The group stood outside of the mansion as they saw the newly opened underground route. Going down, they soon came across the portal stone itself and sitting in front of it was Barl.
"Barl! There you are!" Connor called out but got no response. "Uh...hello?"
"He can't hear us...he's in a meditative state to gather power." Jexi said.
"Surely, he's not careless enough to leave himself unguarded. If I were him, I would have my own men protecting me." Siege suggested.
"True...but he has the Barrier Style. However...I do get the sense there is more than just him down here." Jexi said.
"Got that right." a voice called as stepping out of the shadows were the other Knights of the Lost.
"So these are them. The Knights of the Lost." Ace said.
"This long lasting fight...must now reach its conclusion." Ursa said.
"I'm so sorry, Mayumi… but this just has to happen." Aimi said.
"You don't need to apologize, Ai. I wouldn't hold it against you anyway." Mayumi said.
"This may not have much to do with freedom...but we aren't just gonna turn our backs to Barl after all he's done for us." Rebellious said.
"That's right...even if this does have to lead to some bloodshed." Razor said.
"So this is the Knights of the Lost. Aptly named…" Richard remarked. "That aura of enigma that permeates their being, it only belongs to those who have wandered a realm of emptiness for a long time indeed."
"Who is this guy supposed to be?" Solace asked.
"Richard Liu. Leader of the Unmei Force. He's mostly stayed neutral in all this till now." Index said.
"Doesn't matter. If they wanna fight Barl, then we gotta fight them. Simple as that." Brave said as he and Aurora loaded their guns.
The last knight said nothing, only giving out a low breath that seemed to quiver the air.
"That guy must be Slayer." Hope said.
"This chill he gives off… it's like he's the Grim Reaper." Aqua said.
"Hey, you with the revolvers." Reimu remarked, before crossing her arms, referring to Brave. "Don't act like you give us much choice, you dragged us in, we just acted in accordance."
"Fair enough." Brave said. "Time for the battle to begin. Aurora!"
"Yes. Misty World!" Aurora said as mist began to fill the room.
"Heads up! Any illusions you see in this mist will be perceived as real!" Hope told Kogoro and the others in the X-Group.
"Dang...you're starting to bug the crap outta me!" Rebellious said. "This will silence you! The Rebellion Fist!" he said before it was blocked by a reflect.
"Too close." Aqua said.
"Don't let him hit you. If you do, everyone will turn against you." Cheetah said.
"And warning about illusions in a world of mist...not a smart move." Brave said as he fired his gun as a bullet went flying by.
"These people aren't pulling their punches." Elena said.
"Of course we aren't. If it's to protect our dear leader, we'd even strike down the gods themselves." Solace said.
"Of course...if you wish to leave this place...we would not judge you." Ursa said.
"No way. Not after we've come so far." David said.
"Somehow we figured one of you would say that. Don't say we didn't give any warning." Rebellious said.
"Cause this has just become your final stage!" Brave and Aurora said as both fired their guns all across the battlefield.
Chapter 40
Treasure on The Horizon
Cue BGM ~ Battle of Journey's End (Yuki K Remix)
"All this gun fire...wait...I just need to focus…" Connor said, shutting his eyes. "I've fired guns lots of times. So…" he said focusing. "They're in the rear corners of the room! Staying low to the mist!"
"Damn it...he figured that out from a few gun shots?" Brave said. "No choice. Monstrous Visage!" he said creating monsters from the adventure within the mist.
"Don't be fooled. They're just illusions." Jexi said as Ursa approached from behind.
"Bear Style: Grizzly's...Slap!" he said coming at him with a slap as Jexi quickly blocked.
"Oh...so you use some kind of bear style, huh? Makes sense given how you kinda look like one." Jexi joked.
"You dare to make light of this matter? Fine." Ursa said, pulling both arms back. "Bear Style: Arctic Demolition!" he said, bringing down two slaps as Jexi jumped back, as he saw the two strikes break part of the ground.
"He's only using slaps...makes sense since that's how most bears get what they want in the wild." Elena said.
"Now things are really heating up." Theo said before seeing Rebellious behind him.
"You ain't going anywhere hotshot! Have some of the Rebellion Fist!" Rebellious said.
"Theo!" Naomi said, pulling him back as Theo swung his keyblade up.
"Dang it. Almost had him." Rebellious said as some of his teammates just stared. "What?"
"Uh…" Razor said pointing to his head as Rebellious looked in a mirror to find his pompadour was sliced right off.
"The hell?!" Rebellious said.
"Hahahaha!" Saki laughed.
"Uh...sorry?" Theo asked.
"You and your chick...you're both dead meat." he growled as he broke the mirror.
"Uh oh. He's pissed." Naomi said.
