Phew. I've been a bit busy, and this took me a whole lot of time to write. Well, sorry abe, but this story has its ending. It's not done but it's getting close. Enjoy!

Chapter 11: Final Showdown

Two weeks later, outside Ostrheinsburg Castle

Cassandra looked out to the cursed city of Ostrheinsburg on Athena. It was the last place that Hilde didn't conquer yet. Siegfried sat on Faust beside her, with the spirit sword in his hands. Empress Hilde decided that it was best if he'd be the one to seal it with the cursed sword, since he had some experience with it. Once Nightmare was defeated, Soul Edge will finally rest with Soul Calibur, and the land will finally experience the peace that the people have been waiting for. And she, Siegfried, and Hilde won't have this experience of peace alone . . . for Sophitia and Lucius will have it with them as well.

Flashback, shortly after the battle between the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire

Hilde and Sophitia were inside the Empress' tent, discussing how they will resolve the battle. As Cassandra, Siegfried, and Lucius waited patiently outside, the two siblings did not make eye contact. The brother kept looking down to the down and never looked up to his sister. Cassandra had a feeling he was overwhelmed with so much guilt in his heart. She decided to speak up.

"It's not your fault, Lucius. Sophitia thought that the only way to obtain peace for this way is to eliminate her enemies by brute force. So stop blaming yourself, alright?"

Lucius looked up at his sister. "That's not the problem! I tried to kill you Cassandra! If I did beat you, then my hands will be stained by your blood! I could never forgive myself for killing someone of my flesh and blood!"

Siegfried, somehow understanding how Lucius felt, walked up to the boy, placing his hands on his shoulders. "You didn't. So you need to stop feeling guilty and move on. Cassandra already forgave both you and Sophitia, so you have no reason to still have that guilt within your heart."

The young man still had a little bit of guilt, but he slowly nodded, realizing that the knight was right. Then suddenly, Hilde and Sophitia stepped out of the tent. Everyone turned towards them, wondering what conclusion the Empress has come up with.

The Empress spoke up. "I have decided that I will create an unbreakable alliance with Sultan Sophitia and the Ottoman Empire. Together, we shall defeat Nightmare and bring the chaos in the land to an end. We shall all prepare for the final battle."

After she finished, all of the men, from both the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire, gave powerful cheers. Cassandra saw the look on Sophitia's face, seeing a gentle smile from her older sister. The Sophitia that she loved is finally back.

End of Flashback

Hilde was on her horse with Siegfried, Cassandra, Sophitia, and Lucius beside her and the armies of both the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire behind her, ready for her order. She motioned her horse to move forward a little and turned around, facing everyone.

"This is it. After all these long years, we are about to experience the peace that we have longed for. We must now defeat Nightmare and seal the soul swords for all eternity. Together, we shall conquer the impossible and achieve victory!"

Then in an instant, everyone raised their weapons to the sky and shouted a loud war cry. The final battle was about to begin.

They charged toward the castle walls, where Nightmare's soldiers were waiting for them. It wasn't long before swords began to clash, and many soldiers from both sides fell. Cassandra and Siegfried stayed close to each other as they worked together in taking down soldiers. Hilde and Sophitia, who are now close friends, did the same as well, protecting and covering each other. Suddenly, archers appeared on top of the wall and fired. The two sisters protected themselves, the Empress, and the knight with their shields, but a lot of their soldiers were killed in an instant.

Hilde cursed. "Damn! If this keeps up, we'll lose our men in a short amount of time!"

Sophitia looked to the walls, seeing Lucius climbing up the ladder as fast as he could. "We have to keep faith in my younger brother, Empress. He's one of the fastest men of Athens."

Meanwhile, Lucius was about halfway up the wall, ducking and avoiding incoming arrows. Finally, he made it to the top and swiftly slashed his daggers at many archers, killing them quickly. Several of his men joined him and took down a lot as well. Many archers tried to fight back by firing dozens of arrows, but Lucius dodged and destroyed them. It wasn't long before he and his men took all of them down. Then they hurried and lowered the bridge over the large river below.

Hilde quickly turned and saw what happened. "The bridge has finally been lowered! Everyone, forward!"

In an instant, the nobles and the soldiers crossed the bridge and entered the castle, where another group of Nightmare's men were waiting for them. As they charged, some if their enemies fell in an instant. Siegfried and Faust charged past, heading for the throne room to find the Azure Knight.

