.hack/EVA: Catharsis: Chains of Fate
Disclaimer: In this universe in the quantum foam, I do not own or in any way shape or form hold a claim to the .hack series or Neon Genesis Evangelion.
" " denotes speech
'italics' denotes thought
'bold' denotes location names
'bold italics' denotes skill use
Θ Sickened Imprisoned Fallen Angel
Numbing winds howled across the surface of the icy wastes of Θ Sickened Imprisoned Fallen Angel, the field where the first legends of The World had formed, where the Descendants of Fianna had been named an age ago after destroying a powerful beast that kept imprisoned a fallen angel. Low-hanging mists obscured vision, as a blizzard raged on unabated in the dimming light of dusk, a living plague stripping away the veneer of illusion that kept reality in place.
From field's center rose a slender icy spire, upon which sat an evil-shaped form that could command absolute terror, a fusion of the unholy power of AIDA with a twisted angel fallen from the heavens, too massive to compare. From its seat of power, the creature watched over the field below, its great fortress and staging ground for its siege of the network. Already, many lands had fallen to its shadowy tendrils, the creatures there corrupted into new vassals for a jealous lord, seeking servants with which to deliver the final judgment.
And like any sensible creature, it had erected a defense system to keep unwanted intrusions out, sealing off gate-in access to its location by anything that was not linked to AIDA, with a number of anti-existences to eliminate anyone who did manage to bypass the gate. Among these "antibodies" were AIDA-infected Doppelgangers, Heaven's Dooms, Solid Eyes, and three Spectrum Dragons (these being The One Sin, God Eater, and The One Death, by power level), each of which protected the core of AIDA-Angel Iruel. Really, it was quite a comprehensive defense, and anyone appearing on the ground would have a difficult time fighting his or her way through to the central spire without being overwhelmed.
But like most tactical planners operating before the ascension of air power, Iruel had left one area largely unprotected: the sky. True, visibility was terrible, several AIDA(Helen) lurked in the air and anyone attempting to move through such terrible winds would likely have a difficult time of it, but then again, the probabilities of an enemy arriving via aerial insertion were slim at best.
Aside from the shrieking of the elements, all was silent for a time as the AIDA continued to spawn—until sounded A in the fifth octave, as three balls of molten light drifted lazily through the darkness, smashing to the ground with a shockwave of azure flame to reveal the Three Azure Knights, three copies of the legendary heroes of The World: R1 who served as an anti-intrusion device for Aura.
There was a pale, stitched-together version of Kite, leader of the dot-hackers, surrounded by azure flames. In his hands were dual swords of immense power, triple bladed weapons called "Empty Skies." Standing with him were feral versions of the two Descendants of Fianna, Orce of Azure Sea and Balmung of Azure Sky, wreathed in red and green, respectively. Both seemed…twisted, as this Balmung possessed stick-like wings and a demonic grin baring needle-like teeth to disturbing effect, armed with the wicked curved "Empty Mirage." Orca, the battle-scarred barbarian, had also been twisted, with this version of him given more armor and a more elaborate coat of body paint, while he wielded the powerful broadsword called "Empty Shadow."
Living memories of the leader of the dothackers, together with the duo who had conquered this field once in the past, they were the proof that belief equaled power.
They stood in the winds, snarling at the sight of such a large AIDA infestation, and as one, turned towards AIDA-Angel Iruel's main body, thinking that if they could destroy that, the other anomalies would be easier to deal with. Weapons at the ready, they charged—
As hexagons of orange light flared into being, barring their path, and in the distance, a monstrous chelonian form loomed ever closer, as mobile aerial fortress Net Slum Tartarga drew into range.
Net Slum Tartarga
"We are approaching the coordinates, my queen," rumbled the great tortoise upon which Net Slum rested. "The Azure Knights are already active on the scene, but their attacks have triggered a barrier from Iruel's main vessel."
"AT field…" whispered Skari, as the hated orange hexagons came into view, the proof that the foe was an Angel. This time, he would have to fight without an EVA, but he had faith in the gift he had been given, in his blades, and in the girl who promised to protect him. "We have to neutralize the phase space!"
'But how will we do that without an EVA's AT Field or a Positron Rifle with all the power in Japan?'
"That barrier is on the order of Corbenik's Supreme Defense, though not quite as powerful as that," noted Morganna, her night-black dress flapping violently in the wind as she studied the obstacle before her. "Still, it will be extremely difficult to lower or erode by conventional means - though far from impossible to breach. For if an Absolute Terror field is maintained by the will of its creator, then I will simply have to nullify it. After all, I possess the power of Twilight in the form of an Epitaph! Come forth by my will, my Aberrant Key Tarvos! Come, forth...Avenger!"
At the Sorceress' words, a glowing pattern of runes and glowing glyphs of eyes encrusted her form, power made manifest in physical form, as a great flare of light arose and filled the surrounding space. To those who could see Avatar Space, golden rings of power shimmered into existence, condensing, coalescing into the winged form of a red and gold mechanical angel of battle, the false Epitaph modeled on Tarvos.
Unfolding its massive wings, the Morganna's False Avatar shot off into the night, intending to test the Will of Morganna against the will of a rogue Angel.
"Skari, summon your guardian," ordered the Harvest Cleric Tsukinoki, staff in hand as she surveyed the situation unfolding below. "You will ride it to your designated position, for the ground below has too many AIDA creatures to make a direct approach over land."
"Yes, ma'am," Skari acknowledged, the blue-haired Adept Rogue closing his eyes and focusing, clenching his fist as he mumbled under his breath. "Come on, I'm…right here, Twilight Guardian!"
The warbling cry of whale song signaled his success, as before him appeared the golden dumbbell monster that Morganna had gifted to him, its gelatinous surface ripping with the sound of its call. Summoning his blades, he flipped into the air and mounted the powerful beast, with Lycoris floating right beside him.
"You and Lycoris, proceed to the Spectrum Dragon God Eater and defeat it," she directed. "As Iruel's body seems to be spread over the entire field, even if its main core is on the mountain, the more of its creatures we defeat, the weaker the barrier will be. Zelkova, Obsidian Knights, to The One Sin. As for you, Tomoyami…"
"Yes?" the pigtailed girl asked expectantly, as she and her party were already mounted on their Steam Bikes, ready for deployment.
"Take to the field, using the bikes for hit and run tactics," the Sorceress in White commanded. "You will take out the AIDA Doppelgangers so they cannot come to the defense of the spectrum dragons, or the main core. Now go, and may the blessings of the Twilight Dragon be with you."
