A battle between two master-class warriors of equal strength could end in an instant or go on for a long time.
Viers, whichever version of him, absolutely preferred the first option.
But Ars Skeith’s battle against the parasite version of Georgi, unfortunately, became the latter.
In the dark, a white digital-style humanoid was fighting against a big, horned, floating head. Bright colorful Artes of various kinds lit up their fight.
There was no day or night in this place but Skeith’ internal clock indicated he had been fighting from dusk till dawn.
Fighting Mr. X was difficult. Not only could he use every element, but he also had that sturdy forcefield. After breaking it, he could raise them again after some interval, which meant Skeith had to destroy it again and again to do damage. The head’s repulsion force made Skeith very wary. The deadly invisible swirling vortex attack, the space crush, the spectral hellhound summons, the river of souls vomit, and a hundred more methods… All were really annoying to deal with.
“You’re really persistent, boy!” Georgi words originated from annoyance.
“Even a dog will bite if you try to take its food. And you want to take my soul! You won't even tell me why!”
Ars Skeith dodged a blast of sharp icicles in a certain direction, Georgi’s gaze changed, showing a mad sort of confidence.
“Your end has come!”
Skeith was surrounded by uncountable ghostly weapons that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Spears, axes, arrows, polearms, maces, and many more. A deadly cage of certain kill; there was no way of escaping.
Skeith let out a sharp tsk for his blunder.
Big Head X must have been preparing this for a long time and I didn’t realize it!
“Begone!”
With one command, the weapons began to attack the entrapped Skeith from all directions, even above and below.
“I’ve beaten this move before! Hyaaaah!”
Skeith started a mad dance of slashing everything as fast as he could. Naturally, it was far from enough. Against the barrage of hundreds and thousands, one scythe was hardly sufficient. In the Xemnas fight, Sora had Riku to cover his back but there was no one that could take that role for him.
Noctis Lucis Caelum at the height of his power showed him the way.
Voooom!
The seven swords of light moved to protect him. They orbited him like protective satellites, deflecting the hostile weapons from reaching their maker with their body. A brilliant display! Sparks flew, the ringing of broken metal sounded, shattered remains of weapons scattered. Those that still went through the initial defense were swatted down by Skeith’s mad dance.
“How long can you last?”
Georgi was committing more of his energy in this offensive. As soon as a weapon launched itself at Skeith, a new one took its place. Sometimes more than one, but never less, making the intensity of the barrage increase with time!
“Uooooohhh!!”
Skeith had no leeway for a witty remark. The situation called for his full attention. If he messed up his control on the swords, the ghostly weapons would bring him ‘death by a million cuts’ in the truest sense of the phrase.
No matter how grand the scene might be, neither side could last forever.
And the one who lost his energy first… was Skeith.
“Gwuagh!”
But his next move was to charge straight at the head! While Skeith lost the contest and suffered scaring damage, he had expended enough of Georgi’s energy to prevent the technique from being lethal. After using a big move, an opening would reveal itself.
That was what Skeith was aiming for.
“What!?”
“Rrruuuaaah! ‘TIS BUT A SCRATCH!!”
Spears and blades were still stuck to his body and both his legs were severed but Skeith still attacked with undiminished vigor.
Correction, the wounds he sustained made his fighting spirit soar higher than before!
Like a bat out of Hell, the combination of two versions of Viers closed the distance with Georgi’s big horned head and delivered a gaping wound right on his forehead. While the head was grunting with pain and tried to counter, it was already too late.
Skeith had sent one of the swords of light inside the wound.
Their true names were Swords of Ultimate Dream. Through the long dream he was partaking in, Dream Viers created each one from the weight of life he experienced. Their power was without question, for each contained an unbelievable amount of energy. One for every deadly sin of a life unrestrained.
“Detonate!”
“NOOOOO!”
The big head deformed, bulged, and contracted before exploding in a rainbow-colored fulmination, leaving smoke in its wake.
For a short while, there was silence and tranquility.
Then an ominous power was rising, putting heavy pressure on Skeith who no longer had legs and enemy weapons still puncturing his body.
“Not since Sallustia has anyone pushed me to this degree… You may take pride as you witness my-”
Six streaks of light!
“Arrrgh!”
Before Georgi sounded a word, Skeith had already willed the swords to attack.
Attack what? The final boss who was in the middle of the third and final transformation, of course.
Three transformations!
Final bosses having three transformations was a well-known matter for a cliché savant like Viers and he simply wasn't a good enough person to let the enemy complete their transformation in peace, no matter how epic the end result would be.
The Para-Hydra was the first form and the big head was the second form. Viers had always been wary of the third form. Without the reality-bending power of cutscenes, final bosses certainly were not immune to damage.
When the visuals cleared, there was Georgi, no longer a grotesque big head but the normal human version of him. Six swords pinned his body afloat in the darkness; his wounds oozed with soul essence and he coughed painfully. Skeith was pierced too, but the quality of weapons was far different.
Skeith didn't let down his guard in the slightest. It was a small-fry villain mistake to think they had won before the enemy was beheaded and cremated.