The Empress saw what the knight was up to. "Where are you going, Sir Schtauffen?!"

The knight quickly turned around. "I'm sorry. But I have to settle the score with Nightmare right now."

"Siegfried, wait!"

But it was too late. The knight rode off on his stallion towards the main castle. After finishing off an enemy soldier, Cassandra quickly noticed that Siegfried was gone. She then turned towards the castle. Her knight must have gone there to fight his unforgivable past.

"I can't let him fight alone!"

"Cassandra, wait!"

The Athenian turned and saw that it was her sister. The Sultan continued. "The Azure Knight is a really strong opponent, especially when he has Soul Edge. It's too dangerous."

"Sis, Siegfried's my husband . . . and I love him . . . I refuse to lose him, just like how we lost Achilles!"

Sophitia looked straight into her younger sister's eyes and saw the powerful love she had for her knight. She knew that no matter what she tried, Cassandra will go after Siegfried.

She silently sighed. "Promise that you two will come back alive."

The younger nodded. "I promise."

Cassandra then nudged Athena forward and headed for the castle. "Hang in there, Siegfried."

Siegfried and Faust finally made it to the castle. They charged through the doors and entered. Once they were in, they heard a very insane laugh.

"Ahahahahaha! Ah, I've been waiting for this moment for too long, Siegfried!"

The knight looked towards the top of the long staircase before and saw him: the Azure Knight, Nightmare. His eyes were glowing with an even redder glow than before, and the evil light surrounding Soul Edge was burning so brightly with power. The phantom slowly walked down the stairs as the knight jumped down from Faust. Siegfried whispered softly into his stallion's ear. "This could get dangerous, so go find someplace safe, alright?"

Faust did not want to leave him, but he knew his master was right. So the stallion quickly ran out of the castle. Then Siegfried turned back around and saw that Nightmare had reached the bottom of the stairway. Suddenly the phantom pointed Soul Edge at the knight, who immediately responded by drawing Soul Calibur that was strapped onto his back and pointed the spirit sword to his unforgivable past.

"Nightmare, let's settle this once and for all!"

He then readied Soul Calibur as it glowed with a radiant blue light and charged. Nightmare also readied Soul Edge and charged as well. The battle then began.

They both swung their swords at each other, and sparks and piercing clashing sounds were created. As Nightmare backed away and recovered from one of Siegfried's attacks, he charged up Soul Edge and pierced it into the ground. Siegfried managed to block it but he skidded a few feet back. The phantom then sprinted forward and continued his assault. Although the knight was able to block all the incoming attacks from Soul Calibur, he kept getting pushed back with every attack. Finally, Siegfried's back was against the wall, and Nightmare pressed Soul Edge on Soul Calibur, forcing his enemy even more back.

"Siegfried . . . do you honestly think that you'll win with that pathetic sword? Face it. There is nothing in this world that is powerful enough to destroy Soul Edge. Soon . . . this world . . . shall tremble in my darkness!"

Suddenly, Soul Calibur's blue light began to shine brighter than before, and Siegfried started to push Nightmare and Soul Edge back. Then the knight swung the spirit sword, forcing the phantom back. Siegfried pointed his blade at him.

"Not if I stop you first! There's no way I gonna let you get away with it!"

Suddenly, Nightmare's entire azure armor began to glow with a blood red light. His eyes began to radiate a powerful white light. And Soul Edge . . . its gruesome eye began to widen as it sucked more power. All of a sudden, a pair of wings began to grow out of the phantom's back. It looked as if both of them were on fire. Siegfried could not believe it. Nightmare was becoming a more ferocious monster.

"It . . . can't be . . ."

The phantom laughed with voice that was more frightening and deeper than before.

"This is it . . . the true power of Soul Edge . . . is awakening! I am no longer a nightmare! I am now . . . a night terror!"

Suddenly, Night Terror swooped down on Siegfried and knocked the knight away. Siegfried tried to recover as quickly as possible, but the power phantom swooped down again. This time, the knight lost Soul Calibur from his grasp as he was flung in the air. Then Night Terror flew over him and rapidly slashed him with Soul Edge. Then he performed a powerful vertical swing, sending the knight crashing down to the ground.

