Chapter 24

A different type of battle

Slayer's P.O.V.

I had seen some strange things in the past couple of days; Emperor had changed, and not for the better, Mercury had been turned into a puddle, I had seen my opposite self which I hadn't known to exist and among other things, these confused me the most. I thought about this as I emerged from the rubble of what the others called the "Abandoned Factory" . thinking about this made my head hurt, but I knew that everything I thought of was for a reason. With this, I thought back to what Saiko Osama said about me.

There's no way I could belong to someone; I don't have a collar or serial number on me!

I thought as I walked among the rubble and the odd crystals that could melt the skin of the others. I couldn't think of a reason why it didn't affect me, but it was one more thing to think about. As I thought, I looked at the wreckage that the others were emerging from. I thought that there was something that I could do to help, but Emperor had said on multiple occasions that I was a hindrance to whatever he was trying to accomplish. After that thought, I looked over my shoulder. At that time, I was too far to see what was going on with them, so I looked back to see where I was going.

Besides, I need to see where I'm going just to make I don't get hurt

I told myself as I found myself on the edge of a forest. It was odd; I was on the line that seemed to seperate the two lands. I lifted my right front paw to see that there was indeed a line. Just to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, I looked to the right to see the same line that went off in the direction I was looking. It went on for as long as I could see, which prompted me to start thinking.

Was it the explosion that caused this?

I asked myself as I started walking again and this time, with more questions than answers. I had the feeling that I was being watched, but every time I thought about it, I looked around.

Emperor said that was a bad idea though….

I told myself, but I wasn't sure why, so I didn't look around. I felt that was a bad thing to do, but I didn't question my actions because Emperor said that was a bad thing to do as well. Apparently, second-guessing yourself led to combative thinking.

That's what he told me anyways

I said mentally as I walked into a tree.

"Ow!"

I exclaimed as I fell backwards. I closed my eyes and flailed for a moment as I scrambled back to my feet. I wasn't sure why, but almost every time I fell, I would flail. Maybe it's because I willed it; I couldn't think of anything else, but since I knew other smart individuals like Lemon and Cryptis, I was sure that they could explain to me in a way that I could understand.

But neither of them are here right now

I sighed mentally as I rubbed my head with my front right paw. I was unsure of why I did this as well, because I felt no pain when I hit the tree. I saw the others do this, so I thought I was supposed to do that as well. I didn't know that there was so much to keep track of when living! Since I was stationary, I decided to look around. The area was dark since most of the sunlight wasn't able to shine through the trees, but since Saiko Osama told me I was a weapon, the area seemed brighter to me; I didn't know why, but it just was. Trees were all around me and were close together, but not so close that I couldn't walk around them. Since I had no destination, I just started walking again. One thing that the others constantly talked about was "Destiny". I wasn't sure what it was they were talking about, but it seemed important to them.

Come to think of it, maybe that's what he was talking about!

I thought excitedly and right after that thought, I walked into something again. This caused me to trip and fall on my face.

"Why does this keep happening!?"

I asked myself angrily, spitting out the dirt that was in my mouth and shaking my head vigorously. Right after that, I came face to face with something that looked just like me. I opened my mouth to make a loud sound like the others did when something scared them, but no sound came out, which caused this individual to laugh.

"Did you forget already?"

The other individual asked me as my swimming vision came into focus. The thing before me looked like me, but it wasn't.

"What did I forget?"

I asked the creature, because I was completely lost. In response, the other creature looked at me angrily, but with a smile.

"Of course you wouldn't remember"

The creature said, starting to take steps towards me slowly. I didn't know why, but I was scared; not only because it felt like I was looking into a reflection of myself, but I could feel an evil presence in the area. Every time this creature took a step forward, I took one back.

"What's there to be afraid of, Slayer?"

The creature asked me, and at that moment, I remembered something. I stopped taking steps back and let the creature come face to face with me again.

"You were the one that said I am you and you are me, right!?"

I asked angrily, and the smile got even larger on this creature's face.

"It's nice to know that you remember me"

The creature said evenly, grabbing my neck and throwing me behind where the other thing that looked like me stood. I rolled to a stop by digging my claws into the soft ground.

"Do you know why I'm here?"

The other creature asked me without looking at me. I looked at the ground and scratched my head.

"Because you want to occupy untaken space?"

I asked because it was the first thing that popped into my mind. It was then that I noticed that there was no frill around this creature's neck, and when I saw that, the creature twitched and looked at me over its shoulder.

