I got the idea for this when Chronos asked the group how they were able to tell the prime dimension from the fractured. This idea kept bugging me, but I couldn't come up with a plot until now.
Once everything was finished, the group headed to Marksburg. They paused in front of the soul bridge to Canaan.
"This is where Julius..." Ludger murmured, head down.
"Hey, cheer up, kid," Alvin said, patting Ludger on the back. "We didn't have a choice in the matter. It's the only way to reach Canaan and save Elle."
"But I-!" Ludger started to protest, but Elize cut him off.
"Just as Alvin had said, we were all accomplices in this! Stop blaming yourself! We all had a hand in this, so it's not just your fault!"
"She's right, you know," Leia added. "Don't pull a Jude and try to shoulder the entire burden!"
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Jude demanded, the researcher storming up to her.
"You know what I mean, do-gooder!" the journalist snapped back.
"What Leia's saying is let us share some of the burden," Gaius said.
"The weight of this is too much for one man to bear alone," Rowen added.
"Indeed. Julius' sacrifice will allow us to reach Bisley, stop his plan, and save Elle," Milla said.
"Not to mention, we'll complete Origin's Trial," Muzet [1] put in.
"Plus, don't forget all the dimensions we destroyed to get here," Gaius reminded him.
"And not doing this will flood the world with miasma, bringing it to an end," Milla pointed out.
"But, Bisley could reach Origin before that happens!" Jude argued.
"And then all spirits will lose their will," she told him. "If that is what he will wish for, we must stop him. Plus, it'll be for Elle's sake, too."
"She's probably scared out of her mind right now," Leia added. "Who knows what's lurking in there!"
"All the more reason we need to save her!" Jude insisted. "Ludger, I know this was an agonizing journey, but we need to finish this for Elle, Victor, Julius, the other Milla, everyone in the fractured dimensions, and the people in this one."
"You're right!" Ludger said.
"Let's end this once and for all!" Alvin shouted.
"Let's go!" Ludger exclaimed before he and everyone else entered the soul bridge.
And then the world shattered.
[1]: For the life of me, I can't find the apostrophe over the "e" on my laptaop!