"Allow me to inquire once more: what propels your relentless effort? What fuels your pursuit?" Mrizem’s voice trembled with a hint of emotion, almost tearful in quality.

His form bore the marks of relentless struggle, his injuries etching a tapestry of pain across his figure. Despite his attempts to distort space, his visage remained, failing to subsume into a hallucination. Within his eyes, the flame of determination seemed to flicker, both vibrant and fragile.

My own condition mirrored his. Even armed with the culmination of space-weaving, Mrizem’s tenacity remained unwavering. In a few decisive moments, he succeeded in landing direct blows on me. The repercussions translated into dulled senses and a pervasive ache that permeated my body.

"What drives me... The answer is elemental! The determination to safeguard countless lives across Earth and Limbo It’s about honouring the pledge to Elsie, a pledge you shattered with your actions. This is my path to tread—a path that I’ll follow unwaveringly. Anyone daring to diverge from this course shall inevitably face the consequences," I asserted.

As I articulated this statement, a torrent of emotions surged within me, a maelstrom of conviction, sorrow, and determination converging. Simultaneously, our clash recommenced, with the clash of our weapons resonating through the air, prompting a series of rapid exchanges in mere moments.

This confrontation transcended the mere exchange of physical blows. It was a discourse of ideologies, an engagement of motives. Our battle was not confined to mere physicality but rather served as a channel for our convictions to clash and vie for supremacy. Rather than solely focusing on eradicating one another, our principal aim was to shatter each other’s resolve and fracture the foundation of our individual purpose and will.

"In the vast tapestry of existence, every decision we make sends ripples across the continuum of time. Your longing for your world, for a life you’ve left behind, embodies a noble sentiment. Nonetheless, we cannot disregard the lives and destinies of countless others in our pursuit of fulfilling personal wishes," I articulated while deftly deflecting a rapid succession of attacks. Each strike bore the weight of Mrizem’s emotional turmoil, resonating within the kinetic dance of our blades.

Simultaneously, I observed Mrizem’s pace slackening and his energy nearing the point of depletion. I capitalised on this moment and acted promptly. My weapon found a path through his defences, penetrating his hand and emerging from the opposite side.

However, an eerie silence followed. No anguished cry escaped him; his expression remained fixed, as if grappling with an inner turmoil. He seemed on the verge of detonation, like a bomb with a timer set to detonate imminently.

Abruptly, his other hand seized my weapon, wrenching it from the puncture wound it had inflicted. A gaping hole remained, and blood flowed freely.

He was on the verge of collapsing, and blood was gushing from all over his body. This was the outcome of his facing me while holding back.

Drawing closer to his vulnerable form, I witnessed his growing desperation. He attempted to warp and shift, but his powers faltered. He became trapped in a cycle of fluctuating between illusory and substantial existence.

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Throughout this chaotic exchange, the tempest within his mind remained palpable.

As I closed in on him, his eyes blazed a fiery red. With every ounce of his strength, he launched a final assault that defied my expectations. His weapon pulsated with the entirety of his life force and energy, propelling it to a velocity far exceeding its previous capabilities and reaching a speed comparable to that of a bullet.

In that instant, the weapon’s form blurred before me as it slashed through the air. The velocity was so surreal that I found myself bereft of the time required to react. An opening I had unwittingly provided became a full-fledged advantage for him. Despair washed over me in that fleeting second, as if this were the precipice of my end, poised to cleave me in two.

Yet, against all odds, nothing occurred. Not an iota of pain coursed through me. His seemingly devastating last gambit proved impotent. Amid this, my attention was drawn to an expanse of countless shards strewn across the ground. These fragments, which once composed his weapon, shattered before they could make contact.

A realisation dawned within me. "Ah, the Glacireave’s effect," I mused as comprehension took hold.

My weapon, infused with the frigid power of frost, was designed to propagate a chilling influence upon contact. After prolonged clashes, the latent icy properties had finally asserted themselves, gradually extending to his weapon. After countless collisions, the effect had reached its culmination. Consequently, his own weapon, nearly frozen to its core, fractured under the strain of its speed.

In this moment of enlightenment, my focus shifted towards the vanquished form of Mrizem. He writhed in convulsions on the earth, his prone figure a testament to his defeat. Though battered, he clung to life and retained his capacity for speech.

"Please…kill…me…" Mrizem’s voice faltered to a mere whisper amid the expulsion of blood from his lips. The light of determination that had blazed within his eyes now teetered on the verge of extinction.

Moved by his plea, I advanced toward him. A once-hopeless look in his eyes shifted, his surprise evident as he saw that my weapon had been retracted and my demeanour held no intention of taking his life. His face transformed from one of resignation to astonishment, caught off guard by the unexpected turn of events. Tentatively, I extended my hand towards him, a warm smile gracing my lips.

"Mrizem, both of us yearn for what has been lost—a stolen reality. Yet let our shared pursuit of redemption not weave a tapestry of devastation. Empathy should be our compass, guiding us to safeguard and nurture the lives interwoven in the grand design of existence," I uttered in a composed tone.

At that juncture, the stern hostility etched upon his face seemed to dissolve, as if a barrier within him had crumbled. Slowly, he grasped my outstretched hand, returning my smile with one of his own.

"Your brilliance is akin to a star’s luminescence, casting its influence upon all who encounter it. I recognised my transgressions, but the desire to return home shackled my choices. I concede defeat. My conviction and purpose lie in ruins," he confessed, punctuated by a bout of coughing and the expelling of blood.

In an unexpected turn, his form began to disintegrate, scattering particles of light. It was as though his very existence was on the brink of dissolution—a vanishing act from the annals of this world.

"With my last attempt, I expended the last remnants of sol coursing within me. Hailing from a universe not my own, my presence will soon be erased, leaving behind no vestige. My aspiration may have faltered, but you, armed with the light to pierce Mirrikh’s darkness, endure," he continued, punctuating his words with another fit of coughing.

His limbs faded into luminous motes, leaving only his torso and head.

"The path to vanquishing him lies in obliterating his essence—the emotions propelling his ambition. He told me his insatiable greed for the fragments maintained his consciousness, persistently resurrecting him. I am unaware of the mechanics, but perhaps this knowledge will aid you," he concluded.

In his final moments, only his visage remained, a smile gracing his lips as his last words echoed in the air.

"Farewell, the other me."