Skeith dismissed his scythe and brought his two palms together, making an iconic pose.
“Ka-”
Green energy gathered between his hands.
“Me-”
Looking at the energy becoming increasingly brighter as it accumulated, Georgi deduced it would decimate him completely.
“Ha-”
Skeith brought his hands back in a winding-up motion. The green energy was pulsing violently, raging for release.
“Me-”
It was almost complete, Georgi couldn't remove the Swords of Ultimate Dream in time.
“Cease! Or will you sacrifice her too?”
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A figure of a sleeping girl appeared before Georgi.
It was Gwen, Farley’s sister who was sleeping inside Viers’ soul during his time in Valkut.
Skeith perceived it was not an illusion. He didn't know how but Mr. X had managed to take Gwen’s soul as a hostage.
This move would be a certain win card when used against a golden-hearted hero.
“So what?”
Dream Viers’ killing intent didn't waver and similarly, Arsène didn't make any attempt to stop him.
The energy charging was complete.
“DIEEEEEEEE!!!”
Georgi gasped as the technique created by a bald turtle hermit was coming without mercy. He immediately erected a quintuple barrier as a last-ditch effort.
Gwen’s soul was outside of the barrier.
The devil cult Grandmaster similarly had no qualms about letting a stranger die.
A young soul perished in an instant, without knowing anything or feeling anything.
Then the destructive energy clashed with the barrier. Skeith felt a bit of shame. Shouldn't it be a beam-versus-beam scene for the epic climax? Truly, he was the only cultured person around here.
Skeith had paid the entirety of his energy for the finishing blow and the barrier cracked. He hated Mr. X, this stranger Level 5 who came out of nowhere and made a mess of things.
Georgi knew his defense wouldn't hold and grimaced.
“I will not die! I cannot! I will surely return!”
“Just die already, you worm!”
The light of destruction consumed Georgi entirely. His soul body was disassembled particle by particle with extreme force.
“Curse… You!!!”
The blast of energy went on into the darkness. After a moment, everything turned bright. The darkness was dispelled as the Para-Hydra crumbled and the light of the digital soul returned.
Skeith, deathly tired as he was, confirmed Mr. X’s erasure and enacted a rescue operation.
He gathered the scattered remains of a particular soul and put them back together piece by piece. It was like watching a surgeon reconstructing a head from pieces of flesh.
Thanks to a consummate skill and knowledge of the soul, Gwen’s soul was successfully revived.
“...Partner, you can do this?” Arsène was amazed.
“I’ve got practice in the dream world… And this is the inside of Viers’ soul. The rules are a bit looser than outside. The time window was short. I almost didn't make it in time,” Dream Viers breathed exhaustingly.
“The operation result, doctor?” Arsène asked.
“...Should be 99% fine. Perhaps a few lost memories. Gwen’s personality shouldn't be affected.”
To be clear, Gwen was truly dead before. However, Death was denied his prize and Dream Viers brought her back.
“Phew… Guess I don't have to have a falling out with Farley then,” Arsène was relieved. He truly didn't wish for Gwen's death, as was Dream Viers.
They, or more accurately, Viers, simply did what had to be done.
“She’ll be fine.”
Of course, the two of them already decided to never tell Farley or Gwen about this little incident.
The digital soul sea turbulence had disappeared and Skeith easily sent Gwen back to the White Flowers Meadow.
Then he turned to a red orb.
“What’s this?”
“Mr. X’s boss drop. Curious it didn't get destroyed during the Kamehameha,” Skeith examined it extensively. After he was convinced there was no danger or contamination, he grabbed it with his hand.
At the end of a long battle, the two versions of Viers triumphed.
They turned off the Cyber Soul Shift Arte and turned back into two people.
Arsène looked the same as the real Viers but Dream Viers looked a couple of years older and much more handsome.
“It's over…” Arsène sighed. “Our main self should recover in a short while.”
Dream Viers didn't answer. He peered into the endless distance of the digital soul sea and then to the red orb in silence.
“Partner?” Arsène asked.
“I’m afraid not,” Dream Viers said grimly. “He’s not kidding when he said he’ll not die. He’s like Cell or Buu. He can regenerate if there’s even a single particle of him left. As long as the parasite exists, Viers’ soul will always be in sleep mode.”
Arsène’s eyes turned sharp from the bad news.
“The orb?”
“No,” Dream Viers shook his head. “I thought so too at first but this is not it.”
He tossed it to Arsène.
“This is the first gain in the battle against Mr. X, right? Perhaps this can recoup some of the losses. Just give it to Viers later. Our only concern is to purge the parasite entirely.”
“Got it,” Arsène pocketed the orb. “Where do we begin? By the way, if we used Soul Snake’s Disintegration Decree for the finishing blow…”
“Viers’ soul currently can't handle the burden of that Arte. Besides, it won't matter. The last remnant of the parasite… is me.”
Arsène didn't look surprised.
“The dream world was created by the parasite… And you're the Viers that was created from there. Yes, a pretty cliché development.”
