Apocalypse: Dawn of the Dead
HOLY SH!T ON A F*CKING SANDWHICH!
After 38 chapters, this story has reached the 3rd highest spot in the Call of Duty Fanfiction Archive.
As of this update, we are sitting at 486 reviews. The next highest story is sitting at over 620…with the highest being a story I myself have read, loved, and sadly see fade away into an unfinished masterpiece. The next is one that I myself have not read, but seems to be pretty top from what I've skimmed.
I know I sort of beat you guys over the head with this, but you all are what makes this story what it is. If it wasn't for your feedback and support, I'd never have made it this far into the story. Please, keep on reading and reviewing, and with your support, you can make this the top story on the C.O.D. Fanfiction Archive
I wanted to do a Halloween update, but I've had projects and stuff due that sort of stopped me from making that happen. Ah well. Despite that, I wrote about 6,000 words in about 24 hours, going from 4,500 words to roughly 10,500.
Due to time constraints and lack of inspiration, I scrapped the bit where the main characters fought Zombies. Just wasn't feeling it. So, the characters get a break for now! I may edit in a scene later, but for now, it is not there.
Also, I've gotten a lot of questions about both the Green Run Crew making a reappearance and the Mobsters coming back. The only reason I haven't brought them back is because as far as I know, and with how Origins played out, their prospective storylines have ended, at least until Black Ops III comes out…hopefully. My only response is wait and see, and who knows…you may just be pleasantly surprised. You might even see some others making a reappearance.
Anyway, shoutout to everyone who reviewed last chapter, which included katerinavalentine62601, Dustchu, Dogsled shepherd, RandomName3064, xNewWorld, Lord rage quit, Noskansho, Killz718, Trapinchh, a new guest reviewer known as TMDF-Artyomand, BobbyD, and a new reviewer known as M3D1C101. Thanks again everyone!
Enjoy!
Chapter 39: Judas
"You want to believe that there's one relationship in life that's beyond betrayal. A relationship that's beyond that kind of hurt. And there isn't"- Caleb Carr.
Flashback: 1964
Los Angles 935 HQ
"It has been several months since I have left the moon, and rebuilt Group 935…" Richtofen began his journal entry, tapping his foot. Sophia feigned sleep in the chair next to him, though she had a feeling Edward hardly cared that she heard him. To her surprise, she found they were getting rather close as of late, with her becoming increasingly more helpful in his experiments, as well as helping him figure out some of the advanced logistics in working with Element 115. Sophia felt a bit of pride in herself when Richtofen had called her his "delightfully talented assistant", which she figured was a compliment from the strange man. He had regained much of his personality that he had before touching the M.P.D., though some acts of oddity and insanity slipped through every now and then, but other than that it was entertaining working with the Doctor.
"Progress is being made, of course, but I still think that we can do better. Porter is working on weapons research, he has a levitation beam Wonder Weapon idea that sounds promising, but may take decades of research to perfect. Ah well" Richtofen said with a shrug.
"Yena is working on creating more outposts for us to conduct our experiments. While I detest staying in this corrupt pathetic country, it has the resources needed for us to move forward. I watch the American News quite often, purely out of habit now, and I'm amazed by what I see. Acts of hatred and greed, of evil and corruption taking place daily…even in Germany, things were never quite so bad. Well, maybe that is debatable" Richtofen chuckled to himself a bit.
"I have many new ideas for Zombie creations in my head. The regular model will of course always be around, due to it requiring little actual experimentation, but I am hoping that some of my other models will prove to be useful later" Richtofen went on.
"With my mind clear and the Group's refocused objective clear, I feel as though in a few years, we can emerge from the shadows and make this world right again. I hope to one day make all of us gods in the eyes of men, so we can take humanity and put it on the road to goodness…strange, I never thought I'd be one advocating overall good…maybe it is because of the bloodshed and death that I have caused already…maybe it is me getting soft…maybe, it is because I want this insanity to end…I don't know…"
"But I do know that my partners and I stand ready to experiment and create. We will forge a new future for this world, for better or worse, and God help those who stand in our way" Richtofen ended as he turned the recording off.
Richtofen slumped in his chair, muttering something to himself, before Sophia opened her eyes and yawned loudly, gaining his attention.
"Ah, you're awake Sophia. Good. Are you readying to begin experimentation with the Juggernaut Zombie Project?" Richtofen asked cheerfully as he got to his feet.
"I'm reading when you are" Sophia said with a grin as Richtofen helped her to her feet. The two locked eyes for a moment and shared a smile before they walked out of the room and got back to work.
"Ah…love" Illuzio sighed happily. Porter looked amused and said "Sophia and Edward Richtofen? Who would've thought?"
"Indeed. Seems like something out of a really bad story" Illuzio chortled as he walked off. Porter chuckled a bit himself as the two got back to work.
Meanwhile:
Present:
Location: Los Angles, California
M.P.D. Tower
Sophia looked out of the window, her hand brushing against one of the thousands of filled Soul Gems in the MPD Tower.
"If it weren't so evil, they'd be pretty" Sophia whispered as she turned around and sat down, sinking into her chair with a sigh. She shot a blast of fire into the fireplace of the Library and closed her eye for a moment.
The silence was so…unnerving.
"I've got to find him" Sophia murmured before a flash of green appeared in the room and a man materialized in front of her.
"Stairs. Why would I climb them when I can just teleport?" Illuzio muttered, shaking his head before he noticed Sophia.
"Illuzio? What are you doing here?" Sophia asked.
"Just…nothing that you should worry about. I need to talk to Edward" Illuzio said softly.
"He's on the roof. He spends quite a bit of time up there nowadays. Just staring into the sky. I'm usually up there with him, but he wanted to be alone tonight" Sophia said softly.
Illuzio nodded and said "You should be out looking for him, instead of staying here"
"I have! I have no idea where he is! He could be halfway across the world by now!" Sophia said loudly, sounding upset.
"Shh…I didn't meant to upset you. I meant nothing by it…just…Sophia, can you head downstairs for a little bit? I need to talk to Edward…alone" Illuzio said quietly.
Sophia had a confused look on her face and said "Is…something wrong? There's been something weird going on with you lately Jonathan, but…you know you can talk to me if you want to, right?"
"Yes…thank you, Sophia" Illuzio said with a smile as Sophia got up and walked past him before walking downstairs. Illuzio checked to make sure it was just the three of them present on the tower before walking up the last flight of black skeletal looking staircase to the roof.
Illuzio took a deep gulp of air, cold crisp and clear, even in the afternoon. It was a truly beautiful day outside, despite the current events, and he was one who could appreciate the beauty in nature. He looked out across the rooftop of the tower and saw a lone man looking out from one of the railings, staring into the sky so intently that he could have been in a staring match with the sun.
