To think an entire country was destroyed within seconds… 

The heavens glowed orange as the Sun began to hide behind the horizon. This world, the Oni Planet, was bearing witness to the great loss that would take place on this battlefield. Rain fell as if the world was mourning. Multiple craters marked the red and blue planet. In the sky, on the other side of the horizon, the distant Terra could be seen. It was the Human Planet, a moon of the Oni Planet. The Oni Planet was much larger. The difference in size was tenfold. Next to Terra was the Spirit Planet, Soul, the Oni Planet’s second moon. It was the smallest of the three worlds, however, out of the three, it was glowing the brightest. As the Sun hid, both moons revealed themselves.

The clanging sound of clashing metal rang throughout the battlefield. The ground and earth rumbled as if there was an ongoing earthquake. The sounds were not pleasant to the ears. Wet splashes could be heard, coupled with the sloshing sound of footsteps. Shouts and grunts echoed. Multiple footsteps could be heard. They were getting closer. They came from all directions. The heavy breathing of a single man could be heard at the center. As the owners of such footsteps decreased their distance from the single man, their words could begin to be made out.

“—”

“ZENITH! YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR SIN OF KILLING THE PROGENITOR!”

“My only sin was– ”

The first warrior reached Zenith before he could finish his sentence. He had long hair with two horns sticking out the sides of his head. He held a sword in each hand. He had strange markings on his body which held indecipherable symbols. Indecipherable to all except for the very person he wielded his weapons against. The hilt of each sword bore a different color. The sword on his left had a white hilt while the sword on his right had a black one. He swung at Zenith with an endless flurry of attacks. Despite his efforts, the warrior realized that Zenith was merely toying with him.

“How odd…” 

Zenith was mumbling to himself as he gracefully parried each attack, mixing in a few jabs between the gaps. He always blocks with his black sword and with every block his white sword gets stronger. An expression of familiarity and realization covered his face, though the subtle shock did not impact the overwhelming difference in their skill. That's similar to–

“THEN LET’S TRY THIS!”

Within an instant, Zenith appeared to the left side of the warrior, a testament to his raw speed and physical power. The warrior, unable to fully react, relied solely on his reflex and lifted his white sword. He had no other choice but to defend his life. In that instant, Zenith’s eyes glowed a crimson hue. The attack sent the warrior flying, his sword making a cracking noise, masked by the warrior's screams of agony. His agony came not from the physical pain but from the short exchange Zenith made with the warrior through the sword. His arm that carried the white sword began to corrode.

“So this is what you made with a fragment of my [Law], little dragon?”

Zenith laughed as he ridiculed the agonizing warrior. It was a twisted and sickening laugh. Then, Zenith sensed him. A wave of fear crashed into him, giving him chills. His time messing around had come to a stop. A genuine threat had stepped onto the battlefield. A man with a hesitant and trembling voice spoke out.

“Zenith! Is this truly what your [Law] demands?”

Another man, followed by five warriors, had his arm outstretched and pointed toward Zenith. Simultaneously, the Zenith’s eyes lost their crimson hue and the fallen warrior at Zenith’s feet stopped showing signs of corroding. 

“What about your [Law], Celes? What does it tell you?”

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“It tells me to end your life right here, right now.”

Instantly, Celes and the group of warriors behind him rushed towards Zenith and surrounded him. A wave of fatigue coursed through Zenith’s body. No, not fatigue. Something else. Some other sensation was being felt. It felt as if his essence was being violated. Some power felt as if it had weakened his very being. A power that made one inferior to the caster. Such is the ability of the one with the role of [The Arbiter].

“That damned [Law] of yours!”

The weakened Zenith leaped at one of the warriors closest to him, still displaying supernatural speed, and swung once, instantly killing the man. The mere shockwave of the attack was enough to blow some of his enemies away. The terrain behind that man was destroyed for miles– changing the landscape. As he shifted his gaze towards his next opponent, he was hit by a boulder ten meters in diameter. This attack sent Zenith flying through the air several thousand feet into the nearby mountain. Usually, these attacks shouldn’t hurt me. Celes' damn [Law]...  My entire body becomes weakened when I’m in his range. I can’t sense my mana. If I try to use magic, it will probably kill me. Zenith got back to his feet. He looked up as the rain trickled on his face and simply inhaled and exhaled. He began to take a step and then–

“Celes!”

