Madness (Persona 4: Dancing All Night vers.) ) ♪♫

“So we were right,” Red uttered as he and Alexander shared a fearful glance, “but what now?”

“We get that Shadow out of Alister, that’s what!” Ratchet hissed while preparing his GunWrench.

At the young lombax’s declaration, Alister’s Shadow snickered cruelly.  “Get me out of Alister? My dear boy, surely you could not have forgotten what Alexander had just gotten finished explaining.  I am as much a part of Alister as these many failures we know as “Altisters” are a part of this Soul Room.  Much more so, rather.”

“What, so you’re saying you and Alister are one and the same?!” Ratchet snapped back furiously.  “That is a load of Blargshi--UGH!?”  Before the young lombax could finish his thought, he was tackled to the ground by Umbris.  “Umbris, what dafu--MMMPH?!?!” he tried to protest before the Neo-Spacian clapped a cape-turned-hand over his mouth.

“Uh, yeah, one more thing we forgot to mention,” Umbris explained as he tried to restrain the struggling Ratchet.  “A Shadow Self will go berserk if anyone--especially the Shadow’s real self--makes any attempt to deny it.  And by “go berserk”, I mean “transform into a giant monstrosity to try and kill everyone in the vicinity”!”

“MMPH?!?! (WHAT?!?!)” Ratchet exclaimed before forcibly removed Umbris’ cape from his mouth.  “Dude, you should’ve included that with Alex’s explanation!!”

“Yeah, way to drop the ball there, you two,” Aerith casually agreed, much to Umbris and Alexander’s joint embarrassment.

The laugh that Alister’s Shadow let out this time was much louder and more cruel than the last.  “Oh-ho, is THAT what you think?  That you can keep me contained by refusing to deny me?” he asked rhetorically with a toothy, evil grin.  “Well, I’m afraid I’ve got news for you all…!”

♫♪ (Dark Awakening / “Awakening” - Persona 5 OST)♪♫

The purple aura surrounding Shadow Alister suddenly erupted, growing in size and density before rapidly forming a new, grotesque appearance; first emerged a giant head, with the left half resembling Alister’s with a glowing yellow iris, whilst the other half was the upside-down left half of a lombax skull with a red glow nestled within its eye socket. This head was itself secured within a gear by the four spokes piercing through it from the four cardinal directions, whilst a much larger gear rested atop the first, covered in numerous, featureless corpses tied to it by barbed wire. The twelve spokes of this gear closely resembled Alister’s OmniWrench, and from the intersection of these spokes in the gear’s center emerged a mechanical left hand which gave off a foreboding yellow glow from its joints and fingertips. Two more gears were attached to either side of this large gear, each with a left wing made of scrap metal affixed to it.

“... well, Umbris, you certainly weren’t exaggerating about the “giant monstrosity” part,” Bayonetta quipped to break the stunned silence that fell over the area after Shadow Alister’s transformation.

“Does this mean that Alister already tried to deny his Shadow…?!” Alexander fretted.

“Or the Shadow merely chose to go berserk on its own,” Umbris hypothesized.  “Given how badly Alister must be feeling, his Shadow may have had enough “fuel” to transform without being denied….”

“Clearly we are seeing the wonders of despair at its finest!” Gaius cackled gleefully, much to every else’s annoyance.  “So great is the despair of Alister Azimuth that it will consume all that he is with little-to-no stimuli!  Soon he and I will destroy everything within this Soul Room, and then we can proceed to reunite with my Mistress L E R N A--”

“--and WHAT, dare I ask,” Shadow Alister chimed in an annoyed tone, speaking through the fleshed side of its head, “made you come to the conclusion that I would even consider requesting a collaboration with a mistake like you?”  The Face Gear turned counterclockwise so that the skull half was now upright, which then added, “You are of absolutely no use to me in any sort of endeavor; you are just as much of a nuisance to me as anything else in this Watch, and will be dealt with like all the rest.”

“Wh--WHAT?!” Gaius barked indignantly.  “You would DARE to get in the way of my reunion with Mistress L E R N A?!  Of my chance to spread despair throughout the Multiverse--?!”

“Oh, SHUT! UP!! ALREADY!!!”
“Oh my God, will you CAN IT?!”

Gaius quickly found two Swords of Revealing Light impaled into his torso, courtesy of Red and Alexander MOVE-ing them into the Witch.  “Seriously, is there ANYTHING else you can talk about without involving despair or L E R N A?!” Alexander growled irritably at Gaius, his patience drawing thin at this point. “For crap’s sake this isn’t DanganRonpa!”

“Honestly, we should have done this sooner,” Red shook his head as he snapped his fingers in Gaius’ direction: “BANISH!”

Gaius howled in agony as the Revealing Swords within his body erupted in a dazzling display of light, leaving Gaius on the floor with large holes in his torso.

“Th-That should have done it…,” Red mused, curious as to why Gaius hadn’t been completely pulverized by the Banish Spell.

“Don’t tell me there’s something more to this…,” Alexander sighed wearily, noting that Gaius was feebly struggling to lift himself from the floor.  “I mean, shouldn’t “killing” Gaius put him in Recovery Mode?”

“He would need to “die” for that to happen,” I.T. pointed out.  “However, it would seem Gaius is staving off his Recovery Mode to continue fighting.”

“He can do that?” Alexander questioned.

“We all can,” I.T. nodded.  “Be it to employ the full extent of our power, or to keep ourselves “alive” for a moment longer, we Altisters can resort to “Overclocking” ourselves to give ourselves a boost.  However, doing so risks a heavy price for us….”

“That “price” being the complete cessation of the Altister in question,” Shadow Alister spoke again from its Skull half.  “Completely erased from the Watch, never to be recovered again.”

“So, it’s like DETERMINATION…,” Aligore mused, the Asgore side of him knowing full well what that means for monsterkind.

“... none of us ever told Alister that…,” Moony uttered slowly.  “His Shadow shouldn’t possess that knowledge… should it...?”

Alexander blinked at this new bit of information, then glanced over at the two Kadens, noticing that one of them had a guilty glimmer in his averted gaze.

“I… I can’t… fall here… not… not now…!” Gaius gurgled through blood-like ink as he staggered to his feet once more.  “Not… when I’m so close… so close… to my vision, I… keh… keh-heh-heh-heh-heh…!  This feeling… of despair… it’s almost… enticing… keh-keh-keh-keh…!”

“Oh great, he’s getting turned on from being cucked,” Umbris facepalmed.

“The fact of the matter, Gaius,” Shadow Alister rolled his eye as he turned the Face Gear counterclockwise again, the fleshed half once more upright, “is that your continued existence is a major thorn in my side, as I am sure the rest here would agree.  Now, do yourself and the rest of us a favor…,” the Shadow concluded as the mechanical arm’s energy turned bright blue, some of that energy being drawn into its palm, “... and vanish!”  With a flick of the wrist, the negative ion energy was launched in Gaius’ direction, threatening to disintegrate the Witch once and for all.  To the Shadow’s irritation, Gaius managed to swat the energy blast out of the way with his trident.  “... seems I underestimated your resiliency,” Shadow Alister sighed as he watched his attack sail uselessly through the air and out of sight.  “No matter; you will simply--”

♫♪(Stasis / “AZ” - Pokemon X & Y OST)♪♫

“This… this isn’t how I should be…,” Gaius uttered, his facial expression--or rather, facial features--suddenly changed due to the cut-outs falling off his face, revealing it to once again look like Too-Dee’s face.  “I… I was about to give up… because it somehow felt... better... than accomplishing my goal…?  And yet, I was willing to tear myself apart to see it come true…?  No…,” he whispered as his body started to glitch, “... there… should’ve been a better way… to do this… I can’t… destroy myself, I can’t give up… no, he can’t….”

“... Too-Dee…?” Alexander croaked, realizing what was happening to the Altister.

As if hearing Alexander quietly calling his name, Gaius--or rather, Too-Dee--lifted his head towards the lombax and gave a sad smile, even as his body continued to rapidly deteriorate into sand and ash.  “P-Pwease… you have to save Awistah… help him weawise… that he can’t give up… that he doesn’t have to destwoy himsewf… for evewyone to be happy… … be good, evewyone… … … … bye-bye… … ….”  Too-Dee managed one last smile and a teardrop before all he ever was vanished from the Watch.

“Finally, I am rid of that mistake,” Shadow Alister breathed out.  “Soon the rest shall follow, and that will include the lot of you,” he added while turning his attention to the Rescue Group, “unless you turn back now, leave this Watch and leave me to my work.  This shall be your last chance to walk away from all of this.”

“... you know we can’t do that,” Alexander solemnly declared as the Rescue Group and the Arc Souls prepared for the confrontation, “not until we bring Alister back!”

“A shame that your choice will result in your needless destruction,” Shadow Alister concluded emotionlessly, “but that… is something I can work with.”

♫♪(“Chaos Cycle” (“Boss Battle”/Persona 2 Innocent Sin OST (Extended)))♪♫

“I am a Shadow... The true self. These near-infinite cycles have resulted in failure upon failure, and even what were initially perceived as triumphs were in fact even MORE failures.

“Weighed down by this cursed cycle of failures and sins, I see no other course of action for me to take…

“... but to erase EVERYTHING, and begin completely anew.  And yes, that now includes you all, as well…!”

“... these can’t be Al’s true thoughts, can they?!” Red shivered.

“... call me crazy,” Ratchet uttered oddly, “but I feel like there’s more to this than what we’re being led to believe here….”

“No, it’s actually perfectly fine to be skeptical, Ratchet,” Alexander assured the younger lombax.  “I, too, feel like there’s a much deeper meaning--and connection--to this Shadow’s words.”

“What hope have you all to accomplish what I could not?” Shadow Alister boomed again as the surrounding area quickly turned pitch-dark, save for the immediate area where the group stood.  “You are all trapped in this cycle, too, with me.  The least I can do for you now… is to have you all join me in cessation…!”

“... anyone hear that?” Umbris blurted as his ears twitched at the sound of something rolling around in the darkness.  Something large, and metallic.

“It’s… all around us,” Admiral Vivi confirmed, the rest of the group prepared to act against whatever “it” was. “Multiples, even.  We may be surrounded.”

“... it’s… GEARS!!” Ratchet shouted, recognizing the sound.  “The Shadow’s attacking us with gears!”

To show how correct Ratchet was, a large gear--roughly as tall as Aligore and adorned with the same featureless corpse as those that decorated Shadow Alister’s largest gear--emerged from the shadows and sped its way toward the group, threatening to crush any who failed to get out of its path.  “Look out!!” gasped Pearl as the group dispersed to avoid the gear’s trajectory.  It was only the beginning, of course, as more gears began to make their assault, some moving in groups of two or three, other from opposite angles, all in an effort to run them down.

“This is… mortifyingly nostalgic,” Homura Akemi calmly mused as she nimbly sidestepped the gears with the grace of a ballerina, alongside Pearl.

“Attacking from the darkness… it’s not like Alister to fight like this,” Ratchet mused, narrowly avoiding two gears that came for him from either side.

“The Shadow must be spawning these gears itself, so it must still be close enough to do so,” Aligore guessed, he and Red resorting to deflecting the gears with either their polearms or magic due to their larger frames.

“Good thing this trick helped us back on Death Path,” Umbris chimed in, his ears now morphed into those of a bat.  “Though with all the commotion around us, it’s kinda hard to pinpoint it based on sound alone--huh?”  The Neo-Spacian cut himself off as Fiendish Chains suddenly swarmed the area, weaving through the gears and locking them in place.  “Yea-hea! Nice one, Alex!”

“Thank the Other Me,” Alexander quipped as he pointed over at his alternate self, who had his Duel Disk deployed and a “Fiendish Chain” card active in it.

“What of the Shadow?” Artorius fretted.

“Still in the dark, but not for much longer.  Swords of Revealing Light!” Once more, a rain of radiant swords descended upon the area, dispelling the shroud of darkness to reveal Shadow Alister’s Face Gear, looking quite annoyed at being restrained by both chains and swords.

“Your persistence is… aggravating,” Shadow Alister sneered through its Skull half just before the Rescue Team and Arc Souls joined forces for an All-Out Attack, pummeling the Face Gear for a third of the Shadow’s total HP.  “Why couldn’t you just leave me behind?” it asked once the All-Out Attack concluded, this time speaking through its Flesh half while covered in various wounds. “I already told you all; you’re just wasting time helping me! You need to help bring Isamy down!”

“We’re not doing that without you, Alister!” Ratchet insisted.  “We’re all gonna reach the end together!”

“You’re such a fool… what could I possibly do besides make things worse for everyone else?!”  As the Shadow spoke, the Winged Gears lit ablaze as they spun rapidly in place, showering the Shadow in burning scrap embers which somehow mended the wounds covering the Shadow’s face.

“The Shadow restored itself…?!” I.T. remarked in shock.  “Those wings… they must be responsible for restoring him.  They’ll need to be dealt with if we have any chance of taking this Shadow down.”

“Feh, so much for “getting straight to the point”, huh?” Admiral Vivi scoffed in the Shadow’s direction.

“YOU are the ones wasting your own time with this endeavor,” Shadow Alister retorted as it conjured numerous spheres within its palm.  “Your struggle only serves to delay the inevitable conclusion!”  The Shadow began to make a motion, as if to throw the spheres at its enemies, but held itself back from following through, as if an idea came to it at that moment.  The Flesh Half smirked as it put this idea into motion; the glow of its eyes intensified as its Face Gear began to rapidly spin counterclockwise, creating an eerie vortex of light aimed at the Rescue Team and Arc Souls.

“Don’t look at it!!” Kaden #2 shouted as he averted his gaze, as did everyone else… except for Alexander, Ratchet, and Red, who failed to do so in time, their bodies feeling numb after having their eyes assailed by the rapidly alternating red and yellow lights.

“Now THIS should teach you to be more concerned with yourselves…,” Shadow Alister declared cryptically.

“Boys, are you alright?” Bayonetta called out.

“I can’t feel my body for some reason,” Ratchet replied as his body seemed to have some difficulty keeping balance, “but otherwise I’m... fine?”

“Something’s not right here,” Alexander worriedly uttered.

“Gee, what was your first clue, Alex?” Red snarked impulsively with a roll of his eyes.

Before Alexander could give a retort in response, he, Ratchet and Red suddenly spun around with an unnatural motion towards the rest of the group.  “Wh-What--?!” Ratchet stammered as he found himself aiming his GunWrench at the group, and, try as he could, was unable to lower his weapon.  Or move any other part of his body, for that matter.  “What the hell’s going on?!”

“Nothing good, that’s for sure…!” Red grunted as he seemed to struggle with his scrawling of a Shock rune.  Or rather, struggling to keep himself from doing so.

“Ratchet,” Clank yelped as he hopped off the lombax’s back and grabbed hold of his arm, trying to aim the firearm elsewhere, “please you have to regain control of yourse--EEYAAH!!”  Clank’s endeavor was ultimately a failure as Ratchet flung the robot off his arm and into Umbris’ catch.

“Sorry, pal!” Ratchet apologized, all while he could feel his finger slowly squeeze the trigger.

“This is just like when Red cast that Command Spell on me,” Alexander summarized as his hand was raised against his will, with various Spell and Trap Cards materialized between its fingers.  “A feeling of not being in control of my own actions, yet completely aware of it all… and the fact that this Shadow seems aware of our abilities and tactics enough to know what to make us use… guys--!”

“--we got it, Alex!” Umbris nodded.  “We’ll do what we can!  Bayonetta, you and Madama Butterfly can deal with the Shadow… Bayonetta?!” the Neo-Spacian gasped as he saw the Umbra Witch trapped on a glowing, clockwork-like sigil, which was apparently doing something to her as she was now currently wearing an antique Umbra Witch Uniform… and was gradually shrinking before everyone’s eyes.

“Get her out of that sigil!” Kaden #2 nearly shrieked in urgent horror.  “She’s being Regressed!!”

“I-I got her!” Pearl yelped as she dashed at a breakneck pace toward the slowly de-aging Bayonetta, made a flying leap, and pulled the Umbra Witch out of the clockwork sigil’s area-of-effect, cradling her as they both rolled along the floor.  “I… I got her,” Pearl repeated in a more relieved tone, yet still worried as she was now holding a 7-year-old girl in her arms as opposed to a grown woman.  “... any chance she knows how to age herself up again?”

“Bayonet--erh, Cereza!” Umbris called out.  “Are you all right?!”

“You’re kidding, right?” Cereza scoffed, her voice still exuding haughty indignation despite sounding like a kindergartener otherwise.  “You just saw what happened to me.  I can’t use my weapons--KYA!” she explained while dropping one of her handguns, which discharged as it hit the ground, narrowly missing both herself and Pearl, “AND I’ve not the strength to summon any Infernal Demons--not even Madama Butterfly!”

“Long story short: she’s in no condition to fight, AND we’re stuck on babysitting duty,” Admiral Vivi groaned.

“Not to mention three of our allies are currently being used against us,” Homura Akemi added.

“We-We can still do this!” Aligore stammered determinedly.  “We’ll just have to help free our friends while also returning Bayonetta to her normal state, on top of dealing with the Shadow!”

“Look alive--they’re about to attack!” Artorius yelled just as Red was forced to launch his Shock Spell at the group.  Having anticipated this, Umbris sprung his “Anti-Raigeki” Trap Card to absorb the Shock Spell--

“I counter your Trap with “Trap Jammer”,” Shadow Alister declared just as one of the cards in Alexander’s hand emitted a purple flash, causing a Magic Circle to form around the skeletal lightning rod.

“Ah, DAMMIT!” Umbris cursed as the lightning rod began to short-circuit, threatening to self destruct against the group--

“”Counter Counter”!”  The Anti-Raigeki suddenly stopped short-circuiting as a Counter Trap symbol appeared, overlaid on the Trap Jamming Circle, before both symbols shattered, leaving Anti-Raigeki to absorb the Shock Spell unimpeded.  “Phew, that was a close one, wasn’t it?” Moony breathed with chipper relief, the “Counter Counter” Counter Trap Card vanishing from his hand.

“W-Wait.  Moony, you know how to play Duel Monsters?!” Umbris gasped.

“Somewhat,” Moony replied with cheerful bluntness.  “But I can Act like I’m an expert at it.  That’s my Talent, after all, as an Altister.  Oh, I.T., you may want to block Ratchet--”

“--I know,” I.T. uttered as he erected a digital barrier just as Ratchet was made to fire his GunWrench at the group.  “All of us Altisters,” Moony explained to the rest of the Group, “are assigned a Talent related to whatever we experienced around the time of our respective Alister’s death; for Moony, it is the ability to Act--a result of the skills his Alister developed during the time spent with the Red of that timeline.”

“Yep!  My timeline’s Red taught me all his secrets to acting like a villain.  Certainly helped us to blend in with the more villainous members of that timeline’s Divine,” Moony reminisced.  “Even our Sayer was fooled, at least initially.”

“Acting…?” Clank mused, a realization dawning on him.  “Does that mean… that you were also Acting as a Villain back in the Pathway of Death…?!”

At this, Moony’s expression became remorseful.  “I… We will explain everything later,” Moony promised as he glanced over at I.T., who solemnly nodded in agreement, while Zayon glanced aside with a saddened expression.

(♫”Nothing is Promised” / Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth OST♫)

“Artorius and I will take care of Alexander,” Moony continued as he materialized a deck of cards, “Zayon, you and Umbris do your best to counter Red, and I.T.--”

“--Clank and I shall deal with Ratchet,” I.T. declared as he picked Clank up with a Cable Tail.  “Aerith, you and Galen keep watch of the child Bayonetta while the rest take on the Shadow.”

“We’ll do better than look after her,” Aerith nodded confidently as Pearl handed Cereza over to her before she and Galen hurried off away from the action. Kaden #2 seemed indecisive of what to do next before running off to join Aerith and Galen.

“Try as you may,” Shadow Alister spoke through its Skull Half, “your endeavors WILL be in vain; I WILL be the one left to decide MY fate!”  The Shadow once more launched a volley of gears--smaller yet more saw-like this time around--at the team of Aligore, Vivi, Homura, Pearl, Phantom!Alex, and Kaden #1.  Aligore countered this barrage by erecting a rotating barrier of burning tridents around the group, deflecting the saw-gears away.  The gears, however, corrected themselves in midair and sought out their targets once more, this time aiming for weak spots in Aligore’s defenses.

“Rift Ripper!” Kaden #1 called out unnecessarily as he pulled out a hand cannon-like weapon and fired a shadowy mass from its barrel into the horde of saw-gears.  The mass--in reality a black hole--began to draw in the saw-gears into it, where there was no escaping.