Illuzio smirked and checked that they were indeed alone, and subconsciously sealed off the staircase so Sophia could not interfere, or at least stall her so that Illuzio could have more time to kill him.
Illuzio began to walk towards him.
Meanwhile:
"FASTER!" Zero growled.
"KID. THIS THING CAN'T GO ANY FASTER!" Joe's dad growled furiously as they hurtled down the highway like a rocket in a sports car.
Finding a way west was harder than any of them had thought. Most of them hadn't realized that the train Joe had outfitted would be able to make it all the way to California in a day, but nothing that they had found would be able to make that kind of trip, and due to the gas shortage and debris in the road, it was adding additional time to their trip.
"Guys, we've got to stop!" Kara yelled from one of the other cars.
"WHY!?" Juliet's mom yelled.
"BECAUSE THESE THINGS ARE PROBABLY GOING BLOW UP!?" Kara yelled, pointing to the smoking engine of their car. The drivers of the other cars reluctantly heeded her words and slowed down their cars to a more or less sane pace.
"We're not going to make it" Starch said in an annoyed tone.
"Don't talk like that, here there's a will there's a way" Juliet's father said smoothly as he eased up on the accelerator.
"We should give these things a break!" Joe's dad called from one of the other vehicles.
"We don't have time!" Juliet's father insisted.
"Do you know how lucky we were to find vehicles at all? Let's not destroy our only transportation that we have" Joe's father replied.
Juliet's father reluctantly admitted that he was right, and the group pulled off of the highway and settled down at a nearby picnic grounds.
Juliet's mom began to fish through the supplies and handing out snacks and drinks to the hungry and thirsty survivors while some stretched or went to the bathroom. Others like Red and Zero went off and did their own thing.
Clutch sighed as he sank back down into the seat of the sports car they had found and said "I wonder how the others are doing?"
"I hope they're OK" Tyler said worriedly.
"I'm sure they're fine" Vice said dismissively.
Meanwhile:
"Nick, don't fall off you moron!" Joe bellowed as Nick leaned out the side of the train.
"DIE MOFOS!" Nick yelled as he opened fire with his Predator, killing Zombie by spattering its head on the side of the train.
"Good shot" Judith said with a grin as he leaned out of another window and snipped two Zombies off of the train in one shot.
Screecher Zombies and regular Zombies were climbing alongside the train, trying to both damage it and to get at the passengers inside. Sieger and Samantha were doing battle with several Blade Zombies on the roof while the others dealt with the Zombies on the side of the train.
"Let me do this!" Nicholas said, grabbing Nick by the shoulders and throwing him directly into the armrest of the nearest chair, which slammed into his nuts.
"AGH! You're a terrible person" Nick groaned as he slid to the ground.
"Taste magical tomahawk assholes!" Nicholas yelled with a grin as he leaned out the window, hurling the Hell's Redeemer as hard as he could. The tomahawk Wonder Weapon flew through the air, tearing through the skulls of five of the Zombies before returning to Nicholas's grip.
"That's badass" Andrew said with a grin.
"Yup" Nicholas and Juliet agreed.
"Aww, I wanna play" Jess pouted.
"Well, you could RPG them off of the train…" Marcus said with a playful laugh, earning a punch in the shoulder from a grinning Jess.
"Like hell you will!" Iva barked from the operator's room in the front of the train.
"Allow me" Joe said as he pulled out his Wunderwaffe DG-7. Nicholas moved out of the way and let Joe lean out the window and fire off a shot, which slammed into an faraway Zombie and killed it instantly, and then the line of lightning traveled down the length of the train and killed every other Zombie on it.
"Now that's what I call Zombie Training? Am I right?" Joe said with an expectant grin.
Jess kicked him in the shin.
Meanwhile:
Jax smirked and said "Yeah, they're fine. We should be worried about how the heck we're going to get over to Los Angles in a few hours"
At their current pace, they wouldn't even make it to LA By tomorrow night, and they needed to regroup with whoever was already there and form a plan of attack. This was also not taking into the fact that Richtofen probably had the city crawling with Zombies.
Kris, Alec, and Jared exchanged looks and Jordan said "Well, maybe we'll figure something out, maybe not. But we should get moving soon"
Jameson Morris sat down wordlessly, though he nodded in agreement. Kara spoke up and said "Don't forget, our dads are bringing backup. They should be back by tomorrow night"
"Yes. While they figure out the plans with our cavalry, we should focus on a plan to travel west, since our current one sucks" Chan added before he voice was drowned out by arguing.
Serenity and Starch could be heard yelling in the distance about which was superior, Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokémon, to which the world would never know.
"Come on, it's all about that Magikarp, I'm I right?" Starch said with a grin, before Serenity scowled at him and threw the Pokéball he had been brandishing at her at his face.
"Do you liek Mudkipz Starch?" Vice asked with a laugh, earning a middle finger in response.
"Ow! Jeez, are all British girls so mean?" Starch demanded as he rubbed his nose in pain.
"ENGLISH!" Serenity yelled angrily
"Yeah, yeah, God save the queen, Big Ben, cups of tea, blah, blah, blah" Starch said with a widening grin, knowing he was annoying her. Serenity kicked Starch in the shin repeatedly while shouting angrily at him, much to the amusement of the other survivors.
Joe's dad was conversing with Juliet's parents in hushed tones, glancing over at the survivors every now and then.
Jared and Emmanuel were checking out the area and found a few Zombies to kill with Red, and the trio of snipers made quick work of them. Zero watched them for a moment as he glanced over his shoulder before he continued to walk down the street. He felt something dark this way, and was planning on investigating it.
He eventually came upon a young woman, sitting down alone in the middle of a graveyard that was rather close by. The graves had been upturned and the inhabitants had been unearthed to wreak havoc on the living, but she stood there like it was nothing at all. She wore a long black trench coat and a large hat of the same color, all the while with a massive sniper rifle on her back that could probably kill the lot of them with a single shot. She had short blond hair and bright red eyes, and was rather beautiful.
"Well, hello there" the woman said with a smile as she turned around. Zero's hand clenched around Lucifer, his sword which burst into flames immediately, and took a step back as the woman smiled widely, razor sharp teeth on display.
"Who are you?" Zero asked carefully. The young woman smiled and said "You can call me Eris"
"What are you doing here?" Zero asked, leveling his sword at her heart. He could tell that this woman was different. She was…off.