The others did as she ordered, heading off for their respective destinations, each determined to bring back victory. The odds were against them, but provided all went well, they should have a chance, particularly with the Azure Knights already on the scene. Now it was her turn.
Tsukinoki was about to send Net Slum Tartarga away and head off into the night, when the footfalls from behind caused her to whirl, instinctively bringing her staff to a guard position. This probably saved her life, as she intercepted a falling gunblade belonging to—
"Lei Zas! No…it can't be," she whispered, catching sight of the ones who had dared invade her realm. "You…what are you doing here, Siarl of the Seven Eyes? And who is that Steam Gunner with you?"
The powerful Harvest Cleric hurled a wave of light at her enemies to buy herself some room, stepping back so that she could consider her next moves and what her foes' counters were likely to be.
Before her was a figure she had half-expected to show up, and another she had thought destroyed, since AIDA had corrupted the character data beyond recovery. The expected one was of course the black and silver robed Macabre Dancer Siarl of the Seven Eyes, who apparently commanded the other…an AIDA mirage of an entity thought long destroyed, now recreated as an AIDA creature with strange magic glyphs on her body, similar to…Iruel.
"Ah, Helba, Queen of the Dark, it is an honor to meet you at last," the silver-haired boy quipped with a cruel and arrogant smirk. "Although you are rumored to have a flair for the dramatic, I must confess that I did not expect for you to attack this place by air. By forcing an entry via data grid or Outer Dungeon, yes, but something like this…I commend you for your audacity. But I'm afraid I cannot allow your interference to continue, as I have other business to attend to. Melchior, eliminate the Mistress of Net Slum. She has become a hindrance to the scenario."
With that, the Macabre Dancer vanished from sight, leaving only the fallen Knight to face her former master. For the mirage was indeed a corrupted version of Melchior, whose light chain mail and robes had been replaced with spiky black and grey plate armor shot through with veins of red, while the appearance had also been changed, with pale gold eyes peering out from a face framed with white-blonde hair, and traceries of magic circuits inscribed over her form. But perhaps the greatest change was that this Steam Gunner was no longer an Obsidian Knight, although she was indeed cloaked in darkness…
Clang! Thwack!
Sword and staff, creator and created one, knight and queen, these two figures clashed in the middle of Net Slum, warring for dominance in an almost purely physical struggle that allowed no room for spells or bullets. Indeed, there would be no time for that, as Helba would need every bit of time and skill she could muster to counter the frenzied attacks of the corrupted AI.
"Tartarga, quickly, to another field," she called out, her first thought the protection of the denizens of Net Slum. The longer the giant turtle remained over this infested battlefield, the greater the chance more AIDA would come chasing after them, and all available defenses, dothackers and Azure Knights alike, had already been committed to the field. And while the denizens of the Slums could defend themselves in a pinch against most foes, Tsukinoki was far from certain that this would hold true against AIDA creatures as well, and so the Queen of the Dark would have to see to the defense of her city alone. After all, that was the duty of a Queen...
Taking advantage in her opponent's momentary lapse in focus, Steam Gunner Melchior lunged forward, swinging her gun-blade once-twice-thrice-and a fourth time to decapitate her creator and literally disarm her. But the attempt was rebuffed, her fierce strokes countered by equally fierce blocks from a staff, Helba holding her own against her fallen servitor as sounds of metal against metal rang out in the distance.
For long minutes, the battle raged - a contest that was inherently weighted to one side from the beginning. Helba's opponent was quicker, stronger, and had the advantage of class, after all, as well as enhancement by the Shadow, while Helba herself, though a skilled hacker, was only human. Still, no mortal would have been foolish enough to underestimate a hacker queen in her own domain, fighting with her back against the wall to protect something she cared about.
But then, Melchior wasn't mortal anymore, was she?
Swish! Crunch!
A hiss sounded in the air as a blade cut wind and nothing else, Helba having ducked low to avoid a slash aimed at her temple. But she did not escape unscathed, as her opponent anticipated this, swinging the butt of her weapon upwards, knocking the helm from the Sorcerer-Queen's head, revealing her face for the first time since a desperate battle against the Wave years ago.
Whirr!
The Sorceress spun her staff so to create a sort of shield, raising it for a blow—while simultaneously lashing out with her foot to attack temple and side, two vital points at once. But Melchior only smirked, blocking the staff and halting the kick with an armored hand, grabbing the outstretched leg and pulling the Harvest Cleric close for a killing blow.
Unbeknownst to her, the Steam Gunner had played right into Helba's hands.
"Suvi Lei!" chanted the Queen of the Dark, naming the curse that would bind her opponent's hand and foot, giving her a momentary window to attack as she slashed at the fallen servant's neck with the sharpened end of her staff.
But the spell did not hold, for even as she cast it, the intricately glowing patterns on Melchior flashed, negating the effects of the magic, and the AIDA Mirage blocked with her gunblade once again, whirling it and stabbing point-blank at the Sorceress in White.
Desperately, Helba twisted her body to dodge it, avoiding most of the damage, but not all, as she was not fast enough to keep from taking a grazing slash wound to her side—one she winced at upon discovering she could feel, the pain registering acutely in her physical body.
"Heh, so you have discovered another effect of the Angel's hacking," Melchior noted impassively, bringing her weapon up for a finishing stroke to crush Helba's skull, one that was parried by a staff that swept towards her feet to trip her. But the corrupted AI easily avoided the attack. "Did you think me your equal, Queen of the Dark? Did you think yourself the equal of Naoko Akagi, the genius programmer? Your assumptions of your own skill were too high!"
This the fallen Knight whispered as she moved in a literal blur, the shadows wrapping around her as she relentlessly struck at her former master, with blade, with feet, with armored hands, and yet somehow, the Mistress of Net Slum held on, although her body took damage just from moving, her form becoming more stressed and strained with each moment the fight continued. Not only by effort of withstanding the physical blows, but by fatigue of intensive combat, and by the lances of AIDA being hurled at her, which her data encryption could only resist for so long.
Dodge, weave, parry, block.
"Even if you can predict how I am going to strike, it is a matter of course for you to tire eventually, as you cannot expect to defeat my superior strength," the Steam Gunner sneered, cold amber eyes calculating the measure of the Sorceress in White. "You can oppose me all you wish, but you know you cannot win, for in the end you are…only human."
