AZURE POV,

SEEING GRANDPA GETTING OUT OF THE PIT, I SAW HIM INJURED, I WAS WORRIED

BUT SEEING HOW HE JOKED ABOUT HIS INJURY, MY WORRIES WERE A LITTLE EASED, NONETHELESS, I KNEW HE WAS GRAVELY WOUNDED.

SNAPPING ME OUT OF MY THOUGHTS,

I BARELY SAW ONE OF THE MASKED MEN CHARGING AT ME,

HEARING GRANDPA’S SHOUT, I SAW HIM BEING INTERCEPTED

I KNEW I WON’T BE ABLE TO STOP THE MAN, I WAS BARELY FOLLOWING HIS MOVEMENT

AS THE SWORD WAS ABOUT TO FALL ON ME

I CLOSED MY EYES RESIGNING MYSELF TO DEATH, BUT TRULY I WAS SCARED.

I FELT SOMETHING SPLATTERING ON MY FACE

IT NEVER CAME, OPENING MY EYES I SAW MY ATTACKER WITHOUT A HEAD AND

GRANDPA STANDING IN FRONT OF ME,

HOWEVER,

“HEROIC INDEED, CHOOSING TO SACRIFICE YOUR LEFT ARM TO SAVE YOUR SON” SPOKE THE MASKED MAN WITH A PEAL OF LAUGHTER,

“I — AM SORRY IF IT WASN’T FOR ME YOU- ”

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THE BLOOD WAS SEEPING FROM HIS SHOULDER

“IT’S ALRIGHT” GRANDPA GAVE ME A WARMING SMILE WHILE WIPING THE BLOOD FROM MY FACE,

TURNING AROUND TO FACE THEIR LEADER, I SAW HIS SHOULDERS,

THE SHOULDERS THAT COULD LIFT MOUNTAINS.

“OPEN YOUR EYES WIDE AZURE, THIS IS MY LAST STAND” GRANDPA DECLARED WITHOUT A HINT OF FEAR,

“I WAS ABLE TO TOUCH THE CONCEPTS OF TIME, LIFE, AND DEATH”

“GOD STYLES DOMAIN UNION” :

[HORUS-RIGHT EYE: SOL OF RA 𒊑𒀀]

‘GRANDPA’S RIGHT EYE PROJECTED A HAZY FIGURE WITH A FALCON-SHAPED HEAD THAT ILLUMINATED THE WHOLE WORLD IN DAZZLING BRIGHT LIGHT’

[HORUS-LEFT EYE: LUNAR OF THOTH]

‘HIS LEFT PROJECTED ANOTHER HAZY FIGURE WITH AN IBIS-SHAPED HEAD THAT ABSORBED THE LIGHT FROM THE WORLD, TURNING THE OTHER HALF PITCH-BLACK LIKE A BLACK HOLE’

‘ THE WORLD AROUND ME SPLIT INTO TWO HALVES ’

[CHRONOS: PARADOX OF TIME] ”

JUST AS GRANDPA SPOKE THESE WORDS,

‘THE LEAVES STARTED TO FLOAT AS IF THEY ESCAPED THE FORCE OF GRAVITY ’

‘THE TORN GROUND AROUND GRANDPA STARTED TO MEND ITSELF ’

‘GRANDPA’S SLASH WOUND ON HIS RIGHT SHOULDER STARTED HEALING ’

“NO, THIS IS MORE LIKE— TIME IS BEING REWOUND” I GULPED AT THE THOUGHT THAT TIME CAN BE INFLUENCED.

THE MERE PROJECTION OF THOSE FIGURES MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH TREMBLE FROM THEIR MAJESTIC AURAS,

THE PURE PRESSURE THEY EMITTED, MADE ANYONE FALL TO THEIR KNEES, UNABLE TO TAKE A SINGLE STEP.