"And he just got 7 years of bad luck too." Ajna said.
"Not the point, Ajna. You have any idea how much guys like him covet that hairstyle?" Ty said.
"Yeah, take a page from Josuke." David said. "I mean, I know I'm not as punk as him, but come on. Even I know that."
"You cut off my hair… I'm gonna break your face!" Rebellious said. "Earth Rebellion!" he said punching the ground. The ground around Theo and Naomi then started to change as ppspikes popped out as they jumped to avoid it.
"He can make inanimate objects revolt too?!" Theo said. "We gotta take care of this guy."
"Without getting hit ourselves, no less." Naomi said.
"Then we'll end it with one strike." Theo said. "Take the bet with me?" he asked, offering a hand.
"Yeah. Let's do it!" Naomi said, clasping it.
"Here we go! Virgo Mode!" Theo said as his keyblade changed into a drill as they spun towards Rebellious as the earth rose up.
"You can't stop us now!" they both called out drilling through and plowed right into him. "Earthrise Drill Strike!"
"Gah!" Rebellious said, coughing blood as he stumbled backwards. "Dang...it...those two are definitely...riding the waves of...free love." he said before falling unconscious as the ground settled.
"They beat one of the top four that easily? So they aren't pulling any punches. That's fine...we won't either." Razor said as claws started growing all over him. "Time to unleash the Slash Beast!"
"This is the same move from that last time." Cheetah said.
"Yeah, except he's on the ground and not in space." Belladonna said.
"Rar!" Razor roared moving at quick speeds and nicking a few of the fighters before hitting a wall.
"He's even faster than in space. But it doesn't look like he can change direction." Cheetah said.
"Then let's see if I can slow him down." Al said.
"You can't stop me!" Razor said charging. "If it's for Lord Barl…. I'll rip the whole world apart! Raaaaaaaagh…!"
"Now!" Al said as Chronos manifested above her. "Slowga!" she called as a glyph of a clock moving slow appeared around Razor.
"What?!" Razor said as he was affected. "Im...possible!"
"Apologies, Razor… but there is only one beast meant to reign with their claws." Cheetah said as she delivered a downward kick onto him, taking him down.
"Alright!" Al cheered.
"Al, behind you!" Hope called out as Al quickly defended against a scythe strike from Slayer.
"This is interesting, Grim Reaper vs Grim Reaper." Al said.
"Slayer, you know your orders." Index said. "Destroy all who endanger Lord Barl."
Slayer shook his head in acknowledgement as he unleashed dozens of cutting waves from his scythe as he spun it.
"Stop!" Al called, stopping time around the attacks. She quickly moved to defend as Slayer was attempting to strike from behind.
"I get it...the attacks were a diversion to try and get her blindside." Ainz said.
"I thought you were a knight, not a coward!" Al said, clashing with Slayer.
"Coward...you think something like that matters in a full on battle?" Index said. "We will do anything to protect his majesty...including tactics such as this."
"Don't you knights have a code of honor?" Al asked.
"I think you have the wrong impression of us. Allow me to correct that." Index said placing his hands on the ground. "Convert! Earth to Quicksand!" he said as the ground changed into quicksand.
"Whoa, what just happened?!" Mii asked as everyone started sinking.
"It's alchemy, he changed the ground properties!" Kogoro said.
"Yes...so long as I know the makeup of an object, I can change its properties. Hence why its called the Alchemy Style." Index said.
"Heh...clever old man." Brave said. "Think I'll take a shot at that neutral guy, Richard. I'll...wait...where'd he go?"
"Brave! Behind you!" Aurora called out, as Richard came from behind, with a sukima, blades drawn.
"Funny, for a sharpshooter, you took your eyes off me." Richard remarked, before he then feinted into a kick that knocked Brave back. "So you want a fight with me, I'd respect you for doing this with reasonable intentions, but I ain't going to let you ruin the worlds, and endanger my own sister through all of this."
"This guy...he's not gonna go down easy...maybe I can pluck his heart strings." Brave said. "Illusion Art: Hearts Desire!" Brave said as the mist covered him before standing there was Heiwa. "Please...don't hurt me."
Richard was silent, before he then approached the illusion Heiwa, before he then grabbed her, and slammed her into the ground.
"Nice try, but the thing is about illusions, you need to have a reliable setting." Richard mocked Brave, as the illusion Heiwa disappeared, as Brave was nowhere nearby to be seen. "...Hmph, I see what the game is here."
"Aurora! I need back up on this!" Brave called out.
"I'm on it! Beastman Martial Arts! High Rise Rabbit Strike!" Aurora said coming at him with a drop kick.
Richard barely noticed the attack, as he swivelled around, and made a half-guard with the time he had, as it knocked him back, although his guard managed to stop him from being knocked down.
