BLUE – This is a Force.
"If you're a possibility, then me defeating you is also a possibility!"
"Suffer for eternity, Ragna the Bloodedge!"
Fatal Judge
The sheer force of the laugher still pierced his throat when his body, his shape, his very presence was erased. The pain of the wound, the taste of blood, the anger that consumed him and the smallest of fears that for an instant veered into his mind, they were all gone. Not even a trace of his being was left in the Blue Horizon.
And, in spite of that, his essence persisted. Maybe it was the strength of his own hatred that didn't allow him to truly vanish. The Blue consumed him, but there was still a remnant. There would always be a remnant of him. He was far beyond any human understanding. He was someone who couldn't truly disappear.
Just like Amaterasu, he was and would always be a part of the world. As long as she existed, in some way, shape or form, Susano'o would also exist. It was something far greater than Order, it was the basis of the world itself.
He would exist as long as the world were to be, even if only in his bare essence. Even if only inside the memories of the Blue.
And the Will of the Blue, to test the valour of those who tried to reach it, could built a new world. A possibility, or maybe just the shadow of an idea.
Yuuki Terumi opened his eyes, finding himself again existing. "Huh...?" He assessed his surroundings carefully, the snakelike eyes trying to make sense of the unknown situation. "This is... the Gate?"
Forbidden Gate -Altar- — There is the end of all and all of the beginning is ahead of this gate.
"Oi, what's going on…?" What was that? A trick? An illusion? An error? He couldn't have gotten a second chance. At this point, that damned Ragna should have already reached the Master Unit. The world was about to be rewritten, and his defeat marked the final chapter of the story that was soon to be no more.
"Oh?"
The voice brought him a deep discomfort. A disgust such as when one listens to a recording of their own voice. The hooded one turned around slowly, facing an impossible sight. Before him stood himself. The strongest being of all, protected by the most powerful of the Sankishin.
The very air sparked around that creature. The darkness that surrounded him, deepest than the abyss itself. The beast smiled in contempt, with fangs that could crunch the very fabric of reality. "So that is how it is." The monster's hands moved in anticipation, showing off sharp claws. His next opponent, Susanoo. "Squirm unsightly, die unsightly."
So that's how it was going to be. The lean ghost pulled out his butterfly knife, a demented smile twisting his lips into a crescent moon. "Heh heh heh… Come on, let's start already!"
REBEL 1
The knife gleamed in his hands with the first strike, an arch that begged for blood. The creature who was a God didn't have the reflexes to dodge, but the attack didn't truly hurt anything beyond his pride. The creature who was nothing more than a ghost easily dodged the slow retaliation.
What came out of his mouth were laugher and insults, so naturally that they barely registered in his thoughts. The butterfly knives danced in his hands, weak yet persistent blades. Slash by slash, he stood his ground and destabilized his opponent. Enveloping every gesture were the shadow serpents, chaining to the ground the being that belonged to the Heavens.
With one last kick, the powerful Unit tumbled to the ground. "You're way too weak, scum!"
REBEL 2
Susanoo got up, not a single scratch to be found in his skin. The pearly fangs seemingly gleamed, reflecting back the mockery from the hooded one's last comment. The knives once again pierced the air, just like the raspy voice that laughed as naturally as he breathed.
This time, there was a little more resistance. Between the shadows that restricted the God, black electricity came through, forcing the serpent to be more aware of his steps. Still, it was far too easy for the being with no restrictions to dodge the slow and heavy gestures of that living nightmare.
The victory once again came for the knives' insistence and the shadows' tenacity. "Weak as shit!"
REBEL 3
As if to mock his efforts, his opponent again rose up, with not a single dent to show from the previous assault. What was this dream, or whatever kind of wrong reality he currently found himself in? Without time to question the possibility that took him to that place, Terumi continued to attack, to rip the air apart with his knives in a useless attempt to forever scar the Unit that should be his body.
He was merely an essence, a force that fought against annihilation. Not even Izanami could bring him death, and apparently Ragna the Bloodedge had also failed. There was no doubt about his strength, about his power, he was just incapable of losing.
That was nothing more than the obvious, no matter how many illusions showed up before him. "Want me to hold back a bit more?"
REBEL 4
Again they both stood, and again the butterfly knives were the first to move, but this time a different slash cut through the air. The darkness, the same force behind the fangs of the dark serpents, turned against the being that controlled them. There was only pure power enveloping the claws that hit him with a precise strike.
Before he could understand what had happened, blood came up to his mouth and was forcefully spilled out from it. Returning the savagery that didn't even leave a scar on his body, the monster's moves were certainly slower, but they were also driven by a hatred beyond what the hooded one was capable of achieving.
His legs faltered. His opponent stood before him, contemptuous. "Is that it?"
REBEL 5
Pride didn't allow him to reach the ground. The cape flowed behind him as he charged, legs moving by their own volition. The ground he managed to reclaim wasn't enough to stop the immeasurable force that was Susanoo. With his fangs in a sneer, the monster defended himself from the weak blows of the one who didn't even have a proper physical body to damage him with.