Eris smirked and said "Well, it's none of your business, but I was taking a short rest. Spying on everyone gets a bit dull, so I was just wandering through the area"
"Uh huh" Zero replied, not buying it, but he did lower his sword a bit.
"So, you guys hit a snag or something, or are you staying here to rest up before heading to California?" Eris asked.
"Just stopping, though I don't think we'll make it in time" Zero muttered, and Eris smiled widely.
"Well, I could help with that" Eris offered, still smiling but completely serious.
"How?" Zero asked.
"I can get you all there fairly quickly, and I won't' charge you anything or ask for your souls. Totally free"
"Nothing's free in life. Not even free samples at food courts" Zero replied.
"Well, you guys still need to get there. The more people fighting Richtofen and his forces, the better our chances are" Eris explained.
"What?" Zero asked in surprise.
"Yeah. You think those idiots on the train can take out that Nazi by their selves? And their Zombie forces? The remaining Reclaimer's are there as well, and Sophia's there too. Don't forget, she's not going to stand by and let you kill Richtofen…Nope. They need all the help they can get, which is why I plan on helping them out, in my own way" the woman said with a grin as she sat down on a nearby tombstone and crossed her legs and kept her shot black dress down.
"Oh really? I'm sure you're not doing this out of the kindness of your heart" Zero said suspiciously.
"No, I'm not. But I won't hurt any of you, if that's what you're thinking. I don't play by my Master's rules, no matter how much he wants me too" Eris said with a grin.
"Master?"
Eris shrugged and said "That's all the info you're getting out of me. Sorry"
"That's fine" Zero said with a shrug.
"So what do you say about that transport to California?" Eris asked.
Zero thought about it for a moment and said "What did you have in mind?"
"Doesn't matter what I had in mind, you're already trapped" Eris said with a wide grin as Zero's eyes widened in horror.
Zero was already moving, even as the shadows surrounded him sides. Screams of shock and horror were filling the area as the shadows crept in, immersing everything. Zero sprinted through the graveyard and back towards the camp site, where the others were shooting at the shadows closing in.
"Damn it!" Zero growled as he vaulted over a fallen tree, only for a tendril of shadows to grab him by the neck and slam him into the ground. Zero gasped as his own shadow slowly engulfed him, leaving him time to scream helplessly as Eris laughed at the new development.
Joe's father frantically tried to outrun the shadows, with Clutch Odd, Vice, and Serenity at his heels. Vice let out a howl as a tendril of darkness snaked out from a tree and wrapped around his ankles before pulling him into the darkness.
"Vice!" Serenity yelled, looking back at the fallen young man.
"Serenity wait!" Joe's dad yelled before Serenity let out a scream, being yanked into her own shadow. Clutch Odd turned around and opened fire on the shadows, which quickly overwhelmed him. Joe's father, the lone survivor, looked around in annoyance at the swirling darkness around him.
"Well…come on then!" Joe's dad said impatiently shooting his Glock half-heartedly into the shadows, which engulfed him.
"Well…that's that. They'll waiting for Samantha's group by the train station in LA by sundown, I think…speaking of…I wonder how Illuzio is doing?" Eris said thoughtfully as she fell backwards out of the tree trunk she was standing on, falling through the earth and into her own shadow.
Meanwhile:
Illuzio slowly walked towards him, as he stood at the edge of the tower. The top of the M.P.D. tower was pretty much a dark purple metal platform, made of a powerful dark purple metal that Illuzio didn't know the name of. Soul Gems decorated the top, giving the roof of the Tower a horrifyingly beautiful appearance. He gave a quick glance at the M.P.D., the pyramid that had sort of started all of this nonsense.
He then looked at the four staffs that he had collected, and were necessary for Richtofen's plan. The four staffs were a mere mockery of the real thing, the one that he had hidden on his person. Fire, Ice, Lighting, and Wind, all taken from an excavation site in another world and timeline.
"If I could get all five together…maybe it could truly revitalize the Staff of Magnus…maybe…" Illuzio pondered for a moment before he stopped walking, a mere thirty yards from Richtofen.
"Are you here to kill me, Jonathan?" Richtofen asked softly.
"No. Why would I do that?" Illuzio asked in a soft voice.
"Hmmm…first Sieger…and then Yena…I cannot bare to lose you as well my friend" Richtofen said, still facing away from Illuzio.
"So, how much longer until we can open the gateway?" Illuzio asked.
"Agartha…strange. In another life, another…world…opening a path to Agartha, would have spelled my undoing…now it is the key to this world's salvation" Richtofen murmured.
"And the soul gems?" Illuzio asked softly as a cold breeze blew through the air, jingling a few of the bells on Illuzio's hat.
"I see you know now…yes, the gems are a key component…they will amplify my powers and allow me to open the gate to Agartha…once I take command of the energies within, I will manipulate them to my will and destroy this horrible world" Richtofen said, letting out a small breath.
"I see…"
"Illuzio…are you here to kill me?" Richtofen asked again.
"Of course not…so, how much longer were you planning on keeping me in the dark about the soul gems. About what we were really doing?" Illuzio asked.
"When this world was destroyed…your morals wouldn't let you let me destroy this miserable planet, so I withheld some details. The M.P.D. Tower is nearly finished, while the M.P.D itself is almost at full capacity. I could probably access Agartha now, but I want to save those who are worth saving"
"Wait…you said to the world that those who pledged your loyalty would be saved" Illuzio said slowly as Richtofen turned to face him.
"No…I lied about that. They're the ones who will die, no matter what" Richtofen said with a cruel smile.
"What!? Why?" Illuzio asked angrily.
"Because, those who want to be saved and spared…are the very ones I wish to destroy…selfish, evil, terrible people who care only for their own salvation…willing to turn against their fellow humans and serve me…they will die…and they will suffer…destroying the evil in this world will come at the price of most of the lives of the inhabitants. This world will be destroyed, and dismantled…my kingdom will be born from the ashes" Richtofen said softly, a wide smile growing on his face.
"That's…that's…" Illuzio closed his eyes, trying to control his rage.
"Illuzio…are you here, to kill me?" Richtofen asked for a third and final time.
"No…" Illuzio whispered.
"Are you sure?" Richtofen asked with a smirk.
"Yes"
"Then…I think since that we're on the same page…let's talk about the Great Disaster" Richtofen said, turning around.
"What's there to talk about?" Illuzio said, anger cracking his voice.
"Ah…so…you do know" Richtofen said with a small smile, closing his eyes.
"Sieger told me…he told me…EVERYTHING…" Illuzio growled, green sparks flashing at his hands.
"Then he told you that he who destroyed your world and your fiancé was not me, but an alternate version of me? He told you that this…ALL of this, was the doing of another version of myself!?" Richtofen demanded. Illuzio nodded again.