“Why would you carry around something so dangerous?!” Pearl fretted, astounding and horrified that such a weapon could exist.  “Aren’t you worried that something like that could backfire?!”

“Aw, c’mon, it’s only potentially dangerous,” Kaden #1 shrugged before rushing off to fight the Shadow.

“Th-That doesn’t answer my question…!” a miffed Pearl muttered as she followed after Kaden #1, sidestepping yet another saw-gear along the way.

With one swing of his cutlass, Admiral Vivi deflected 3 other saw-gears, which fell out of the air this time and imbedded themselves into the floor.  “Got anything else to throw at us?” the Admiral taunted the Shadow.  “Kinda boring just dealing with the same attack ad infinitum, y’know.”

“Seems you are blind, Furret,” Shadow Alister retorted, “otherwise you would have noticed the difference in those gears you deflected.”

“... come again…?” Vivi blurted as he looked down at the gears he had deflected earlier, taking note of the glowing yellow sphere in the center of each of them.  These spheres were emitting a steadily rising humming sound as they transitioned gradually from yellow… to red.  Realizing what this meant only a few seconds too late, the Admiral could only roll his eyes with an “Oh, come ON--” before getting blasted several yards away by the exploding gears.

 

 

“Your Skill is Acting?” Alexander asked in a conversational tone, even as his body moved on its own to fight Moony and Artorius with a rapier in hand.  “So, you can replicate other people’s abilities just from a glance?”

“Yeah, but it takes a bit of practice to get it right,” Moony replied as he deflected Alexander’s rapier strikes with his deck of cards.  “‘Course, having the Soul of your other self here did help--he may not be much for conversation anymore, but he’s still a great teacher.”

“That’s great!” Alexander smiled even as he went for a slashing attack against Moony, only for it to be blocked by Artorius’ OmniWrench.

“Alex, you really need to focus,” Artorius advised his son as his Wrench was locked against Alex’s rapier.  “Try and free yourself from the Shadow’s control!”

“I know, Dad, I’m trying,” Alexander replied while backstepping and throwing a Blizzard Spell in Artorius’ general direction (it ended up missing, much to his own relief), “but I have so many questions I want to ask!”

“Break free first, then we can explain everything,” Moony proposed as he attempted to bind Alexander within a Fiendish Chain.  “And trust me, I want to tell you everything SO badly.”

“I appreciate that, Moony, thank you,” Alexander replied sincerely even as he was made to activate “Twin Twister”, causing a cyclone to form and shatter the Chains surrounding him, whilst a second Twister would appear… elsewhere.  “Aurrrrgh, I seriously didn’t like when this happened the FIRST time…!” Alex growled as 3 “Tremendous Fire” appeared in his hand.

“Shit.  If he activates those,” Moony gasped as he remembered what kind of card “Tremendous Fire” was, “it’ll not only cause trouble for us, it’ll hurt HIM, too!”

“No…! Alex, don’t let him make you do it!!” Artorius frantically plead with his son.

““Don’t… let him”… … That’s it!” Alexander exclaimed.  “He may have control over my body, but not my Will--OUR Will!” The Mark of Burning Soul flashed on Alexander’s chest briefly, during which time he regained control of his body long enough to rip the “Tremendous Fire” cards in his hand to shreds before they could activate.  “Whatever this Shadow’s deal is, he won’t be the one calling the shots around here.  He won’t stop us from saving Alister from his own despair--he’s done the same for me and Red, and we’ve all become closer because of him!  Our worlds have become one, become greater, because he never gave up on us, and I’ll be damned if we lose him to the voice in his head that tells him that all hope is lost!!”  Alexander’s body began to blaze with a brilliant red aura, the feeling of the Shadow’s control over it waning as his Will asserted itself as the stronger force.  “So help me, I will move both heaven and earth, and shake the foundations of Creation itself to see to it that we ALL make it through!!  DO YOU HEAR ME?!” he now furiously directed at Shadow Alister, his aura now intensified, the highest point reaching up to the middle of Shadow Alister’s face.  “We WILL pull Alister out of this, and we’ll do it through YOU whether you OR Alister LIKE it or NOT!!  And I won’t even hesitate to beat some sense into BOTH of you to make it happen!!  Neo-Spacian Red Dragon Archfiend!!”  The Signer Dragon-turned-Neo-Spacian erupted from Alexander’s blazing aura with a mighty roar.  “Strike now!  ABSOLUTE NEO FORCE!!!”  A crimson inferno engulfed Crim’s arms as the Neo-Spacian Signer Dragon lunged right at the Shadow’s face, the impact forcing the Boss several yards back while partially cracking the Skull Half of its face.  Noticing that his attack dazed the Shadow, even for a moment, Alexander took a calming breath before turning his attention toward Moony.  “Explanation Time, please!” he chimed with a cheeky grin.

“Alex, really,” Artorius shook his head, amazed at the possible implication that Alexander had powered through the Shadow’s puppeteering just for the sake of getting Moony to talk.

“No no, it’s fine, Artie,” Moony insisted.  “A promise is a promise, after all, and right now I have to honor that deal.  So, Alex,” he added, “what do you wish to know?”

“I feel like we’ve got enough time for one question,” Alexander figured, “but I’ll make it a two-parter.”  Giving Moony the sternest look he could muster, Alexander asked his question: “Were you truly the one responsible for the time loops continuing after Zayon’s ending, and for everything that happened to Zayon after that, like his memory being suppressed?”

“Ah, good, the question(s) I was hoping to answer,” Moony sighed.  “I’ll get straight to the point, then: no, I am not the one responsible for the time loops continuing, nor for Zayon losing his memory.  I only assumed the role I played as a diversion.”

“... what?!” Alexander blurted incredulously.

“If not you,” Artorius stepped in for his son, “then who was it?  Who is the one responsible for all of that?”

“Someone who’s not too bad at acting, himself,” Moony answered as calmly as possible.  “In fact, he’s been playing such a role since first entering this Watch.  Alex, I believe you were quite accurate as to who it was that this individual was masquerading as.”

“... so, it was one of the Kadens after all,” Alexander calmed down enough to reply.  “But then… WHO is it?!”

“The one with all the answers you seek,” Moony answered, “for he was, and still is, the first Soul to have entered this Watch, the first… well, of just about everything to do with this War.  And his name is….”

 

 

“... you’re not going to… y-you know…,” Clank asked I.T. while the latter had Ratchet bound and suspended in the air by several cables, one wrapped around each of the young lombax’s limbs as another pair got to work on disarming Ratchet of his weaponry, all in an (admittedly straightforward and surprisingly effective) effort to keep him from doing any harm to his friends and himself. “Are you?”

“Clank,” I.T. huffed irritably, “if you could cease with the stammering and “spit out” whatever is the point you are trying to make, I can answer your enquiry far more easily.”

Making a rather uncharacteristic whimper, Clank steeled himself into asking his dreaded question: “Are you going to… put Ratchet through a “Hen-Tie” routine?”

A shocked expression on Ratchet’s face made way for an uncontrolled, awkward giggling fit.  I.T., likewise, slowly turned his head towards Clank, revealing a dropped jaw and squinted eyes.  “... what… sort of… are you KIDDING me, Clank?!” I.T. hissed in utter disbelief, his monotone dropped completely.  “Did whatever happened to you on Death Path really scar you THAT badly that you had to ask me such a thing?!”

“Yes.”

I.T. couldn’t help but to drag a palm down his own face in response.  “... trust me, Clank, I believe we’d ALL wish to forget that series of events,” he replied as soon has he calmed down, the monotone returning to his voice.  “For one reason or another.  Besides, I’d never do that to Ratchet, now really--”

I.T. and Clank’s little chat was quickly interrupted when they realized that Ratchet’s giggle fit abruptly turned into a coughing fit.  A familiar cough, in fact, that hadn’t been heard since the latter half of Act 3.  “Ratchet!!” Clank gasped in worry as he saw his friend convulse in I.T.’s cables with every cough.  To his uneasy relief, however, Ratchet’s coughing began to die down almost as abruptly, to be replaced by a raspy breathing.  “Are you alright, Ratchet?”

“I would release him from the cables,” I.T. explained, “but his body could still be puppeteered by the Shadow.”

“It’s… fine,” Ratchet uttered in a hoarse whisper, his breathing steady yet still raspy.  “It just… popped up again… when he woke up….”

“... “he”?” I.T. repeated.  “Who is this “he” you speak of, Ratchet?”

“Seems like… there’s more than just… one me right now,” Ratchet explained.  “Or is it… that I’m more than just me… right now… you’ve figured that, too… didn’t ya, pal…?” he asked Clank.

Clank quietly gasped as he recalled such a theory that he had brought up in a conversation with Alexander near the very beginning:

"I have theorized, that when time had crashed in our world, the parallel timelines had somehow converged into one, and with it, everyone in our universe was combined with their parallel selves.  That must be how Ratchet acquired his condition."

“So, it’s true?,” Clank asked, now realizing what was happening.  “That the time crash in our world did cause us to be merged with our alternate selves?  Even… that Ratchet…?”

“Yeah,” Ratchet nodded, his breathing now not as labored or raspy as before.  “I don’t quite understand it either, but… well, that Ratchet apologized to me for giving me his condition.  Somehow.”

“But why is that Ratchet resurfacing now?” I.T. puzzled.  “What reason would he have to reawaken within your own Soul?”

“Call me crazy, but… he told me that… he knows the real nature of Alister’s Shadow,” Ratchet answered, just as confused as the others were.

I.T. blinked, a realization dawning upon him.  “So… that Ratchet is reacting to a presence from his own timeline.  That must be it.”

“A presence…? What do you mean?” Clank questioned.

“What that Ratchet--the Ratchet who died at the hands of his Alister--is reacting to… it is here, within this Soul Room.  Rather,” I.T. ominously corrected himself, “he is here.”

“”He”...?!” Ratchet gasped, the pieces of the puzzle starting to fall in place in his mind.

He,” I.T. answered firmly, “the one responsible for all of this--the Watch’s power, the Time Loops, us Altisters… and more.  The one who calls himself….”

 

 

“You are NOT turning me into a FROG!!” Cereza protested vehemently in Aerith’s face.  “I don’t see how it’s supposed to help return me back to my normal age, anyway!”

“I mean, given her current age, wouldn’t she end up a polliwog at best?” Galen surmised.

“That’s still a tadpole, Galen,” Aerith corrected.

“What?  I thought “polliwog” was the stage between a tadpole and frog--”

“It doesn’t matter WHAT stage of a frog’s life cycle you’re talking about--you are NOT turning me into one!!”

“Aww, c’mon, Cereza, I’m only trying to cast Frog on you to see if my Esuna will clear up all of your ailments.  Besides,” Aerith playfully added, “haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like to be a cute little animal for a day?”

Not about to take this patronizing sitting down, Cereza countered, “I can be a “cute little animal” anytime I want when I’m my real age. Although, I’m sure being a frog would beat taking a sword through the torso, wouldn’t it?”

“Try asking Dante,” Aerith cheerily taunted back.

“Beg your pardon…?”

“Hate to break up this passive-aggressive verbal catfight, girls,” Galen cut in, “but we’re not gonna get anywhere by just bickering over how to handle this dilemma.”

“He’s right.  We’ve all wasted enough time as it is.” Kaden #2 approached the Babysitting Group with a steady, urgent gait.  “We need Bayonetta and her Infernal Demons to help end this Shadow quickly.  And for the record, having one’s age regressed is something far more complicated than a mere “Status Ailment”.

“So, no Froggonetta?” Aerith just about relented.

“Not at all.  Now, this Regression could actually wear off on its own, but it’ll take too long waiting for it to do so.  So I… …,” Kaden #2 trailed off, considering his next words with the utmost care.  He continued, in an almost confessional tone, “... I will have to revert her back myself, with my own power.”

“What?  You have a similar power to the Shadow’s?” Galen gasped.

“... actually, it would be more accurate to say that the Shadow has a similar power to mine.”  With a snap of his fingers, Kaden #2 materialized an ornate, platinum-colored staff in his hand to the muted sound of several clock alarms going off.  “Not how I wanted this facade of mine to start to unravel, but time is truly of the essence now….”  Tapping the end of his scepter-like staff on the floor, Kaden #2 created a Clockwork Glyph beneath Cereza’s feet.  “This’ll be over quick.”  And indeed, within seconds Bayonetta found herself aged back up to her normal self after a brilliant display of light.

“Wow, it worked!” Aerith gleefully clapped.

“Bayonetta, quickly,” Kaden #2 urged, “the Shadow’s winged gears--those need to be destroyed.”

“Alright, but you owe me at least one answer afterwards,” Bayonetta demanded.  “AFFA TADAAG NAPTA!”

Still dazed from Neo-Spacian Red Dragon Archfiend’s attack, Shadow Alister found himself getting pinned down by 3 pairs of giant arms.  Actually, four of these arms were pinning him down to the floor, whilst the remaining two arms began vigorously pummeling him all over his geared form, ending with both fists each slamming down on the Shadow’s two winged gears, shattering them to pieces.  “No!  How is this happening?!” Shadow Alister roared in disbelief.

“That should do it, then,” Bayonetta nodded.  “Now, for my question to you, Kaden,” she said while turning to face Kaden #2.  “You say that the Shadow has power similar to yours, and you possess power that not even Alister has been shown to use through this Pocket Watch.  Would that make you the Pocket Watch’s source, Kaden?  IF that is even your real identity, of course,” she added.  “I do recall Alexander expressing his own concerns on the matter--”

“--and he is correct,” Kaden #2 interjected.  “Unsurprising, of course--I’ve observed from the very beginning how analytical he can be.  It’s true, that there should only be one Kaden within this Watch, and it is the one fighting alongside Aligore and the other Souls.”

“Then, who are you?” Galen questioned.

“You mean the lot of you don’t know?” Bayonetta asked in shock as she glanced between Galen and Aerith, the two Souls shrugging in reply.

“Only the real Kaden and the Altisters currently active--Moony, I.T., and now Zayon--are in on the knowledge of who I truly am; the rest of the Souls and Altisters simply know me as a “second Kaden”.  In truth, I am the reason that this whole mess even exists in the first place--the Origin War, this Pocket Watch… even the Pathways to Origin, by extension.”

“!!!!” Bayonetta exclaimed.

“The reason for all your problems never started with Isamy, of course,” the figure pretending to be Kaden confessed while slowing making a motion with his free arm as if to pull a mask off over his head.  “In fact, alongside Protheus, the true culprit of it all was, and is, me.  For you see, my name is….”

 

 

“Honey--I mean, Red!” Zayon blurted as he protected himself from an incoming Shock Spell with his giant Scrapbook.  “C’mon, man, you need to break free!”

“Can’t you tell I’m trying?!” Red protested as he was made to scrawl several more Shock symbols in a row. “Unlike what happened with Adrastos, puppetry isn’t always as easy to deal with compared to mind control! I at least have autonomy with the latter.”

“Gotta keep him from casting…!” Umbris uttered aloud as a rattling noise could be heard coming from his cape.  “Fiendish Chain!” the Neo-Spacian commanded as several ebon chains erupted from within his cape, and proceeded to ensnare Red with the intention of preventing both Skill and Action from the Dragon Elder.  “Sorry Red, I know you don’t exactly like being bound and all, but this should keep you from fighting us against your will.”

“No no, it’s fine,” Red drawled semi-sarcastically, “it’s not like this won’t drudge up any nasty memories that I’d really wish to forg--YAAHH!!” the Dragon Elder yelped as he was suddenly assailed by a miniature tempest erupted around him, the winds somehow causing the Fiendish Chain to become brittle while Red was relatively unharmed by them.  “What in the Ancestors’ name--?!”

“Shit, I forgot Alex!” Umbris cursed, realizing what had happened while he watched the Fiendish Chains fall off of Red.  “Shadow Alister must’ve forced Alex to play Mystical Space Typhoon, or even Twin Twister!”

“Y’know, as a Duel Monster, one would think you’d prevent getting outplayed,” Red cursed their own luck as his body continued from where it left off, attempting to trigger the Shock Spells once more--

“Sorry, Red!!”

BONK!!!

“OUCH!” Red yelped as the thick Scrapbook was brought down upon his head, followed by a sea of stars dancing before his eyes.  The sudden assault caused Red’s Shock Glyphs to vanish, unused. “Sonnuva… HONEY!! I’d appreciate it if you didn’t beat me over the head with our precious memories!”

“I’m sorry, Red, I’m really sorry,” Zayon blathered, tears running down his face.  “I’m sorry, but I… I just couldn’t stand seeing you like this--being made to act against your will, forced to fight your friends.  Knowing that you’ve been through this before, I… Red, you have to fight it… I know you have the strength of willpower to break free of the Shadow’s control!”

“I’m trying! Figuring out a method of puppetry isn’t easy! Perhaps he’s using something to do it? On his gears?” Red guessed.

“I dunno…!” Umbris said as he glanced at the Shadow, trying to pinpoint its method of control.  “If there is anything on the gears that’s making it possible, it’s not being made obvious (You’d think that would be the case, in this sorta situation--such telltale signs would act as a weak point).  That being said… the Shadow itself is only using variations of its basic attack,” he added as he watched the group of Souls combating the projectile gears, “so whatever it’s doing to control the three of you in addition to fending off the Souls is dividing his attention and/or his power--he can’t put all of his focus on just one action without dropping another.”

“... could it be… neural control?” Zayon sniffed.  “Call me crazy, but I think I heard something about that before, somewhere….”

“Could explain why it’s the body that’s being controlled as opposed to the mind being influenced,” Umbris mused before returning his attention to the Shadow.  “Guess the best course of action is to give the Shadow more to worry about.  Got that, Admiral?” he added just as Admiral Vivi literally slid into view on his back, having been flung across the room by some other attack.  The Admiral silently replied with a thumbs-up, partly out of his own embarrassment, before quickly getting back to his feet and dashing back into the fray.

“I hope that works,” Zayon sighed.  “If the Shadow’s control can be lessened even a bit, I’m sure Red can break free… he has a lot of strength in him… more so than me…,” he trailed off with a sad whisper.

“What’s with the sudden pessimism, hun--I-I mean, Zai?” Red questioned as he struggled against his body scrawling yet another Shock Glyph.

Zayon gave Red a weak, teary smile.  “It’s nothing, dear.  Nothing that can be helped, really.  I’m just… not sure what I’m even supposed to contribute to any of this--”

“I know for a fact your contribution isn’t the issue, Zayon,” Red retorted, his scrawling hand actually freezing in place.  “I know you--or rather, your Red knows you, and I can tell--through the memories you gave me--that there’s more going on with you right now than you’re willing to admit.  Now, tell me what’s the matter,” he asked tenderly.

“I… it’s not important right now,” Zayon shook his head insistently.

“... I’m sorry, dearie, you must be confused,” Red cooed somewhat darkly.  “When I said “tell me what’s the matter”... that wasn’t a request!

A second later, Zayon found himself narrowly dodging Red’s Shock Spell, which had seemingly been aimed at him by Red of his own volition as opposed to through Shadow Alister’s control.  “R-Red…!”

“Now then, given the situation and our group’s natural habit when inside someone’s mind, I think it’s time we had a frank discussion about what you’re not saying to me” the dragon sternly stated.  “And you’d better get straight to the point, ”Adonis”, or I may just let the next Shock Spell HIT its mark!”

“... honestly, I wouldn’t mind if it did,” Zayon uttered miserably.

“Dude, what the HELL is your issue?!” Umbris snapped at Zayon.  “You were pretty gung-ho about saving Alister earlier, and now you’re choosing quite a moment to have a fuckin’ existential crisis and shit!”

“That’s why I’m questioning why I’m even doing this; the more I remember, the more I question why I’m even HERE!  What good can I contribute to Alister’s rescue when I… when I’m the LEAST-qualified out of ALL of us?!”

“What do you mean, “least-qualified”?” Red retorted, while suddenly aware that he could actually move on his own again--the Shadow must’ve had more problems on its plate now.  “What is it about you that makes you the least-qualified?  Is it because of Rex?  What he said to you?  Zayon, you need to move on from that--”

“--I don’t know if I CAN anymore!!” Zayon wailed as he dropped to his knees, doubling over as he howled in anguish.

“Zayon, I KNOW you can, you just have to… … what do you mean “anymore”?”

“I mean, it makes sense,” Umbris pondered.  “Aren’t the Altisters even here because their respective Alister kicked the bucket?”

“But by my understanding, Zayon is the only exception here,” Red explained.  “Zayon was formed here through a loophole in the Watch’s system, and his Alister… is still… … ….”  A cold chill ran through Red’s body as his mind drew closer to the horrible conclusion.  “... … Zayon… no… ….”