“Correct. As long as I exist, the true Viers will never regain consciousness.”
“So you must be erased,” Arsène said straight to Dream Viers’ face.
“Yes,” Dream Viers didn't show any hesitation.
“Got it,” Arsène accepted it. “...Have no fear, partner. Your existence will live on, once we sync our memories-”
“That… is the conundrum. I’d hoped it was not the case but after the fight with the parasite, I realized if we sync, you’ll be infected too.”
Only now Arsène showed some agitation.
“B-but… You, your existence… gone? What about your life, your skill, all of the Horizon you have?”
“I have many supreme techniques but I can't risk telling you… It’s no coincidence I’m being vague about my past experience. Even knowledge itself is a taint.”
Although Arsène himself could die and had died twice, his self was preserved in Viers so he never truly went. Viers and his clone relationship were like a Hive Mind.
Arsène thought Dream Viers could be like him. Even though the origin was different, it was similar enough.
But according to him -the more experienced Viers- he had to die without uploading himself to the Viers mainframe.
The loss would be immeasurable.
“Heheh, look at you,” Dream Viers chuckled. “You can kill an innocent girl without hesitation but you can't kill a dream? I’m not even alive.”
“That’s… not true,” Arsène denied the latter part only. He never thought of himself as ‘not alive’. It would be denying his own existence.
“...You’re right. I misspoke. But it must be done,” Dream Viers said with a gentle gaze. It was like the eyes of an old man who had tasted too much of the salt of time.
The scenery around them changed, Dream Viers altered the soulspace into something else. They were now at the base of a grand silver-white tree. Its leaves up above appeared slightly pink and rained down upon the two Viers with gentle rays of light.
Arsène only needed one look to know where they were.
“Really? Irmins-”
“-soul! This is Irminsoul! Don't mistake it for something else. Dwahahaha-!” Dream Viers laughed loudly.
“-aha… You and I already know how it goes,” Dream Viers looked up to the great tree after laughing. “World… Forget me.”
Arsène’s mouth dropped as he inhaled sharply.
“...Did you just pull a Nahida on me?!”
“The hell are you talking about!” Dream Viers rebuked him for real. “How is this,” his hands gesture up and down to himself. “Comparable to that girl's cuteness? Don't insult her, man.”
“Alright, alright. Look, can we go back to the serious topic for a sec?” Arsène facepalmed.
“Ungrateful junior,” Dream Viers jokingly scoffed. “You do realize I’m doing this for your Horizon, right? Anyway, this is where we must part.”
Dream Viers turned his back on Arsène, hands clasped behind his back.
“Truthfully, I always meant to sync my memories with you after I got out of the dream world. To give you a life that you never had. Plus, there's the bonus of my Horizon boost. But it seems, Fate, or some other big guy upstairs, doesn't want you to become the strongest in one jump. Have no fear. I believe Viers will succeed even without my help… As one that came from a dream, it is only fitting I disappear in the morning.”
“Partner…”
Arsène didn't know what to say. Dream Viers left his world to help him and the true Viers despite the fact that he must have been happier there. No one asked him to leave. No one forced him to… In the end, he left paradise to answer a higher calling. He achieved victory on the battlefield and his reward was to die?
What a sad end…
“Don't be,” Dream Viers faced him again.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
“...Timothy 4:7-8,” Arsène said in a small voice.
“Well, I have lived a pretty evil life so the quote might not be true for me. Perhaps I’ll go to Hell, or there’s no afterlife for me… But know this, partner. I’ve lived a full life… and I have no regrets.”
The leaves of the great tree rustled. Dream Viers put his hand on Arsène’s shoulder.
“Look at those branches… We are like them. There’s one thing that no one knows, that we Viers’ will sacrifice ourselves so the main tree will survive. This mentality comes from the tree itself, from the original Viers. If there comes a time when the tree is dying and has to do a reverse, no doubt he’ll sacrifice himself to let the branch grow into a new, stronger tree… This is an edge that other villains do not have. The camaraderie of 'self', among all of us… That is why we will succeed. Every MC has cheats. Ours are precious, this is true. But this thing that we have… This is our supreme treasure. Remember this, my other self.”
“...I will,” Arsène replied.
“Then it’s time for me to go.”
Dream Viers was serene as a slight gust of wind blew, turning him into glowing green leaves that were carried by the wind.
“I left a dream of eternity so I may turn that dream into reality. A single moment of glory was enough, for my effort has not been in vain. Now I go to the ultimate unknown… That too is a journey of freedom.”
The leaves went up and up until they couldn't be seen. A single leaf fell near Arsène and he let it land on his palm. The leaf turned transparent and disappeared, as if it never was.
“A magnificent life, partner…”
The rustle of leaves from the great tree seemed to convey agreement.
After a moment of silence, Arsène widened his feet and slammed the ground with his palm.
“Now wake the fuck up, Samurai! We have a world to burn!”
The whole soulspace quaked, as if a gigantic beast roused from slumber.
In the real world, Viers opened his eyes with a gasp.
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Chapter 291 - For Eternity, For Wonders