"The Shadow Stepper wants the Claw Fragments and has enlisted me to take them from you; alive or dead"

The individual stated with an edge of anger that was mixed with hatred as I finally understood who this was.

"You're the evil me!"

I cried, getting into my fighting stance, which prompted this individual to laugh loudly. I didn't understand why my inversion was laughing, but it confused and angered me for some reason.

"Stop laughing; there's no reason why you should be!"

I growled suddenly, which cut her laughter off abruptly. My inversion looked at me with narrowed eyes. I wasn't sure if I was seeing correctly, but I thought there were sparks flickering between our gazes, something I thought only Emperor and Abyss were capable of doing.

"Since I'm not that cruel, I'll allow you to fight for your life before I take everything I can from you"

My inversion said with a smile; one that sent a shiver down my back.

Can she?

I thought as her tail started to twitch. I had to think!

What can I fight with or how can I fight!?

I asked myself frantically as I looked around for something or someone that could help me. When she saw me start to do this, she smirked.

"There's no one around for miles; it's you and me; a fight to the death!"

She practically announced as she launched at me. I was ready for this and rolled to the left, narrowly missing her wickedly sharp claws that were millimeters from my neck. I resetted quickly and tried to figure out something that I could use.

"Is this some kind of joke!?"

Contrast seethed as she skidded to a stop, digging her claws into the soft dirt to stop the momentum that was carrying her. In response to this, I cocked my head to the right a little.

"What are you talking about?"

I asked in complete confusion as she turned to look at me again.

"You possess over half of the Claw Fragments and you're not going to use ANY of their powers!?"

Now that I thought of it, using the Claw Fragments was a good idea, but I knew that their power wasn't mine.

So it's not my place to use what isn't mine

I reasoned with myself as I watched Contrast shake the dirt off of her body.

"Are you going easy on me?"

I asked as I reached behind my neck for the lemonade mug that I hid there. I didn't know why, but for some reason, I liked this particular drink; it helps me think and it keeps me together.

That's what I was told at least

I thought, rolling my eyes in annoyance because I couldn't remember who said that to me. Contrast growled again, baring her teeth at me, which was leaking a Light Blue substance.

Now that I think about it, that substance looks like what was bleeding out of Ignis's neck!

I thought nervously as a thought crossed my mind. It was one that would probably make Emperor upset, but would most likely get a laugh from the others.

"I'm here to KILL you; don't you understand that!?"

She practically yelled, her voice echoing throughout the forest. I could feel and see the anger emanating from her body. There was a Black and Purple aura that pulsed slightly as she narrowed her eyes at me again.

"You want to die on your own terms then?"

She asked me angrily as he tail continued to twitch. I wasn't sure why, but I needed clarification.

"You're saying that I can fight for my life how I want?"

I asked, which caused Contrast to growl loudly.

"Isn't that what I just said!?"

She responded in anger and annoyance. At this point, I was happy for two reasons. One: I finally stood up for myself. Two: I was finally able to use something I wanted to for a long time! I prepared myself mentally and physically for this. Mentally because I needed to focus on creating this object to make sure that it didn't come out fuzzy and Physically because manifesting this object would take some effort. I took a deep breath and looked at the ground.

"What are you trying to pull here!?"

Contrast asked quietly with anger as I concentrated on what I was going to pull from the ground. Since this particular area was soft dirt, I knew that the effort needed to take this object from this area was going to be significantly lessened in difficulty if I had used this earlier. I concentrated hard and I let Magic Energy course through me. It didn't take long for the object to manifest, and as soon as it was done materializing, I plunged my hand into the ground, found an edge of this object that I could grip tightly, and yanked it out of the ground. Foliage and dirt went everywhere as I followed the object with my eyes as I fell backwards. I knew that I wasn't able to catch this object and I thought all of my effort was going to be expended for nothing as I waited to hear the sound of shattering glass, but I didn't. I hit the ground, flailed for a moment and scrambled to my feet to see Contrast put the item I materialized on the ground in front of her.

"What were you expecting to do with this?"

She asked in confusion as she studied the object as I let a smile manifest on my face. I was beaming; I finally let the enemy do my bidding for once!

"Go ahead; turn it on!"

I urged her, and as soon as I said that, she sent the object towards me with the back of her hand. It barreled through the air, spinning at a high rate of speed until I caught it with my right front hand. I put it on the ground gently and leaned against it.

"A TV, huh?"