“... it’s… as I said,” Zayon uttered silently, tears falling from his expressionless eyes, “I just… didn’t have the strength… … my last memory before coming here… was of me looking through all the memories I had made… enjoying a nice glass of red wine… … with my anti-depressant….”

It was Red’s turn to howl in horror and anguish.

Umbris, too, was left shaken and horror-stricken by this confession.  Yet he held it together enough to question Zayon some more: “... your depression didn’t stop after your Altister was formed, did it?  You must’ve tried to… even here… … is that why your memory was suppressed?  Is that why Moony suppressed your memory?!  So you could stop trying to KILL YOURSELF?!!”

“... … … it wasn’t Moony who did it…,” Zayon replied emotionlessly, lifting his tear-streaked face to look into Umbris’ eyes.  He looked almost lifeless now.  “Moony… doesn’t have that sort of power.  Nor did he know of any “loophole”--there never was one to begin with.  No… it was someone else who--”

An ear-splitting roar and a split second later, Zayon found himself slammed against the floor, pinned down by a furious Red and his burning glare.  “WHY?!?!” the dragon shrieked, dangerously close to spewing fire right into Zayon’s face.  “WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING??!  WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT, YOU BASTARD?!!-BASTARD?!! Why-Why did-did you-you take-take away-away our-our happy-happy ending?-ending?"

Red’s face was utterly demented, more so as it appeared to be stretching itself out, his body fading in and out of flux as a second projection, a much cleaner version, stretched itself next to the dragon, with both of them pinning the Lombax to the ground.  “Why-Why did-did you-you break-break what-what was-was already-already fine!-fine!” both Red and Reid demanded.

“Red?!” Umbris yelped in disbelief at what he was witnessing.

“We-We could-could have-have talked-talked it-it out.-out.  But-But instead-instead you-you hid-hid it?!?!-it?!?!” both dragons seethed.  “Was-Was putting-putting on-on a-a brave-brave face-face more-more important-important to-to you-you than-than coming-coming to-to us-us for-for help?!!-help?!!  I-I could’ve-could’ve helped-helped you!!-you!!  Alex-Alex could-could have-have helped-helped you!!!-you!!!  ANYONE!!!-ANYONE!!!  So-So WHY-WHY didn’t-didn’t you?!?!-you?!?!”

“I… I didn’t know what to do…,” Zayon croaked emotionlessly, seemingly unphased by there now being two dragons before him.  “I just… couldn’t put that burden on you all, I… I don’t know what I was thinking… that things would’ve been better had I not… ….”

Umbris had his hands clamped over his muzzle, the scene playing out before his eyes becoming too much for him.  “... and we thought Alister was having it bad.  That damned beast, depression….”  He had to tear his eyes away from this nightmare… and so he glanced down at the scrapbook Zayon had left on the floor and, after a moment of consideration, dared himself to open it and browse through its contents….

The twin dragons gripped Zayon by his jacket, hauling him up to their yellow eyes.  Their dual-forms fluctuating almost painfully as they were trying to tear each other apart so they could tear him apart.  “You-You thought?!-thought?!  Do-Do you-you even-even understand-understand what-what you-you even-even did?!-did?!” they bellowed, tears streaming down their faces.  “You-You made-made us-us lose-lose EVERYTHING!!-EVERYTHING!! We-We lost-lost Rex-Rex because of you!”

Slowly, Reid was overlaying himself back over Red, their scars melting away as a different dragon reared over Zayon.  “DO YOU HEAR ME?!  WE LOST REX!  As well as everyone else! We lost our lives! And after I was dragged along for the ride, AND YET YOU NEVER TOLD ME?!  Not once when your memory came back did! You! Ever! Tell! ME!!!!  YOU KEPT IT A SECRET THE FIRST TIME!  AND YOU KEPT IT A SECRET THE SECOND TIME?!?!  ANSWER ME DAMN YOU!”

“What if Zayon wasn’t the only one keeping a secret from us?” Umbris chimed in as he looked up from the current page in the scrapbook.  “What if the other Altisters--?”

“Umbris, be QUIET!!” Reid snapped at the Neo-Spacian.

“He’s right… Umbris,” Zayon weakly agreed.  “About everything… this is the mess I made… the cycles continued because of me… and I’ve doomed so, so many Alisters to a terrible fate… all because I wasn’t strong enough….”

“Can you at least explain this, though?” Umbris pressed on despite Reid’s demand, pulling out one of the photos from the scrapbook: Within its white border was a single figure against a black void, their form distorted save for what looked like a chained robe that the figure was wearing.  “Call me crazy, but something seems strangely familiar about this one.”

“Well?!” Reid barked, shaking Zayon into responding while holding him up to the photograph for a better look.

“... that… I could’ve sworn I saw that in a dream,” Zayon recounted wearily.  “Could’ve been my dying dream, for all I know… still, I think I remember… talking with that figure….”

“About what?” Reid pressured.

“Red--er, Reid, please, let him speak,” Umbris pleaded in a rather Alexander-like tone.  “Can you recall that conversation, Zayon?”

“I… I’m not sure if I… wait… Umbris, hand it to me,” Zayon requested with an open hand.  Umbris obliged, motioning for Reid to lower Zayon again so that the photo could be given to him.  “If I hold this photograph,” Zayon hypothesized, “maybe I can get the memory in it to play--ah!”  His eyes suddenly snapped open wide as a beam of light shone from them, forming a screen before them.   And on that screen, a scene began to play out: a robed figure bound in chains, standing within a black void.  The robe obstructed all of the figure’s features from view--even within its hood was a void as black as its surroundings.  A distorted voice spoke from within the figure’s robe:

“I sense that you are nearing your end… a real pity it is, for it to be as such.  This story you’ve built, your supposed “Happy Ending”, was in the end anything but.  Yet I sense within you the desire to make things right, to forge a greater outcome for you and yours.  It need not end here, you know.  You can start over anew, shuffle the deck, roll the dice, whatever analogy you prefer, and find your Happily Ever After once more... within the Door of Origin.  And I can help you achieve the ending that you and yours oh so rightfully deserve… but, you must be willing to let me help you.  Give your all unto me, and I will make your desires manifest: a new beginning from which a grander tomorrow shall rise.

And so, I ask this of you, Alister “Zayon” Azimuth:

Do you accept…?”

“Noooooo!” Reid wailed.  “Please, no, Zayon, don’t accept it!” he begged, as if this were presently happening.  “We have too much to lose!  We can still be happy.  Please, don’t do it!”

“Reid, easy!” Umbris warned.  “We don’t know what will happen if we interfere with--”

”... so, you refuse.

“… is it because you wish to simply cease to be?  Have you truly given up on life that badly?  Do you not care how your actions will affect those who know you?  Those who love you?

“… how pathetic.

“You merely wish for an end to your suffering?  Think again.  Speaking of, now that I’ve given this further consideration, I have deemed you to be of no use to me anyway.  So, this is how things shall go--as punishment for your refusal, you will not be granted the embrace of death you so desire; rather, you shall continue to suffer, in a world torn asunder by your selfishness.  There will be no backing out from this point onward for you  Your punishment, is LIFE.

“Now, begone.”

“GAH!!” Zayon yelped as he clutched his head, still wide-eyed.  “What’s… happening…?!” he struggled as he literally went cross-eyed, with the screen likewise splitting in two, now both showing static.  “I--I’m… okay…?” Zayon uttered, confused as to why he didn’t have a splitting headache at this point.

“... wait, shh!  I hear something…,” Umbris shushed the two as he got closer to the two screens, pinpointing the sounds coming from the one on the right.  “Is this one audio only…?” he puzzled as he tried to find the volume switch.

Zayon, as if on cue, grabbed the tip of his own right ear and pulled it upwards, which had the effect of turning up that screen’s volume.  Convenient.

“Guys~ Dinner’s ready!” a voice that Umbris recognized as Alexander’s called out.  It still sounded muffled even with the volume turned up, so it may have been coming from the other room.  Umbris could also barely make out the faint sound of a very slow heartbeat….

“I’ll be down in a moment, Alex~!” a Red-sounding voice replied, again muffled.  “Oh, but do check on Al, please?  He did say he might lay down for a nap.”

“No,” Reid uttered, horrified.  “No, no no nooooo.”

“Sure thing, I’m right by his door anyway,” Alex’s voice chimed before the sound of knocking could be heard.  “Al, you up?”  A brief pause as nothing but silence replied back to Alex.  A bit more knocking was heard, a bit louder this time.  “Al? Everything okay?”  Again, more silence.  A sigh could be heard from Alex.  “Okay, just hope you’re decent, ‘cuz I’m coming in,” he warned as a doorknob could be heard turning, followed by the squeaking of door hinges.  “Alister, I just wanted to know if… you… … REEEEED!! RATCHEEEET!!!  Someone, HEEELP!!!”  Alexander’s cries for help were answered by a chorus of rapid, heavy footfall.

The next voice to be heard sounded somewhat like Ratchet’s, yet a bit deeper and gravelly: “Alex, what’s going on… ALISTER!!”

“What the hell--SHIT!!” Umbris recognized his own voice as the one cursing. “Ah, SHIT! Al, man, c’mon, you can’t--can SOMEONE call a doctor, please?!  Raphael, Joy, whoever, just--HURRY!!”

“Please…, nooo,” Reid uttered, reaching out for Zayon.

More thunderous footfall, followed by a yelp from Umbris before--”Alist-AAAAAAAAAHHH!!!”  Unmistakenly, it was Red’s voice.

“N-No, I can’t, I can’t--!” Reid sputtered hysterically.  “I don’t remember this!”

“Reid, shush, we don’t know for certain yet!” Umbris shushed the dragon.

“Alister, why?!” Red’s voice shrieked through the white noise.  “Al, please, don’t do this, please, PLEASE, don’t--I-I don’t want to be alone, Al, please…!”

“Paramedics are on their way,” a Talwyn-esque voice urgently called over the commotion.

“What if there’s no time?!” Ratchet’s voice fretted.

“... we’re just gonna have to MAKE time,” Alexander’s voice said determinedly.  “Hurry, we need to get him onto his side...  Oh god, I can feel a pulse, but just barely.”

“You know what you’re doing, Alex?!”

“God, I hope so….”

“It sounds like they’re trying to resuscitate you,” Umbris said to Zayon.  “I just… wonder if it worked at all….”

“So, it’s about to happen again….”  Umbris’ ears picked up on a sound coming from the other screen: a concerned voice, which sounded like… Kaden’s?

“This is about as bad as when Trigger, uhm… y’know,” another voice chimed in, this time sounding like Alister’s, although it spoke in a more casual tone.

“YES, WE KNOW, MOONY: WHEN TRIGGER’S ALISTER “BLEW HIS BRAINS OUT”,” the unmistakable monotone of I.T. sassed harshly.  “HONESTLY, THIS IS JUST MISERABLE.”

“Y’know, it’s okay to actually look like you’re upset, I.T.,” Moony sassed back.

“THAT’S NOT WHAT I NEED TO BE WASTING MY ENERGY ON.”

“Suit yourself.”

“Hang on, is that…,” Umbris uttered as he glanced between the two screens, “... did these two scenes happen at the same time?”

“Gentlemen, please, we need to be prepared for the worst,” Kaden’s voice implored from Screen #2.  “This Alister’s Altister is already starting to form; if he dies, we’ll end up back at the beginning of Isamy’s Origin War.  Again.”

“Hey, thirty-fifth time’s the charm,” Moony’s voice verbally shrugged.  A heavy slap sound quickly followed.  “Ow~!”

“THIS IS NO TIME TO BE JOKING, MOONY!!!’ I.T.’s voice seethed, his All-Caps being used more for his sudden, angry shouting instead of his usual android-like tone.  “A MAN IS LOSING HIS GODDAMNED LIFE AND ALL YOU SEE FIT TO DO IS MAKE LIGHT OF IT!!! NOT TO MENTION THAT THERE HAS ALREADY BEEN THIRTY-FOUR ITERATIONS OF THE ORIGIN WAR, AND WE STILL HAVE NO CONCRETE EVIDENCE THAT THERE WON’T BE ANY CONSEQUENCES TO THERE BEING SO MANY; ALL OF THOSE TIMELINES STILL EXIST FOR ALL WE KNOW!!”

“W-Wait a second,” Reid blurted out.  “The time loops don’t cause a timeline to cease to exist…?  That means… our timeline could still be…. And Rex… h-he’s still….”

“Dammit, Al, breathe already…!” Screen #1 continued to play out the sounds of Zayon’s final moments, with Alexander’s voice pleading for Zayon to regain consciousness, all while the faint heartbeat grew ever slower, drawing closer to a certain stop.

“Please… don’t leave me alone. After my friends and family in my world…, I-I-I can’t lose you too,” Reid’s voice pleaded from the screen.

“Dammit… I wish there was something we could do,” Moony’s voice uttered somberly from Screen #2.  “Can’t we, [[BZZZT]]?” he asked of someone, the name of the recipient mysteriously omitted by static.

“At this point… we have no power over the physical world, no way to influence Alister’s fate,” Kaden’s voice quietly replied.  “All we can do… is wait and see… ….”

… … …

… … …

… … …

[DING!] [“Orvus-Apparatus Rewind Initiating.  Beginning return route to previous starting point.”]

“... dammit….”

“... so, it begins again,” I.T’s voice uttered hoarsely.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” It was two voices screaming in unison, two dragons crying out in anguish.

“He’s… he’s gone,” Umbris’s voice quietly uttered from Screen #1.  “I… dammit, Al… we’re sorry….”

“This… this can’t be it… Al,” Alexander’s voice whimpered.  “My god… please, this can’t be how it ends… please….”

… … …

… … …

… … … [KAFF--KAFF--AURGFF!!]

“AAAH!!!”

“Alister!!”

“Wait, what?!” Umbris shouted--both in-screen and out--in disbelief, as he heard the sound of someone regurgitating their stomach contents onto the floor.  “What’s going on?!”

“What’s going on?!” Moony’s voice on Screen #2 blurted out.  “Did he… did that Alister just come back to life?!”

“But… but his Altister just finished forming,” I.T. puzzled.  “And the Apparatus is still sending us back…!”

“Well, that’s new,” Kaden’s voice mused.  “Seems being legally dead still qualifies as an ignition.  We’re still being sent back to the starting point… and that Alister might still live to see another day.”

“Well, that’s good, right?  At least for them?” Moony asked, referring to the events on Screen #1.

“Uuugh… what’s… what’s going on…?” a new voice spoke up, this time with Zayon’s tone--the Altister had just “awoken”.  Upon his awakening, the white noise on Screen #2 cleared, now showing someone’s blurred Point-of-View from inside the Pocket Watch’s chamber.

“Well, this is going to be a LONG story,” Moony sighed with a slight, mirthless chuckle.

“Oh, Ancestors…!” Red’s voice sighed from Screen #1.  “Al, baby, just hang on, okay?  You’re gonna make it!”

“Red…?” Zayon on Screen #2 said feebly as he heard his beloved’s voice.  “Red, is that… where are you--?”

“--oh no,” Kaden’s voice suddenly uttered in fear.  “Nonononono--Red’s got his hand on the Pocket Watch!  It’s going to--!”

[“Orvus-Apparatus Rewind Beginning In 3…

2…

1.”]

“NO!”

Screen #1 emitted a loud static before seemingly cutting off suddenly.  Yet that didn’t stop the events that played on that Screen from being seen through another screen within Screen #2: Red’s body bolting upright with a sharp, sudden jerk, eyes wide as he let out a croaked moan before crashing to the floor in the middle of the room.  “... R-Red?” Alexander’s voice stuttered in worry.

“He must’ve just passed out from the stress,” Ratchet’s voice pondered.  “I know I’d feel just about ready to--”

“--if he’s passed out, then why are his eyes wide open?” Umbris’s voice cut in.  “And--wh-what’s going on with Alister’s watch?!”

“Red…?!  Red?!!” Zayon gasped on Screen #2, now more frantic and concerned for whatever he was seeing of the other side, even as the screen he was watching began to be obscured by a bright blue light… before abruptly shutting off.

“... … aaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!”  A loud CRASH directed the POV’s attention towards a familiar dragon, having suddenly fell into the Pocket Watch’s chamber from above.

“GOD-FUCKING-YIKES!!!” Moony’s voice yelped.

“RED!!” Zayon shrieked as he got up--at this point it was clear that the POV was his--rushing over to Red’s side.

“Ugh… Alister…?” Red sputtered as he quickly came to, finding himself in a new surrounding.  “Wh-What is this place…?!”

“[[BZZZT!]] what just HAPPENED?!” Moony’s voice questioned, his addressee’s name once again omitted.

“This is bad,” Kaden’s voice fretted.  “Red was making contact with the Watch when the Rewind went into gear.  It… It pulled his Soul and consciousness inside…!”

“But what does that mean?” I.T. puzzled.

“It means... Red’s body will be left behind,” Kaden’s voice explained, “and will be stuck in a vegetative state while his Soul is brought along with us….”

“What...?  WHAT?!” Moony shrieked furiously at “Kaden”.  “[[BZZZT!!]], are you telling us that we’ve basically KILLED him?!  What the everloving FUCK, [[BZZZT!!!]]?!”

“... so, it wasn’t you that left us,” Reid quietly uttered to Zayon, “... it was I that left you behind, all this time… wait-wait, so-so you’re-you’re--!!” Reid echoed as he body fluctuated once again before splitting into two separate dragons once more.

“So you’re… not just Zayon’s memory of his Red,” Red panted in complete shock as he looked his alternate self in the eye. “You… really ARE Zayon’s Red…!”

Before Reid could reply, they were interrupted by the horrified howling coming from the screen; Zayon, in the recording, was evidently experiencing a mental breakdown caused by the revelation that his Red was effectively killed… and that he was responsible for it.  The screen obscured at certain points, only showing brief flashes of Zayon’s P.O.V. during that time, but it was clear that the Altister was writhing in anguish.  “We need to restrain him--he’s having a--NO!!” Kaden’s voice screamed in horror as Zayon’s P.O.V. was becoming stained in red--Zayon was viciously harming himself, tearing parts of his flesh from his face as his screams were now made in pain as well as anguish.  “ZAYON, STOP!  STOP!!  I SAID STOP!!!!”  The last thing Zayon’s P.O.V. revealed--before he could gouge out his own eyes--was “Kaden” reaching out to shield Zayon’s face--

… … …

After a suspenseful minute of silence, the Screen’s image flickered back on, with “Kaden” seemingly adjusting the angle as if it were a camera.  “There we go,” “Kaden” sighed wearily as he took a few steps back, showing that I.T. was standing directly behind him, while Moony could be seen further back trying his best to console a(n understandably) traumatized Reid.

“... so, you’ve done more than just immobilize him,” I.T. mused quietly.  “You… had also wiped his memories….”

“Sealed them, actually,” “Kaden” corrected.  “I… didn’t wish to erase his individuality, and yet… I had to do something about his suicidal tendency; it wouldn’t’ve been good to leave that unchecked.  You saw the reason for yourself.  I merely sealed away any memories that would trigger him--memories of his son, his home life… even his wedding....”

“And what of his…?” I.T. asked, glancing back at the pair in the background.

“We’ll need to accommodate him, of course, like the rest of the Souls here,” “Kaden” explained.  “However… there is the risk of Zayon being triggered if he sees his Red here, so we’ll have to stow him away somewhere.  The Talent Zayon gained may also prove to be a problem if he figures out how it is used… … I.T.?” “Kaden” gasped, taken aback at the sight of I.T.’s face contorted in sorrow beneath his hood, tears streaming down his face.  Before “Kaden” could say anything else to the Altister, I.T. hurriedly stumbled away, either to hide his shameful display, or to simply be as far away from “Kaden” as possible.

Meanwhile, Moony was fastly approaching “Kaden”--Red having gone off someplace else to cry himself to sleep--and all “Kaden” could get out was “Moony, I--” before getting struck across the face by the furious Altister.

“When the hell is this supposed to stop…?” Moony seethed through clenched teeth.  “When the hell are we supposed to help rectify the mistake YOU made?  The wrongs that YOU caused because you couldn’t let go?!  Because you got sick and tired of FAILING?!!”  HUH?!” Moony now had “Kaden” held tightly by the front of his shirt.  “Look what just happened.  Not only do we have to go through that DAMNED war again with another Alister, but now we’re going back with the Soul of someone who DIDN’T die!”