Siegfried was in so much pain. Night Terror had pierced through several parts of his armor and left scars that caused him to bleed. He forced his eyes to look up as he saw the phantom flying down towards him. Night Terror landed with his right foot on Siegfried's chest, causing more pain to envelope in the knight's body. He then pointed Soul Edge at Siegfried's neck.

"What did I tell you? It's pointless to try to defeat me. Now . . . I shall feast on your soul!"

Night Terror raised Soul Edge over his head, ready for the final blow. Suddenly, a bight wave of light came in and knocked the phantom away. As he tried to get up, he quickly looked up and saw the cause behind the attack. It was Cassandra, and she held Soul Calibur with her two hands.

"I won't let you kill my husband, monster!"

She then bent down and helped Siegfried up. She then grabbed his hand with both of hers and closed her eyes. Suddenly she began to glow with a radiant white light, and some light transferred from her body to Siegfried's. In an instant, his wounds were healed and the scars on his armor disappeared.

Siegfried was shocked and confused about all of this. "Cassandra . . . how are you . . . doing all of this?"

The Athenian looked into his eyes and smiled. "This is the power of the Gods of Olympus. Whenever I face darkness, they lend me all of their strengths, which include the power of healing. I got to admit, their power sure comes in handy with times like this. Siegfried . . . I made a promise to you that I'll stay by your side no matter what. We're in this together."

She then gave her knight a small kiss. As their lips departed, Siegfried nodded and grabbed Soul Calibur. He then got up and readied the spirit sword while his wife pulled out her sword and shield and took her stance. Then they charged at Night Terror, who had just got back on his feet.

Siegfried and Cassandra began slashing their swords at Night Terror. Although the phantom was able to block the attacks, he was becoming overpowered. Seeing an opening, Siegfried slashed upwards, causing the monster to falter back. Cassandra then sprinted at him and rapidly slashed at him. Then she performed a powerful kick as she back-flipped, causing Night Terror to be flung upwards. The Athenian then ran towards the other side of the monster as he came down. Then she and the knight sprinted and slashed at Night Terror, then ran back to each other and slashed at his again.

The phantom recovered and got up, but he realized that they had severely damaged his wings, preventing him from flying. He then turned towards Cassandra. "Why you-!"

He then charged at her to attack, but she quickly somersaulted over him. As she landed, Siegfried slashed Soul Calibur upwards at Night Terror's back, causing him to be flung up in the air.

Siegfried then turned to his wife. "Are you ready?"

Cassandra nodded at him. "Let's do this."

Then they charged up their weapons: Cassandra with the power of the Gods and Siegfried with the light of the spirit sword. When Night Terror was at the right spot in the air, they slashed their charged weapons at him, creating a bright and blinding light.

Hilde, Sophitia, and Lucius were coming into the castle when the light broke out. They were almost blinded, but they managed to shield their eyes. When it slowly cleared, they saw Siegfried and Cassandra. The light surrounding their weapons have disappeared.

The empress immediately ran up to the couple with the sultan and her brother close behind her. "Sir Siegfried! Lady Cassandra! Thank goodness you're alright!"

Lucius looked over them and saw where Night Terror laid. "Hey, is it . . . over?"

Siegfried shook his head. "Not quite. We still need to silence the two soul swords."

They all nodded and headed for the phantom's body. All of a sudden, Soul Edge began to glow again and raised itself high into the air. This shocked the nobles greatly. Then a blood red beam shot down from the evil sword to Night Terror. Then the phantom's body was lifted as it rose to the back of Soul Edge. Suddenly, the five heard the evil sword's voice.

"You pathetic humans! This is far from over!"

Then it shot out a powerful red light, and all of them were blinded. When it cleared, Hilde looked and saw that both Night Terror and Soul Edge were gone. She then turned and gasped. Both the knight and his wife were gone

"No! Did Soul Edge take Sir Siegfried and Lady Cassandra?!"

Lucius and Sophitia were shocked as well. The young lad spoke up. "Where did they go?!"

The sultan fell to her knees. "To the depths of hell . . ."

Hilde and Lucius looked at her with disbelief. Sophitia banged her fists on the ground. "We've . . . We've lost them! I can't believe it. I let Cassandra go before me!"

She lifted her head upwards as gave out a large cry.

"CASSANDRA!!!!"

What will happen to Cassandra and Siegfried? You'll have to find out next chapter. The final battle is about to begin!