Dodging the claws soon became the hooded one's first priority when the beast decided to strike back. The long tail, seemingly just another burden to be dragged along with the weight of that entire body, proved to be a ferocious weapon. There was not a part of that creature that wasn't ready for the massacre.
And again he was unable to endure that raw strength. "Is this the end already?"
REBEL 6
Pain came through his body like electric shocks, but he rose up with a wicked smile. This time the beast didn't allow for a first strike, but the hooded one already knew what to expect. Punches, kicks, a tail whip to try to destabilize him. The power was truly befitting the God that used it, but it was still in its incomplete form.
For there was only one Terumi, and he was right there. That cheap imitation could look like him, but it wasn't the true Susano'o. That title belonged only to himself, even if it had to be defended with butterfly knives instead of a sword, and with fingernails instead of claws. That's why he had to be patient, as much as his dirty blood instilled him to act. One misstep and he would be swallowed by the darkness.
But not acting was also a loss, as he soon discovered when his defences were shattered and the beast thrashed him. "How disappointing."
REBEL 7
His legs moved on their own, lifting his ethereal body with all the strength they still had. The sight was wrong in many levels, but that also held true to that dream nobody watched. The monstrous creature came forward in an attack, and the hooded one ran away just in time. Knives in hand, he called forth the darkness in an attempt to retaliate.
The dark serpents rushed forward, one after another, going against the darkness of the opponent's very presence. Fangs against claws, the Susanoo Unit began showing signs of weariness. A small retreat, one misstep that the hooded one tried to use to his advantage. But maybe that thoughtless charge was a hasty choice. From the monster's hands came a sword, a crude rod of energy that pierced through the ghostly body.
The pain only registered in his mind when the cut began to bleed. "You're nothing more than a burnt corpse."
REBEL 8
At this point, how many wounds had been opened in that imitation of skin? He held the butterfly knives firmly in hand, feeling his body burn. That humiliating scene had gone on way too far. He would not lose to a fake!
Terumi charged from the ground, right into the face of peril. The chains hit against themselves and the Unit's rigid skin with a loud metallic noise. The marks of the fangs and the small blades finally won against the monster's resistance, marking Susanoo's body and pride. The beast attacked fiercely, but even that small advantage wasn't enough to guarantee his comeback.
They both faltered, but only the black monster fell to the floor. "Stand up! I'm not satisfied yet!"
REBEL 9
Fulfilling what could very well be the hooded one's last request, Susanoo again stood tall. Now the slow and locked beast was no more. In its place there was only power, controlled by a maniac not unlike the one who accepted that fight with a demented smile on his face. They were both at their limits, and the challenger's breath faltered, countless wounds all over his body.
His arms and legs could be uncovered and weakened, but he was still the same trickster he'd always been. Inciting the beast, avoiding moves that became more and more furious, he fought a battle of instincts and patience. The damage was calculated, the flaws in the monster's defence were clear, and he could endure enough. Even if he was bleeding, as long as he managed that chance, that single moment…!
The chains would fly, with the serpent's fangs gnawing through the metal of that imitation. "Got you!"
Terumi WIN
And with a beastly scream, the monster of blackness, the fake God that stood before the one and only Susano'o, was gone.
In his place there was only an empty Unit, its detestable white forever a reminder of that certain hero that no longer existed. And in the serpent's fangs, fighting against the chains that bound his disgusting being, was nothing more than a reflection. "Ugh! You bastard...!"
Ah, that was an annoying voice. That was an annoying face. Like seeing a shameful picture inside an album you were sure you had thrown away. In spite of the bleeding, and despite his faulty breath, he couldn't stop himself from laughing. Laughing at himself, laughing at the weakness of that illusion, laughing at the entire impossibility of that situation
"What the hell do you think you're doing!? AH!" That yelp of pain was almost pleasant. It was surely better than the stupid smile he saw on that face the last time they faced off. Terumi kept kicking his fallen foe, who could only struggle against the dark chains in a useless attempt at escaping his fate. "Stop it, you...!"
"Or what?" He asked scornfully, getting down so he could pull the chains closer and face that detestable sight. He wanted to keep every detail of that disgusting appearance, and fill himself with the hatred that it brought to his mind. "What're you gonna do, scum?"
"What the hell are you doing, you shitty illusion!" It was amazing how, even at this point, that reflection still held onto its pride. "What's going on! How dare you take me out of my body!"
"That's my body." He answered, pulling out the butterfly knife for one last time. "And you're in the way."
The blade gleamed in the light that did not shine to the world, before it was buried deep into the weak flesh of that uncovered neck. Blood began to trickle down from the wound, leaving a scarlet path over the pale skin. The drops slowly dripped down his chest, tainting the white, the black and the yellow.
Pain finally came to him when the first drop fell over the hand that still held onto the knife's handle. "What the…" The chains, so tight moments before, disappeared and freed their captive. For an instant, their eyes met at the same level, and then Terumi tumbled down to the floor. The pain washed over his body along with the blood, burning all the way to the deeper parts of his essence.
He was the illusion. That was his nightmare.
Blood Pain II