“I--”

“No-no, you’re right, I got that mixed up,” Moony sarcastically corrected himself.  “Someone who didn’t die up until we STOLE HIS FUCKING SOUL!!”  He threw “Kaden” onto the ground.  “And if we thought that Alister was suicidal before, then BOY HOWDY is he gonna wanna take another Prescription Cocktail knowing his husband’s a fucking VEGETABLE!! But hey, what do you care, huh?” Moony shrugged with a softer, hissed tone.  “It’s not like you really gave a damn about the 34 Alister Azimuths whose lives have either ended or been ruined by this whole debacle.  NOR about us Afterimages who’ve been created as a result of those Alisters dying, or the Souls that are getting dragged along for the fucking ride.  Do you?  We are all just reminders of your continued failure; you won’t even look us in the damned EYE unless you wanted something out of us, wanted US to do something for you.  You could care less about any of us, so long as you can atone for your sins at the end of the day.  So I am begging you, please... DON’T start acting like you give a shit now!  Don’t act like you’re “sorry” for THIS one’s life being ruined,” Moony spat in “Kaden”’s face as he pointed straight at the “camera”, “when you barely ever bat an eye for the 33 Alisters who died before him, or their respective Afterimages that were born from those deaths.  Why this one now, huh?  Is it because unlike OUR Alisters, this one’s managed to survive long enough to get married?  Build a family?  Bring a CHILD into the world?--nevermind the fact said child hates his GUTS!!!  If there is anyone here who should be giving a damn about this one, it should be ME!  I WANTED TO HELP HIM!!” Moony hollered, furious tears running down his face.  “I wanted to see him be happy--he DESERVED it after all the bullshit he’d gone through!!  I wanted to see him pull through, and grow past his depression after Rex left!  I wanted to see him LIVE, DAMMIT!!!

“But no...,” he quietly continued while shaking his head, “you said “No” to trying to influence his actions at all.  Not even when he depression became more and more apparent.  We had a chance to put him on the right path, yet you just had us all sit back and watch him spiral ever downward.  Why?  Were you afraid of screwing something up?  Of making him screw something up?  … or did you want him to die?” Moony accused, his tone having a chilling edge.  “You wanted him to die, just so you could start all over again--!!”

“NOOO!!!” “Kaden” shrieked, his horrified voice cracking, sounding strangely… mortifyingly familiar.  “I… No… No, I could never… I….”

“... … oh, right.  I get it,” Moony scoffed.  “It was your “other half” that would’ve wanted him dead, yeah?  Would’ve wanted someone broken, lost and confused to manipulate into helping him carry out his goal… your old goal.  But as long as he doesn’t get what he wants, you don’t really care what happens--to Alister, or anyone else involved in the Origin War--now do you?”

“Kaden” remained silent, leaving Moony’s question unanswered.  “You’ve gone silent.  Not surprised,” Moony scoffed again.  “Well, whatever.  Just so long as it doesn’t take us, like, a hundred or so tries to get it right, I suppose I’ll promise to behave myself from now on.  You’ll need help keeping up this facade, after all, and for that, I’m your tool.  Whatever role you need me to play, I will perform it the best way that my Talent will allow… no matter how much I’d loathe it… so, when you’re done being a sad mess, we’ll still need to do something about Red’s Soul, so don’t take too long… Alpha.”  With that, Moony calmly stormed off.

Now seemingly alone, “Kaden”’s body began to tremble, the beginning of his own imminent breakdown.  And yet he held it together long enough to gingerly pick himself up off the floor and, as calmly as possible, shuffle his feet towards the “camera”, his head hung in shame all the while.  “Zayon… … I’m sorry…,” his voice quavered as he reached a hand to the “camera’s” face--Zayon’s face--before lifting his own head to look straight forward, his eyes now brown with yellow sclera.  “... I’m so sorry….”  He dropped his head again, resting it in his free palm as he proceeded to sob, the fur on his body glitching and warping from yellow… to a pale beige.

 

At that point, the Screen vanished, and Zayon stumbled backwards into Reid, dazed from having projected the last of his locked memories.  “That was… how did that memory…?” Zayon stammered groggily.

“Umbris,” Red shivered, “that wasn’t a trick… was it?  That last bit….”

“I can’t believe…,” Umbris croaked, utterly horrified by the implications.  “... was that really--?!”

“I’m surprised he even allowed that memory to remain.”  Moony approached Zayon’s group, followed closely by Alexander and Artorius.  “Then again, I bet he wanted to leave behind a confession of some sort, for all the good it would do,” he added bitterly.

“”He”, of course, referring to “Alpha”,” I.T. joined in as he now approached, accompanied by Clank and a still-cable-bound Ratchet.  “I’m certain that the bits of his real form that you saw brings up a lot more questions you want answered.  We’ll… try our best to answer as much as we can.”

“For the record, Alpha was also an Alister Azimuth,” Moony explained, “from a different timeline.”

“A timeline from which… from which Ratchet was killed by his hands,” I.T. stumbled, “and Clank was also disposed of.”

“But… I do not remember that,” Clank uttered in confusion.  “Or… do I…?” he added in realized horror.

“That timeline was an extra branch, formed shortly after Clank’s own use of the Great Clock in an attempt to prevent Ratchet’s death,” I.T. continued.  “To clarify, there are three timelines we shall focus on that relate to the incident at the Great Clock: the timeline in which Clank sealed off the Orvus Chamber before returning to the past, the timeline where Clank prevented Ratchet’s death and stopped Alister--which is also the “Origin Point” and “Restart Point” of the Alister Azimuths that have been involved in the Origin War… and then, Alpha’s timeline.”

“In that timeline, Alpha--who was still known as “Alister Azimuth” at the time--succeeded in not only killing both Ratchet and neutralizing Clank, but activating the Great Clock, as well,” Moony stepped in.  “And, without anyone to stop him, the Clock went haywire and… your universe crashed.  And Alpha himself was stuck in the epicenter of the destruction, trapped within time itself.  The Time Crash would’ve immediately affected the other timelines of your universe, too, if not for the Zoni working diligently in those other timelines to keep the fabric of Space/Time from unravelling.”

“... but they couldn’t keep up, eventually, could they?” Ratchet asked, horrified by this revelation.

“Correct.  The Time Crash you had experienced before being rescued by Emiya was indeed the result of the Zoni failing to keep up with the unravelling of Space/Time,” I.T. responded.

“But then, how did Alis--er, “Alpha” end up escaping?”

“As fate would have it… Protheus.”

“WHAT?!?” the non-Altister members of the conversation collectively gasped.

“Seems the cat is finally starting to come out of the bag,” Kaden spoke up as he and the rest of the Souls (minus Aerith and Galen) approached the group.  “No need to worry about the Shadow for now,” he added reassuringly; “we went ahead and threw on as many bindings to keep it down for a while.”

“... I hate you all... so... much…,” Shadow Alister grumbled seethingly to himself as he found himself bound to the floor by as many Fiendish Chains, Swords of Revealing Light, Nightmare Steel Cages, spears, Clara Dolls, Lottes, talismans (for some odd reason)--basically anything to keep the Shadow from moving even a nanometer.

“But it seems now you all know that there really was only one Kaden in this Watch,” Kaden continued, “that one being me.”

“He is telling the truth,” Clank confirmed.  “I detect no lie in his voice.”

“But if the other “Kaden” was really “Alpha”,” Aligore mused aloud, “then why did he take on Kaden’s appearance?”

“Perhaps I should be the one to explain the whole story.”  The whole group’s attention was now drawn to the final handful to approach: Bayonetta, the Souls of Aerith and Galen, and the one who had spoken, still adorned in the replication of Kaden’s outfit but also carrying a platinum-colored Chronoscepter.  “It all started with me, after all.  It’s only right that you hear the whole thing… from someone who’s been through it all from the beginning.”  This figure, with regret and remorse etched in every crease of his weary face, resembled Alister greatly.  “It’s… the least I can do….”

 

 


 

The Truth of Alpha

 


 

Somewhere, in the emptiness of a destroyed universe long forgotten to time, a strange, black asteroid randomly entered - or more specifically, a Hollow Asteroid. Within sat a dark sorcerer, his attention focused as he had several monitors in front of him, each displaying statistics and estimations regarding the exterior environment. It was a bit crude, but there was no telling what this place would do - he didn’t exactly want to risk himself, or his actual spaceship for that matter, so the Hollow Asteroid would serve that purpose just fine.

Protheus Maximus’s asteroid continued to dive, deeper and deeper, into the center of the Time Crash. Now this was a mysterious phenomenon, recently discovered somewhere amongst the vastness of the multiverse. There was no telling what happened… Who knew? Who cared? Perhaps some scientists went too far, or perhaps a god of time died or something. It wasn’t like there’d be anyone left to tell the story - no, there was only one reason he was here.

“This… Whatever this is, it’s ripped a rather large hole in the fabric of reality, hm. I wonder… Would it be significant enough to reach that?” He muttered to himself.

That is to say, the ‘Origin’. A theoretical point that, if reached, may grant one the ability to rewrite the multiverse. If he could reach that, then maybe, just maybe-

“Master!” Ophelia, surrounded by several floating feeds of her own, called for his attention. “I’m detecting a lifeform. It’s positioned at the center of the temporal collapse.”

“A lifeform?”

Protheus raised his eyebrow. He left the control seat, proceeding to walk over towards his servant. “Hah! An excellent joke. However, that isn’t possible. It isn’t like you to be mistaken, my Reyvateil. We’re generating our own timestream in order to counterbalance the distortions outside. If I stepped outside, even I might be eradicated. I really don’t think anyone could survive out there…” Then he stopped, glancing at the screen. “The hell?”

Okay. That was unusual.

“...Ophelia. Take me to it.”

“Yes, Master Protheus.”

Well, time to find out what it was. The Hollow Asteroid started to change its direction, turning in the vastness of unstable time to head straight for the source. The centerpoint.

As they approached, tremors spread across the asteroid. The closer and closer they got, the more the asteroid shook, cracks beginning to form all around the center area, perhaps reaching its limits as to just how far it could go. When they were finally within a mile of the core (give or take fifty feet), the dark sorcerer raised his hand and Ophelia stopped the asteroid in place. Any further, and it would shatter into pieces. Some people prepared to have a comfortable ride home.

“What strange readings. Is there seriously a lifeform here?” Standing next to his servant, Protheus briefly glanced at the screen one last time. Now that they were sufficiently close, he used two fingers to zoom in - seemed there was no doubt about it. Although blinded by bright light, he could just about discern the silhouette of a semi-humanoid figure floating out there.

If the Asteroid couldn’t hold, then there was only one option remaining. To head out, and investigate for himself. Letting out an annoyed sigh, Protheus walked towards the very edge of the Asteroid.

He waved his hand. The walls receded, revealing a rainbow abyss beyond. Pure instability of time. One after another he muttered Ancient Egyptian words, casting spells of defense, and protection, and spatial isolation, on himself. It would be enough to maintain his form for about five minutes, hopefully. Enough to check and pop back, at least.

With that - the Herald of Darkness proceeded to launch an intense beam into the ground behind him, instantly rocketing himself across the Time Crash. A translucent orb of dark energy surrounded him at all times, maintaining his form, desperately resisting the outside destructive forces. Whether they were attempting to rewrite him, or attempting to outright destroy him, was anyone’s guess.

This thing has a heartbeat, so it’s not some god. But what else could survive here? This is truly curious. Protheus reached closer and closer to his target, passing through the intense, rainbow light, until at last he breached that light... and arrived at the core.

“Oh?” Protheus asked, stopping just short of it. Floating at the very center of the Time Crash, he had to keep this short. But, his curiosity was only rising and rising. He’d been expecting some sort of majestic beast, or maybe an eldritch abomination or some kind. Not-a lombax?

Before Protheus was, indeed, a pale-furred lombax, a wide-eyed expression of shock, horror and confusion frozen on his face… it was a “he”, right?  It did look to be male, given the form of its body.  Did it have a preferred pronoun in spite of--nevermind, perish that thought.  In any case, the lombax’s body was also frozen in a position that suggested that whatever had happened--perhaps the exact moment of the Time Crash--caught the lombax off-guard, his oddly wrench-like weapon still gripped in his right hand.  And he appeared to be radiating an aura around him--perhaps a consequence of the aforementioned cataclysmic event.  Whatever this energy was, it may be what was currently preserving the lombax from his surroundings.

The Herald floated there for a moment. The thing that captured his attention first was the strange energy surrounding this frozen being. In the two thousand years that he had existed, he’d never sensed anything like it before. In a way, it might’ve been like a more advanced version of his own Omni Principle - something that could indefinitely resist the flow of time. How bizarre. Everything about this was out of the ordinary.

Clearly, some event took place here, and all of spacetime had collapsed around this one lombax. But why?

There was no use wondering. He inched closer to the frozen lombax. He came here with a purpose, and he was going to fulfill that purpose.

“No hard feelings, yes? I have decided I’ll take you back with me.” Protheus stated, expanding his protective orb until it enveloped the entity as well. Poor soul was probably going to be in that state for all eternity. “Whatever you did, you blew a hole in the fabric of time. If I’m gonna rewrite all of reality, you, my friend, might just be the first step.”

Then, he took out a device from his pocket. Who knew what would happen if this being at the core was removed? Would it simply increase in its scale of destruction? Would it collapse in on itself and disappear? Would the Time Crash worsen, and ultimately reveal Origin? Or perhaps, the lombax was entirely unrelated.

Either way, Protheus was sure the answers to his questions were going to be interesting.

“Ophelia, beam me back.”

And so, another laser fired directly from the Hollow Asteroid - tracking Protheus, it connected directly with him and his mysterious new companion. This was a moment he would look back on countless times throughout his long lifetime; and each time, he would have one singular thought: ‘I should have left him there.’ However, he did not, and hence, the beginnings of DATEA had been set in motion.

Within seconds, Protheus and the frozen lombax rematerialized inside the Hollow Asteroid.

In many ways, the interior was like a gigantic cavern, only with technological machines and mystical arcane runes scattered all over the place. Like a lazy, makeshift spaceship made by someone who couldn’t be concerned about style. There were several mechanical chairs scattered around the place as well, of which, only one was currently occupied. Ophelia had frozen in her seat as she stared at his acquisition with much confusion.

Levitating the entity with magic, Protheus walked over to his servant, simply shrugging as if to say ‘I haven’t the faintest idea either’ before lazily leaning the still-frozen lombax against one of the empty seats. In any case, now that this mysterious thing had been removed from the center of the Time Crash, he wasn’t planning on sticking around. He briefly glanced at the lombax, and said, “Ophelia. Plot a course to Universe Code R.O.T.2009. I believe we’ve obtained what we need.”

The Reyvateil only nodded, raising levels on a screen in front of her. The Hollow Asteroid - driven by some form of magitech - started to fire off in the opposite direction. Interdimensional engines were beginning to run, lightspeed accelerators were active, and within minutes they would be out of this system.

“Now.”

Protheus crouched in front of the frozen lombax.

“Ophelia, do you have access to the database of prominent figures in this cluster of universes?” He asked, turning his head briefly.

Ophelia shook her head - “Unfortunately not. I shall bring it up once we leave the system, but while we’re in the temporal collapse, we have no access to the network. We can neither send nor receive any form of data. Right now, we’re isolated.”

“Hm. So I suppose you’re going to be a mystery for a little while...” The immortal muttered.

Then frowned.

“Screw it. Don’t have that patience. If I must, I’ll wake you up and ask myself--”

At that exact moment, the lombax’s frozen gaze snapped to stare straight at Protheus. A fraction of a second later, Protheus found himself with his back against the floor, the lombax’s wrench-like polearm pinning him there by the throat.  “... okay, I’m beginning to regret retrieving you,” Protheus sighed irritably as he locked eyes with the crazed glare of the lombax.

“What is… going on, who-who are y-y-y-you?!” the lombax uttered almost incoherently while maintaining his grip on his weapon, almost like his words were a corrupted recording. “This place, what is…?  Time--Did I--my people--Great Clock--undo-undo-un-un--mistake--so-close--what-happened-to--happening-to-me--wrong--went--what--den-de-de-en-Kay-K--en?”

“Hm.” The Herald stared up at the lombax in displeasure. Whatever this sad creature went through, it must’ve been quite intense - his very form seemed unstable. He didn’t exactly enjoy the prospect of being touched by something like that. Was it possible to communicate with him? “You appear confused. I suppose if you have questions, I can answer to the best of my ability. However, in return, I would like some information of my own. Of course… Before anything, I would prefer that you let go, you inferior insect.”

“In-Insec-c-c-c-c-t?! The-did-kc-c-c-c-c-u-u-u-u-u-u-f--you call-m-m-m-me-e-e-e-e-e-e-e--Freshman Emo Goth Wannabe Otaku’s Wet Dream?!--I--!!” Seems that last statement struck a nerve with the lombax.  Still, even he seemed shocked about shouting that last bit as coherently as possible.

Protheus’s eyes narrowed. “Oh? Such bold, yet very bizarre words. By chance, are you looking to oppose me--”

“Master,” Ophelia spoke up, clearly put off by this event playing out before her, “perhaps it might be best to find a way to fix our, err, “guest” so that he may be able to answer us coherently?”

The sorcerer glanced at his servant, then back at the lombax on top of him. His demeanor calmed. “Hm. Very well.”

Then, without hesitation, he poured energy into his legs and SLAMMED them into the crazed lombax to end the ridiculous display. Surprisingly, he encountered a surprising amount of resistance - the being’s body was a lot tougher than he originally anticipated. Still, they were thrown off, sent flying about several feet into the air.

“Ophelia, pass me my blade.”

Ophelia raised an eyebrow, even as she opened a long, nearby box, in which a sheathed, European-style blade lay. “Master, it may be better to keep him alive-”

“No, no! Not for that. Not yet, anyway. Impure Future will serve as a sufficient channel, that’s all.” Protheus grabbed the tossed sword with precision, quickly throwing the sheath away to reveal an adorned black blade. As he held it with his left hand, he reached into his pocket with his other hand to take out a card. Time Wizard. Always a convenient tool to have.

Not far away, the lombax had hit the ground hard. There was no telling what he’d do if he would attempt to engage in combat in his current state, or, if that state was corrosive in any way. It wasn’t worth bothering with any of those things. Whatever the issue was, Protheus intended to stabilize it right here and now.

Prothever2.jpg

“You better not resist, lombax.” Protheus Maximus approached the fallen warrior, with Impure Future sword in his left hand, and Time Wizard in his right hand. Both items were beginning to glow with dark energy. Wearing his edgy, faded regalia, it might’ve looked like a personification of death coming closer and closer. Then, he raised his sword and spoke,

“Akh.”

Although a simple word, it was loaded with mystical energy. The instant it was said out loud, the lombax was floored. He could feel his soul, no, whole body tremble, as a violent, foreign force washed over him. Like magic was possessing his very atoms, commanding them, forcing them to grind and compress into one another.

”Akh.” He spoke again, and again, the same feeling washed over the lombax. “Akh. Akh. Akh. Akh. Akh.” With each word, each chant, it only got worse. A sickly, invasive feeling enveloped its target. In turn, Protheus was essentially probing him, pouring mana over his existence in order to investigate the source of this corruption. “Akh. Akh. What is with this instability? Akh. I really do wonder, what did you do to yourself? Akh. What exactly did you do to your universe? So bizarre.”

The Herald kneeled down, closer, showing no concern for the wellbeing of his ‘patient’. “Hm. I believe I identified the issue… Very well, let’s test it out,” and proceeded to casually slap the Time Wizard card on the lombax’s face.

“Anch-RESTORE.”

Within the card, the clock started to spin, faster and faster, Time Wizard performing its magic, until at last a bright light enveloped him. Through the Time Wizard, a temporary connection was established between the lombax and the sorcerer. The instability within the lombax’s timestream had been identified, and was thus being forcibly corrected by Protheus; after the initial seething pain, it was followed by a sense of refreshment. Rebirth. And clarity.

The connection was cut off, and the light faded.

Protheus took a step back.

His expression showed some visible exhaustion - this clearly wasn’t something he could simply do anytime, nor was it something he was used to doing.

“Alright, you. Operation’s over.” He announced, crossing his arms. “You better make this worth my while. Can you speak?”

The lombax blinked hard, trying to comprehend what had happened with his now cleared and restored mind. “... y-yes,” he replied hoarsely as he shifted his body to sit upright, the Time Wizard card falling off his forehead.  Looking down at the card’s face curiously, the lombax’s dazed expression gradually turned to one of severe anxiety.  “The Great Clock!!”  He bolted to his feet.  “I-I thought it could--but then it just--I didn’t know what was happening…!  What did the Clock do?!  Did I get sent back?!  Did my species return?!  Is Kaden--?!  Who the hell are YOU?!!” the lombax trembled furiously.  “Where am I?  What did you do to me?!  What the hell is going on here?!  And… WHY the hell are you dressed up like some Freshman’s Emo Goth Anime Edgelord character?!!!”

