Rising Shadow: A Fanfic by Gyppy
Summary: The Dark Lord Nebilim is spreading the fog of death through the land; a swordsman by the name of Abyssion goes out to find out how to stop this miasma, and also to avenge the death of his parents.
Along the way, he stumbles upon the Eternal Swordsman, Lloyd, and his group, and they work together to help defeat Nebilim and restore peace and tranquility to the land.
Author's Note: This chapter will conclude Rising Shadow. I'm trying to decide whether I should write a sequel or not. But anyway...
Yeah, this is the last chapter. It's my longest fic yet, and definitely one of the more popular ones. Though compared to Love At First Sight, it's nothing...
And I may be introducing some new and unexpected characters in this chapter... the revelation is about to begin. But... I won't tell you now. You'll have to find out later.
Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia, Namco, Final Fantasy or Squaresoft/Square-Enix. All I own is this storyline, this story and my pathetic, writer's-block-afflicted mind.
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Chapter 15: The Final Battle
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The shadow of a half-elf was cast upon the dark terrain. In the dark, one mechanical eye glowed, while one crimson organic eye watched the surroundings. Light teal hair fell around the figure's head, coming to just above his shoulders and framing his face on either side. One of his arms was replaced by a large, yellow-colored cannon-like device. His clothing had been torn apart, and with the exception of what covered his legs and the rest of his lower body, it lay on the ground, tattered. He looked hurt, but didn't seem to notice it.
He was angry. Extremely angry.
And he continued to walk slowly through the forests surrounding the Tower of Destruction. He continued to walk toward that lone village in the mountains... perhaps it couldn't even be called a village, as it was composed of only one structure, but it had been given that name by the adventurers who travel about Symphonia.
This half-elf was angry for a reason... he had been thrown out of his home near Iselia for being an incompetent fool. He would make that pathetic demon pay...
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The group proceeded on to their destination, the Tower of Destruction, after spending the night in Asgard. The tower, which had risen from the ground with a massive earthquake that rattled all of Symphonia, stood in all its jet-black, gleaming glory, towering over even the mountains around Hima. Six jet-black pillars encircled the base of the tower, with a massive staircase of dark mana leading up to its doorway. The tower itself was like the Tower of Mana, with a few major exceptions: its base was not as wide, there were jet-black horns jutting from each corner of each story, and it was far taller... it reached up into the clouds, gazing upon all of Symphonia. And atop the great tower was that peculiar abyss... it swirled with darkness, radiating the deadly gas known as miasma and throwing it across the land.
Within that abyss lay the Dark Lord Nebilim, the creator of the miasma, and a demon lord from the Underworld.
Lloyd seemed uncertain about fighting Nebilim, but Kratos convinced him everything would be alright. So they traveled to the massive Tower of Destruction to climb its stairs and destroy Nebilim once and for all.
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"So this is the Tower of Destruction," Lloyd said, gazing upon the dark building that lay before him. "It's really creepy."
"That's to be expected," Sheena said. "It is, after all, the stronghold of a demon."
Colette had occupied herself by staring into the giant pit that lay below the tower. Genis, meanwhile, was worrying his little head off that she was going to fall into the abyss.
"We should get going," Kratos stated. "We wouldn't want to be stuck in this area at night. It's too dangerous."
"Alright," Lloyd said. Then, he turned to Colette. "Let's go."
Colette ended up leading the group as they carefully ascended the towering staircase that led into the tower's heart.
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Two feathered wings fluttered lightly in the darkness as an angel swordian traversed the shadowy terrain of Derris-Kharlan. Behind her was Yggdrasill, who floated slowly along, his eyes closed in contemplation. However, by some mysterious angelic sense, he could still figure out where he was; he was nearing the warp that led to Welgaia, and ultimately to the Tower of Salvation.
With Pronyma on his side, he was sure he would be able to strike a decisive blow on Nebilim. He wished to aid his brother in avenging their sister... for Yuan's sake as well, he thought silently as he drifted along, remembering Yuan's strong connection to Martel. Once the demon was once again sealed in Niflheim like he'd been so many thousands of years ago, Yggdrasill knew that the world would achieve peace once more.
Four thousand years. Yggdrasill, his brother, and his two comrades... had been alive for quite a long time.
Remiel had since been escalated to the position of Seraph. Though he had not been intending for such a thing to happen in the first place, he knew that he now played a very important role in Cruxis. He was weak compared to Yggdrasill, but he felt he still had the strength necessary to protect Colette. As he would reminisce about his past days as a lifeless being, he would shiver even in the relative warmth of Vinheim... everything had seemed so foreign to him then.
Once Yggdrasill had reached Welgaia, Mithos greeted him there and followed him through to the Tower of Salvation. Yuan had already reached the ground, and Kratos was with Lloyd's group. Pronyma had stated she had to leave for reasons involving the Desians, which confused Yggdrasill... he had never suspected that Pronyma would involve herself with the Desians after openly betraying them.