She huffed as she plunged her hand into the ground as well. She yanked something out of the ground gracefully; much more gracefully than I did. I was kind of envious, but I knew from Emperor's battles that envy led to something worse, but I couldn't remember what that was.

"Very well; if this is what you want to receive your death with, I will have no problem with it"

She said evenly as she leaned against her own tv. It was gold and Silver in color and it hurt my eyes to look at it.

That's already an advantage

I thought tensely as Contrast started to speak.

"I assume that there will be restrictions, no?"

She asked as she dropped back to all four of her feet and glared at me. I could see the pure hatred and anxiety of battle in her eyes. I wasn't sure what she could see in mine though; I had a sense of fear, kinda like when I was trying to understand what Saiko Osama was talking to me about what I actually was, but I didn't want to think about that now.

"I was thinking that we could take turns; you know, Emperor taught me that female individuals should be first".

I suggested, but I was only rewarded with a snort from Contrast. I wasn't sure why though; I was trying to be courteous!

"Your courtesy will get you nothing; prepare yourself!"

She growled, pressing a button on her TV. right after that, the screen flickered to life and I heard a pinging sound; it sounded to me like a detection device.

But what could that be?

I asked myself as I saw a long metal right in front of me. My breath caught in my throat, but at the moment the object hit me, I lowered my density and the object passed right through me and the TV I was using and barreled into the tree behind me, exploding when it hit the treeline behind me. I heard Contrast laugh, which angered me. The shockwave, which sent a wave of heat and smoke over me hurt me a little, but other than that, I knew it was my turn. I smiled to myself, returned my density to normal and cleared my throat, which halted Contrast's laughter. She narrowed her eyes at me; I could see them through the smoke and i didn't like what I saw in them.

"I did think that was too easy"

She murmured as I reached my hand around the right side of my TV and it flickered to life as I thought of what should appear on my screen. It didn't take long for me to think about what I wanted.

"Try this out: A T28 Super Heavy Tank!"

I called out as A sizeable bullet flew out of my screen. I saw Contrast set her jaw in what seemed to be anger and grabbed her TV and rolled to the left to avoid the giant bullet that would've destroyed her TV. the bullet hit the ground behind her and dirt, foliage and trees exploded into dust, which caused the air to go hazy.

"To think that you would use such low tactics as this"

Contrast growled as the hazy air dissipated quickly. I could tell by now that Contrast was angry, which I was unsure of what that meant for me. I was following the rules since there was no restriction on what weapons we could use!

"If you want to go that low, then try to avoid this: Yamato!"

She raged as she slammed her fist against the side of her TV, and a ship appeared in it. It was silver in color and it flew a giant flag that was Red and White in color; it looked pretty cool with the lines that the flag had, but what wasn't cool was the fact that I knew I had to react soon. I already knew that I had won this battle, but I remembered something when I thought that.

Don't get overconfident in battle; you've lost if you think that at any point

A familiar voice resounded in my head as I saw the gun barrel of the ship inside the TV lower to my exact height. The sound of a ship cannon resounded in the TV and a Red glowing bullet raced towards me. Since I knew I wasn't fast enough, I concentrated on how I was going to avoid this. At that moment, I felt something hot on my frill, and my eyes focused at the precise moment that I could see the bullet go around me. It was odd because the bullet would've gone straight through me, but yet, somehow it went right past me. Since I couldn't look at myself, I couldn't tell what was causing one part of my frill to be warmer than the other parts, but just by looking at Contrast, I could tell one thing: the power I had used was not my own.

"I should've known that you would've used the Claw Fragments to aid you in this fight"

She seethed, but her expression changed to that of something I couldn't describe.

"But this makes your pointless fight all the more worthwhile!"

Contrast declared as she took an easy posture next to her TV.

"Your turn"

She taunted, taking an even easier stance and yawning, which confused me instead of angering me. I was unsure of how I had lasted this long, but I knew that if I could carry this out, help would arrive.

I'm sure of it!

I convinced myself as I thought of what I should place next; I couldn't use a ship, tank or submarine at this point due to the fact that one of each had already been materialized. Then, there was also the fact that Contrast was taunting me; it seemed that she was planning something that I couldn't grasp mentally.

"All right then, this is my next attack: HEAT WarHeads!"