“... … he’s not exactly wrong to question that last one, Master,” Ophelia blurted out before she could stop herself, stifling a snorted giggle.

Protheus frowned, shooting a glare in his servant’s direction. “Nobody asked you! And rather than blame me, blame the one who granted me these powers - and this sense of fashion!” Crossing his arms, he turned to the lombax and added, “Besides, there is pride to be found in it! You are looking at the regalia of the Conqueror of Maxima. Ridiculous as it may appear now, in the right context, it serves as a good method to increase the terror of my enemies. Hmph!”

“Well, color me unimpressed,” the lombax scoffed, “and the only thing “terrifying” about it right now is how gawdy it is.  And you still haven’t answered my damned question… s!”

“Hm. Questions. Yes, I did say I would answer them, didn’t I?” The Herald responded, calming down. “As we are from different universes, I will not question your complete absence of aesthetics. For now, take a seat. I have some questions of my own, so let us figure this out together, shall we?”

He clicked his fingers, and two of the surrounding mechanical chairs started to drive their way over to the duo.

“First, introductions. Call me… Ah, Omega. Now I do have a different name I go by, but let’s just go with this for now.” He spoke aloud, making himself comfortable.

“What, is that your Edgelord Username or something?” the lombax scoffed, opting not to take a seat just yet.

“Do you want your questions answered, or would you prefer being flung into outer space?” ‘Omega’ asked casually. Although, he couldn’t help but admit the defiant attitude of this stranger was a bit amusing. It had been some time since he last encountered someone so spirited.

The lombax rolled his eyes at “Omega”’s threat. “Jeez, you really are a bit of a child, aren’t you?  Can’t even come up with an original threat?  Whatever.  I suppose one of us will have to be the actual adult around here if we want this thing to go anywhere.  General Alister Azimuth is my name.  Four-Bolt Magistrate of the Lombax Praetorian Guard and Elder Councilman for the Center for Advanced Lombax Research.  Or, at least I was before… bah, that’s not important right now,” Alister verbally backspaced.

Omega raised his eyebrows, and grinned somewhat as he sensed the lombax’s hesitance. “Oh? Well, it is a pleasure to meet you, Alister. As it happens, I myself am a warrior and a scientist with a command of my own - perhaps we might get along after all. Or perhaps not.”

“That depends on what you’re after,” Alister crossed his arms while casting a suspicious look at Omega.  “And why it is you brought me here; snatching me away from where I was isn’t exactly earning you any Brownie Points as it is.”

“All in due time, Alister. There is something I seek, so I’m hoping that you may have some useful information for me. Now, I’m getting a bigger picture of what’s going on here, but I must warn you that I have a feeling you won’t be fond of the answers.” Omega smiled. “Now, you were wondering about the Great Clock. If I’m not mistaken, isn’t that something your people constructed long ago to keep the flow of time stable, to combat against local distortions in spacetime? It’s a remarkable design that many of us outside this universe are aware of.”

“I’m afraid you’re grossly mistaken; my people had nothing to do with the Great Clock’s existence--in fact its existence wasn’t known to us until Kad--” Alister halted himself, a memory flashing in his mind.  A few, in fact.  Most of them painful.  “... until over 20 spans ago,” Alister finished his sentence, swallowing back a painful emotion.

“Hm. A different race, a different time, then? Well, if it’s all in the same universe, it’s all the same as far as I’m concerned.” Omega tilted his head, and then... shrugged. “Regardless, it doesn’t matter. No point thinking about it. After all, it’s all gone anyway.”

Alister’s breath got caught in his throat, his chest feeling as if it had tightened.  “Wh-What do you mean… “gone”...?”

“So you truly did not know.” Omega stated coldly.

He raised his hands, and thirteen floating holographic screens formed in front of him. Each of them appeared to be displaying visual feeds of the outside, with the occasional static. “In that case, I believe this will answer most of your questions in one go. Take a look, general. Right now, we’re in your universe. Here’s what lies outside.”

The thirteen screens flew towards Alister, surrounding him. There were labels for each screen. The familiar names of planets; Veldin, Kerwan, Rilgar, Zanifar, Lumos, Fastoon, Torren IV, among others. However. On those screens, instead of showing those very planets, all it showed were shattered chunks of earth. Each one floating in a rainbow abyss.

Omega flicked his fingers, and all the names changed to other locations. Other familiar planets that ought to be there, that ought to be in one piece, that ought to have bustling populations and worldwide infrastructures. Yet, it was exactly the same. He did this a few more times, just to emphasize the fact that...yeah. It was all gone.

“The Great Clock was a remarkable design. In order to hold the timestream of an entire universe together, I imagine it must have had quite the power.” Omega remarked, turning back to his lombax companion, observing the look of utter devastation on his face, in the entirety of his body language. “I came here to investigate why a UNIVERSE collapsed right out of the blue - why the time continuum here had been shattered, leaving nothing behind. What you’re looking at is the result of the Time Crash, and it’s only expanding more and more. So what a coincidence that I find you, the only remaining lifeform in this Universe, at the center where the Great Clock ought to be… give or take fifty feet. I wonder if you have an answer for this strange, bizarre event… General Azimuth?”

Omega continued to observe Alister, watching as whatever remained of the lombax’s composure crumbled apart, his world shattered--and not just figuratively, either.  It was hard for the General to breathe, as he was trying his hardest not to break down and howl in anguish.  He had come to the conclusion, as his knees gave out and stopped supporting him, that the immense destruction, the utter erasure of all life in his universe… was all his fault.  He had failed, once again, and the universe paid dearly for-- “Why… … why didn’t it work… …?”

“Come again?” Protheus blinked, one eyebrow curiously raised.

“Why… didn’t it work…?” Alister repeated, though not necessarily in response to Omega’s enquiry.  “It was… it was supposed to take me back, to before I could make that mistake.  So I could stop myself, stop Tachyon… if I could’ve done that, then Kaden… my people… they wouldn’t have to go, I… I… killed… Kaden’s son… because he tried to stop me from… … I killed him… his son… my best friend’s son… I thought I could just save him, too… … but it… didn’t work… the Clock didn’t work… how I thought… it would… … ke… keh-heh… … heh-heh-heh… heh-heh, a-ha… ah-hah-ha… a-ha-ha-ha-ha, ah-ha-ha, A-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA, GYA-HAH-HAH-HAH-HAH-HAH!!!”

It was very apparent to Protheus--oh, and Ophelia, too. Can’t forget her--that the lombax had quickly fallen off the deep-end, going mad from the revelation of his universe’s destruction.  “It failed! Ha-hah!  It failed, it fucking failed, that’s it!! HA-HA-HA-HA!!!  THAT was what failed--the Great Clock!!  Not me!! It wasn’t me!! KYA-HA-HA-HA!!!  The fucking CLOCK failed, that’s all there is to it!!!  GYA-HA-HAAAA--”

“Mind if you wrap up the damned psychotic breakdown?  It’s starting to get quite irritating,” Omega scoffed, almost sounding bored of the spectacle the General was making. While it was originally amusing, he’d seen far too many of these by this point to care now. Just another survivor gone mad. He only brought this creature here to get some answers, so he wasn’t exactly interested in wasting time like this.

“So, Alister… I’m guessing you tampered with the Great Clock. You attempted to use it to rewrite time. Instead, like a program whose code got scrambled, you wrecked it in its entirely. Am I correct?” The Herald cut to the point, waving the many holographic screens away. Not far away, Ophelia had drawn out a spear, prepared to jump in should the lombax have tried anything.

Omega started to walk towards Alister - who had gone slightly limp and oddly quiet at this point - and then started walking in a circle around him. “Now, I enjoy madness as much as the next person. But I can’t have you breaking just yet. I brought you here for one main question. I’d like you to answer it.”

“I… have to… get them back…,” Alister mumbled softly, a slight, remorseful smile on his lips as he stared at the floor with almost lifeless eyes. “I must... get everyone back… I… can’t fail….”

Omega inched closer to the lombax, staring at his pathetic form. “You wanted to rewrite reality. There’s nothing wrong with that. Why, I’m aiming for the exact same thing… it was simply your mistake that you tried to use an imperfect machine for it. After all the damage you inflicted, I believe it would take something much, much greater to go back now.”

“I can’t fail… I don’t wanna fail… so tired… so tired of fucking up… just… wanna do something right… something right, just for once….”

“Perhaps we can help one another. But you must answer me.”

Then, he said, emotion welling in his own voice, “This is important. You were at the center. You were at the center of it all when this reality ruptured, when time gave way… This is only a theory, but if I am correct, then… There may be an unknown period in your memory. Snap out of this senseless madness. And remember. Remember.

His hands reached out, and grabbed the lombax’s shoulders with unusual passion, unusual intensity.

“However, between that ultimate failure of yours and being frozen in time… Did you see it? Did you see the heart of creation? Did you see the Origin, General Alister?!

… … … …

“... Origin…?  How… would I know… what that looked like…?” Alister questioned weakly as he slowly lifted his head.  “Do you know…? Could… you tell me… what it looks like…?  I… don’t know… but I think I… saw something….”

Omega’s expression darkened. “That’s! It… I cannot say for sure, it has been too long for me since I last saw it! My memories faded long before I cared to find it, but… It, it!” He closed his eyes, straining his own distant memories. It was something he saw long, long ago, when his own reality shattered around him. Something that he couldn’t be sure existed, that might’ve been a part of his imagination. “It was an entrance of some kind… A portal? A gateway? No, damn it, there’s a word for it-”

“--uh-durr….”

“This is NOT the time to be making fun, Azimuth!  I’m serious, I will fire you out of this Asteroid like a--!”

“I said… “a door”,” Alister articulated carefully.  “That’s… that’s it.  I saw something in what I thought was a dying dream.  It… resembled a door….”

Door.

Door.

Door.

Yes. That was it, wasn’t it? That one word alone made Omega’s eyes widen with extreme passion; an emotion unlike any he’d ever displayed before started to set in, twisting his facial features into a grin. That was indeed what the Omni saw many millennia ago! Then… This man, Alister Azimuth had seen it too! The immortal’s grip on his shoulders tightened only more and more, regardless of Alister’s wellbeing.

“A Door… Yes… That’s right. That’s right! That’s what you saw?! I KNEW IT. At last, at last, at last, after centuries, I FINALLY stumble upon a piece of this puzzle!” Omega declared happily, letting out an eternity of frustration. For all his annoyance regarding Alister’s madness just a little while ago, the desperation and madness on this own man’s face were unmistakable.

Omega let go, taking a step back to explain, although his mind were filled with countless thoughts on where to proceed from here. “Listen closely, Alister Azimuth! There exists many universes, many universes beyond simply yours and mine, all of them different, diverse, unique! However! They are all connected, and theoretically, they must all share one singular beginning. We call this ‘Origin’. What you saw there… What we saw there… was most likely the barrier between our shared reality and this so-called Origin.”

He stood up from his chair and let his arms raised up into the arm, uncaring of what the other two would think. Gloriously. With the mannerisms of an emperor who had already attained total victory.

“A door. Yes, yes yes yes… If you saw it too, then its existence must be definitive. The heart of all creation. The source of a power that can change anything. Rewrite EVERYTHING. A door to the Origin... The ‘Door of Origin’.

It took rendering a whole reality asunder just to give one person the faintest, briefest glimpse of its existence - it clearly wasn’t something people were supposed to discover, let alone make their way towards. However. Considering what would await them at the end, surely that would be worth it.

“Dear Alister Azimuth. Forget about fixing your mistakes, for they are insignificant in the eyes of existence. If we can do this AGAIN, if we can amass our forces and replicate our results on a far greater scale… Then we wouldn’t just need to fix things, would we? Why, we may very well be able to make everything the way we want it to be. We aren’t talking about some useless MacGuffin from some isolated universe anymore. Not an ancient artifact, not an unreliable genie, and certainly not a flawed machine. We’re talking about something natural. Something perfect.

“”Perfect”...?  Could such a thing… truly be…?” Alister uttered, his energy--and hope--starting to return to him.

Instead of answering, Omega turned his back momentarily, as though thinking to himself.

Ophelia interjected suddenly, approaching them with a screen floating besides her. “Master P- I mean, Omega, we have exited the Time Crash and have regained access to Neighborhood Watch’s compiled database. Would you like to take a look?” Without responding, Omega typed a certain name onto the screen - Alister Azimuth - and a single entry came up. It came up with a picture matching the lombax he’d just been speaking to, complete with achievements and prior history. Wordlessly, in front of the lombax himself, he flicked through the long list of displayed accomplishments.

“How interesting, Azimuth. It sounds like you have gone to extreme lengths to get to where you are now. Appears the titles your people gave you were not for show. Crude comments about me aside, I can respect that tenacity. You certainly have... potential.”

He proceeded to turn back around, facing the lombax directly. This may very well be an individual whose experiences and leadership skills he could take advantage of, especially in his current, fragile state. Why, this was a perfect turn of events!

“The answer to that question is yes.” Omega said with a smirk. “Perhaps I can use you. Or rather, perhaps we can help one another out. If you’ve seen it, if you BELIEVE in it, then, like me, you’ll do WHATEVER it takes to get there.” But of course, Alister Azimuth was a good man once. Perhaps morality will hold him back. “Therefore... I must ask: How far exactly are you willing to go for this?”

Alister looked Omega squarely in the face, the “Edgelord”’s words spending some time bouncing around in the lombax’s head.  How far was he willing to go?  Compared to what he did to reach the Great Clock?  Was that a joke?  A rhetorical question?  All things considered, the answer formed rather quickly for Alister.  “I think the better question to ask me,” he said as he extended a welcome hand, “is “What more do you have to lose?”  And I think we both know the answer to that one already.”

“Why of course. It was silly of me to even ask.” Omega let out a chuckle, more than pleased with this response. Delighted that he had obtained a pawn so conveniently. Unaware that as a result of this one lombax, this, all of this, would soon expand far beyond his own control.

“Then, comrade... Here’s to our dreams.”

And with that,

the duo shook hands.

“... by the way, seeing as you’re going by such a “cute” little nickname, maybe I should do the same, eh?  Perhaps I’ll call myself… “Alpha”.  After all, what we’re doing could lead to us becoming as gods, right?”

“Heh. You are indeed correct-Alpha.”

 


 

*Flashback END*

 


 

 

“... it was shortly thereafter that Omega and I formed the group DATEA,” Alpha continued, “short for the ‘Dreams of Action-Truth Evangelist Association’. Over time, we expanded. We recruited others just like us, other Dreamers who’d also seen the Origin, to help in the cause. We researched intensely, in an effort to unravel the secrets of reality. And we piled all our resources together, establishing a force in the multiverse like no other. It was a loose alliance, but none of us really cared what the others wanted. We were all just so desperate to reach the Door of Origin... with me, Alpha, at the head of it all.”

“Wait, hang on a second!” Ratchet spoke up.  “This really isn’t a joke, right?  You really ARE Alister?!”

“Yes and no,” Alpha replied.  “Alister and I may have once started out the same--our respective actions leading up to entering the Orvus Chamber aside--but our respective paths since have grown vastly different from each other.  I myself eventually discarded the name “Alister Azimuth” long ago; I had considered the name, that life, and the failures it carried with it dead to me… of course, that was sometime after I had created the Orvus-Apparatus.”

“By modifying the Pocket Watch?” Alexander guessed.

“Correct.  I modified my own pocket watch by infusing it with chronal energies--much of which was still in my own body at the time--as well as... ,” Alpha trailed off with a sigh.  “... Clank, I’m sure you’re going to want to hate me for this… Orvus, if you’d please....”

“I am here, Alpha,” chimed a new voice coming from a nearby glowing spot on the floor, from which emerged a small, fuschia-skinned alien figure roughly Clank’s size, his large, weary blue eyes scanning the faces of those surrounding him.  “And here I thought I’d never make a proper appearance in this show,” the alien figure chuckled.

“Fa… Father…?!” Clank stammered in shock.

“Oh, that’s right,” Ratchet remembered, “you were that Zoni that Nefarious tried to--WAIT A SEC, YOU TRAPPED HIM IN HERE DIDN’T YOU?!!” he suddenly shouted in Alpha’s face.

“Let’s say, uhm… “commandeered” to help operate his device,” Orvus replied tactfully.

“THAT’S STILL SUGARCOATING IT!!” Ratchet snapped, the force of his outburst tossing Orvus a few yards back.

“Ratchet…!” Clank scoffed as he ran off to retrieve his father.

“In any case,” Alpha continued, amazed that no-one had up and smacked him yet, “With Orvus sealed in the Watch and regulating its functions, I was capable of bending time to my whim: pausing time, fast-forwarding, rewinding… that last one was, of course, what I became most interested in--”

“--because causing a time crash wasn’t enough, obviously,” Ratchet fumed.

“The rest of the Dreamers were busy with their own experiments and projects, just as I would be.  I decided to test the limits of the Pocket Watch’s abilities, with Orvus’ help, of course.  Long story short, I had discovered a method of time travel which involved sending my consciousness back in time, to an alternate, past self.  With that method, I attempted to--”

“--OBVIOUSLY!” Ratchet, Clank, Alexander and Umbris scoffed in unison just as Clank returned with his father.

An irritated growl rumbled in Alpha’s throat.  “At least let me finish speaking.  I used the Pocket Watch’s power to attempt to find any timelines in which my home dimension wasn’t torn asunder.  And by “find”, I mean “implant myself into that timeline’s Alister”.  At first I had no control over the Alisters that I shadowed--I was merely an observer seeing through their eyes, and could egress at any time.  That changed during my twentieth attempt; not only was I unable to “disconnect” from that Alister as I normally could, but I found I had complete autonomy over him.  Not that I had the opportunity to test it that time before getting apprehended and knocked unconscious--I would later find out that I had ended up in a timeline where Tachyon was preemptively apprehended before he could make use of the technology that I had handed to him.  While I never learned of Tachyon’s fate, I did learn of what was to become of me: to be executed for my crime.”

Although taken aback by this information, Ratchet regained himself quickly to ask, “But, wait, who was the one that tipped off the authorities?”

“It was me…. As much as our friendship meant to me… my intuition was just too strong around that time… I just knew something horrible would happen had Tachyon proceeded with the Lombaxian technology… ….”  Kaden’s head was bowed in sadness and regret.  “What’s more, I… … I was the one who knocked my Alister out… I felt I had to be the one to do it--otherwise, I was afraid of what the authorities would’ve done to him….”

“... you speak as if you really were there…?” Red realized, while Ratchet and Alexander glanced back and forth between each other and Kaden in utter shock.

“I was,” Kaden confirmed, “because I am that Kaden.  Sometime after Alister’s execution, I was commandeered into joining the Origin War--or one of its cycles, rather… but we'll discuss that more in a bit,” he added with a wave of the hand.

“As dismayed as I was at Kaden’s apparent--yet admittedly justified--betrayed,” Alpha continued, “it was after the initial shock wore off that I… found myself oddly at peace; Tachyon was stopped before he could advance his plans further, the lombaxes avoided being banished from our dimension, and Kaden… was still alive.  It mattered not that my life was to be taken--at that moment I was satisfied with the outcome of that timeline.  And I was more than happy to depart to the hereafter with the hope that things would be okay from that point on.

“... and yet, it may as well have been a mere dream.  As soon as I was executed, I found myself back in my Study at DATEA’s base, collapsed on the floor in a cold sweat.  I was still alive, and back at the exact time that I had left--give or take a few seconds.  Everything was exactly as I had left it… except for one thing--within the Pocket Watch’s Orvus Apparatus--”

“--I picked that name out myself,” Orvus chimed in, sounding almost proud of himself.

“--which I would later discover to be interconnected with my own Soul,” Alpha continued after a quick roll of his eyes at Orvus’ comment, “I discovered another “me” stumbling about; he was wearing the same prison garb that I had found myself wearing to the execution--even the shackles I was bound with were still attached to his wrists and ankles--and on the back of his neck was the entry wound from the laser used to execute me.”

“Alpha and I were most puzzled by the sudden appearance of this “Alister”,” Orvus explained.  “Though he didn’t seem to be a danger to anyone in his catatonic--almost “zombie-like”--state, so we left him be for the time being, although Alpha did order me to “babysit” him,” the Zoni added with a huff.