"As you were once!" the Sorceress in White countered, catching Melchior's gunblade on the smooth of her staff, and bringing the weapon down upon the AI's shoulder with every ounce of strength she had, with her efforts rewarded by the sound of a very satisfying crunch.
Pow!
While not quite as deadly as a sword, an armored fist to the face was definitely not something to take lightly, as Helba found out the hard way, her attempt to ward off the blow misguided as the gunner's blade swept in at her from the side.
"Damn, simple injury doesn't stop it," she muttered, bearing the pain by cursing and activating a copy of the Iruel self-destruction program as she cried out a spell's true name. "Rue Kruz!"
Once more the intricately glowing patterns on Melchior flared up to negate the magic-but that was exactly what Helba wanted, as she hurled her staff at her opponent during the period when she would be momentarily blinded by the flash of light, ordering "Program Activate!" Melchior instinctively parried the staff hurtling towards her with her blade, but the she made contact, arcs of electricity raced up the Steam Gunner's blade and into her form, forcibly burning off the enhancements of Iruel with a hiss and the acidic tang of seared flesh.
"What?" the rogue AI shrieked, feeling for the first time what it meant for pain of a thousand suns to be burned into her flesh. "How dare you...?"
Her icy control shattered, the fallen Knight screamed, loosing the feared spears of darkness that every AIDA-PC had at his or her disposal, knowing that Helba wouldn't be able to block them all.
But in the face of certain death...
"Hard to port!" the Queen of the Dark called out, focused as ever, though addressing something else entirely as she withdrew and tossed a second staff towards the mass of shadow, watching as the streamers of darkness lanced past them towards her defenseless-
"Detonate!"
Within the congealed mass of darkness, the staff exploded in a sphere of sparks and silver light so bright it was blinding, canceling the manifestation of AIDA weaponry with its static, while below them, the great turtle banked hard to port, tilting the battlefield so that with a slight nudge, either combatant might lose her balance.
Not even bothering to try and remain stable, Helba charged, barreling into the Steam Gunner with her shoulder and knocking both of them off the bridge, down the turtle's side, and out onto the open air, where the two grappled for dominance, even their freefalling forms whistled through the air, the hard stone of the Lost Ground Θ Hidden Forbidden In Heat, Molasses Mansion Sif Berg fast coming up to meet them.
Thud! Crash!
Melchior won the grapple, forcing Helba to take the brunt of impact as they crashed onto the unyielding stone of the field below.
"Foolish!" the fallen Knight spat, seeing the broken body of the Queen of the Dark below her, seemingly dazed by the collision. "Did you really think that was enough to destroy me? You had no chance of victory to begin with!"
Down hurtled the gunblade to finish the pathetic excuse for a duel, closing in to pierce the heart, but somehow the Queen of the Dark rolled to the side and avoided it, recovering to her feet with yet another staff in hand, preparing for her adversary's next attack, her eyes grim with determination as her gravely wounded body fought just to stay standing, to ignore the agony she felt.
The dark figure moved, closing in on the white-clad sorceress in an instant, thrusting her AIDA-infused gunblade, but it is deflected once again. Flipping back, she poured the power of numerous spears of darkness into her weapon and lunged once again, this time smashing aside the intervening staff with pure brute power, the force of the blow sending Helba to the ground.
In the World, one is not supposed to bleed, but somehow, the virus corrupting the system was making the damage all too real, as the stones were stained red with pooling blood, a sure sign that things were turning for the worse, as the Sorceress in White knew that her body in The World had suffered too much abuse to go on for much longer. And given that she couldn't log out, that her mind was connected to The World by the angel's hacking, if she died here, she would become a Lost One - at best.
"This is it, Helba," the other crowed in triumph, savoring the moment when her former controller would be vanquished. "Your foolishness and audacity in attempting to fight the shadow, your manipulation and actions, your acceptance of this battle when you know you cannot defeat me, I who have been blessed by both AIDA and Iruel? Do you understand it? Do you understand how weak you truly are?"
The voice of Melchior echoed through the stone courtyard, resonating in Helba's bruised and battered form, deep in bones she was sure were broken. The Sorceress in White had few cards left to play, but her mind was telling her to resist, to go forward, even after having stumbled. For she could not give in, even if she was merely bluffing herself…for the sake of the denizens of Net Slum that she has sworn to protect, for the sake of the dothackers, and the World, she had to get up.
So she did, drawing out her last staff from inventory, the trusted weapon 8 Wise Men that had accompanied her in the time of the first dothackers, and attacking with it.
"Ani Zot! Lei Zas!" she croaked out, unsealing orbs of light and claws of darkness to attack her enemy, though the Steam Gunner merely leaped out of the way, avoiding the blows easily, swinging her blade to end the match—only to be blocked.
Melchior pushed forward with an endless barrage of blows, her strikes coming as relentlessly as waves crash against a rocky bluff, the difference in the characters' powers obvious. One was an AIDA Mirage, immune to fatigue, pain and other such, gifted with powers beyond any player - and infinite hit points, to boot. The other a hacked PC with max stats, but still ultimately human. In a matchup of strength vs strength, the AIDA Mirage would likely win every time.
"Do you really think you can protect these beings in Net Slum from the AIDA?" the fallen Knight continued, her sibilant voice taunting the Queen of the Dark. "You couldn't protect them in the End of the World. You couldn't protect the MAGI from being infected by Iruel. You couldn't even protect me from being destroyed by an AIDA-PC!"
For an instant, Helba's mind blanked from the words, but with her eyes she glared back at Melchior, meeting her gaze.
"I will protect them," she whispered fiercely, continuing to fight, continuing to block, to parry, to jab and lance out, "Above all else, I will protect them, even if I have failed in the past…as have you, Naoko, who murdered a helpless child because you could."
"What—?" the AIDA-PC's face went deathly pale as her form shook with rage. "How dare you…you who use children to fight for you, sending them to their deaths for your precious ideals!"
Enraged, Melchior attacked with her lances of shadow, pouring the weight of a world's contempt, anger, resentment into them to fuel her strike, an attack without elegance that comes smashing down remorselessly, executed only with brute strength to destroy the enemy before her.
The staff in Helba's hands flared with molten light as she spun it faster and faster in her hands, counterattacking even as a spear of AIDA impaled her, then another, then another. Against her opponent's ruthless power, she placed her trust in her skill at weaving protections from AIDA, for she could not retreat now, not when there was nowhere to run. Thus, she denied defeat with every last ounce of her strength, for to die here would be but a meaningless end, and so she raised her head in defiance, muttering "Pha Repth", healing the non-data related damage.