Yuan, however, had other, darker suspicions... he thought that Pronyma had simply switched sides to obtain information and return it to Nebilim. It seemed a simple enough tactic, and could be easily carried out by a high-ranking half-elf such as Pronyma. He had thought it bizarre that she would've betrayed the Desians and Nebilim in the first place if she actually had good intentions, so he continued to distrust her.
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The staircase was long and winding... it seemed endless. For what seemed like hours, Lloyd and the others traversed silently through the black, hazy tower, seeing only by the light of angel's wings. However, the climb had been relatively uneventful... with the exception of a few attacks, there had been little fighting, except a quarrel between Zelos and Sheena that had lasted quite some time.
Finally, they reached the top room. Lit by a blazing torch on the far wall, it seemed to glow with the same aura of fire that the torch carried. The top was covered by a clear, glass-like dome, with swirling orange mist on the outside. Nebilim stood in the center of the room.
Abyssion could see the same darkness in those eyes he had seen so many years ago. He could still trace the same marks on Nebilim's face, the crest of a demon. He still remembered the very same strands of glowing crimson hair that had whirled about the demon lord as he murdered the human and elf that had produced Abyssion in cold blood.
And now, Nebilim stood above Abyssion, his armor glowing with the demonic aura of fire. Though most demons in Niflheim bore the dark element, Nebilim was a master of all the elements, and preferred dark and fire.
On either side of Nebilim, there was sheathed a blade, both of which floated in midair eerily. The left-handed one had a long, curving structure that almost seemed alive, writhing with a peculiar lifelike motion; the right-handed one was a long, pyramid-shaped blade with edges at each of the four corners, and bore the jaws of mouths that had been torn out of innocent victims and cursed to remain on the weapon for the rest of its life.
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"So, you've come," Nebilim said, glancing down evilly at the group that lay before him. "I must appreciate your efforts to get here. I'm surprised my Apocalypse didn't tear you apart the second you came upon it."
"It doesn't matter," Lloyd said. "What matters is that we're taking you down!"
"Not if I take you down first," Nebilim said, an evil smirk crossing his face. Almost instantly, the Devil's Arms that had been collected by the group vanished, and reappeared before Nebilim, floating about him.
One by one, the weaponry vanished into the demonic realm. All that was left was the twin blade, named Nebilim after its owner and creator.
And Nebilim slowly drew those two swords from their sheaths, holding them before him, beckoning for the others to attack him.
For the very first time in their lives, the entire group, as a whole, felt the collective wave of fear run down their spines. Kratos, for once, thought they may perhaps be defeated.
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The room was lit with various offensive spells and techniques as a vicious battle raged. Lloyd and Kratos came up on either side of Nebilim; Lloyd delivered a Double Demon Fang, while Kratos followed up with a Fierce Demon Fang. In an incredible display of skill, Nebilim calmly blocked both attacks with his twin blade, then brought forth the Soul Eater and performed Victory Light Spear, which knocked both of the two comrades back.
Sheena's Demon Seal seemed particularly effective against Nebilim; however, the Dark Lord retaliated with a Hurricane Thrust that sent Sheena flying. She just conveniently happened to fly into Zelos, who caught her and quickly cast First Aid on her. The guardian user then proceeded to jump forth and attempt another attack.
Colette finished her Angel Feathers just as Genis cast Judgment. The two angelic attacks struck the opponent dead-on, sapping his strength with light energy. However, Nebilim refused to give up; he retaliated by launching Demonic Chaos, one at Colette and one at Genis.
Presea rushed forward and delivered Mass Devastation, followed by Eternal Damnation. Nebilim proceeded to draw Diablos and retaliated with Eternal Devastation, which Presea was unable to block; it sent her flying into a wall.
Raine managed to catch Nebilim off-guard by loosing a Photon; however, the demon lord retaliated with Holy Lance, loosed from the Heart of Chaos. Raine was pushed back, but managed to right herself at the last minute by drawing her wings.
Zelos, after making sure that Sheena was okay, rushed forward and performed Fierce Demon Fang, followed by Hell Pyre. Both attacks struck dead-on, dealing a fair amount of damage to Nebilim, who retaliated by drawing the Fafnir and performing Hell Pyre on Zelos.
Abyssion charged out of seemingly nowhere to stab Nebilim in the back; however, the demon lord was prepared for the attack, and quickly drew himself from the blade, turning almost impossibly quickly. Nebilim drew the Evil Eye and performed Ring Cyclone, then switched to his trademark twin blade and used Raging Beast.
Kratos, who had managed to right himself again, loosed Retribution; however, the attack had little effect on the lone opponent, doing little more than disabling the ability to heal properly. Nebilim simply brushed away the seraph as if he were a lone maggot.
Nebilim turned to Lloyd, his primary target. He began preparing Indignation, all the while thinking of the sheer power he possessed...
...and suddenly, out of absolutely nowhere, there came the voice of a half-elf that no one, not even Nebilim himself, had expected.
"CYCLONE!"
The massive tornado that overtook the demon lord broke his concentration; he was thrown about like a toy in the twister, unable to even think of what was happening. But it was not so much the power of the Cyclone that distracted Nebilim; rather, it was the sheer surprise of hearing the voice of his most trusted comrade call out the name of the spell and loose it upon him.