"How long have you known!?" Illuzio demanded.
"Years ago…Yena was in on it as well, and once he was certain that it would not change anything, he told me everything. Apparently he and my other self-orchestrated the whole thing. Your forays into the other timeline caused this!" Illuzio flinched at that.
"I was trying to save those survivors! They didn't deserve to be damned for trying to stop Maxis!" Illuzio yelled.
"They deserved what they got because they didn't believe my other self…they let Maxis win" Richtofen said with a grim smile.
"You may not have been directly responsible…but you knew…you never told me…and you used me…to slaughter so many others…I have the blood of the innocents on my hands, because of you!" Illuzio yelled.
"NO ONE IS INNOCENT ILLUZIO!" Richtofen roared, his blue eyes now glowing blue.
"You could have DONE SOMETHING ABOUT IT! I gave you everything, I helped you whenever I could, but you never saw fit to tell me what really happened to my world? My life!?" Illuzio roared.
"Of course not…in the end, you're just a fool Illuzio…besides, time travel is a very dangerous thing. Tampering with your life would have meant destroying the entirety of the present, and I can't have that, now can I?" Richtofen asked with a sneer.
"Reasoning with you is impossible…I guess the only thing I can do now is stop you…it's time to end this" Illuzio said softly. Richtofen scowled horribly as Illuzio got into a fighting stance.
"SO BE IT!" Richtofen bellowed, flinging his arms downwards as his entire body turned into pure green surging energy. Illuzio was blown halfway across the tower by the force of the maneuver, and his hands glowed bright green.
Illuzio snarled as he vanished and reappeared next to Richtofen, throwing a punch that connected with Richtofen's gut. A huge of energy blasted Richtofen off of his feet and onto the ground 30 feet away. Illuzio fired a flaming burst of energy at Richtofen as he got to his feet, sending him crashing onto the metal ground, before repeating the act again and again and again.
Illuzio finally stopped, allowing the smoke to clear. He made out the figure of Richtofen, standing upright and surging with raw energy. He looked thoughtful as he took a step towards Illuzio, who readied his magic again.
"I see…it is time to finally end this game of treachery…first Sieger…then Yena…and now you. Who has been the loyal of all…how fitting that you betray me as well, backstabbing Judas!" Richtofen spat.
"If I can't stop you, Sieger and Samantha will!" Illuzio barked.
"We'll see about that!" Richtofen barked, shooting off like a rocket towards Illuzio, and slammed headfirst into his ribcage, shattering the bones effortlessly. Illuzio flew into the air, only for Richtofen to punch him full in the face and send him crashing onto the roof of the M.P.D. tower. Illuzio muttered a spell that mended his ribcage and sent a green ball of energy at Richtofen, which exploded on impact and sent the Nazi skidding backwards with a snarl.
"You have gotten strong, old friend, but you are still nowhere near my level!" Richtofen sneered.
In response, Illuzio cocked his hand back and hurled a ball of black magic at Richtofen, who vanished on the spot to avoid it. The ball exploded in a power burst, turning that section of the roof pure white.
"I see you are playing for keeps now, aren't you mine Illuzio?" Richtofen cackled as Illuzio continued to try and hit the 935 Leader.
"Keep on running Edward!" Illuzio roared.
Richtofen reappeared, flung a bolt of thin lightning at Illuzio and striking him in the chest. Illuzio let out a scream as energy coursed through him.
"Don't you see Illuzio! See what happens when you betray me!?" Richtofen growled as he slowly advanced towards Illuzio. Richtofen ran up to Illuzio and blasted him again point-blank with lightning, sending him skidding across the roof with a yell.
Illuzio then exploded in a flash of sparks and reappeared behind Richtofen, smoldering and panting, but still standing. His wounds suddenly began to seal up and heal, and Illuzio held out his hand a short wicked-looking black sword appeared in his hand. Illuzio spun the sword expertly and said "En garde!"
Illuzio kicked off of the ground, a blast of energy giving him an extra boost in speed as he shot towards Richtofen. Richtofen grinned widely and conjured a sword of pure green energy hat looked identical to Illuzio's and swung it upwards to meet his former friend's blade. The two swords connected, releasing shockwave of visible force that could be seen for miles.
"Give it up Edward! I'm the last magician in the world! I won't be destroyed by you!" Illuzio bellowed, breaking the sword-lock and slashing at Richtofen, who swiftly blocked the slash. Richtofen grinned and lashed out at Illuzio, sending an arc of lightning at Illuzio that struck him in the chest, sending him flying across the roof and crashing onto the metal panels, cracking it.
"No! Not now…not yet" Illuzio snarled, getting to his feet and hurling a pulsating black spark at Richtofen, who's eyes widened as he raised his sword to block.
BOOOOM!
Richtofen let out a howl of agony as he fell to one knee, blood splattered all across his chest as his chest armor took visible damage. Richtofen shot Illuzio a look of hurt and anger and said "That was…a good shot"
"It took years to perfect…let me show you some of my other tricks!" Illuzio said, gesturing with both of his arms held out wide.
The entire landscape around them began to shift and change. The air shimmered with a series of dazzling green lights. Lights that once amused Richtofen made him weary and on edge for whatever tricks the jester had up his sleeve.
Now they were standing in the middle of a destroyed and ravaged town, with soot and smog and ash filling the air, and filling Richtofen's lungs. Blue-eyed undead roamed the streets while lava flowed freely.
"Is this the other timeline…did he take me here for a reason?" Richtofen thought before Illuzio reappeared in a flash of green light, his sword gone.
Illuzio grinned as he raised one hand, and the lava around them swirled and twisted, engulfing Richtofen, who screamed in agony as the molten liquid doused him. Richtofen stumbled and fell to the ground, even as Illuzio raised his hand. The raging storm above them swirled and twisted around them until it was circling the town.
"DESCEND!" Illuzio barked to the heavens, and a massive bolt of blue lightning soared downwards and slammed into the pile of lava that was smothering the 935 Leader.
"AAAAAHHHHH! EN…OUGH!" Richtofen bellowed, blasting the lava off of him and sending Illuzio crashing into a moving bus, sending him crashing onto the ground.
"Very…very good, Jonathan. There's no denying your strength" Richtofen growled as he got to his feet, his armor badly burned and half of his face melted off. The skin swiftly knit itself back together, but Illuzio saw Richtofen smile even as his open skull was exposed.
"But what you fail to understand, is that nothing…nothing…can stop someone who has lost what I have" Richtofen said in a deadly quiet tone before vanishing on the spot and reappearing next to Illuzio, decking him in the face and sending him into the fog. Illuzio crashed onto the ground with a yelp and rolled to his feet, glancing around him.