“The fact that this “Alister” appeared shortly after I was executed and returned to my “last Save Point”, as I’ll call it, did intrigue me.  I was curious to see if the result could be replicated under similar conditions, so I quickly “dove” again into another timeline--and another Alister,” Alpha explained.  “As that next Alister, I--through no fault of my own, I swear--ended up getting killed, which again brought me back to my Study, and lo and behold I find yet another Alister inside the Apparatus.  After returning from a third “Dive” which spawned yet another Alister--I didn’t start calling them “Altisters” yet, Alexander, I know” Alpha blurted out to stop Alex from correcting him.  “Anyways, after the third “Afterimage” appeared I decided to study them, hoping to find out just WHAT they were and how they were spawning within the Apparatus.  Here is what I would eventually uncover:

“Each of these “Afterimages” was in fact a highly advanced and sophisticated A.I., each possessing their own thought processes, personalities, memories, even emotions, all retained from the Alister they were based on.

“Each of these A.I.s develops a “Talent” related to either how their original self was killed, what was involved in their death, or otherwise to how they lived their lives up to the moment of their death.

“And as for how they were being spawned, well… Orvus confessed to me that the spawning of the “Afterimages” was his doing, so we can thank him for that one,” Alpha added with a side glance at the Zoni.

“In my own defense, the program I created was supposed to merely record data on the timeline of the Alister we were inspiriting at the time,” Orvus explained. “I still have no clue as to why it creates an A.I. version of the Alister of that timeline, and yet,” he paused to give a short chuckle, “it seemed much too interesting to patch out.  As they say, “It’s not a bug--it’s a feature!””

“Wait, so,” Umbris questioned, “does THAT mean that all the Altisters are technically related to Clank?”  In response, Clank gawked at Umbris with a look of utter shock and disbelief, while Moony had a bemused expression, I.T. gave a look that screamed “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?” and Zayon could only facepalm exasperatedly.

“ANYways,” Alpha forcibly grunted to signal for the conversation to return to the original topic and NOT segue into the possibility of a very awkward family reunion for Clank, “at the time I thought nothing of it, aside from having those three Afterimages make themselves useful--Orvus and I made this possible by creating another program that could materialize the A.I.s into the physical world.”

“That program is currently disabled, Bee-Tee-Double-U,” Orvus cut in, but offered no reason or explanation as to why before Alpha continued.

“With the Afterimages materialized, I was able to conduct other experiments and objectives with greater ease, that is when they weren’t suddenly reliving their own traumas.  It did make it easy for me to skip group meetings by having one of the Afterimages stand in for me while I continued working… before the other members caught on and Omega forcibly dragged me out of my study.”

“Guess the A.I. having a PTSD moment was what outed you, huh?” Umbris guessed.

“You DO realize who we’re talking about here, right?” Ratchet scoffed. The others muttered in agreement.

“Er, yes, well, PTSD moments are to be expected from Alister Azimuth--persons formerly named such included,” Alpha coughed with slight embarrassment.  “However, what DID out me was when one of the A.I.s got murdered during one of the DATEA meetings--Upsilon was in a particularly foul mood that day, wasn't exactly known for her sanity.  Still, that incident also led to the discovery of the A.I.s’ Recovery Mode.”

“Which has them deactivated for roughly an hour,” Alexander recited, remembering the last instance that he was aware of.  “And what other discoveries did you make concerning the Apparatus?”

“The fact that I didn’t need to be inspiriting another Alister Azimuth for an A.I. to be formed upon my death.”

“I take it there were more instances of people using you to vent their frustrations?” Red guessed.

“Indeed.  Aside from the first three, every other A.I. that was created used me as the basis--due to me either dying during a mission, or being the target of someone else’s frustrations… or both.  The good news was that I would be sent back to the last Save Point and attempt to prevent what caused the last death from happening.  The bad news was that, with an A.I. being formed after every death, things were getting… crowded.  The more A.I.s there were, the harder it was for me to concentrate, what with them trying to suggest THIS, correct me on THAT, make FUN of me for DYING a certain way!  They’d CHIME in with things like, “I could’ve easily dodged that bullet,” or “You wouldn’t have tripped down that pitfall if you were paying a bit more ATTENTION,” or even “BET YOU WISHED YOU HAD WORN YOUR LONGJOHNS TO SURVIVE THE COLD”--!”

“--You’re foaming out the mouth, Alpha,” Pearl helpfully pointed out.

As calmly as he could, Alpha used a trembling hand to wipe away the frothy saliva from his mouth before sighing.  “... suffice to say, between the A.I.s and the other members of DATEA, there was no shortage of stress.  With the A.I.s, though, it was more than them being a pain in the ass.  Each one of them--almost every one of them--represented a failure.  To have them around, to be constantly reminded of my failures, to… see myself as a failure… … well, zero guesses as to how I handled those thoughts given my mental state at the time.”

“Terribly, I’d imagine,” Bayonetta commented.

“Worse than that, perhaps,” Alpha replied.  “I became more and more obsessed with trying to prove myself as someone competent and successful, worthy of leading, of LIVING… I began to look down on anything I perceived as a failure, or not worthy of my time.  I even saw myself--the name of “Alister Azimuth”--as a curse, one that brought any who bore it to ruination ….

“... as the construction of the Pathway of Origin--led by Lambda--drew to a close,” Alpha continued, “I had the idea to leave behind something within the Pathways, a way of leaving another mark of my own in a way.  Three marks, in fact.  And you’ve already come across them all, I might add.”

“Your Altisters,” Alexander realized.  “One of them placed on each Pathway… but why else did you place them there?  To give yourself a form of advantage, perhaps?”

“I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t one of the reasons I did it,” Alpha admitted.  “One of the other reasons was… well, something in me took pity on the three I chose to install into the Pathways, especially considering what I planned to do with the rest at the time: to destroy them, permanently,” he confirmed darkly.

“Why…?” Moony snarled.

“As I’ve already told you all, the Afterimages were all reminders of my numerous failures--failures I wanted nothing to do with--”

“--and you see us the same way… don’t you…?” I.T. sadly asked.

A pained, remorseful look flashed across Alpha’s face.  “... I… used to…,” was all he could manage to say in reply.  “... in order to destroy my Afterimages permanently, I made use of a “Sacred Artifact” that was salvaged from a region infested with Portals--a sword that was capable of severing bonds, be they physical, metaphorical, or otherwise--in order to sever the Afterimages’ connection to the Apparatus, thus preventing their Recovery and subsequent resurrection.  And yet, even as I was cutting them all down, something… in the back of my head… tried to get me to stop.  Yet I didn’t--couldn’t--not until every last A.I. had been reduced to dust before me.  It was only after the last A.I. was destroyed, and the ground of Prologuous was covered in their remains did that “something” in the back of my head--a voice--suddenly become loud enough for me not to ignore; it was so loud that it brought me to my knees in… pain?  I wasn’t sure what it was, but it was overpowering, to say the least.

“Anyway, this Voice in my head, it was warning me--pleading with me--not to proceed any further with my goal--a goal that could destroy the entire Multiverse as we knew it. Alpha couldn’t believe--wished not to believe--refused to believe what this voice was telling him,” Alpha continued, not caring that his narration had suddenly switched perspective.  Perhaps it was intended?  Admiral Vivi clapped a hand over Pearl’s mouth to prevent her from correcting Alpha as the narration continued: “He and this Voice struggled for what seemed like minutes, maybe even an hour or so, over who was right--over WHAT was the RIGHT thing to do; Alpha had come so far, gone through so much, only for this VOICE to come and attempt to talk him out of it.  Which was odd as he was certain to have had already destroyed all the remaining A.I.s, and he had also taken the precaution of restraining Orvus as well so that the Zoni would not be able to interfere--”

“--he put me on Time Out,” Orvus blurted nonchalantly.

“If I had to hazard a guess,” Bayonetta said as she gently shoved Orvus out of frame, “I would say that this “Voice” was your conscience trying to get you back on the right path, or at least a path that wouldn’t jeopardize the entire Multiverse.”

“And you are correct, Cereza,” Alpha confirmed solemnly.  “My goal at that time was far different from the one I had before I formed DATEA… I had felt--realized--that simply restoring my Universe and its people wouldn’t’ve been enough.  Alpha--Alister--would still be seen as a failure--a traitor--by the people he would have saved… and thus, my goal was to rewrite the entire Multiverse, so that no failure would ever exist again….”

“... but, a world without failure,” Alexander spoke up, he and the others visibly mortified by the reveal of Alpha’s “dream”, “... how could such a world ever function?  How can anyone ever hope to learn anything?  Learn from anything?  Many lessons to be learned are only possible--only exist--because mistakes were made; it’s why “trial and error” is a thing to begin with.  Without mistakes being made--without people failing, or losing--”

“--or even being allowed to fail,” Umbris cut in.  “Sounds to me like such a world would have a Zero-Tolerance policy for failure, wouldn’t you say?”

“Such a world, in an attempt to be flawless, would only be marred with all sorts of flaws,” Red chimed in.

“It would be no Utopia, that’s for certain,” Reid added, completing Red’s thought, his words carrying a hint of realization.

“That…,” Alpha continued with a shaky sigh, “that’s what the Voice was telling Alpha… what my inner voice was trying to tell me… to turn back before it was too late… but Alpha… would no longer listen to reason, not when he was so close to bringing his vision to fruition, so close to proving himself… I still remember the words he uttered as he prepared to plunge the Sacred Artifact through his own heart:

“Role of the “Wanderer”. Rule of “Rending”. I herein “inscribe” my name of Alpha upon thee. Do my bidding, “Boundless Tail”!”

“... the act split Alpha in two beings: his physical self, now void of much of his emotions and inhibitions and driven by his ambition... and his inner conscience, given a momentary physical form and bearing Alpha’s discarded emotions and morals.  Alpha’s physical self prepared to strike down his conscience, to obliterate it for good… and yet, something caused him to hesitate.  That “something”... was the form that the conscience unknowingly--subconsciously--assumed….

“... for you see, even with much of his humanity removed, seeing a vision of Kaden will always give Alpha pause.”

“... oh my god…!” Alexander quietly uttered.

“I know~” Aerith chimed in. “All that exposition just to explain why Alpha looked like Kaden!”

Cue the rest of the party instantly pratfalling before returning to their feet in record timing.  “So wait,” Ratchet spoke up as he addressed Alpha, “you’re actually Alpha’s conscience, and the reason you looked like Dad was because, I-I dunno, you must’ve thought “What Would Kaden Do?” or something?”

“Either that,” Umbris suggested, “or maybe Alpha wanted to eliminate as much of his humanity as possible, his memories and feelings for Kaden being part of that, so the conscience taking on Kaden’s appearance was a side effect of that.  But then Alpha couldn’t do it because, well, it’s Kaden.”

“That’s assuming that this Alpha isn’t also the Shadow of the real Alpha,” Alexander pondered.  “There are cases--few as they are--in which a Shadow is formed from an individual’s repressed positive aspects.”

“Whatever the case may be,” Alpha continued, “the original Alpha faltered, however briefly.  That gave me just enough time to gather myself and tackle him to the ground, disarming him of a number of weapons and items in the process.  He and I quickly scrambled to retrieve any discarded items before the other could--I myself grabbed the Pocket Watch first, to keep Alpha from making use of it again, whilst he re-armed himself with the Sacred Artifact.  It was clear to me at this point, despite his diminished emotions, that Alpha was reaching his own breaking point, spouting off that he “has no further need” for the Orvus Apparatus and that I was on borrowed time anyway--the Watch was “of no use” to me, and that he didn’t care what I did at that point, not with him being so close to the Door.  Well, let’s just say I made him care; despite Orvus being sealed off further inside the Watch, he was still able to grant me an assist, in the form of a facsimile of the Chronoscepter, and with it, I not only stopped Alpha in his tracks, but then proceeded to send him off and seal him away in a hidden location, one that was close to the Door of Origin, yet with no way for him to ever reach it.

“... he was right about me being on borrowed time, however; with Alpha no longer in the area, I could feel my temporary physical form gradually losing cohesion.  I would’ve disappeared completely if something wasn’t done, and I still felt the desire to atone for what I had done as Alpha.  And thus, I made a heavy gamble; knowing that there were still timelines out there--timelines that an Alister Azimuth still existed and lived--I opened a time rift to one of these timelines, then flung myself and the Pocket Watch through it, hoping that that timeline’s Alister would retrieve it, and synchronize with it, making him the primary operator, in the hope that he could resolve my mistakes… in my desperation, however, I failed to consider that the Alister in question might not still be alive by the time the Watch would reach him, or that I might doom him to an endless cycle of repeated death.”

“I, however, did consider the latter point,” Orvus spoke up.  “I had realized with Alpha that constant use of the Apparatus’s power coupled with the memories retained from each of his deaths was what caused his gradual mental breakdown, so I took the time to rewrite the script in the program, making it so that the next Alister that would acquire the Pocket Watch needn’t suffer the same burden--each “loop” was, with as little intervention from those of us inside the Watch as possible, all done by them without any “Official Player’s Guide”, so to speak, hee-hee-hee~!  Oh, and yet,” Orvus added in an admitting tone, “none of us could have ever considered that the Alister we ended up with--your Alister--would be so close to losing his life.  So close, in fact, that it would’ve taken outside intervention to save his life--that being Isamy turning him into a Distortion.”

“... so you all see now,” Alpha spoke once again, his head once again hung with shame and remorse, “this… whole mess is my fault, my doing… … the Multiverse will never be the same again no matter what happens now, and Alister may likewise be doomed to a terrible fate… I’ve doomed him… I’ve doomed us all…!”

“That… you have….”  The Rescue Team and Souls had only enough time to face the one who made the comment--a now-freed Shadow Alister hovering over the ground surrounded by numerous gleaming spears--and watch as those very spears hurtled their way towards them. Alpha and Orvus watched in horror as each spear pierced bloodlessly through everyone else around them, pinning them down against the floor, restraining them and their abilities.  Though the spears made no wound, fatal or otherwise, their victims still felt immense pain where they were impaled--Ratchet’s chest, two of Bayonetta’s limbs, Red’s hands and tail, Alexander’s throat, Umbris’ head, to name a few--and try as they might, they couldn’t remove the spears embedded in their bodies.  “I did warn you all,” Shadow Alister’s upright Skull Half clicked his tongue at the struggling group, “going through all those drawn-out expositions has always been a waste of time.  And yet you, fools that you are, did exactly that, affording me the chance to free myself, and the chance to do away with you all.”  The Shadow's large left hand began to glow once more as energy gathered in its palm.  “No need to waste time and energy Regressing you all--I’ll simply obliterate you all here… and now.”

“Alpha, we must do something,” Orvus urged desperately, unable to pull out the spear pinning Clank to the ground.  “If that blast hits, everything and everyone in this Watch will be decimated!  Alpha, did you hear me?” the Zoni called out to Alpha, who stood slack and silent.  “Alpha, PLEASE, this is the worst possible time to have a mental shutdown!”

“Alpha, snap out of it!” Aligore cried out as he struggled to free his own hands.  “You’re capable of stopping the Shadow’s attack, are you not?!  Help us!!”

“What’s the use?” Moony scoffed, he and the other Altisters all skewered by the same spear.  “Even if Alpha gets his shit together and no-sells this attack, the Shadow will just proceed to Plan B and wipe us out another way.”

“He, too, has fallen to despair,” Homura uttered miserable, her shield-bearing arm pinned down.  “Like Alister, Alpha feels there is nothing more he can do, not without making things worse.  The weight of his failures… they’ve all but crushed him completely.”

“No, there’s…,” Kaden struggled to speak even with the spear in his own chest, “there’s gotta be… something we can… no, something HE can… … Al…

“ALISTER!!!!”

With nothing to stop it, Shadow Alister proceeded to lob the energy blast at the Rescue Team… or it would have had it not suddenly short-circuited at the last possible moment.  “WHAT?!” the Shadow’s skull half roared in disbelief as its attack fizzled out, the left arm’s circuitry crackling as it began to backfire.  Wait, “backfire”?  No, it was more like the arm was being possessed by an outside force.

Or rather, an inside force.  “Don’t… you… dare… HURT THEM…!”  The words being uttered came from the Shadow once more, but this time from its upside-down fleshed half.  “I… may not care… what happens to me now…,” the Fleshed Half grunted as the Face Gear proceeded to turn clockwise amidst the ear-grating grinding of the surrounding gears, “... but I’ll be DAMNED... if I let you hurt them… for even another MOMENT…!”

“What’s happening?!” Reid gasped.

Alexander attempted to speak, yet found it next to impossible with the spear lodged in his neck.  Not to be deterred, Alexander shifted his eyes until they locked onto Galen’s, the irises flashing briefly as he telepathically relayed a message to the Aide’s mind.  “I… Alexander believes,” Galen spoke up as soon as he got the gist of it, “that it may be Alister attempting to fight back against the Shadow from the inside.”

“Good to know he’s got some fire left in him,” Bayonetta breathed out.

“But that metaphorical flame needs to burn harder,” Red interjected, “and I mean really be reignited.”

“Seeing us in danger must’ve been just the spark he needed though, huh?” Aerith suggested, seemingly unphased by the spear piercing through her abdomen.  (‘Cuz, hey, it’s been done before.)

“How… are you still fighting…?!” the Skull Half of the Shadow’s face hissed as it struggled to turn itself counterclockwise once again.  “A FAILURE such as yourse--!!”

“FUCK. YOU!” the Flesh Half furiously spat back. “If ANYONE has the right to call me a “Failure”, it should only be ME!!”

“It would seem not even fighting against his own inner demons is enough to distract Alister from putting himself down, in a way,” Admiral Vivi couldn’t help but shake his head.

“I don’t care if I end up destroying myself here,” Shadow Alister’s Fleshed Half continued, “but destroying my friends in the process is OUT OF THE FUCKING QUESTION!!!”  The Shadow swung its arm again, only this time it was to slam its own fist into its face, the impact cracking the bone of the Skull Half while causing blood to spill out of the Fleshed Half’s nostril and mouth.  The impact also caused the two halves of the Shadow’s face to split away from each other momentarily, revealing Alister, still bound to the center axle of the gear but now with his left arm freed, albeit with its flesh partly torn from freeing it.  “So long as they’re safe, I don’t care about dying!”

“Alister, please!” Kaden cried out in spite of his pain, even as the Shadow’s face sealed itself again.  “You can’t keep thinking like that!  The desire for self-termination, I mean, not the beating up of your Shadow--THAT you can keep on doing.”

“Is--ugh!… Should Alister really be beating up his own Shadow while he’s still inside it, though?” Ratchet uttered.  “I mean--nng!--wouldn’t that still be hurting himself?”

“Even so, Alister’s influence is causing the spears to vanish!” Aligore exclaimed, watching as the spears crumpled into dust.

“No, that was me,” Alpha spoke up, now out of his apparent existential moment.  “My “despair moment” was just me working to undo the Shadow’s Fixed Point Spears.  I had intended to have I.T. Overclock himself to shield you all to give you enough time to escape, but Alister’s intervention managed to save us all.  I must say though, Moony,” he added to the argyle-wearing Altister, “I find your occasional lack of faith in me disturbing.”

“It is true.  You can be even worse than Alpha’s original self at times,” I.T. snarked in his usual monotone.

“I--I… shit, I hate it when you’re right,” Moony humbly relented, causing I.T. to smirk (and not even attempt to hide it at that).

“Enough casual banter,” Alpha said urgently.  “We have to get Alister out of his Shadow before he destroys himself in the process.  And given that he still feels that getting rid of himself would do a service to the Multiverse--”

“--he--*cough-cough*--” Alexander began before forcibly coughing out whatever dust was left in his throat from the disintegrated spear, “--*cough*--s-sorry.” Quickly clearing his throat as best he could, he continued his with his thought, “we need to get Alister to understand that it’s not too late for him!  He is not you, and he’s not Isamy’s puppet, or Protheus’s.  He’s--”

“--you can’t talk me out of this, Alex!” Alister barked through his Shadow’s Flesh Half.  “This isn’t just about me being someone’s tool; it’s about me being a danger to the Multiverse, a danger to all of you--HEY!! You are NOT putting me upside-down again!” he snapped at the Skull Half of the Shadow as he fought to remain upright.

“The only thing that’s in danger of you is yourself, Alister!” Ratchet called out.  “We need you to cut the Emo crap for a moment and listen!”

“What’s the point, Ratchet?!  What point is there in me having a future if it causes others to suffer?!” Alister snapped back once again.  “As long as I exist as a distortion, the Multiverse is in danger--Time itself is in danger--and I don’t want to be the one to tear all of existence apart!  Like YOU did to our dimension in your timeline!!” he added with extra fury towards Alpha.

“I… you heard all of that…?” Alpha blinked in surprise.