A warrior screamed Celes’ name from behind. Celes then sensed a presence appear at his right. It was Zenith. Zenith, within a fraction of a second, covered all that distance, in a single leap. Throughout this battle, Celes' eyes never ceased to glow crimson. Celes' [Law] should still be in effect and yet Zenith’s pure physical strength overwhelmed them all. One of the warriors managed to place himself between Celes and Zenith, sacrificing his life so that Celes did not fall. Zenith’s arm pierced the man’s chest, elbow deep, making the man's legs give out. Wasting no time, Zenith pulled his arm out of the man’s chest. The warrior dropped his sword. He then collapsed next to Celes. The man, with the life in his eyes flickering, gave a simple smile towards Celes, with a face of relief. He had done his task.

“---” 

Should Celes fall, the battle would surely be lost. Celes was the only one capable of restricting Zenith’s power. He could not fall, otherwise that thing would kill [everything]. Before Zenith could make his next move, an arrow made of light fully pierced through him from his back, making Zenith stumble forward. Zenith coughed blood. The one responsible for that attack was a man with cream-colored hair, with a yellow ring hovering over his head. A wave of recognition flashed across Zenith’s eyes. He knew who that man was. In terms of potency, that man’s attacks were second only to Zenith. Following that attack, another light attack in the shape of an arc approached him. Zenith, lifting his arms, responded with a similar attack to intercept it. Without magic, without his [Law], he had still managed to generate an attack out of nothingness. Zenith’s attack was smaller yet gave a ghastly aura of death. Being pierced by it would surely spell death. Another warrior jumped in front of it, with a barrier activated, taking the blow. Zenith’s attack cut through the barrier but had lost some of its momentum. The man being mortally wounded used the last of his strength to dispel Zenith’s attack so that it would not intercept the light attack. 

“YOU DAMN FREAKS!”

Zenith, already charging up his second interception, had a face full of disgust and hatred. His frustration was increasing. As the attack was being fired off, the warrior who had taken the blow for Celes, who Zenith thought he had killed, swung his glowing sword in an upward arc. The attack was not enough to cut through Zenith’s arms but it was enough to displace the trajectory of Zenith’s second attack, not allowing him to intercept the arc of light. This warrior did not possess the strength as the light-wielding warrior to damage Zenith. 

No, the term warrior did not bring to justice the strength of everyone on this battlefield. They were no mere ordinary warriors. They were [Elders], the arbiters of the three planets, deemed so by Celes' [Law]. Across the three planets, they were the strongest. Zenith no longer had time to cast a third attack and had no choice but to take the brunt of the blow. A single red line could be seen across Zenith’s chest, followed by blood jetting out. Zenith was forced to fall on his knees, his upper body leaning backward.

“DO IT NOW! DON’T LET HIM REGENERATE”

Six [Elders], alongside Celes, all surrounded Zenith and took out a [Relic]. Then, all of their eyes glowed a rich crimson. Symbols appeared above each of their heads. They were unreadable, as if separate symbols had been stacked upon another. Zenith, however, understood their meaning. For the first time, the [Elders] saw Zenith express a genuine fear. Zenith knew that that [Relic] was the only thing capable of truly ending his existence. He attempted to focus and speed up his regeneration, but he was then barraged by different attacks of varying colors and sizes. The [Elders] used every conceivable ability and every variation of attacks. Zenith’s healing only allowed him to stay alive. It was not enough to allow him to escape. Deep down, even deeper than his subconscious thoughts, Zenith’s soul spoke to itself. Ah… So this is it… I–

I’m sorry, Soul… The rest will be up to... 

The battlefield was covered in a blinding light, the entire ground and sky painted white. Then, the light scattered. Particles of light falling everywhere, as if it were snowing light itself. As Zenith thought his last thoughts, the Sun had set alas.

“We… beat him…”

A single [Elder] spoke. The others dropped to their knees, their heavy breaths filling the silence alongside the light rain. What they had lost could never be recovered. Such was the price for defeating a [Law].

There stood Celes, standing with his eyes closed and facing the sky, letting the rain hit his face to hide his tears. The strongest [Elder] did not wish to show his weakness. 

“I’m sorry, Soul…”

With that, both [Laws] had uttered the same words.