"True sight" Illuzio muttered, tapping his temples. His vision suddenly turned fuzzy for a moment before his sight cleared, and he glanced around for Richtofen.
"Where are you hiding Edward?" Illuzio murmured as he got ready to use magic.
All of a sudden a blast of lightning struck down from above, engulfing Illuzio, who vanishing on the spot and reappeared inside of a dilapidated Cabin the Woods.
"Who's running now!?" Richtofen asked gleefully as he strode through the fog.
Illuzio stumbled out of the house as Richtofen walked through the fog. Illuzio growled as he ran forward, yanking the nearby hatchet free from the stump it was embedded in, and hurled it at Richtofen. As the hatchet left Illuzio grasp, it was engulfed in a raging green aura that slammed into chest of the Nazi, who howled in agony as blood seeped from his wounds.
"Not…bad!" Richtofen muttered as he yanked out the hatchet, no-longer glowing Richtofen set the hatchet ablaze in his hands and dropped it to the ground before firing a bolt of energy at Illuzio, who threw up a wall of energy to block the attack. Richtofen smirked and added more power to the bolt, tripling the size and power of it. Illuzio's face hardened and as he tried to keep the shield going.
The barrier shattered like glass and Illuzio was hurled backwards, and vanished in a flash of energy before the attack could kill him. Illuzio appeared behind Richtofen as a black sword with a crimson hilt, and stabbed him in the chest.
Or he would have if Richtofen hadn't stopped the blade with his bare hands.
"Nice try" Richtofen smirked before balling up his fist and decking Illuzio in the face, sending him careening into the nearby cliff.
"AGH!" Illuzio yelled out as his head slammed into the mountain, causing stars to appear across his vision. Illuzio dropped to the ground and was immersed in a glowing green aura, and his wounds began to vanish.
"How about a change of scenery?" Illuzio suggested, a white ball of light appearing his hands. Illuzio tossed it into the air and it exploded in a massive burst of energy, engulfing the two of them. Richtofen opened his eyes and found himself on the top of a heavily damaged building. The sky was no longer smoky, and was beginning to clear it looked like. Richtofen glanced around and realize that this building was Asian, and seemed to be one of the few in the city they were in that was left standing.
"We're in China? How quaint" Richtofen said with a smirk as he turned around, only to get a fist in the face. Richtofen staggered backwards and lashed out with a bolt of lightning at slammed into Illuzio, sending him flying off of the building.
"Look! It's a Die Rise! Get it? High Rise? Die Rise? Ahahahaha!" Richtofen cackled as Illuzio cooked up a pulsating ball of energy in his hands.
Illuzio growled and vanished on the spot, only to reappear next to Richtofen and aim a kick at his skull. Richtofen caught his leg in midair and spun around, flinging Illuzio into a nearby elevator shaft. Illuzio slammed into the metal wall and fell downwards, crashing onto the elevator as it slowly rose.
Richtofen took that moment to look around him, and his gaze fell onto the nearby tower.
"That must be one of the polarization devices…" Richtofen said in wonder as he slowly walked towards it.
"RAH!"
The ground underneath Richtofen exploded, sending him flying into the air. Illuzio slowly floated out from the hole he had made in the building.
Illuzio flung his palms out and his palms flash green before a huge ball of air shot out of his hands and slammed into Richtofen, who exploded in a surge of energy. Illuzio quickly glanced around himself before he was slammed back i9nto the building, tearing through several rooms until they fell into the a hallway.
Illuzio blasted Richtofen off of him and rolled to his feet, hurling another black spark at him and sending Richtofen smashing through the walls with a howl of agony, flying out into the open air before stopping himself.
"Not bad, Jonathan. Maybe in a few years you might be able to keep up with me" Richtofen joked before sending an arc of lightning at Illuzio, who barely managed to jump to the side in time before the lightning tore through the entire building. Illuzio let out a yelp as the entire building shuddered, and he flung his hands out, both of them glowing white. Richtofen and Illuzio's surroundings changed once more.
They were now standing on the rooftop of an abandoned prison, where the sky poured down rain from above them. A plane sat on a runaway, both of them ramshackle in appearance but both of them functional.
"What is this? This…world?" Richtofen asked, caught off guard by the strange aura he felt here.
"Welcome to Alcatraz" was all Illuzio said before flinging his hands skyward. Richtofen glanced around him and saw a series of glowing white knives appear out of thin air and shoot towards him. Richtofen summoned two rods of energy and smacked two of the knives out of the air, but even as he did so even more of them lunged towards him. Illuzio smirked as he added more speed and knives to the attack, but eventually he realized that Richtofen was still able to block the attack more or less.
"Is that all Illuzio!? Hit me with your best shot!" Richtofen growled as he flung his arms to the sky, releasing a pulse of energy that caused the remaining knives to shatter and break the spell.
Illuzio growled and vanished in a flash of light, only for Richtofen vanish as well. The prison was silent for a moment before Richtofen appeared again, holding Illuzio by the neck.
"H-how!?" Illuzio demanded.
"Because, nothing escapes my eye Jonathan. I knew of your treachery, ever since the first seeds of anger and doubt were planted in your heart. The only way to end your misery is to end your life" Richtofen breathed before he drew back his fist and slammed it into Illuzio's skull.
The jester, however, burst black flames that immersed Richtofen, who roared in pain and stumbled backwards. Illuzio reappeared in a flash of light and said "Too hot for you? Let me cool you off then!"
Illuzio snapped his fingers and the rain suddenly stopped falling in a wide circle around them. Illuzio smirked and pointed a finger at the still flaming Richtofen and then water suddenly merged together at one point and then twisted, slamming into Richtofen's face as a torrent of never-ending water.
"AGH! Cu-rse you!" Richtofen choked as the deluge assaulted him from all sides.
Illuzio grinned evilly and doubled the effects of the spell, increasing the radius in which the water was collected and would come at Richtofen. Eventually, Richtofen got sick of drowning and let out a wicked pulse of energy, blasting away the spell and ending the attack.
"You will pay for that" Richtofen said darkly, forming a wicked electric longsword of green energy. Illuzio smirked and his black sword reappeared in his hands.
"FORCE!" Illuzio yelled, and Richtofen suddenly fell through the roof of the building and crashing onto a catwalk.
"BRUTUS!" Illuzio yelled, snapping his fingers multiple times.
Richtofen got to his feet as a large heavyset Zombified man appeared in a burst of flames next to him. Brutus growled and swung his club at Richtofen, who caught the attacked and stabbed Brutus in the chest, sending him flying backwards as a pulse of energy shot him across the cell block and into a wall.