“Suffering through an existential crisis doesn’t suddenly make one hard-of-hearing, I’ll have you know,” Alister confirmed as he continued to use the Shadow’s arm to keep the Flesh Half upright.  “I could hear everything you all were saying, even whilst I remain bound inside the Shadow’s head--”

(♫“Claire de Lune”♫ / Claude Debussy)

“--Listen, Alister, we can see what direction you’re heading towards with your incoming tirade, but we need you to head for a different route,” Bayonetta chimed in.  “Getting mad at Alpha--no matter how justified any of us would be to do so--is not going to help you, which is what we are all here for. Especially Red and Alexander.”

“And we’re not here to repay a debt to you, either!” Red joined in.  “Alister, what you did for Alexander and I gave us hope, the strength to forgive ourselves and to keep moving forward.  And right now we want the same for you!”

“We know you’re scared, Al,” Ratchet followed, “scared that you’ll cause more harm than good just from existing, but--”

“--you haven’t failed yet!!” Zayon suddenly jumped in, tears streaming down his face.  “You still have time to make things right, Al!  You can turn this all around, prove to everyone that you’re not a jinx, or a scourge to the Multiverse and all within it!  It doesn’t matter what Isamy did to you--you’re still you, and YOU can get through this!  You can, you… you can….”  His emotions overwhelming him, Zayon collapsed against Reid, attempting to stifle his sobs as his beloved comforted him.

“Al, you’ve become a part of our lives,” Alexander spoke up as calmly as possible, even as his own eyes became misty, “a part of our hearts.  Something that won’t ever fade… I’m sure we’ve all become a part of yours, too, over the course of this journey… remember everything we’ve all been through, both the good and the bad, all the times we’ve been at each other’s throats as well as the times we’ve had each other’s backs….

“You and I went from that argument on the roof of Castle Necrophades…

… to sharing a hot tub as we both recovered from being encased in ice….

“You and Red went from a pained parting at the Inner Periphery…

… to being in a cuddle pile with the rest of us….

“You and Ratchet… it all started with your meeting on Torren IV…

… yet through all the ups and downs, you two have grown so close, almost like… family….

“... you’ve done so much for us, with the hope that we would be able to live our lives--truly live… and we… we know that you, too--”

“Alex, stop,” Alister tearfully plead, the Shadow’s Fleshed Half crying tears from its eye, “just… just stop… I know… I know I mean a lot to you all… you all mean so much to me, too.  I really… desperately wish to be with you all for the rest of my days, but… but what I want… and what the Multiverse needs--”

“--the Multiverse can wait, Alister,” Kaden calmly cut in.  “Right now, it’s what you want--and need--that’s most important.”

“... What… I… need… …?”  It was odd, how the words never really crossed his mind before.  What he needed?  What he needed… he thought he had always known the “right” answer to that question: he “needed” to fight, tooth-and-nail if necessary, for the good of his home, his people, his loved ones… yet, it felt more like his duty--an obligation--that he had to uphold even in the years of his exile, to the point of obsession.  Everything he had ever done, it was for the needs of others… but himself?  Had he… ever truly thought of himself?  Of what he needed…?

“I… need….”  But why would his own needs ever be important?  So long as his home--wait, scratch that, Fastoon is a ghost town now… so long as his people--no no, hold on, most of the lombaxes were elsewhere… yeah, so long as his loved ones were safe, that’s all he ever… needed…?  As he continued to consider those words further, all while subconsciously moving his damaged left arm over towards one of the chains binding his right--which also, somehow, directed the Shadow’s arm to reach for its own face, he couldn’t help but to think of what Alexander and Red had gone through, what they felt they needed to do for those close to their hearts--Red’s desire to save his world drove him to sacrifice his own well-being and attempt to keep others at arm’s length.  Alexander did what he felt was best for those he cared for most, even if it meant erasing himself from their memories--even for a moment--to let them live on without knowing who he was.  They were willing to isolate themselves from others, just… … just like… him….

“... I… I need….”  … and yet, he continued to realize as he proceeded to rip the chain, hook and all, away from his right arm, while the Shadow’s arm began to pull at the Fleshed Half of its face, much to the Skull Half’s ire... it was partly because of him--because he didn’t want them to suffer like he had suffered--that Alexander and Red no longer had to feel the need to deny themselves what made them whole.  And now they, Ratchet, Clank, Umbris, Bayonetta, the Souls, the Altisters….

“... I need….”  … it had been in front of him this whole time.  What he was missing--what he had been denying himself for so long--it was there all along.  “I need…,” Alister breathlessly gasped, trembling as he continued to rip off the chains binding him, fighting off the pain that came from tearing up his body in the process.  “I need…!”

“STOP!!  What do you think you’re doing?!” the Shadow’s Skull Half angrily shrieked, its red iris shrinking to almost a pinprick as it watched its own arm--all but completely under Alister’s control now--continue to pull at the Flesh Half of its face, threatening to rip it off.  “You think freeing yourself will solve anything?!  You’ve already doomed the Multiverse!  You’ve already--!!”

“--I’ve already told you--YOU have no right to call me a “failure”!” Alister snapped back, his body now covered in numerous gashes but also mostly free of the chains that he had torn out of himself.  “Zayon’s right; I haven’t failed yet, and I don’t intend to--AAARGH!!”  Alister had almost freed himself completely of his bonds, yet the Shadow had made one desperate attempt to keep him contained: flinging one of the loosened chains against Alister’s face, causing the barbs to dig into the flesh of the left side.  And yet, this only served to distract him momentarily.  “I… I still have a chance to help save the Multiverse,” he continued as he reached for the last chain binding him, prepared to rip it off his face, “and I’ll do it with my comrades--my friends--by my side.  But right now… I… NEED… AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!”

Powering through the pain, Alister tore the barbed chain off his face, along with a fair bit of the left side of his face, just as the Shadow’s arm tore off the Flesh Half of its face clean off.  No longer bound to the Shadow’s inside, Alister went limp as he began to free-fall toward the floor.

“... I need… to be with them….”

(♫ “Finally At Peace With Myself” (“Film”/Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth OST) ♫)

Time seemed to slow down for Alister as he descended, a feeling of weightlessness washing over him as memories flashed through his mind: the moments he had throughout this journey that brought light to his life--moments where he felt emotions he had thought would never be felt again, where the sides of him he had thought long forgotten had resurfaced.  Moments with Ratchet, Clank, Alexander, Red, Bayonetta, Umbris, Mr. Zurkon, Kaden… even memories from his Altisters flooded his mind, though not as rapidly or aggressively as the previous time, showing him moments with Asgore, Pearl, Admiral Vivi, Homura, Aerith, Artorius, and countless others that his alternate selves had managed to befriend and connect with over the countless, brief cycles.  There was always at least one person by his side, wasn’t there…?  He was… never truly alone, no matter the timeline.  That put his mind at even greater ease, and it grew more at ease still as, even through the blood blinding his left eye, he could see his friends rushing over towards him, ready to catch him before he could hit the ground.  His friends… the ones who fought tooth-and-nail to pull him back from the brink of his despair, so that he could have a chance to live to see another day, to see the future that could be made… no, more than that, even.

To be a part of that future.

“Guys, I…,” he started to once he was finally in the embrace of his friends, letting his tears fall once more, “I--I’m so… so sorry, I--”

“Don’t apologize,” Ratchet sobbed, relieved to have Alister back again. “You’ve nothing to apologize for, Al.  You’re alive and safe now, that’s all that matters…!”

“Doesn’t mean where out of the woods just yet,” Admiral Vivi warned just as what remained of the Shadow let out an ear-splitting roar.  “Seems our “friend” here still has some fight left in it.”

With Alister no longer bound to it, and the Flesh Half of its face torn off and laying uselessly on the floor, the Shadow proceeded to shift into a new form; with the gears of its body now lying flat on the floor, a mechanical endoskeleton emerged from the middle of the central gear, consisting solely of a ribcage, featureless head and left arm, the Skull Half of its previous form’s face being worn like a mask.  “Well, that’s mortifyingly familiar,” Umbris scoffed in spite of the mood, reminded of his Void-Spacian doppelganger from Death Path.

Though its body language was as monstrous as its appearance, the voice it spoke with was calm and emotionless: “You… shall not… succeed… … You… are destined… to fail… for all eternity….”

“And who are those words for, exactly?” Alister questioned the monstrosity before them with a stern glare… before turning his gaze over to Alpha.  “I get the feeling you would know.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Red blurted out.

“It means what we’re seeing now,” Alpha explained, staring up towards the monster’s face, “is connected to me.  And always was.”

“So that ISN’T Alister’s Shadow Self?!” Ratchet gasped.

“No,” Alpha replied before pointing over towards the Half-Face still lying on the floor closeby with a humbled expression. “That… is Alister’s Shadow.”

“That’s…,” Alister uttered as he gingerly straightened himself, moving as if to step towards the Shadow on the floor.

“Al, wait!” Alexander yelped while grabbing hold of Alister’s arm, just as the “Shadow” fired a number of lasers from its fingertips at the group, which I.T. blocked with his Digital Barrier.

(♫ “Maze of Life”/Persona Q OST ♫)

“You behave!” Aerith chastised the “Shadow” aloud as an orange aura erupted in a perimeter around her, followed shortly by a violet energy converging on the “Shadow”, rendering the monstrosity from moving any part of itself, if only momentarily.  “That won’t hold it for long,” Aerith warned the others, “so get ready.”

“The Enemy is weakened, but it is still a threat,” I.T. observed.  “We will need to take it down quickly.”

“I need… to get to my Shadow,” Alister told Alexander, in an almost pleading tone.

“I know,” Alex nodded as he supported the General on his shoulder.  “I’ll get you to it, don’t worry.”

“Alpha, what do you mean by that thing being connected to you?” Ratchet questioned the DATEA Founder as he prepared his weapons.  “Is it like Alister’s Shadow, too?”

“In a way,” Alpha replied.  “Hard to say whether it is my Shadow, or a Cognition--both can have their appearances warped by the perception of others, including that of the person that the Shadow or Cognition was born from.  Suffice to say,” he added with a faint, mirthless smile, “I don’t exactly have a positive opinion about myself, especially considering what I’ve done….”

“I’m gonna guess “Cognition”, then,” Umbris joined in, “since I get the feeling that it represents how you feel about yourself--both the You in here, and your physical Self--and, well, given your apparent mental state, it ended up spiralling out to disastrous proportions.”

“Yep, sounds about right,” Alpha agreed with bemused resignation.  “It’s gotten so far beyond my control that I cannot make it cease by my own power….”  Glancing up at the Cognition, Alpha blinked hard a few times, remembering something.  “We need to protect Alister and his Shadow, at least until once they’ve reconciled.”

“Got it,” Umbris nodded.

“Wait, why protect the Shadow too?” Ratchet blurted.

“If his Shadow gets destroyed,” Umbris warned as Aligore, Pearl and Admiral Vivi rushed over to guard Alister and/or his Shadow, “Alister could slip into a coma, or worse: experience a mental shutdown and die.”

Now it was Ratchet’s turn to blink hard.  “ARGH! Again with the information that should’ve been brought up earlier!” he growled before rushing off alongside Umbris to guard Alister.

“... failure is… your only option…,” Cognition Alpha uttered as soon as it could move and speak again, launching numerous giant gears once again at the Rescue Team.

[[“Mirror Force…!”]] Soul!Alexander telepathically declared as a shimmering barrier formed between the Rescue Team and the Cognition, blocking the gears and sending them… wait, the gears aren’t being bounced back? They’re still grinding against the Mirror Force barrier, threatening to shatter the barrier and break through!  How?!

“M-M-Ma-M-Ma-Mabufudyne!!” To Soul!Alexander’s shock and relief, the gear were all frozen in pillars of solid ice, their threat neutralized.  But who was the one who had cast the spell?  The Soul turned around to find an Altister approaching, draped in an oversized comforter.  “S-S-Sorry that we all f-f-f-froze up on you guys earlier…,” Sniffles shivered apologetically.

“What…?!” Cognition Alpha gasped, its stoic facade slipping at the sight of the now-active Altister.  “But… you’re supposed to be… ggggrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRR--!!”  It attempted another laser attack, yet its charge was interrupted by a sniper bullet being fired into its wrist, short-circuiting the attack once more.  “How…?! You Failures shouldn’t be…!!!”

“Afraid you thought wrong, Demon,” uttered Trigger as he shouldered his sniper rifle.

“Seriously, sorry that it took us so long to get out of such a sorry state,” Left-Eye apologized as he, too, appeared, alongside Vortex Al.

At the sight of the frozen Altisters finally becoming unstuck, Alister couldn’t help but smile.  “I… I’m glad you guys are okay.”

“And we, you,” Alizure nodded.  “Now that we’re ALL back in action, our chances of getting you out of here are sure to drastically improve,” he added as he spun a blue, star-shaped charm around his finger.  “Now, time to overwhelm that Cognition!”

With an almost deafening battle cry, over fourty-thousand Altisters proceeded to pile onto Cognition Alpha, confounding it with their sheer numbers alone.

“... I really wish I could do more for them,” Alister sighed ruefully.

“I’m sure you’ll find a way, Al,” Alexander nodded as he saw Ratchet and Umbris shove Alister’s Shadow closer to them, the giant half-face looking mildly uncomfortable being handled so roughly.  “Right now, though….”

“I know.  Right now, I have to face my darkness on my own,” Alister replied, echoing a statement told to him some time ago, as he was brought closer to his Shadow, Alexander gently lowering him so that he could kneel before it.  “I’m sorry,” he said to his Shadow, “that it took me so long to realize what I should’ve known all along, yet denied myself this whole time.  You… wanted me to realize this, didn’t you?” he asked his Shadow, which had now morphed into a mirror image of him, minus the flayed flesh.  “I could tell, somehow, that you were protecting me from that Cognition--even your fusion with it was an attempt to protect me from its influence.  More important than that… you protected me from myself… … or perhaps, you… were the part of me that still wished to live, even when I had given up hope….”  At that last point, Alister couldn’t help but chuckle a bit.  “What am I saying?  Of course you’re a part of me--you are me.  The Me that I never fully accepted… until now.  My Shadow… that helped me to see the light.”

The smile that crossed the face of Alister’s Shadow was brimming with elation and relief.  Even a tear could be seen falling from its eye before the Shadow emitted a brilliant, blue glow.  The glow slowly transferred over to Alister, whose wounds began to heal as the Shadow slowly faded from sight; only a small scar over Alister’s left eye remained when the glow eventually died down.  That, and a card that suddenly appeared in his right hand.  “This is…,” Alister quietly gasped as he looked down at this card, unsure of what it truly was or how it got there, yet somehow knowing what it was at the same time.  “... … oh, great,” Alister blurted suddenly with a roll of his eyes before looking toward Alexander, “this means I’m gonna end up like you, isn’t it?”

Taken aback by this comment, Alexander could help but to scoff incredulously.  “W-Why’re you saying that like it’s a bad thing--?!”  His shock turned into relief almost instantly as Alister started to laugh lightheartedly, both at his own joke and Alex’s reaction to it.  “... you’re really back,” Alex uttered quietly, his eyes tearing up.

“He’s going to be okay,” Red sighed in relief, his own eyes tearing up as he smiled.  “Thank the Ancestors, we saved him….”

“It’s more like he ultimately saved himself,” Umbris replied, also relieved that Alister was brought back from the brink of his insanity and depression.

“... this is the Alister that’s always been there…,” Ratchet uttered quietly, not even bothering to stop himself from crying tears of joy.  “He’s… gonna be okay….”

The Soul Room shook as Cognition!Alpha let loose a blood-curdling shriek, signalling that the fight was still far from over.  “I MUST BE THE ONE TO SUCCEED!! ME!!!!” the Cognition bellowed, flinging several Altisters off of him in the process.  “I MUST BE THE ONE TO USHER IN THE NEW MULTIVERSE!!  THAT IS MY RIGHT, NO ONE ELSE’S!!!!”

Alister breathed a short sigh.  “Whatever could have happened to make you believe that so fiercely…?” he calmly asked, directed not only at the Cognition, but Alpha as well.  “I guess it was my habit of always trying to be THE one to solve an issue.”

“Perhaps you’re right…,” Alpha dejectedly replied.  “It became twisted into an obsession, to the point where I clashed with everyone in DATEA, even Omega.  Especially Omega, considering we were both the founders.  I strongly felt that the right to use the Door of Origin’s power was mine alone, especially seeing as I was the one who caught a glimpse of it in the first place, from my own dimension at that… Gods, that was just selfish of me to think so….”

“It wasn’t the only thing that motivated you, though, at least initially,” Alister continued.  “You just… lost sight of what was truly important.”

“You’re right.  I was blinded… by my desperation… my despair….”

“And in the midst of your thrashing, feeling your way around without that sight, you lost your course, your sense of direction….”

“... my… self, too… eventually, all that mattered to me was reaching the End--any end.  Yet none was in sight, within reach… … but you,” Alpha added, “you’ve managed to get the closest to the true End....”

“... it’s… because I managed to learn,” Alister replied.  “It all started with Ratchet, at the Great Clock, after all.  He got me to listen… ‘course he did so after beating the tar out of me, but I guess that was what I needed,” he added with a slight chuckle.

“... what you… needed…,” Alpha uttered slowly, his gaze gradually shifting towards Ratchet.  The younger lombax caught Alpha’s gaze and held it for a couple of seconds before going into a minor coughing fit.  “... of course… Ratchet got through to you, to get you to realize your mistake, just in time.  If I hadn’t… … I… … … … thank you, Clank.”

“I beg your pardon?” Clank blurted, taken aback.  Ratchet blinked hard, equally surprised.

Alpha gave a half-hearted chuckle.  “If not for you going back six minutes into the past to save Ratchet, our universe would have surely been doomed completely.  But because you did, Ratchet was able to get through to Alister, and Alister was able to see the light.  And continue to see.  If only I… had seen my own errors in time, too….

♫ (“Prelude to a New Beginning” (“Our Beginning” / Persona 5 OST) ♫

“You see them now, though, don’t you?” Alister asked rhetorically.  “Even if it’s too late for your timeline’s universe, you still have a chance to make things right, now that you’re fully aware of what went wrong.  Even if your physical self still wishes to re-write the Multiverse, maybe you could… I dunno,” he paused to shrug, “try something to stop him.”

“... You’re right,” Alpha replied slowly, “you’ve shown me that there is still a chance for me to stop my physical self.  Or, at least, to give you a chance to stop him.  I mean, it’s a bit rich of me to ask you to solve my problem for me, but--”

“--I get it~ shut up~” Alister snarked back with a smirk.

“Heh, very well then,” Alpha agreed as he raised his right arm.  “Let’s get you home, Alister.”

“No,” Alister corrected as he, too, raised his left arm.  “Let’s get us all home.”

In the hand of each raised arm, a glowing plasma gun appeared--brilliant gold for Alister, pale silver for Alpha--which were now aimed at Cognitive Alpha, giving off a slowly rising hum as they charged their shot.  “I want to get us all home, even the Altisters, if possible,” Alister explained.  “They, too, deserve at least one more chance. Them and the Souls that came in here with them.”

“A rather tall order,” Alpha commented dryly.

“But not an impossible one, I’d imagine.”

Alpha made a sound between a scoff and a chuckle.  “I suppose that’s true.  We’ll see just how you manage to accomplish that.”

“Of course.  When you’re ready.”

“... alright.”

“CHECKMATE.”  Pulling the trigger, Alister and Alpha fired their charged shot at the Cognition, who was unable to evade it due to the Altisters’ interference as well as its own lack of limbs.  The plasma blasts punched right through the monstrosity, leaving a gaping hole in both its torso and its head.  The Altisters surrounding it began a hasty retreat as the Cognition began to crackle and overload, knowing what happens next in situations like this.  As did everyone else as they all huddled behind I.T.’s barrier, reinforced by several other Altisters linking their arms together with I.T. and each other; their combined energies were more than enough to withstand the Cognition’s massive explosion without I.T. or any of the other linked Altisters needing to Overclock themselves.

“See?  You could do it,” Alister said calmly to Alpha as the smoke cleared, revealing that the Cognition was, indeed, destroyed.  “You just needed some help, that’s all.”

“... I always did,” Alpha admitted in a silent breath.  “We… both did.  But you knew better than I did… and that is why you are better suited to attain the Aeon.”

“The what now?” Alister blinked in confusion, completely oblivious to the celebrating happening around him.

“Omega and I opposed each other, despite effectively being equals as co-founders of DATEA.  Or so I initially thought, before discovering he was an Omni, bestower of Judgment for the Multiverse.  It’s a “Maximus” thing, apparently.  Isamy became an Omni when Protheus vanished, then when Protheus returned, she was the one who vanished, since there can only be one Omni at any given time.  But now, though,” he added as he looked past Alister to see four figures approaching them, “I have it on good authority that Protheus has been disposed of, and thus Isamy is once more an Omni.”