I declared, reaching around the TV and pressing the button again. At that moment, A loud rushing sound that hurt my ears filled the surrounding area. I could see though it wasn't much help since the air around me was shimmering. My eyes were burning and tears were starting to form in them which caused my vision to be worse. I saw the missiles fly from my TV, but to me, they were little more than bright blobs in my vision. I saw them go way up into the sky, and when they reached a certain height, they stalled and circled back, barrelling towards Contrast. I looked at her with a big smile on my face because I thought I had won, but Contrast had a smirk on her face. I thought I wasn't seeing right because of this, and I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't seeing things.

"Since it's my turn, I'm going to counterattack: Plasma Screen!"

Contrast declared as something started to appear in front of her TV. it was a light yellow color and was almost transparent. I watched the WarHeads impact the screen and push the screen back a little.

"Yes!"

I cried in joy when I saw the screen has been pushed back to the point that the missiles were touching the TV, but my happiness was cut that instant when I saw the missiles bounce back and turn around. The missiles started barreling towards me, but I wasn't afraid for some reason. The missiles impacted me, but I used the power I used earlier to make the other missiles hit me and not the TV. the only other thing I could hear other than the deafening explosions from the WarHeads was the laughter of Contrast. Waves of heat coursed over me, but I felt no pain. When the smoke had cleared, I could barely see because something was shining brightly on my neck. I looked at the ground in wonder at what just happened.

"W-what?"

Contrast stammered as I brought my head up to be level with hers. I didn't know where this courage came from, but I liked it! It was hard to speak because of the waves of heat distracting me, but I forced myself to speak.

"HEAT WarHeads only destroys things with armor; since I don't have any, that won't kill me"

I said with confidence, which caused Contrast to growl.

"I put effort into that one; you're just too persistent!"

She yelled, stomping the ground so hard with her front left foot, dust, dirt and foliage were launched into the air.

She's angry now!

I exclaimed mentally, knowing that I had an opportunity now.

According to Rojo's teachings, she should be vulnerable!

I thought excitedly, but made sure to keep my face blank. I knew that my options were running out at this point; I had to make sure that my next attack could be something that Contrast couldn't counter.

But what could this be?

I thought as Contrast continued to fume angrily. I thought for a moment, and as soon as Contrast had ripped her hand from the ground, an idea popped into my head.

"Go already!"

She shouted, and in response, I flinched.

"Ok, ok; not so loud!"

I complained, reaching around my dusty TV and pressing the power button. This time, I hid behind the TV because what I chose was pretty dangerous. I concentrated on the airplane strongly and I heard the sound of an airplane engine start in my TV. Contrast looked at with confusion, and a moment later, her pupils dialated to thin slits as I heard loud and rapid explosions fill the area.

"This is my attack: Boeing B-29 SuperFortress!"

I declared as I heard Contrast run for cover. At this point, my ears were ringing and I was running out of energy. I was wobbly and my vision was swimming; I wasn't sure just how long I was going to remain upright!

"That's it!"

I heard Contrast yell as I looked around the right side of my TV. I saw Contrast stumble out from behind her TV. she had a look of wild rage on her face that startled me. I could only stare at her face; it was like I was stuck in some sort of trance. It was so scary that I wanted to look away, but at the same time, it felt like I was glued to her face with a magic of some sort.

"I'm done playing game; I'm going to blow up the ENTIRE area!"

She said loudly with a crazy smile on her face. It was then that whatever binded me to her was released. I took the moment and looked at what was appearing on Contrast's TV screen.

"W-what!?"

I asked fearfully as a long and tubular object with a square protrusion behind it formed on her tv. I couldn't help but think that I had seen this object somewhere before as Contrast started laughing maniacally again.

"You've heard of the Atom Bomb, right Slayer!?"

She asked me crazily, which replaced the waves of heat that coursed down my back with chilling numbness.

Is she serious!?

I screamed mentally, letting my face show pure fear. Contrast's wild smile scared me more now since she was about to do something that was truly insane; she was going to kill both of us!

"You're not serious!"

I breathed, but Contrast only laughed louder as she pointed the TV to the sky.

"I'm done trying to think rationally; I'm going to retrieve the Claw Fragments from you alive or dead!"

She stated crazily as something was launched out of her TV. it was too fast for me to see. All I could make out was a Silver blur; it looked similar to how Mercury looked after….he changed.

And it wasn't for the better

I sighed mentally, looking at the ground with a defeated look.

"Yes, that's it; let me see the look of despair!"

Contrast crowed giddily as I continued to look at the ground. She didn't know what I was thinking, and it bothered me!

The life of someone is more than just a name!