"What sort of hell are we in?" Richtofen asked himself before ten copies of Brutus appeared next to him.
"Heh…child's play" Richtofen said as he spun around, slashing his sword in an arc at a trio of Brutus's charging at him, killing all three at once. Richtofen ducked blocked an underhanded swing and kicked that Brutus in the chest, sending him flying backwards up the stairway and crashing onto the ground with a yell of pain. Richtofen flung out his hand and a bolt of lightning surged from his hand and struck each one of the Zombified Wardens in the skull, killing all of them instantly.
Richtofen looked up at the hole in the ceiling and saw Illuzio looking down at him, a small rotating and pulsating ball of green light in his hand and a cold look on his face. Illuzio turned his hand over and wordlessly dropped the orb of energy into the hole, which landed at Richtofen's feet.
"Wait…is this-?" Richtofen began to say before the ball exploded violently at Richtofen's feet. But the explosion didn't stop there, it created a magical chain explosion, that didn't just engulf the cell block, bu the entire prison. Soon the entire place was exploding over and over again, while Illuzio kept a barrier around the prison to keep Richtofen from escaping.
"Die…just die already…" Illuzio pleaded silently.
As if in response, a figure immersed in a now black aura shot through the smoke and tore through his barrier, destroying it completely. Richtofen's aura died away, leaving the man floating in the air with a scowl.
"Illuzio, stop this. Just hear me out" Richtofen said with a small smile on his face.
"Never. I can't let you go through with this. Even if I did do this to myself, even if I technically started this chain of events, I wasn't the one who doomed us all! Your other self and you have set this world up to be engulfed in fire and death once more! This makes you no different than Maxis!" Illuzio growled.
"You''ll regret those words!" Richtofen snarled, shooting towards Illuzio, who he crashed into. The two began to brawl in the sky above the now destroyed prison, with Richtofen shooting bolts of lightning at the fleeing Illuzio, who was quickly trying to find a way to retaliate.
"I need a plan! He's too powerful, he just takes whatever I can throw at him! He's electricity powers combined with his 115 manipulation powers are incredible, even more so than I thought!" Illuzio frantically through as they broke through the cloud cover and arrived at the Golden Gate Bridge.
Illuzio landed on the bridge and sank through it by muttering a spell, and Richtofen quickly landed on the bridge and ran a few steps before stopping himself.
"COME OUT YOU COWARD!" Richtofen bellowed, energy radiating off of him.
Richtofen glanced at the nearby Pack-A-Punch machine next to him and smirked slightly. He walked over to it and placed his Mauser C96 in the device, receiving the Boomhilda.
"Very nice" Richtofen murmured, placing his other Mauser C96 in the device. He clipped both guns to his belt before continuing to walk on the bridge.
"Come out, come out my dear Illuzio!" Richtofen called.
Richtofen was greeted by the world around him swirling and changing once more. He was now standing on top of a pile of debris inside of an old mansion.
"Begone…"
"You're not of this world…"
"Get out…"
Richtofen stepped back in surprise as several ghostly women flew out from the walls and slammed into him, draining his life force as they did so. Richtofen lashed out with his arm, sending three of them flying backwards with screams of pain.
"I have to get out of here!" Richtofen thought as dozens of the ghosts poured from the walls, attacking him and weakening him with repeated assaults.
"ENOUGH!" Richtofen bellowed, his black aura appearing around himself and letting out a burst of energy that killed all of the ghosts at once. Richtofen spun around and blasted the front door of the house off of its hinges and stepped out into an underground cave, where there was a town before him buried underground.
"Ah…this is where everything began…and ended, in a way" Richtofen murmured, having torn the memories of his other self explaining everything to Yena away from the shadow-user during his imprisonment. Richtofen had demanded answers from Yena about his ramblings and dark remarks, and Yena revealed his role in the plot with glee.
"This buried well of consciousness…" Richtofen thought as he glanced around himself, taking in the buried town forgotten to time itself.
Illuzio reappeared in a flash of light and flung a white and black spark at Richtofen, who batted away both attacks and shot a bolt of lightning at Illuzio, who reflected the attack right back at him, which Richtofen dodged by jumping to the side. Illuzio snapped his fingers and suddenly disappeared, but all of a sudden Richtofen was surrounded by the twenty copies of the jester.
"Idiot! You've shown me that trick already!" Richtofen growled as he summoned his lightning sword again. Each of the Illuzio's summoned a sword of their own and shot towards him. Richtofen smirked and began to deflect and block every one of the slashes sent at him, and returned each one in kind before he was standing alone again, each of the illusions disappearing in a flash of light.
"Come now Illuzio, is that the best you've got?" Richtofen jeered.
"Not even close" Illuzio growled as he reappeared, his hands surging with green magic as he swung a fist at Richtofen, who barely dodged the punch. Richtofen could feel the raw magic at Illuzio's fingertips, and knew that the jester was going all out at this point. Richtofen ducked under a swing and punched Illuzio in the jaw before following up with a backhanded slash with his sword, sending him crashing onto the nearby fountain.
"Agh…just…d-die already…" Illuzio groaned as Richtofen shot another bolt of lightning at him, which he dodged by kicking off of the fountain and landing on the ground. Illuzio flung three green sparks at Richtofen, who growled in pain as the sparks exploded violently as they made contact.
Richtofen pulled out both of his Boomhilda's and opened fire on Illuzio, who was so surprised at the sudden shift to weaponry that he didn't dodge and was blasted several times with the Pack-A-Punched pistols. Illuzio vanished in a flash of light, but not before a grunt of pain escaped his throat.
"Ah, did that hurt Illuzio? Serve you right to betray me after everything I've done for you" Richtofen spat.
"If it wasn't for me and your other self who came from this timeline, you wouldn't even exist!" Illuzio yelled as he flew out of a portal and slammed his glowing green fist into Richtofen's skull, sending him careening into the town and smashing into a pile of crates.
"After everything I've done for you, you'd think you'd appreciate someone who lost everything they cared about. But this is you we're talking about" Illuzio growled as he readied himself for magic once more. Richtofen let out a howl of rage and flung his hand out at Illuzio, sending a massive surge of energy at him. The energy took the form of a massive serpentine dragon and slammed into Illuzio's chest, sending him flying into the ghostly mansion. He slammed into the house while the attack continued to drill into him, electrocuting him and causing him to scream in agony.
"I have to stop holding back…he's much stronger than I could've dreamed!" Richtofen thought tiredly as he healed his wounds, his green aura fading by a significant amount as it healed the horrible damage done to his face by the punch that had nearly killed him.