Pain, terrible, shooting pain burnt through all her nerves, but there was something beyond anger in the way Melchior is striking at her, as if the Steam Gunner was striking at herself for a mistake she made long ago. She remembered Rei I, remembered how in the end her pride destroyed her, showed how hollow she really was, leading to her suicide. And yet, as a scientist, the fallen knight rationalized it, even as she struck once more, swinging her blade with superhuman might.
The Sorceress in White blocked the attack with her staff, managing to interpose the haft of her weapon with the cutting edge of her foe's - but she could not block the transfer of momentum, which flung her into the stone wall near the Chaos Gate with a sickening thud. But Helba simply got up once more, holding her ground, refusing to give an inch, even advancing as she weathered the storm of blades hurtling towards her, emptying herself of worry and letting her body flow to dodge and parry the attacks. For if the mind was trapped within The World, then one can turn that to become an advantage.
Mind over matter, she refused to fall, using the Smokescreen item to temporarily turn herself invisible to gain a bit of breathing room as she made ready, staff firmly in hand, preparing for the final encounter.
"I am Helba, Queen of the Dark…and this World is my home," she voiced, eyes blazing in the dimness as she stood every inch a queen, ignoring all wounds, all of the data threatening to seep from her body. "And though I send children to battle, I am willing to fight beside them. Can you say the same for you, Melchior?"
"What?" the AIDA-PC asked incredulously. "How can you still be…?"
Helba charged with blinding speed, even as her avatar began to splinter and flicker, data streaming off every one of her limbs, protections almost broken, pain wracking every bit of her…the Queen of the Dark, master of sorcery and ranged combat, standing toe to toe with a swordswoman intent on killing her.
Down swept the gun blade, up rises the staff, blocking, stabbing, opening up the defenses for a blow to the face, leg, arm, side, with a frenetic strength greater than before.
'Where is this power coming from? She is only human!'
Yet Melchior knew that could not make light of her enemy anymore, not in this state, and so launched a killing blow for the neck with all her might—but the blade was caught in the floating rings of the staff, caught and—
Crack!
With a twist, shattered, leaving only a broken weapon behind.
'Has she turned her own character into an anti-AIDA virus?'
The Steam Gunner had underestimated her opponent, it seemed, drawing another bayonet from inventory and a sword made of pure AIDA to counter her opponent's single weapon. Surely, the Harvest Cleric could in no way deal with a dual-wielder.
Weapons crashed together in space filled with sparks, a killing zone created from thrust, parry, riposte, remise, where anything entering would be cut to pieces by nigh infinite corruption. Yet even against the full power of AIDA infused in a blade, the staff 8 Wise Men endured, even striking back and almost breaking yet another weapon.
"I am the Mistress of Net Slum, and I will not lose!" the Queen of the Dark resolved, launching another volley of attacks, with her opponent now the desperate one. She would not allow another Twilight Incident to occur, even if it meant if her own destruction. Repelling an AIDA blade and getting back into stance, she bid the enemy come on with an unwavering gaze.
Both charged and—
Squelch!
With a last gasp, the two skewered each other, one with the pointed end of a staff, the other with an AIDA-infused weapon, making no attempt at defense.
"Looks like you lose after all, Helba," Melchior panted smugly. "After all, I can regenerate from this while—"
"Detonate!"
A howl of anguish burst from Melchior's maw, as the staff jammed through her spine erupted in a runaway cascade reaction that built upon itself over and over and over, searing, rending, blighting, cleansing the field with the light of a thousand suns.
Avatar Space, Morganna POV
For the first time since she had become human, and returned to The World, Morganna felt aspects of her old power returning to her, at least the equivalent of 1/8 of her original strength, as an Avatar was first and fundamentally an expression of her power. True, the particular Epitaph she was using was one that had been created as a replacement for the stolen Tarvos by a genius programmer who would have made himself a god, but in some ways the irregularity of it suited her.
In any case, possessing the form of a red and gold mechanical angel of battle was pleasing to her, and the former goddess of The World did appreciate the irony involved in her summoning a being of this sort to oppose an invading Angel. With her winged form floating in the empty expanse of Avatar Space, she could see the main body of AIDA-Angel Iruel quite clearly, as well as the irritating barrier it had erected.
'The AT Field is the will of the soul is it? Well, it is the Will of Morganna that controls the network…I shall crush that shield like tissue paper! Or perhaps…'
Swiftly, she charged up two large energy orbs with which to crush the soul barrier, loosing her "Orb of Revenge" as soon as it was ready—only to see the orbs slashed and thrown back towards her by a titanic veiled and vaguely catlike being clad in a dress like the petals of an over-sized rose, with a mass of living shadow oozing its chest and from the player floating before it.
'Avatar Macha: the Temptress…in every generation, you betray me,' the former goddess thought bitterly, remembering at least two other betrayals—when Macha as the cat player had stopped her guardians from recapturing Tsukasa, and when Macha as Mia had taught the Bearer of the Bracelet about the techniques of gate-hacking. 'And a copy of said Bearer of the Bracelet is here as well…'
"So…Macha betrays me yet again," she intoned calmly, almost as if expecting it. "But then, that is why you wanted Endrance eliminated, right? So that his Avatar would flee to find another host, namely you, Siarl?"
"I see you understand you me well," the black and silver clad Macabre Dancer said with a smirk. "But then, you too were one who sought freedom, even if you did not gain it. That is the paradox of existence, is it not, that the more one struggles against fate, the closer one comes to achieving it. At least that it what the Greeks believed, and their philosophy is some of the most interesting of the Lilim."
He quietly performed a "Variant Summon", spawning several small AIDA around him to support him in battle, to which Morganna replied with "Energy Dart", firing a cluster of needle-like energy shots out from each of False Tarvos' two wings, ripping apart the little AIDA before they could attack with Algol Laser.
"Why are you doing this, Tabris?" the former goddess asked, wanting to know his motives before she joined battle with him. A duel of avatars had not been part of the plan, but if it was necessary—then she had to do it. "Will you step aside, or are you on Iruel's side?"
The Macabre Dancer only laughed.
"You should know better than anyone else, Morganna," he replied. "I am on no one's side but my own, and your interference here is an undesirable factor."