THEY LOOKED AT EACH OTHER AND DID ...WHAT FELT LIKE A SMIRK,

THEN, GRANDPA CLASPED HIS HAND TOGETHER,

“HEED MY COMMAND LIFE**, DEATH, TIME” HE MUTTERED**

THOSE FIGURES MOVED THEIR HAND IN A CIRCULAR MOTION

A SPHERE OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS STARTED EXPANDING, WHEN I LOOKED AT THE SPHERE I FELT THE CHAOS OF MATTER AND IMMINENT DEATH.

“ *DEFECTIO TEMPORIS *” THE INSTANT GRANDPA MUTTERED THESE WORDS

SILENCE ****

THERE WAS ONLY SILENCE,

THE WORLD TURNED BLANK,

...........

IN A SPAN OF A MOMENT, THE WHOLE WORLD EXPERIENCED MANY CYCLES OF DAY AND NIGHT,

THE WHOLE WORLD WAS IN PANIC.

PEOPLE TRIED TO FIND REASONS AND CAUSES, MANY THOUGHT IT WAS THE END OF THE WORLD, AN APOCALYPSE.

YET, ONLY A FEW PEOPLE REALLY KNEW WHAT HAPPENED

THIS DAY WILL BE WRITTEN IN HISTORY AS “MUGEN NO JINSEI”

...........

I FELT LIKE I WAS TRAPPED FOR WHAT SEEMED LIKE AN ETERNITY

MY CONSCIOUSNESS WAS DRIFTING INTO WHAT LOOKED LIKE NOTHING,

“AZURE, AZURE WAKE UP MY CHILD” I HEARD A VOICE

“IS... THAT YOU...GRANDPA”

“YES...OPEN YOUR EYES”

STRUGGLING TO OPEN MY EYES,

‘WHERE AM I ‘ WAS THE FIRST THOUGHT THAT CAME TO MIND.

LOOKING AROUND, I WAS IN A DESOLATE PLACE, IN THE SPAN OF MY EYES, I COULDN’T SEE ANYTHING, ONLY FLAT GROUND UNDERNEATH ME, NO TREES, NO ROCKS, NO GRASS, NOTHING, ONLY BARREN LAND.

“WHERE AM I” I MUMBLED, “AHH-” CLUTCHED MY HEAD FROM PAIN SUDDENLY ALL MY MEMORIES CAME TO ME.

“GRANDPA” I SHOUTED OUT OF WORRY, LOOKING FOR GRANDPA,

I SAW GRANDPA WAS LYING IN A POOL OF BLOOD WITHOUT ARMS

HIS EYES LOOKED AS IF THEY WERE GOUGED OUT, BLOOD WAS...

WHEN I SAW THIS SCENE, I LOST ALL REASON

“NOOOOOO—” I SCREAMED

“IT’S ALRIGHT MY CHILD, I WAS DESTINED TO DIE, IF NOT TODAY, IT WAS SOON, THE COST OF PERFORMING MULTIPLE TRUE [GOD STYLES] OVER MY LIFE SPAN EVEN FOR ME IS DEATH BUT I WAS ABLE TO GET AWAY WITH IT FEW TIMES, BUT NOT THIS TIME, I SEE”

“THERE MUST BE A WAY, SURELY THERE IS” I SPOKE WITH AN ASSURED VOICE

“NO, AZURE FOR ME THERE ISN’T, MAYBE YOU CAN FIND A WAY”

“DON’T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT IT MAKES ME REGRET LEAVING THIS WORLD” EVEN WITHOUT EYES HE SENSED MY AGONY,

“BYE MY CHILD, I LOVED YOU AND I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU, I WILL BE THERE WHEN YOU MOST N—” MUTTERED GRANDPA AS HIS BODY STARTED TO DISPERSE INTO FRAGMENTS OF LIGHT.

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You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“N-NO PLEASE, NOOOOO, IF ONLY I WAS STRONGER, AHHHHHHHH” I CRIED AND SCREAMED TILL MY VOICE BECAME HOARSE,

THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING, SURELY, THIS IS WRONG, IT HURTS,

SOMEONE, PLEASE MAKE IT STOP

THE PAIN, IT HURTS, IT IS AGONIZING.