Illuzio's body vanished in a flash of light and he reappeared on top of a nearby building, panting.
"Fine, how about this!?" Illuzio said fling out his hands, warping the area around them once more and teleporting them to a muddy battlefield where Zombie roamed, planes shot each other in the sky, a massive dig site containing a mystical meteorite capable of reanimating the undead laid, and where giant robots roamed-
"Wait…where the hell ARE we!?" Illuzio and Richtofen asked each other in immense confusion.
"Oh…right, this is where I got the Elemental Staffs…man this place is weird…admittedly kind of cool, but weird…" Illuzio thought with an annoyed expression.
"Look at all of the violence and destruction going on! Explosions and death, with all of this incredible technology…Ah…so wonderful" Richtofen said in sigh of happiness, a content smile growing on his face as he looked around at the new place Illuzio had warped them too.
"Hmm…I have the weirdest boner right now" Richtofen said in surprise, looking back at Illuzio, who scowled and shut him up by snapping his fingers and causing the mud underneath Richtofen to explode.
"It's an alternate timeline" Illuzio growled.
Richtofen got to is his feet with a scowl and jumped back as Illuzio fired a black spark at him. Richtofen then heard the horrible sound of grating metal, and looked up in horror as a gigantic robot loomed above him, its foot raised high above his head. Richtofen threw up his hands and caught the enormous foot with a yell of pain.
"No way" Illuzio breathed in disbelief as Richtofen sank into the mud, but was clearly holding up the Robot's foot.
"No…you…DON'T!" Richtofen yelled as he push upwards with an almighty amount of effort. The robot whirred in surprise as it's foot was suddenly pushed upwards, causing the massive robot ton stumble backwards and fall towards the earth, crashing onto the ground with a incredible slam that could be heard for miles.
"Unbelievable…" Illuzio said, awed at the incredible strength of the Doctor, even at a time like this.
Richtofen got to his feet with a grunt and replied by sending an arc of lightning at Illuzio, who was sent crashing into the mud with a yell of pain. Richtofen held his hand out towards the Dig Site, where tendrils of blue energy flowed into his hands.
"AHA! Element 115! Wait…this is…this looks like the meteorites that Yena described to me…when my other self explained what had happened when he altered the past to him…this is the same meteorite that ended all magic" Richtofen breathed in amazement.
Illuzio vanished in a flash of light and reappeared above Richtofen, sword in hand. Illuzio slashed Richtofen from arm to hip and kicked him in the chest, sending him crashing onto a wooden stairway. Richtofen summoned his sword as well and the two began to battle it out in the No Man's Land as the planes shot each other down in the sky above.
Richtofen sidestepped a downwards slash by Illuzio and stabbed him in the chest with his sword of lightning, sending him hurtling backwards into one of the battlements and crashing down onto a metal platform next to a generator of sorts.
Illuzio staggered to his feet and Richtofen called "Hey Illuzio! I think this is the rock my other self-used to kill everyone you know and love! Isn't that lovely?"
"You…YOU…SON OF A B!TCH!" Illuzio screamed as he flung his hands to the sky. Richtofen's eyes widened as a series of glowing green portals opened above him.
"You…you wouldn't DARE!" Richtofen yelled out, very nervous.
"YES I WOULD!" Illuzio yelled with a maniacal grin on his face as a series of a massive green beams of magic shot from each of the portals, shooting right at Richtofen, who couldn't dodge in time and was engulfed by all of them. Richtofen screamed in pure agony as Illuzio let loose the hidden stores of magic within him and combined it with very powerful spells that involved spatial and energy manipulation, which resulted in Illuzio's strongest attack. Illuzio finally let the flow of magic stop in the attack, and the beams vanished and the portals faded into nothingness. Richtofen lay there, unmoving in the mud, a glazed look in his eyes.
"Oh Edward…you should've just told me the truth…it would've hurt…but you could've helped me…you could've done something other than let me blindly help someone who wants everyone to hurt as bad as he is…" Illuzio said softly, a small tear rolling down his face.
"You're beyond saving…my dear Illuzio…" Richtofen murmured before suddenly sitting upright and shooting Illuzio in the chest with a bolt of green lightning, sending him flying upwards an crashing down into the mud. Richtofen shakily got to his feet and said "I'm not done..."
"Neither am I…" Illuzio said weakly, though he knew that it was a lie. Both were tired, and injured. While the last attack had truly injured Richtofen, it had drained Illuzio immensely. Illuzio snapped is fingers, and the world around them warped for a final time, this time returning them to the M.P.D. Tower that they had begun at, in their own world.
"EDWARD!"
Both men turned their heads towards Sophia, who was running towards them both. She had managed to break through Illuzio's barrier and saw the two vanish into thin air, and she was worried sick about the two men.
"Sophia! Get out of here! It's too dangerous!" Richtofen yelled, sounding truly fearful for the first time during their fight.
Illuzio pressed on that advantage, sending an arc of water as Sophia from his palm while sending a burst of pure black and green energy at Richtofen. Both of them screamed in agony as the two attacks hit them, mainly Sophia, who went crashing onto the ground, growling in pain as steam hissed from his skin. Illuzio had put enough force in the water attack to tear through a reinforced steel plating, and combine that with Sophia's water weakness, would no doubt hurt her. Richtofen crashed onto the ground with a howl of pain.
"Feel that pain!? IT'S NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT I FELT!" Illuzio bellowed as he flung his hands downwards. A series of crimson knives suddenly appeared Richtofen, shooting downwards and embedding themselves into his flesh.
"I may have been responsible for killing your fiancé in a way, but I am not the one who ruined your life…no…you did that yourself, you fool" Richtofen said with a wide smile as he got to his feet, the knives burning away as Richtofen's body turned to pure energy once more.
"It is time to stop playing around, Jonathan. I have a world to conquer, and destroy. Humanity is an evil, evil thing. Far more evil than I, or Yena, or even Maxis…Farewell my old friend" Richtofen said as he raised his hand towards Illuzio, who felt a thrill of horror go through him.
"Open" Richtofen said with a harsh whisper.
"What?" Illuzio said in confusion, before the M.P.D. behind Richtofen flashed white and slowly opened up. A small ball of pure white energy was floating inside of the device, flashing every few seconds.
"Souls of the damned, here my cry. Open the gateway! Open the path to Agartha!" Richtofen cried into the sky, fling his arms out wide.
"NO!" Illuzio yelled as he watched on in horror.