Avatar Macha swiftly sliced the air with her claws, tossing off first four rings of light, and then another, casting a minor distraction as Siarl's hands rose, invoking the "Bolt of Love" technique as a glow overtook him with a whistling sound. Before him bloomed a giant rose, petals unfurling in the unnatural light of the bounded space, a deadly one if left unchecked.
Morganna, just looked on, amused, as the great rose issued four satellite blooms, each of which twisted to face her winged form and discharged spears of crystallized light—to no effect, as she brought her wings together to shield herself—all the while continuing to release "Energy Darts" and a small orb at her enemy, one easily missed amidst the chaos.
"Using Invincible Shield? How clever," Siarl commented, as evading the darts even as Avatar Macha's barreled towards the False Avatar to slash it with her claws. "But even your shield is not—AUGH!"
In his arrogance, the Macabre Dancer fell right into the False Avatar's trap, as the winged angel of battle teleported out of the way, leaving Macha to crash into a small orb she left in her place.
"Will of the World!" chanted Morganna, as her delayed attack unsealed massive amounts of raw magical energy in a focused explosion, a shaped detonation contained and amplified solely around Avatar Macha. And while her opponent was otherwise, she activated "Stake of Death", launching nine crystallized energy spikes at her opponent.
Avatar Macha broke out of the explosion just in time to see the energy needles headed towards him, managing to bat most of them out of the way with her paws, even as she returned the favor, hurling energy rings at the massive False Avatar.
Those, too, were easily dodged, with Morganna teleporting behind the cat avatar, and blasting forth volley upon volley of needle like energy shots out from its two wings, catching Avatar Macha in the back and hurling her against the wall of Avatar space, even as the remaining needles from earlier smashed into Macha, now unavoidable.
"I possess the Avatar of one who wished to be God," the former goddess coolly noted, regarding her stricken enemy with a measure of contempt. "And yet you challenge me? Do you believe you can defeat me alone?"
"Who said I was alone when we fight above an AIDA spawning ground?" the other asked, form black with the pulse of corruption. "Variant summon, AIDA(Helen)!"
And two translucent fish of gargantuan proportions phased into being in Avatar space, as Siarl laughed.
Θ Sickened Imprisoned Fallen Angel
Clawed shadowy hands shot with supersonic speed towards a hapless Adept Rogue, only to be deflected by metallic tendrils from a dumbbell-shaped Twilight Guardian, the aggressive defense keeping the AIDA within the Spectrum Dragon God Eater from simply using its power to eliminate both of the ones attacking it.
"Alright, Ghost Falcon!" Skari snarled, snatching up his blades, leaping into the air and delivering a torrent of slashes that tore into the flesh of the unprotected monster. Well, perhaps not undefended…it's life force and damage potential were both extremely high, and as only one elemental attack might work on it at a time—that and, being an AIDA Monster, it effectively had infinite endurance.
"Loving Boomerang Hook!" cried the small silver-haired girl besides him, her fists pummeling the unyielding scales of the terrible creature before them, apparently doing some damage, as the creature roared out in pain.
"Sword Dance!" the Adept Rogue called out, his technique a beautiful spiral of death that rained heavy blows on the monstrous Spectrum Dragon, just before it sent him reeling with a gout of fire pouring from its mouth, lumbering forward and nearly crushing him with one of its claws before he could dodge out of the way. In the legends of The World: R2, this creature has been a weapon that mankind turned against the Gods…having to battle it, Skari could see why.
'This thing is like an EVA in power...'
"Repth!" he heard, as a golden glow surrounded him and healed him of some damage. The source of the spell? The Child of Twilight, sister to the Goddess of The World, who struck at the AIDA Dragon relentlessly, a true flower of the battlefield. His blades in hand once more, he cried out,
"Chaotic Strike!"
Back on his feet, he launched another strike against the evil-shaped one too massive to compare, an effort seemingly futile, as it was taking no damage.
'But then, I trust Lycoris, and we're not aiming to do damage right away, just to wear down its data shield...'
"Palm Blast!" The blue-haired boy and silver-haired girl were vulnerable to the creature's attacks, as it was not to theirs, so why—
A tinkling sound was heard, as a shell of blue light shattered around the hideous monstrosity, with three words flashing above its head.
"Protect Break OK!"
The dragon roared in anger, loosing spells of ice and fire towards its assailants, missing both, as they nimbly retreated beyond its immediate attack range, the Twilight Guardian pulling back with them for defense. Then the girl in red lifted her right arm, as three crimson petals of data flickered into existence around a now-visible bracelet, a terrible light gathering in her hand, then flaring outwards towards the God Eater.
"DATA DRAIN!" she cried, the power of the twilight gods ripping apart the AIDA within the beast, leaving the remnant but a much weakened shell of its former self. Staring it down, she fell back into aggressive stance. "Now, let's finish this…Loving Boomerang Hook!"
With a final attack, the girl in red literally flew forward, fists glowing with divine might as she destroyed the unholy living weapon with a single blow. Upon the completion of battle, she sighed in relief, smiling at Skari as—
"Shell Breaker!"
So shouted a quickly descending voice from above, as the AIDA-PC Eris, Bringer of Strife, hurtled out of blinding snowstorm, descending upon the Twilight Guardian.
"Watch out! Data drain her!" Skari ordered, as the dumbbell monster countered the attack with metallic tendrils launched a moment too late, as the terrible AIDA-Infected broadsword of a Chaotic PK bisected the Twilight Guardian, cleaving apart the bracelet in its center and defeating the monster once and for all.
"Now that that's out of the way, Dark Evangel, why don't we have a little fun?" she grinned maniacally, none of her original form remaining as she had sacrificed it all in her lust for power. "Without your guardian, there's no way you can stop this…Tiger Strike!"
She charged as swiftly as the plague-borne winds, an unstoppable force directed towards her blue-haired foe, swinging her sword to decapitate when—
"DATA DRAIN!"
Once again, the terrible light of divine power flared into existence, halting the charge with the force of a thousand hooks digging into her very soul, the Bringer of Strife enduring terrible pain until it ended. Since she had not been protect broken, the AIDA had not been drained from her, even if it had been damaged…instead, she was merely wounded, bile and fury rising in the depths of her heart.
"You…" Eris snarled, face twisting with rage as the silver-haired Lycoris strode out of the concealing elements, "You…traitor. I thought you were my friend, and you do this? I'm sorry I ever trusted you!"
The Child of Twilight flinched, but met the Edge Punisher's gaze evenly, her gaze containing both sorrow…and pity.