Alister turned to face the figures Alpha was watching: four Altisters, including two that Alister recognized from the Pathways of Death and Truth, as well as a restored Too-Dee being cradled and hugged by the last Altister he didn’t quite recognize.  “Alister,” Alpha spoke again, “Let me introduce you to my first three After Images.  I’m sure you recognize Alpha-Delta and Alpha-Tango,” he stated as the respective After Images nodded in acknowledgement.  “Oh, and I see Too-Dee’s back as well.  Must’ve been from a Back-Up like the others… anyways, the one holding onto him is Alpha-Romeo.  He was the one I had stationed on Remembrance Path… but you never properly met each other ‘cuz he was sleeping on the job!

“Oh, so that was what that copy of my corpse was,” Alister realized.

“What can I say--the snow blanket was comfy,” Alpha-Romeo shrugged.  “Shame I tend to sleep like a log, though.”

Alpha could only groan as he facepalmed himself.  “Yes, well, thanks to the information he had sent over before he was disintegrated along with Remembrance Path, I was made aware that Protheus bit the dust, thanks to the efforts of Arthur, Eria and their companions.  Thus, as stated earlier, Isamy is now an Omni once more--”

“Hi,” Kaden jumped in suddenly.  “You don’t mind if I have a moment with Alpha-Tango here, do you Alpha?”

“Gah!” Alpha lightly gasped upon Kaden’s intrusion, but his expression quickly turned soft upon hearing the request. “Oh, no, by all means Kaden.  Go on ahead.”

“Thank you,” Kaden nodded appreciatively as he approached Alpha-Tango.

“... hey,” Alpha-Tango smiled calmly.

“... been a while, hasn’t it…?” Kaden uttered softly.  Without another word, Kaden calmly took Alpha-Tango by the hand and led him away from the crowd, someplace quiet and private.

“... … … now I get it,” Alister uttered in realization.  “Kaden said he was from the same timeline as the Alister that was executed by the Lombaxian Court. “My Alister”, he said.  And that mention of “exploring limits”... … now it makes sense,” he concluded as he stared off in the direction Kaden and Alpha-Tango had gone to.  “... huh.  Okay then.  So, you were saying, Alpha?”

“Right… anyways, I quickly realized that Protheus having his Omni Principle meant that he was WAY out of my league… until he discovered something within me.  Something that entered me when the Great Clock was destroyed.  Something that was related to the Omni Principle despite being comparatively weaker.  Something called… the “Philosopher’s Observation”.”

“That sounds glamorous,” Alister snarked bluntly, feeling the reveal to be a tad anticlimactic.

“Basically, it allows whoever possesses it to see what others cannot--and even should not.  It also allows them to see potentially infinite possibilities--future and past, events yet to come and no longer possible--”

“Sounds like something greater than Garnet is capable of,” Pearl chimed in as she attempted to join the conversation, only to recoil from Alpha’s glance and growl.  “Sorry, just thought I’d put my two cents in,” she relented as she backed out.

“I guess that power was what ultimately drove your complete self to insanity,” Alister hypothesized.

“Indeed.  I focused on the possibilities that I wanted to come true--it didn’t matter to me whether they were possible to attain or not.”  Alpha took a short pause to sigh.  “It’s like trying to follow a map with no clear path, no guarantee that the destination would even match the journey.  Like we’ve said, I became blinded, merely thrashing about to find my way, to find a way out--any way.”

“... so, wait,” Alister realized, “are you saying… you passed the Observation on to me?”

“Not even close!” Alpha replied in an almost chipper tone.  “The Observation stayed with me this whole time!”

“Wh--Which you?!”

This me!!” Alpha answered, practically beaming at this point.  “I managed to retain the Observation when my Physical Self split himself in twain!”

“Well, shit, talk about the biggest fucking gamble!” Alister gasped, realizing what might’ve happened had the Physical Alpha been the one to retain the Observation instead of his Conscience Self.  Another realization came to him at that moment.  “Wait, was your Physical Self… trying to get you back?  Is that why he tried to reach out to Zayon’s Alister when he…?”

Alpha merely nodded.  “He wishes to gain the Observation back, for the power it bestows aside from Sight Beyond Time--”

“--and to get it back, he wishes to reunite with his “Better Half”.  Sounds familiar,” Bayonetta surmised as she slid into the conversation this time.  To Alpha’s shock, she was joined by the other members of the Rescue Team and the Souls, all listening in on Alister and Alpha’s conversation.

“DAFU--?!”

“Yeah, try growling all of us away this time, Alpha,” Pearl taunted rather haughtily.

“If any conversation deserves to be private, it’s the one Kaden’s having with that chained Altister,” Reid added.

“Oh, alright, fair enough,” Alpha relented.  “But you all understand where I’m going with this, right?  If my Physical Self gets a hold of me while I have the Observation, he could become too much for anyone short of an Omni to take on.”

“I think you’re underestimating us again, Alpha,” Alister pointed out.  “Or did you already forget that an Omni was taken out by people who didn’t possess a similar Attribute?  Besides, all we have to do is keep your Physical Self from reclaiming the Observation for himself, right?”

Alpha let out a sound between a scoff and a chuckle.  “Yes, you’re right on both points.  Which is why… ….”  Alpha trailed off as he moved closer to Alister, grabbing the General by the shoulders.  “This could take a moment--don’t wanna have you overwhelmed too badly.”  Before Alister could utter a sound of protest, Alpha’s mouth was already right next to his ear, a soundless scripture issued from his lips.  Alister couldn’t move his body while Alpha whispered his incantation, yet his eyes began to spasm on their own as something began to enter him, seeping into his very soul.  Whatever it was, it felt like it was trying to tear him apart from the inside, yet was ultimately being restrained, perhaps by Alpha’s own intervention.  It felt almost like an eternity had passed before the intrusion finally settled, even though in reality it lasted for two minutes at most.  “That should do it,” Alpha declared as he finished, holding on to Alister as they both briefly stumbled, both somewhat drained from what transpired between them.

“W-What did you…?” Alister huffed breathlessly.

“Even if he and I end up reuniting,” Alpha explained as he straightened both himself and Alister upright, “my other half won’t ever get what he wishes to claim.  A portion of my Observation, and of the Aeon… now rests in you.  You may be familiar with it,” he added with a slight, knowing smile.  Somehow, Alister felt that he knew what Alpha meant.  “Okay,” Alpha nodded as he stepped away, “I believe now would be the best time for you to get back out there--you lot have missed quite a lot, after all.”

“We’re definitely gonna get such an earful from the others,” Alexander laughed nervously.

“On top of whatever Jeanne has cooked up for us,” Bayonetta added with a shrug.

“And I’m sure Mr. Zurkon would like to let us have it, too,” Umbris sighed.

“We’ll just have to take our licks when we wake up,” Alister shrugged, feeling quite optimistic despite the threat of a dressing down.  “See you all on the other side, everyone.”

“It’ll be good to have you back, Al,” Alexander nodded happily as he and the rest of the Rescue Team began to vanish from Alister’s Soul Room one by one, until only Ratchet was left with Alister.

“Ratchet…?” Alister uttered with a tilt of his head.  “Something still troubling you?”

The young lombax look into Alister’s face with teary eyes for a few seconds, then turned his gaze toward Alpha.  The man formerly-known as “Alister Azimuth” instinctively attempted to avoid eye contact at first, but Alpha reconsidered after a second or so, swallowing hard before willing himself to face the young lombax.  “... I… I know it’s too late to ask forgiveness of you at this point,” Alpha quavered, speaking to Ratchet, or rather, someone else within Ratchet.  “I honestly rather you didn’t, not after what I… what I did to you….”

♫ ("Something Still Remains...." ("Someone Calls Me... Someone Looks For Me"/Parasite Eve OST) ♫

Alister glanced at Alpha, knowing full well what his alternative self was referring to.  Turning to look back at Ratchet, he almost jumped in shock upon seeing that the young lombax was now cradling a body that had suddenly appeared in his arms--a body exactly like his, yet dressed differently.  Ratchet approached Alpha with this body double, a raspy breathing coming from it being the hint that it wasn’t a corpse.  Alpha was trembling all over as Ratchet drew closer, until they were a few inches apart.  Ratchet’s Double weakly turned his head to look at Alpha, his half-open eyelids showing dull, almost lifeless eyes.

Alpha’s teary eyes moved between Ratchet and his Double, a trembling hand reaching out to touch the top of the Double’s head.  “... I… I want to... take it all back… all of it,” Alpha sobbed, his shaking knees threatening to buckle beneath him.  “Kaden’s son or not… I should never have… done what I did… to you… … I never should have… … all this suffering because of me, because I… killed you… … I wish… oh, how I wish… that I could have been stopped… I wish you had stopped me… I wish anyone had stopped me… before it was too late… ….”  Alpha was now cradling Ratchet’s Double--his timeline’s Ratchet--while the main Ratchet stepped back to stand next to Alister.  “My dear boy… I… I’m so sorry… … I’m so sorry….”  Collapsing to his knees, Alpha could only repeat those last words as he held his Ratchet close to him, crying into his shoulder.

“... get going,” Alister and Ratchet tore their eyes away from the somber scene before them to find Zayon closeby, addressing them.  “Everyone else is waiting.”

“I… okay,” Alister uttered, motioning for Ratchet to get going.  The young lombax complied without a word, vanishing from the Soul Room.  “... Zayon--”

“--good luck out there,” Zayon blurted in a timid tone, the whole ordeal clearly having exhausted him.  “No matter what happens from here on out… just do your best, Al.  We’ll be fine.”

“... … …”  Alister wanted to say something more, wanted to reassure Zayon, and the other Altisters, that he would do whatever he could to get them a happy ending, too… yet, he felt Zayon already knew what he had wanted to say.  Sighing, Alister settled on giving Zayon a faint smile, before vanishing from his Soul Room.

 


 

 


 

 

 

“YOU HAVE A FUCKING LOT OF GODDAMNED NERVE, AZIMUTH!!!”

“MR. ZURKON HAS HALF A MIND TO PUMP YOU FULL OF PLASMA, STUPID FUZZY BITCH-ASS!!”

“SO HELP ME, ALISTER, IF IT WASN’T FOR MOM--!!!!”

“I know you’ve got a lot of baggage to deal with, Alister, but next time do us all a favor and TRY AND RESOLVE THEM FASTER!!!”

Sure enough, as soon as Alister reawoke, he found himself verbally bombarded by the rest of Team Lombax who had to stay behind and defend him and their friends while they were going through that Vision Quest that seemed to have lasted for a year.  Ignoring the tirade for a moment, Alister took a moment to quickly glance at his surroundings, realizing they were all floating about in some brightly colored, starry nebula.  Bizarre, and yet rather delightful.  The sight of this, coupled with his newfound spark for life, made Alister’s mouth curl into a happy smile.

“--and wipe that smile off your face, Azimuth, we’re not done ripping you a new one yet!” a fuming Jeanne barked.  “I swear, we ought to put you in another coma just for that crap you pulled--”

“Come now, Jeanne, he’s been through a lot,” Red implored.  “We’re just glad he didn’t terminate himself in his Soul Room, like I almost did.”

“That’s not it!  It wasn’t just Alister who was in danger--Cereza and the rest of you could’ve also gotten erased in there!” Jeanne angrily explained.

“But we didn’t, so I don’t see the issue here,” Bayonetta shrugged.

“Cereza--!!”

“Shh~” Bayonetta interrupted with a finger pressed to Jeanne’s lips.  “Please, Jeanne, you really should be happier.”

“But… ugh, I hate when you’re right,” Jeanne relented, glomping Bayonetta before she could stop herself.  “... I’m just glad you’re alright,” she sighed into her friend’s shoulder.

“And what are we, a bunch of Fake Traps?!” Umbris protested.

“I’m sure Jeanne’s really happy to see the rest of our friends are all safe and sound, too,” Gabriel suggested optimistically.

“Speak for yourself,” Jeanne bluntly remarked.

“GIRL, LISTEN--!”

"No, YOU listen--!!"

As Gabriel and Jeanne began their verbal combat, Ratchet and Red sidled up next the Alister.  “Well, we’re certainly glad you are safe, Al,” Red beamed as he pulled both lombaxes in for a hug.  “Honestly, though, Alister, if any of us have another one of those Vision Quests again, it’ll be too soon.”

“I agree,” Alister chuckled lightheartedly as he gently ruffled Ratchet’s head fur, “I feel like I’ve had more than plenty this adventure.”  His smile slowly drooped as a realization came over him.  “... where’s Isamy?




 

… I still owe her an answer.”


 

Edited by Asgore Dreemurr

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    • By Crow
      Back on the old Card Maker, in the early 2010s (or was it slightly before? Whatever.), I started doing these all-all crossovers which eventually lead to me making X-Over Academy, which was about characters from all over the multiverse being in school.
       
      There was also a reworked version where the Academy was a type of magic school and the characters from all over the cosmos were their familiars. Others too have done their wee takes after this.
       
      But now, I want to bring X-Over Academy back in its purest form - as a school where characters from all different kinds of series get together. Original characters are permitted - but only if you can prove that they are from a roleplay or even Fanfiction that has graced either this site or the old one.
       
      EDIT: Instead of just characters from YCM or NCM, I am now permitting characters used from different sites as well, be it another forum, fanficdotnet, AO3, etc., as long as you can prove that they exist and were made prior a good long while to your signups. I understand that Discord RPs or other Chatroom RPs are popular and you'd want to use characters from those, so uh, I'll think of something.
       
      If you're going to ask if characters like MMO avatars or the like are permitted since they might fall into the 'originales des character' territory - yes, yes they are.
       
      Instead of a vaguely defined centre of the Multiverse like prior, I'm thinking the roleplay's setting will be a bit of a set world - specifically a section of Kivotos from Blue Archive. Kivotos is a big Academy City, and a lot of stuff happens. The Academy is meant to skirt the line of being a secret and being known - so what better way than to hide a tree in a forest, especially if a lot of things happen in said forest that are more interesting than the tree you're hiding? Plus there's lots of good places around. What do you think? Do you have other places in mind?
       
      In prior versions of the RP, there were 'normal' subjects in addition to combat classes, and by extension teachers. How about this one? Should I have many classes (obviously excluding combat-based classes if need be) be replaced by online learning - seeing how in school RPs, characters don't really roleplay them out? Or should I just have teachers as per normal? If so, playable or NPC?
       
      This RP will have the occasional incident in school to make things interesting, festival for celebration or field trip if you feel that your current location is a bit boring.
    • By LordCowCow
      Hello......hello. Again? No, that's not right. Hello for the first time, for you at least, everyone. I hope this message gets through. You see...there have been some problems in my universe. Oh, right, there's multiple universes. Don't worry you'll understand eventually. Anyway something has gone horrible wrong. And the only hope we have is...all of you.
      No pressure. Well. Perhaps a small, just a tad, a smidgen really, bit of pressure.
      I, we, really need your help. You won't be alone and, even if you find yourself in the unfamiliar, take heart that you have comrades. You will fight together. Live together. Argue with. Forge bonds. Perhaps even more. At least...I hope so.
      Perhaps you'll just kill each other. This isn't an exact science. It's not even science at all, not really, actually.
      But that's enough from me. There's plenty more to say and I, while I'm a wonderful orator, would take far too long to explain it all.
      Rules
      Premise
      Setting
      Applications
      Accepted Apps
      If you do join please be able to stay dedicated to somewhat frequent posting. I want this to work and not just be a "fun thing to play around in for a month then leave" so be sure to pick your character carefully. They're gonna be with you for a while. If you're unsure about anything let me know. I'll try and point out anything I see as problematic but don't feel down if I do it's kinda just my nature.
      Lastly I won't have a solid limit on number of players but if I feel it's too much I'll make a limit.
      Well...there you have it, let's get this going!
    • By LordCowCow
      BGM
      What separates a dream from reality? Is it the unusual nature, the impossibility, of a dream that crosses it from reality into fiction? What then do you do when something impossible happens in your waking world? Does reality then become a dream? And then, in that case, does that mean the dream is now reality?
      All you heard was four words. "I need your help." All you saw was darkness. At least that was the only way you could process what you saw before you. The pit that was entirely empty. Not just empty. Devoid of existence. Pure nothingness.
      You didn't have time to feel fear, or anticipation, or anything at all. Yet you had no idea how long you were in that nothingness. And how long you, too, were nothing.
      When you're enveloped in a blanket of nonexistence it's impossible to tell where you are, when you are, and perhaps even who you are. Thoughts floated past like driftwood. Just out of your reach. And the nothingness continued on for only a moment. And yet, as well, for eternity.
      When you opened your eyes, or were they already open and you only now had something to see, the landscape was much different than you were used to.
      It was uncertain where you were and there were only two things you could be certain of. One was that wherever it was you found yourself it was not where you were before. Nor was it the nothingness from an uncertain amount of time ago.
      And the other was that someone was calling for you. Not audibly. But calling nonetheless.
       
       
       
       
       
       
      The end of one chapter begins another.
      The park was empty. At first. And then in a blink, a moment, there were several people standing in its midst. For a second or two they seemed to not really be there. Their outlines blurred, the details of their faces and clothing uncertain, and then there they were. In shocking clarity.
      To call it a park would be an overstatement to some of them. It was rather small, they could see the end of it any direction they looked, and the number of trees could be counted on an average human's fingers and toes. Several benches were scattered across a path that weaved around these scant few trees in a loosely circular formation.
      Near each bench was a flowerbed. Perfectly rectangular, which could be proven if one had the proper tool and were inclined to check, and only five feet wide, the flowers in them were as varied in appearances as the people who were now standing in this supposed park.
      The only noise was a soft bubbling that came from a fountain behind them. It was larger than even the trees, which themselves were 15 feet high, and the base was diamond shaped. The height came from the large statue of a dragon, on two feet and aiming its mouth, from which sprang three arcing jets of water, towards the sky, standing in the middle.
      Other than the group that had appeared the park seemed empty. No citizens out for a stroll or vagrants using the benches for a bed despite it being nighttime. Not even an animal could be seen.
      And surrounding this park, which seemed separate somehow from anything else, was a city.
      Even those from what might be called a "modern world" would think it somewhat unusual. Large buildings could be seen in every direction and neon lights flashing various advertisements and names of establishments. On several buildings were large screens filled with news broadcasts. Subtitled in a language that, though none of them should know, was perfectly understandable to the group. And titled with the words "Prana News"
      "Seems that the sports stadium will reopen tomorrow. In other news; an attack on the police station was thwarted earlier today. More on that after these sponsors." Followed by an advertisement for some kind of breakfast cereal for children "It glows in the bowl and in your stomach; who said breakfast can't be fun! Try Nuk-O's today!"
      As they tried to get their bearings each of the group would, again, hear something calling to them. They felt a mental tug which seemed to want them to go somewhere. Somewhere that they instinctively knew was in the center of this city of metal and lights.
      Whether they followed this tug willingly and directly, or instead went in another direction and tried to ignore it, was up to each individual.
      Their first steps into a brand new world had begun.
       
       
      OOC
       
    • By Crow
      [DA PLOT] A convergence has happened. In the world of Pokemon, new creatures akin to them have appeared. They came from another world, here to live in ours. Some were instinct-driven, integrating themselves into ecosystems. Others had the minds of men, and could live among them easily.
      They were beings known as Duel Spirits, and they have come to stay.
      Today, they're spread across the world of Pokemon, but one region in particular - the K'nomi region - has the greatest concentration of these Duel Spirits.
      They were the first region in the world to allow Duel Spirits to be used in official Pokemon League battles and tournaments. Gym Leaders, Eite Four, even the Champion used them. The K'nomi region treated them like Pokemon, fellow humans, and of course, there is always those who want to use them as tools.
      Within this saga, different tales will be explored.
      Are you part of a detective agency that investigates problems caused by Duel Spirits throughout the region, helping those who cannot adapt to these newfangled creatures?
      Are you out to find Duel Spirits that are on the level of Legendary and Mythical Pokemon, believing that they might clash with the Legends of our world?
      Or are you out to fight Gym Leaders, the Elite Four, the Champion?
      Well, I basically took someone's old idea from 2010s YCM. I've been thinking of remolding it for a while.
      I guess I might have to think hard about some mechanics. For the time being, only Fusion will be an actual card game mechanic used here while I imagine others like Synchro Monsters, Link Monsters and the like are regular evolutions or even standalones.
      I suppose Synchro summoning mechanics could be integrated easily.
      I imagine most monsters will have evolutionary lines based on aspects of their lore. Once we get into accepting phase, a lot will be explained.
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