At the last minute, Lloyd looked up, opening his eyes slowly, expecting to see death. Instead, he saw in the doorway of the room... all five of the Desian Grand Cardinals, with Pronyma in the lead, Forcystus and Kvar behind her, and Rodyle and Magnius trailing behind. On Pronyma's left-hand side, there floated Mithos; on her right-hand side, there floated Yggdrasill. Beside Mithos, there was Yuan; beside Yggdrasill, there was Remiel. And there were two angel swordians and two angel spearmen following the group.
"It was foolish of me to ever suspect anything of Pronyma," Yuan commented, drawing his wings. "All she wanted was Yggdrasill's respect. It's almost as if she's so dedicated to him, she's willing to betray her own leader for his sake."
"You're all dead," Nebilim muttered, finally loosing himself from the grip of Forcystus' spell. "You, especially... for turning a blind eye to me and joining that pathetic, worthless Cruxis!"
"I'm not a member of Cruxis yet," Forcystus said, smirking. "I'm just working with them. And don't you remember, you initiated this yourself by kicking me out of the Iselia ranch?"
"You were an unworthy leader," Nebilim said. "You allowed those humans to escape."
"I've always had great respect for Cruxis," Forcystus said. "They seek ways for half-elves to be accepted... in manners that would never be expected by a supreme ruler from Niflheim."
"You betrayed me," Nebilim said, finally turning. "You betrayed me to join those psychotic angels in their attempts to destroy the miasma. Don't you realize that we could put an end to the half-elf discrimination if we all became demons and joined those in Niflheim?"
"Sounds like that crazy Age of Lifeless Beings idea I came up with," Mithos muttered. "It's a good thing I chose to abandon that one. It was my most pathetic attempt yet."
"I'll kill you," Nebilim stated. "I'll kill you... or at the least, force you to come to Niflheim with me... and to live out the rest of your lives as demonic creatures of hell!"
"You will do no such thing," Remiel said. "You're already defeated, yet you refuse to admit it." He smirked. "Face it, you're just as weak as one of those pathetic young demons of Niflheim. I could probably defeat you now, as we stand here and converse."
Remiel didn't allow Nebilim to reply. Instead, he simply fired off Judgment Ray, which struck down Nebilim with amazing speed that not even Yggdrasill could've predicted.
However, the demon lord rose again, shouting the words, "I may die... but I'm taking all of you with me!"
With that, Nebilim loosed a massive Ground Dasher. The attack rattled the chambers of the Tower of Destruction, rattled the structure to its very core... and what was worse, it slowly overtook the very outer shell of the structure, causing the structure to collapse. The seraphim managed to escape with ease; the former Desians had more difficulty, but managed to avoid the crumbling tower's fury, and escaped onto the ground.
As the tower fell, the burning fog of death that covered the land began to evaporate, flowing into the depths of the earth along with the Tower's remnants. And with the destruction of the tower, the hole in the ground sealed, showing no sign of the horrible structure that had once stood there... except a charred, smoking hole, one that burned with the last traces of fire from Nebilim's sword.
Kratos glanced down at the crater and smirked.
"And now, you shall feel the pain of those inferior beings... as you burn in hell."
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Author's Note: Yep... that's the end. Well, for now. If I do write a sequel, it'll have more fluff. It might even carry the dubious last rating. Either way, I bet you saw that last part coming the moment you read about Forcystus in the beginning XD
Yes, the Devil's Arms were destroyed, and Nebilim was once again sealed to Niflheim. The miasma disappeared, and all is well. And yes, I just simply had to add that Kratos quote in there. It freaking rocks.
In case you're wondering, Mithos started to carry out the Age of Lifeless Beings, but then decided to abandon the project when he saw how the half-elves were suffering. When the new Desian leaders came about (the currently known 'Five Grand Cardinals'), they turned to Nebilim, but Pronyma later betrayed him. After a bit of convincing speech and one convenient expulsion, the other Grand Cardinals decided to join in on the action. I hate Magnius and Kvar with a passion, but heck, they can't be too bad since they have some cool techs.
You're probably wondering how a mere spell could cause the Tower to collapse. Well, you gotta realize that this is pure demonic energy we're talking about here. It's coming straight from Niflheim itself, and can charge up the spell to incredible proportions. And since Ground Dasher essentially causes a giant earthquake... well, you draw your own conclusion.
And another note. Niflheim isn't the same as Hell in this story. In this story, Niflheim is simply the home of demonic beings, who achieved power in much the same manner as angels... and, of course, with the mutated mana that exists in that dimension. Hell is more like the Christian depiction, with infinite torture and all that jazz.
And for those of you who were wondering what ever happened to that kid Abyssion had... well, don't worry, I'll feature them in a later story. ;)
And... wooh. That was one hell of a long chapter. It definitely beat out my other chapters in sheer length. I was trying to add drama and suspense to the story, but, as per usual, I failed miserably. But still... enjoy, and just keep waiting for the sequel.
I have a really, really sinister plan for the sequel. I won't reveal it entirely, but it involves shoujo-ai. And the enemy. ;)