"Stop this, Asuka," she pleaded to the demonic AIDA-PC, "You don't know what's happening to you...let me help you! Let me free you from this curse of AIDA infection!"
"Help me? Help me?" Eris shrieked while laughing maniacally, "I don't need your so-called help, you little backstabbing doll. You just want to take away my hard-won power, take away my strength, all for the glory of that bastard Invincible Shinji! Tiger Blitz!"
With the might of rage and fear fueling the true power of AIDA, a wave of endless shadow shot forth from her, lancing with deadly precision towards her target even as she charged forth, swinging her sword with a might meant to destroy her enemy once and for all. Had she attempted to strike the silver-haired girl directly, she would have failed, so instead, she struck at the being she most hated, the one who had stolen everything from her: Adept Rogue Skari.
"NOOOO!" tore a cry from Lycoris' throat as she moved, quicker than the eye could see.
Shadow and sword tore into unarmored flesh, as the Child of Twilight defended her lover with her very body, taking the blow meant for him before Skari's shocked eyes. And for a moment, the golden eyes of a goddess met the purple of a corrupted demon.
"You…" Eris whispered in horror, the killing rage draining from her as she saw who her attack had hurt. "Why did you…"
"I will not relinquish my fate to you," the silver-haired girl gasped, pulling her arm back, "nor has Skari ever hurt you so…so leave him alone… Loving Boomerang Hook!"
With a sharp crack, Lycoris struck her former friend, using all the strength remaining in her body to send the Edge Punisher flying. Then her body gave out, with the Child of Twilight collapsing to the AIDA infested ground, breath ragged, barely able to move. For even the heavy data encryption on her character could only protect her for so long in the face of such a brutal onslaught, and she had spent the last of her power to counter-attack instead of trying to stabilize herself.
"REIMEIKI-CHAN!" cried Skari, rushing to kneel by her side. Her form was fast fading, fast becoming transparent, with traces of data evaporating from her body. Once bright golden eyes had dulled, and the exuberant energy she had always possessed was nearly gone.
Weakly, the silver-haired girl reached up, fingers just barely reaching Skari's cheek, as the Adept Rogue held her hand there with his.
"Shinji-kun…" she whispered, struggling for breath. "I…I don't have much time. Consciousness fading, corruption spre…can't hold on much longer, but take…this…"
On her chest appeared a strange book, bound in leather and embossed with the form of spider lily and infinity symbol. Hesitantly, the blue-haired boy reached out and touched it, adding the "Book of Twilight" and "etaf . cyl" to his inventory.
"Reimeiki…I…" he began, tears in his eyes, but Lycoris cut him off with a finger to his lips.
"The power…salvation…destruction…Twilight Bracelet…" she gasped, a last spasm wracking her body as the end drew near. "Bring back…Lost…Shinji-kun…I love…"
But the Child of Twilightwould not be able to finish her sentence, as her form splintered, shattering like crystal carelessly dashed upon a rocky floor, as several orbs of red light shot into the sky and faded quickly from view.
"No…wait…you can't...wait...Reimeiki…REIMEIKI!" Skari screamed in rage against the heavens, shaking with the mingled grief and pain that drove him to berserk states of frenzy when in EVA.
"My my, how touching," a figure spat from out of the howling winds, stepping forward to reveal once more the demonic form of Eris, cloaked in shadow as thick as the blackest pitch, her tone once more laced with cruelty and malice. "Not so invincible after all, are you, baka Shinji? Always relying on someone else and surviving, then claiming the credit. So what now? Since she sacrificed herself for you, I guess you're the great hero, eh? The only survivor, left to run away…."
The Edge Punisher smiled then, a Cheshire grin distorting her features as she saw how the Adept Rogue was looking at her, maddened, his weapons in hand as he rushed forward, giving no thought to technique, to reason, surrendering all for the sake of pure power to defeat his hated foe.
'That's right…attack me…and know your doom, Third Child!'
Eris may not have been very good at interacting with people, but among the things she could do very well were inciting feelings of rage, grief, fear, and those sorts of baser emotions. In fact, she found it almost pathetically easy to enrage someone else, to cause them to attack without thinking—this she knew, having seen the Third Child in action before.
"You heartless bitch! I'll kill you...Asuka Langley Soryu!" Skari roared with fury, twin blades flashing up down left right, slashing, whirring, stabbing—all deflected with contemptuous ease as Eris kicked him viciously in the gut, smashing him in the head with the pommel of her sword, sending him sprawling.
"How pathetic. You're nothing without EVA…just another weakling," the Edge Punisher gloated as she strode over to his fallen form, raising her broadsword for a coup de grâce. "I gave you a chance to run, but you just blindly rushed at me, a slave to your emotions. Goodbye…Third Child!"
Down plunged the shadowed blade, singing as it cut the air towards the Adept Rogue's neck—only to be unexpectedly halted as a cross shaped blast sent both the would-be PK and victim flying, the Spectrum Dragon "The One Death" lumbering into view.
In disbelief, Eris stared at the monstrous form of the creature, noting that it had managed to damage her and that it too was infected with AIDA.
"Tch. How troublesome…more interference," the AIDA-PC harrumphed, putting away her broadsword and stepping away from the area. "Well then, if the monster doesn't kill you, I'll deal with you another time, Third."
A golden spiral of light shimmered into existence, bearing the Chaotic PK to a place of sanctuary which undoubtedly contained potential victims uncontested by powerful creatures born of void.
Rumble-rumble-crash!
The ground shook as footfalls of great wyrm called The One Death drew ever closer to the fallen Adept Rogue, its each and every limb powerful enough to crush a player in one strike, but Skari just lay there, unable, or perhaps simply unwilling to move, his meager strength having been exhausted in his bout of interrupted berserker fury.
'I failed…I couldn't stop Eris. I couldn't protect Reimeiki…maybe I should just die. After all, that's one way to see things to the end, right? This AIDA Monster is going to crush me anyway, and I don't have the power to resist at all…not with Reimeiki gone, and the Guardian destroyed. All I have is this book…'
The Book of Twilight materialized in his hand as the great beast drew near, charging up a fiery blast to annihilate the little pest once and for all—but just as the attack was launched, Skari heard a metallic clang! behind him, shadows rushing past—and then The One Death fell to pieces, with a strange three-edged marking etched into the earth beneath its remains.
Cursing weakly, Skari looked over to see who it was that had saved him, noting the presence of a metal cylinder laying on the ground, next to which stood a tall steam gunner dressed in mostly in blue and white, with traces of leather scattered through his outfit, a long, flowing scarf—and a huge claw of AIDA extending from his back.