"Heh, good shot." Richard remarked.
"Now...let's finish him!" Brave said as both he and Aurora got close with guns drawn. "Sorry pal...but we're taking your life now."
Richard looked to both sides, as he was flanked from both sides, with their aims blocking almost every route of escape.
"Hah. Well, that's a good way to keep me locked down. However…" Richard remarked, before several sukimas appeared around him. "Who said that I only used my little gaps for teleportation only?"
Richard then shoved his hands into them, before he then pulled out twin pistols himself, before firing a two-sided barrage, which broke the encirclement, as Richard suddenly sped up, and fired at the two of them while running and gunning.
"Sorry if this is a mockery to you, but it's been a while since I held guns to fight, you know." Richard remarked. "However, I agree with one thing, this ends now."
Richard then flipped both of his pistols, before they began to charge up, as they fired a massive blast of energy where the two members of the Knights of the Lost were, kicking up a lot of dust from the impact itself.
"He...got the drop on us…" Aurora said.
"Damn...we...underestimated this guy." Brave said before the two fell to the ground as the illusions and mist started to clear.
"To have used my sister… He could have used anyone else, but her…" Richard remarked to himself, regarding the illusion earlier. "Could it be that he had a sister himself… or is she right here before me…?"
"This sand is starting to get annoying." Siege scowled.
"I got this." David said freezing the ground.
"Hmm...that was smart. However, a simple conversion will reduce it to water." Index said.
"Bad move there, buddy." David said.
"And why is that?" Index asked.
"Because I can just freeze it all over again." David said.
"Hmm...fair point." Index said. "Fine...then I'll do something a bit...unusual." he said. "Elemental Conversion! Change Ice to Armor!" he said as the ice wrapped around Index as a single suit of armor.
"Really? Armor? That's the best you can do?" David asked.
"Hahaha...I have yet to begin to fight. Conversion. Change Armor arms to cannons!" he said as the arms changed to cannons. "Fire!" he said as they fired ice balls at the heroes.
"Oh no you don't." Simon said, vocalizing his voice as a barrier formed in front of the heroes.
"You are persistent in defying me, but simple changes will not save you." Index said. "Convert Armor to Tank!" he said as it changed into a large tank as it rammed the barrier, shattering it.
"Gotcha. Mayumi, now!" David said as Mayumi fired a rocket.
"What's this?!" Index said as he jumped out as the rocket destroyed the tank.
"Now I've got you!" David said as he fired an ice blast at Index.
"Solace!" Index called out.
"Of course. Sealing away attack!" Solace said holding a bottle as it sucked in the attack. "There is nothing my Sealing Style cannot lock away." she said before seeing cracks in the bottle. "Incredible...so much power in one attack."
"You think that I'm wearing kid gloves here?" David asked, tightening his gloves. "I haven't even begun to play."
"This boy is a danger. I must…" Solace said, grabbing a new bottle. "Sealing away David Ishihara!" she said as it started to pull him in.
"You think parlor tricks like that can contain me?" David said as he invoked Sapphire God: Armament.
"Don't underestimate my Sealing Style! I will seal away all of the world's evils one day." Solace said.
"Do you know what I think should be sealed right now?" David asked.
"Don't even say it." Solace said.
"That pretty little mouth of yours." David said.
"That is...wait...where's the bottle with the…" Solace said before looking behind to see Ace holding it.
"Hey." Ace said, opening the bottle and releasing the attack.
"No!" Solace said as the attack hit her dead on as she collapsed, breaking the other bottle she was holding in the process.
"Sweet dreams." Ace said.
"Phew… Thanks for the save there." David said, making a thumbs-up with his clawed hand.
"No problem." Ace smiled.
"They've already taken out five of us. And one of them was part of the upper echelon." Aimi said. "This was never going to be easy."
"Aimi, do you truly wish to fight your friend?" Lenneth asked.
"I don't...but I'm not about to betray my other friends either." Aimi said, drawing both her fans. "Since that first defeat...I've trained my Fan Style to its limits and even mastered dual wielding. I will defend his majesty with my life."
"I see. You are an honorable warrior indeed." Lenneth said.
"Now...fall to my fans. As sharp as shuriken." Aimi said as she tossed her fans as they flew right past Lenneth, getting close enough to cut her cheeks.
"I see. If it's a battle you wish." Lenneth said as she drew her sword. "You shall have it."
"This is no battle." Aimi said, reclaiming her fans. "This...is a fan dance." she said. "Ultimate Color Fighting Sacred Art: Multifold Fan Dance!" she said as more fans floated beside her as she moved gracefully across the battlefield as each fan was fired with each movement she made.
As each fan was fired across with the group, Ty watched as everyone was fighting against Aimi's fans, Ursa, Index and Slayer. He looked around before coming in front.