The ball of light shot into the sky, and Illuzio let out a scream of horror as the sky itself was torn apart, a anger red tear going through it as fiery veils of raw energy flowed forth to the roof, into Richtofen. It seemed as if the entire sky was filled with an crimson hue.
"Ah…power…the power to change the world…the betterment of humanity…and the end of you, my friend" Richtofen said as his eyes began to glow even brighter than usual. His green surging aura sudden changed to a fiery red one.
"Now…this is the end…BEGONE!" Richtofen roared, pointing a single finger at Illuzio, who threw his arms up at the last second as a crimson bolt of energy soared towards the jester. The multi-layered shield of hardened energy shattered like paper under the force of Richtofen's attack, and Illuzio vanished on the spot just as the energy bolt touched him. The attack soared through the sky, tearing through several skyscrapers and continuing onwards, even several minutes after Richtofen stopped the flow of energy.
"He escaped…what a coward…" Richtofen murmured as the M.P.D. slowly shut, closing off the beam of light. The angry crimson rift in the sky slowly shut, and Richtofen's aura slowly changed back to its regular green form.
"That was incredible…I'm so close…so close to finally reaching Agartha! That was just a taste of the power I can command…Ah…how lovely…Once I can maintain the energy, I can use the energies to change this world however I wish…I can bring her back…we can be a family again" Richtofen murmured as his energy aura faded away. He felt a wave of exhaustion fade through him as his wounds caught up to him, and he fell to one knee.
"Damn it Jonathan…it wasn't supposed to be like this" Richtofen muttered as he got to his feet, panting slightly as he looked over at Sophia, who had been watching the exchange with awe.
"Edward, are you OK?" Sophia asked softly.
"I am fine, my dear" Richtofen said just as quietly as he sat down on the ground, trying to catch his breath. Now that the adrenaline was leaving him, he could feel his wounds and injuries catching up with him. Illuzio had given him more of a fight than Yena had in the past, but still, even he could not stop Richtofen.
Meanwhile:
Illuzio reappeared on the outskirts of town, panting heavily as he collapsed onto the ground. He slowly got to his feet, heaving and shaking with pain as his body tried not to go into shock from the beating he took and from the blood loss. His hands were clutching his heavily bleeding chest, which was glowing bright red from just the smallest brush against the attack that Richtofen had sent at him.
"So…he is mortal, despite what he says. That's good at least…but…that's just a small portion of the energy he gains from accessing the power contained when accessing Agartha…now what!? There's nothing I can do now!" Illuzio lamented.
"Or is there?"
Illuzio tiredly looked behind him and saw a woman with short blond hair walk out of the shadow of a nearby streetlight. She was beautiful, but she had dark crimson red eyes that looked very…
Familiar.
"What do you want?" Illuzio asked, holding his bleeding chest and slowly healing it. Even after applying several healing spells, his chest was severely burnt and hurt horribly. He quickly numbed it with a pain-reliever spell. He'd likely never recover from this wound, no matter what, he realized.
"You tried to stop Richtofen, right?" Eris said with a grin as she crossed her arms.
"Yeah, and he kicked my ass. Why do you care?" Illuzio said bitterly.
"Let's just say I have a vested interest in his death. The thing is though…there's really nothing left you can do besides give her the staff, and hope she can get the job done" Eris said knowingly.
Illuzio summoned the Staff of Magnus to his hands, pointing it at Eris.
"Who are you?" Illuzio said sharply.
"Me? I am but an apprentice of a true master…shadows and blood, Illuzio. Shadows and blood" Eris said with a wide smile. Not evil, no hint of malice. But oh, so deadly nevertheless.
"Yena…he created you, didn't he?" Illuzio murmured.
"No…he simply made me into something more. He saved me from Der Ritter, and I am now his to use as he wishes" Eris said, something like adoration her in voice.
"So…she isn't outright evil. She just thinks the world of her master…so she can be an ally against Richtofen, in a way" Illuzio thought.
"So, is he giving you orders?" Illuzio asked.
"How can he? He's dead…" Eris asked, sounding sad at the words.
"I know…I felt it" Illuzio said softly.
"So, why didn't you use the Staff of Magnus against Richtofen?" Eris asked curiously.
"Simple. It won't work for me. I'm not pure of heart. Maybe a few of the kids in Samantha's group could wield it...But I know that Samantha can wield it for certain" Illuzio said, his breathing returning to normal.
"And Sieger?" Eris prompted.
"Probably not. His affinity to fire makes it difficult to maintain a balance necessary to use the Staff. Samantha is balanced, so she is probably going to be the one to be accepted by the Staff anyway" Illuzio said as he returned the staff to his hip in a flash of white light.
Eris nodded, and then sighed and said "Anyway…I've got more scouting to do, plots to concoct, and more schemes to hatch. If you meet those kids again, tell them they have an ally in the shadows, so to speak. Farewell, Illuzio. I doubt we'll be seeing each other again, so…goodbye"
Eris fell backwards, sinking into her own shadow and vanishing on the spot.
Illuzio sank onto the ground and sighed heavily, putting his face in his hands. He was the cause of his own ruined life. Every time he tried to help, he ended up making things worse. Now Richtofen was close to destroying the world, and it was all his fault.
"I have to make sure…that they're ready…ready for the worst. It's time…for the grand finale" Illuzio murmured before vanishing in a flash of green light.
Eris smiled widely as she emerged from the shadows of the streetlamp, her teeth razor sharp showing and said "Master…should I follow him?"
"No…stick to the shadows…observe…and wait" a voice murmured in the back of her head, like a whisper in the wind. The softest and weakest sort of voice imaginable.
"As you wish, my Master" Eris murmured before she sank into the shadows once more.
Richtofen slowly got to his feet, panting with exertion. Illuzio was no pushover. He was incredibly powerful, but the power of the M.P.D. and the souls Richtofen had collected, when combined with his already incredible strength, made Richtofen even stronger than his former best friend. Richtofen knew he didn't need to access Agartha to finish Illuzio off, but if they had drawn out the fight any longer, he would've been probably too injured to access Agartha the next day, and he needed to be at his best for that. He limped over to Sophia, who sighed and said "I can't believe he turned on us too"
"He did so because he is hurt. That is all my dear…he is hurt…just like we are" Richtofen murmured as he wrapped his arms around her. Sophia turned in his embrace and kissed him on the lips, and the two stood together for a moment before starring up at sun that was beginning to lower into the sky.
"Illuzio…what are you planning?" Richtofen wondered as he held Sophia ever so closely, wondering how much more strife must he endure before his plan was complete.
End of Chapter:
Hope you all enjoyed that chapter of action and plot. Next chapter, one of the ones that I've been looking forward to most, and I've had planned for over a year now!
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