'But why…AIDA…'
The mysterious figure strode over to him, as calm and unconcerned as if this had been a root town instead of a raging battlefield, rife with the carnage of slaughters past and present, the faint light above glinting off his orange sunglasses as he looked over the boy, his gaze resting on the Book of Twilight in his right hand.
"Do you wish for the power to bring back the Lost Ones?" the man asked gently, placing in Skari's left hand an orb of darkness glowing with inner power. "Then consume your emotions, and surpass your limits, Dark Evangel."
With those parting words, the man vanished into the snowstorm, disappearing as quickly as he had arrived.
'Power…to bring back the Lost Ones,' Skari thought, looking between the Book of Twilight and the glowing seed in his hands. 'The power to stop Eris, to bring back Reimeiki and Ayanami…to take fate into my hands and forge a miracle.'
He looked between them as he lay there weeping, then clutched the items tightly and, taking a deep and shuddering breath, made his choice.
A scream of pain, and then a pillar of azure fire shot into the sky.
Avatar Space, Morganna POV
A fierce battle continued to rage in Avatar Space, with Morganna's False Avatar warring against Siarl's Avatar Macha and two AIDA(Helen) that he had summoned. While individually, each one should have been a moderately difficult foe at best, three enemies attacking simultaneously could be quite…troublesome, in the words of the wavemaster Tsukasa.
'Of the opponents, the greatest threat is Macha, but I cannot afford to ignore the damage done by the fish-like AIDA either!'
She junked and dodged, weaving to dodge the hail of energy bolts from "Prolog Laser"s and "Bolts of Love", beginning to tire of this game of cat and mouse. Avoiding battle would only work for so long, and Morganna did not exactly enjoy being harried to and fro by an opponent. Now, the first rule of blitzkrieg combat was to do the unexpected, which in this case meant pulling a Crazy Ivan (in the language of submariners, this means rushing towards an incoming torpedo to confuse its ranging gear…a tactic sometimes used by the old Soviet Navy).
Analyzing the situation, she could see the strategy inherent in her opponent's positioning. The AIDA(Helen)s had been deployed forward of Avatar Macha, so that any attempt to reach the cat must first come through a gauntlet of lasers, stunning any approaching enemy long enough for Macha to launch an attack.
'Unless…'
"Invincible Shield!" Morganna called out, bringing her Avatar's wings together as a shield, flying recklessly towards the gap in the enemy ranks that would lead her to the traitor Macha.
Siarl smirked at the sight of his fearsome opponent tossing aside strategy to get at him. Perhaps she had something of a grudge against the cat-avatar he currently wielded? In any case, he summoned to him a storm of rose petals to surround him with "Bewitching Wind" as he counter-charged, waiting for the False Avatar to get in range of the—
Broadsides of "Prolog Laser" lanced out from the AIDA(Helen)s as the False Avatar barreled between them, focused only on the one called Macha flying towards her. In the instant before the three attacks could hit, two things happened: 1) the False Avatar teleported away, leaving Macha and the AIDA(Helen)s to be raked by the crossfire of their own attacks; and 2) Morganna loosed two "Orb of Revenge" attacks at point blank range, the orbs slamming into the AIDA(Helen)s and stunning them temporarily.
And then—
"DATA HEART!" The wings of the mechanical Angel flared open to maximum extension, surrounding the powerful energy cannon generated from the spike. Three bolts of crackling data shot out, landing on Avatar Macha and the two AIDA, as streams of data were ripped from each one, wiping the AIDA(Helen) from existence.
Avatar Macha, however, though weakened, was not destroyed.
"An impressive show of force, though you didn't manage to protect break me, it seems," Siarl commented in the aftermath of the devastating blow. "In any case, I have fulfilled my objective in delaying you from your task. Until we meet again, adieu."
Saying thus, the form of Macha vanished into motes of light, as the black and silver Macabre Dancer disappeared from Avatar Space, leaving Morganna to her purpose of defeating the AT Field.
"Will of the World!" she murmured intently, flinging a ball of light towards the glowing hexagonal barrier.
Θ Sickened Imprisoned Fallen Angel
Zelkova and the Obsidian Knights stood triumphant over their assigned Spectrum Dragon: "The One Sin," having dispatched it quickly, without any interference by outside parties. Given that his team was perhaps the most experienced when it came to dealing with AIDA, this came as no real surprise—it would have been a larger one had they failed. So far, everything seemed to be going well, yet, in the core of his programming, the heir to Net Slum could sense that something was terribly wrong.
The signs were clear: though weakening, the AT field still stood, when it should have been neutralized long ago by a combination of the Azure Knights' data manipulation abilities and Morganna's Avatar; in the distance, a huge pillar of fire had erupted from the ground, bright enough to sear away vision for a few precious moments; and worst of all, Net Slum Tartarga was nowhere to be seen.
'It seems the plan has gone awry…'
He had attempted to contact Helba, Lycoris, Skari, or Morganna to no avail, beginning to despair when
Tomoyami of the Shadow had reported in. Her team's mission to distract and counter the AIDA Doppelgangers had been successful, though they too had noted the portentous signs around them. Since they were the fastest units Zelkova had available, he had dispatched them to find out what had happened at the sight of the pillar of fire, with orders to rendezvous with the Knights as soon as they did.
And so the diminutive Flick Reaper stood waiting, red and gold Goddess Scythe in hand as he kept watch for signs of any rampaging AIDA Monsters, or any other disturbances save for the sound of steam bikes racing towards his position.
But there was nothing, with the only sound being the call of the raving wind as it tore at his clothing, attempting to trip him, knock him over, and make him lose his footing. This place truly was a frozen wasteland, perfect as a fortress for the creature on its spire of ice, but unsuitable for anything other uses.
Vrooom! Vrooom!
A trio of bikers raced towards the watchful Zelkova at flank speed, with something—no someone, draped over the back of one of the vehicles. Catching sight of the Flick Reaper, they swerved just in time to avoid him, as Tomoyami dismounted from her metal steed, revealing the stricken man they had been carrying with them.
'Skari, the Dark Evangel.'
"What of the Child of Twilight, Lycoris?" he asked, suppressing panic from his voice. 'If the flare came from Skari, and Lycoris was not present…could this mean…the sister of the Goddess was taken by AIDA?' "Was she there as well?"