THE SOUND OF THE RAIN COVERED THE SOUND OF MY CRYING, RAINDROPS MIXED WITH MY TEARS, ‘ IS HEAVEN ALSO SAD ABOUT YOUR DEATH ’

splatter splatter

splatter splatter

“HAHA, HE IS DEAD, NOW WHERE IS THE ‘ORIGIN STONE’, GIVE IT TO ME AND I MAY SPARE YOU” I HEARD A SPINE-CHILLING VOICE, TURNING TO SEE WHERE THE VOICE COMING FROM,

I SAW A BLOODY FIGURE WALKING TOWARD ME WITH A BURNED FACE, A BURNED BODY WITHOUT A LEFT SHOULDER,

“Y-YOU, BUT HOW -NO, BECAUSE OF YOU MY GRANDPA HAD TO SACRIFICE HIS LIFE” AT FIRST, SHOCK FILLED ME HOWEVER DIFFERENT EMOTIONS GROW INSIDE ME HATE, ANGER, SADNESS, AND HATRED, I RESENTED MYSELF FOR BEING WEAK, UNABLE TO SAVE GRANDPA.

“YOU THINK ONLY YOU PEOPLE KNOW WHAT A CONCEPT IS, AFTER FOLLOWING HIS MAJESTY’S COMMAND, I WAS A REACH THE CONCEPT OF SPACE, NONETHELESS THAT MAN REACHED A NEW HEIGHT IN THE CONCEPTS, NOT ONLY ONE BUT THREE CONCEPTS, IT IS A MIRACLE THAT HE IS EVEN DEAD, NOW GIVE ME THE ORIGIN STONE COUGH-” HE BEGAN TO STAGGER UNTIL HIS KNEES TOUCHED THE GROUND “NO THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING THAT BASTARD, THE AFTEREFFECTS OF HIS ATTACK, IS CONSUMING MY LIFE, FINE I WILL TAKE HIS DEAR GRANDSON WITH ME TO THE AFTERLIFE”

“DIE, DIE WITH ME” ROARED THE MAN WITH MADNESS

HE STARTED TO TURN INTO LIGHT, EXPANDING MORE AND MORE,

FEELING THE TERRIBLE AMOUNT OF CHAOTIC MANA,

‘IS HE GOING FOR A SUICIDE ATTACK’

ALL MY HAIR STOOD, MY INSTINCT WARNING ME

I YELLED

[ ATHENA 1ST SHIELD: ROAR OF AEGIS ]

ALTHOUGH IT IS A MERE IMITATION, IT’S THE BEST DEFENSIVE TECHNIQUE IN MY ARSENAL, IT CONSUMED ALL MY MANA, TO DEFEND AGAINST HIS SUICIDE ATTACK, I SWORE TO MY HEART THAT GRANDPA’S SACRIFICE WON’T BE IN VAIN,

YET, MY WORLD TURNED HAZY, TRY TO KEEP MYSELF CONSCIOUS, BUT I FAILED,

‘IS THIS MY END, I THINK I WILL SEE YOU SOON GRANDPA, I AM SORRY OLD MAN’ WAS MY LAST THOUGHT,

BEFORE MY EYES CLOSED, I SAW THE NE....

IN A GARDEN,

FILLED WITH EXOTIC FLOWERS, SO BEAUTIFUL THAT IT TAKES YOUR BREATH AWAY, AN OLD MAN WAS STANDING GAZING AT THE SKY,

“BYE MY OLD FRIEND, I WILL FOLLOW YOU SOON..”

IN A DARK PLACE, WITH NO TRACE OF LIGHT.

A VOICE OF TRANSCENDENCE RESOUNDED THROUGHOUT THE VOID,

“SO, THIS WAS YOUR END HUMAN, SUCH A SHAME, I WAS HOPING TO MEET YOU AGAIN,....

OH, A DESCENDANT ... THIS MAY BE INTERESTING.......”

TO BE CONTINUED ...