"Stop it! Just...STOP!" Ty yelled as everyone was looking at him while fighting. "I understand you guys wanna protect your king, but that's no reason to hide your true feelings. Are any of you really okay with this?!"
"Who is this guy?" Aimi asked.
"Ty Takahashi...former leader of the Shadow Strike Force. Disbanded two months ago." Index said.
"Wait… Disbanded? What happened?" David asked.
"Nothing happened...it all just fell apart after the sins left. Couldn't keep it together so it disbanded." Ty said.
"So you are all alone." Index said.
"No, I'm not alone." Ty said. "I've lost the team I put together, but I haven't lost the friends I made along the way. When you're truly alone is when you feel like you've lost everything. That you have nowhere to go, and after the Force disbanded…that feeling swelled up in me too."
"So you were almost lost? If you had ended up in our place, we would have welcomed you without much thought." Aimi said.
"Believe me, if I had the offer to join you guys, I would've taken it back then." Ty said. "But do you know why I'm still here? Because I didn't give up on the fact that I still had friends! Even if it was just me after everyone left… I still have all the bonds I forged with Jexi, David, Hope, and everyone." Ty said holding his dragon pendant. "If I were to become a Lost…. What would happen to the bonds I held with my friends? What would change?"
Aimi gasped. "Mayumi...he's...he's right. Ending up in the Lost...it changes nothing about the person you are. We formed this group but...we're all still the same people we were when we ended up there." Aimi said. "I...I can't keep doing this." she said, dropping her fans.
"Aimi, what are you doing?" Ursa asked.
"What does it look like? I'm surrendering." Aimi said getting on her knees with her hands up.
"But… you can't!" Ursa said. "We're fighting for our king!"
"He's no king. He's just like all of us. Someone who was lonely and looking for people to belong with. He only got this way because we all built him up like that." Aimi said.
"Blasphemy!" Ursa said.
"No...the girl is right." Index said. "I think I knew that better than any of us, being the one who taught him all about the worlds and color fighting. Yet...it all leads to something like this. This shows I haven't done him any good as a teacher." he said joining Aimi on the ground.
Slayer simply looked at his scythe which was inches away from Al's neck. He simply sighed as he dropped it and dropped on the ground as well.
"You...you cannot seriously be surrendering like this!" Ursa growled.
"Ursa. You're the only one still standing. I believe everyone's points have been made." Cheetah said.
"She's right. Everyone has lost the will to fight. It's best you join them as well." Leopardmon said.
"Please...don't make this any harder." Aimi said.
"This is…" Ursa said as he looked over to Barl. "Young lord...I hope you'll forgive me for this later." he said, dropping to the ground.
"Well...5 defeated...and 4 surrendered. The Knights of the Lost...have been defeated." Index said.
"Phew…" Ty breathed in relief. "I'm so glad this ended without any more bloodshed. I don't think I could handle any more fighting."
"You were the one who stood up and made the move to stop all this, Ty." Hope said. "That was quite the speech you gave, too."
"Yeah...that was something...now…let's grab this portalstone and stop all this." Ty said reaching out for it only for a hand to grab his arm only to see the now awake Barl standing there.
"Do not...even think about it." Barl said.
"What the…?" Ty asked.
"Oh crap… I know where this is going." David said.
"Know where what is…" Barl said before he looked in shock at all of the knights. "My...friends…" he said. "How...how dare you treat them this way. This is your fault!" he growled in anger.
"Our fault? You caused this whole mess in the first place!" David said. "They wouldn't have had this happened to them if you had just left that Portalstone alone."
"Barl, I told you before, and I tell you again… the moment you walked this path, we were enemies." Richard spoke with a steely tone. "Even so, we only sought to defeat your aides. They came to your aid for you, and we respected that. David tells no lies. Your actions wrought these consequences, so the blame does not lie squarely on us."
"That...can't be...I...I refuse to believe it." Barl said as he grasped his heart as the barrier around him started to fluctuate.
"No…" Index said.
"Let me guess, bad sign." David said.
"Barl isn't someone who sticks to conviction. He did this for our sake, I see that now. But now his abilities are becoming dangerously unstable because of his interaction with that damn stone." Index said.
"I...I will change this goddamn multiverse. I'll fix everything wrong with it!" Barl said as a wave erupted from the Portalstone.
"Crap! Brace!" Siege exclaimed.
"Oh god, this is not good. Everyone brace yourselves!" David said.
"Hey…" Aimi said weakly to the ground as the wave was spreading out. "No matter what you have to do, no matter what happens to us. Please...save him." She said.
"We'll… We'll do what we can." David said.
The wave then overwhelmed everyone as everything went white.