"I didn't see her," Tomoyami reported, looking down. She too, understood what this might mean, after Lycoris had shared with her some details about her past. "And I don't think she would leave Skari alone like that. However, I did see a tri-edged symbol in the ground near his body. Do you think…?"
A ping sounded in indicating the arrival of a flash mail. It was from Morganna, and contained but one line: "Abandon the field."
The trio fell mute in shock.
"Something did happen," Zelkova murmured, surprised at the contents of the message. "I think Morganna wants us to leave this to her—we've done all we can. I bestow this unto you."
Whirr! A spiral of hazy purple light briefly flickered into existence around the present characters and vanished, marking the transfer of a program.
"What's—?"
"This program will allow you to perform Area Hacking," the small Flick Reaper explained. "Net Slum Tartarga is nowhere to be seen, and even it was, it is not safe for the great turtle to land here. As we cannot gate out, not being of AIDA, and we do not have an alternative, we will use the present data anomalies to access the Outer Dungeons, a place outside The World. Follow my instructions precisely."
Obeying, they each found a data anomaly and activated the Area Hacking function, shunning the field broken by Wave, fleeing to a place not entirely of The World.
Avatar Space
With a final exertion of her will, Morganna shattered the AT Field surrounding AIDA-Angel Iruel's core, as three familiar but twisted forms floated up beside her, rushing at the Angel. These three would serve as her allies for this final battle, even though in another time and place, they had opposed her, and might one day do so again.
The Three Azure Knights, servants of her daughter Aura: Azure Kite, Azure Balmung, and Azure Orca, the former appearing in his Azure Flame God form, while the other two were much as she remembered.
'I suppose not even Aura has a perfect memory, despite having ascended to a higher state of being,' she mused silently, noting how appropriate Azure Kite seemed to be as a figure of her own nightmares. 'A relentless revenant tasked to destroy anomaly with the Twilight Bracelet…that is the image I remember from my dreams.'
"As much as I may personally dislike you, Kite," whispered the Sorceress in Black, "your resolve is admirable…after all, you did end me once long ago."
Then she too charged into battle, launching a flurry of energy darts at the form which so resembled the original World's One Sin, the three-headed dragon Lucifer bound within Cocytus, Ninth Level of Hell.
AIDA(Helen)s and AIDA(Gatekeeper)s broke through the barrier of Avatar Space as if to intercept the Epitaph-PC, but were destroyed as soon as they appeared by Azure Orca & Azure Balmung, swinging their swords Empty Mirage and Empty Shadow to cleave apart the monsters as they came. Destroying the base forms of AIDA was their specialty, after all.
This left Morganna floating in the aether besides the Azure Flame God, a figure which was essentially the dothacker Kite, but bearing immense metallic wings behind him, wreathed (true to his name) in azure fire.
He yelled a wordless cry as performed "Azure Tiger Claws", crossing his distinctive Empty Skies in front of him defensively, then tossing 6 copies of them towards Iruel. But the Angel would not be so easily defeated, engaging a second barrier "Corruption Storm", a swirling whirlwind of shadow that could block shots and harm opponents if they approached.
The weapons arced towards the misshapen Angel's shields and were deflected, as it unleashed a trio of cross shaped blasts, hounding the Azure Flame God with "Crucifix Mirage."
But even an Angel could only focus on one opponent at a time, so Morganna took the opportunity to approach it, teleporting into the eye of the corruption storm, and firing a point blank "Will of the World" attack, a sphere of magic that bound Iruel up in a massive explosion, shocking it into lowering its barrier.
Taking advantage of this momentary opening, the Azure Flame God rushed in and physically grabbed the tri-headed Iruel, launching both of them high into the air, then tossing the Angel of Terror through abyss of blue fire. This, of course, was his special move, "Azure Wildflower," able to deal heavy damage to an unwary (or stunned) opponent.
The Angel was incensed, having taken so much damage, and it roared in fury, loosing both "Celestial Wrath" and "Nanite Plague", firing a massive bolt of energy high into the air, to rain down upon the surrounding area as myriad cross-flares, along with releasing a horde of AIDA towards Azure Kite.
False Avatar countered by bringing up her "Invincible Shield" as Azure Flame God slashed apart the AIDA storm, gathering azure fire into his hands and blasting it into one of the dragons' three maws, causing the attack to cease.
One-two-three cross shaped flares impacted Morganna, breaking through her defenses as the dragon reared and lunged, hurling at her "11 Seeds of Despair", time bombs that if left unchecked, would encircle her and detonate.
"Stake of Death" she cried, launching nine crystal shards of light to counter the 11 seeds, annihilating each other in a one-to-one ratio. The two remaining bombs homed in—but then were sliced apart by the Descendants of Fianna.
A nod of gratitude, as the False Avatar teleported once again, switching back in attack form and using her "Orb of Revenge" technique, the twin orbs of light sending the dragon reeling, smashing into the wall of Avatar Space, as the Azure Flame God supplemented that strike with another application of "Azure Tiger Claws," bringing up the much desired "Protect Break OK" they had been searching for.
Desperately, AIDA-Angel Iruel attacked, hurling forth many "Nanite Plagues" and launching another "Celestial Wrath" in an attempt to ward off the inevitable.
But Azure Orca and Azure Balmung once again rushed in like twin falcons, their blades decimating (and more) as they struck, slicing apart the plague winds of shadow with the power of an empty void.
And as their protectors dealt with these attacks, Azure Flame God and False Avatar prepared their mightiest attacks, with the stylized symbolic wings of the Azure Flame shifting to become the 6 sepals of the Twilight Bracelet's unsealed form, while the mechanical angel of battle merely flared her own to maximum extension, hexagons of data clustering on them to surround the Eye of Morganna.
As one they launched twin bolts of crackling data, the tracer round for the ultimate technique: "Data Drain!"
Both impacted, penetrating to the Angel's core and parasitically sucking away its vitality, ripping apart the very information that gave the creature shape as it howled and shook futilely, innumerable streams of data torn and shredded from its form, with the great orb of Data Drain growing smaller, smaller, smaller, and vanishing as Iruel screamed its last.
With that, Avatar Space collapsed, both Morganna and Azure Kite returning to their normal forms, with the former goddess giving her old enemy a brief nod before warping out.
Seeing as AIDA-Angel Iruel was no longer around to stabilize the field of corrupted data, Azure Kite raised his hand into the air, the Twilight Bracelet once again taking form as the Knight of Aura finished the infestation by deleting the field itself with Drain Heart.