I growled mentally as I looked up to the sky; the Silver object glowed brilliantly as it started to descend. I wasn't sure if I could counter this attack, but I felt that there was something that I could do.

Rojo always told me there was a way out of every situation

I remembered as the Silver object gained speed.

"Remember Slayer, you can't attack until my turn has ended and since both of us are going to be affected by this, there's no way you can win; give up!"

She gloated as the bomb neared the ground. We both watched it fall, but I had a plan. I wasn't sure that it was going to work, but I had faith in myself; something that the others told me that I needed more of.

So now, I'm going to demonstrate that!

I told myself, getting ready for what I was going to do. I needed this to work; my life depended on it. I concentrated on what the object looked like in my head; it wasn't hard to imagine this, but I had a thought as I did.

What if it's too simple?

I asked myself as the bomb neared the ground.

Now's my chance!

I said mentally with tension. I pushed the power button on my TV as the bomb hit the ground. The area exploded into sound, heat, bright colors and the air pressure changed quickly and violently as the shockwave from the bomb displaced the air around us. I could hear Contrast's pained cry as the explosion ripped through the area, but I felt nothing. I had to close my eyes though; the light was too bright for my eyes to bear; that was only thing that hurt me in any way. The tiredness had overcome me at this point, and I fell onto my side. I took deep and heavy breaths because of my exhaustion. When I opened my eyes, my vision was still blurry, but I could see Contrast looking in horror at her TV. it was nothing more than a pile of dust on the ground. I got to my feet shakily, and something fell off of my head and landed on the right side of me.

"Y-you!"

Contrast sputtered furiously, still looking at her TV. at this point, I was relieved; not only had I won the battle, but I had also used my mind to think of a plan for once!

Rojo and the and the others would be proud of me!

I thought happily, smiling to myself as Contrast looked back up at me. I could see pure hatred in her eyes as her lips curled up into a scary snarl. I wasn't sure why, since I hadn't done anything bad to her.

"Y-you c-cheated!"

She stammered in rage as she continued to look at me in pure rage. I was frozen in fear and confusion.

"How?"

Was the only thing that I could respond with; I couldn't think of anything else. Contrast narrowed her eyes at me as she started to speak.

"You took your turn before my attack ended!"

She seethed, but somehow, I already had the explanation of what happened, and a way to explain it too! Her hatred was so powerful that I could feel it; It scared me too!

"That's where you're wrong!"

I declared with a smile, which caused her eyes to go wide.

"What!?"

She exploded, stamping her right front foot again.

"That's right; let me explain too!"

I said triumphantly as I rested against my dusty TV. Contrast growled as I started to speak.

"I knew that you were upset when I heard what you were going to use-"

I started, but she cut me off

"What does that have to do with anything!?"

She yelled, which hurt my ears, which caused me to wince, but I continued.

"When the bomb was about to hit the ground, I thought that I was done for, but I remembered something"

I continued, which caused Contrast to look at me inquisitively.

"I don't follow"

She said slowly, which made me smile.

"I knew since this was a suicide attack, I had to be invincible, but what could do that?"

I told her, and in response, she scratched her head in complete confusion.

"I don't know anything invincible"

Contrast murmured, looking to the right of me, where she looked even more confused.

"Is that…..a flag?"

She asked with confusion, which caused me to laugh a little. In response, Contrast looked at me with a look of annoyance and confusion, which halted my laughter.

"It sure is; that gave me invincibility"

I said proudly, which caused Contrast to look at the scorched earth beneath her feet.

"How does a flag make you invincible!?"

She asked angrily, looking up at me again.

"As soon as the bomb hit the ground, I took my turn, which was Flag Raising; since I prepared my attack and executed it as soon as the bomb hit the ground, I committed no foul, taking my turn as soon as your turn ended"

I explained, taking a series of short breaths after I explained myself. Contrast scratched her head again and looked crossly at me again.

"That still doesn't explain the invincibility"

She said crossly, and I sighed.

"Flag Raising gives me invincibility; a guaranteed survival until I die"

I stated evenly, and in response, Contrast turned around, snorted angrily and started to speak.

"You may have won this time, but mark my words; I will be the one that kills you and brings the Claw Fragments to the Shadow Stepper!"

She growled, walking away from me in the direction I was looking, leaving me to think about two things. One: how did we both survive? Two: where was she going? I didn't have the answer to either, but I knew someone was watching me, and that individual grabbed my shoulder and turned me forcefully to look at them and laughed cruelly.