Chapter 42 - Biko

After the defeat of the Seeker, the group decided to depart the Abnormal Dungeon. The way Dungeons usually worked was that they were hot spots for monsters to gather and, under the orders from a boss, stage attacks on nearby settlements. There were cases where monsters that didn't go to dungeons would wander too close to a human settlement to cause trouble, it was quite common in the world of Gamindustri.

An Abnormal Dungeon would be way worse than a normal Dungeon, however. For if an Abnormal Boss Monster gathered a series of other Abnormals to its presence and told them to attack these settlements, then the chaos and destruction would be much greater than the Average monster. Normal Adventurers, Guild Agents, even the military. They wouldn't be able to handle these kinds of monsters, monsters that could even take a CPU down. An example would be that Banshee which tried to eat Neptune, and would have succeeded if it weren't for some... timely intervention.

Thus, thanks to them killing off the Abnormals in this Abnormal Dungeon, they should be okay for the most part… at least for a while. Who knows what kind of behaviours an Abnormal Dungeon would exhibit in the future. Fortunately, Raven had made a few calls to the Lastation Guild branch, and they had said they would spare a few of their Agents to keep an eye on it for any future developments.

Travelling back to the Mainland never felt so good to them than after that mission. Ivan had practically swooned when they had first left the Abnormal Dungeon, something that, while not as extreme, was shared by the rest of the group. That place was taxing on both their nerves and their instincts. They had just finished a fight against a hard boss like Avenir, they didn't need to go through what they just did.

However, like previously stated: no rest for the weary.


It was the night before they returned to the capital of Lastation. Their movement speed had decreased significantly thanks to the exhausting battle they had. Thus, they had not gotten back before it was dark. Fortunately, Nico had been prepared for situations like this and had gotten his Camping equipment out from his Void Storage. He wasn't the only one either as everyone else had their camping equipment ready as well.

Of course, that was to be expected, they were trained field agents, not some ragband group of cute girls going around on adventure… wait, that summed up Neptune and her friends to a T. Huh…

Anyways, the group had retired early for the night, all of them asleep in their own sleeping bags with a camp fire in the middle as a source of heat. They had their own tents up around them to help further shield them from the elements, nobody liked it when suddenly they were disturbed from their sleep by some rain while camping.

However, one of them was NOT having a sleep… not one bit.


Nico blinked once.

And again.

Again.

Again.

'Okay, when I went to sleep tonight, I did NOT see this coming…' he thought to himself, frowning in confusion. He looked around, finding himself not in his sleeping bag in the comfort of his Tent with Team RAIL, but standing tall, bare footed, and in the middle of a desert. Not the kind of thing one would expect to wake up to. He was sure that, if Ivan had woken up here he'd say something like 'how much drink did I have last night? and did I have a hooker?'

The dude would say something as random and inappropriate like that.

Nevertheless, this wasn't the strangest thing about this situation, Nevermind that he was in the middle of a desert somehow. The sands that made up the desert weren't their orange colour… but a crimson red, reminding him of a river of crimson blood. It was an unsettling sight to say the least, but since he had spent countless times in battle with monsters that scared him much more than this, he wasn't as freaked out as he should have been.

In addition, the skies were a dark orange, akin to the time of a dawn or a sunset. Usually at those times only the skies surrounding the sun would reflect the light rays and turn orange, but right now the ENTIRE sky was orange, like the rays had been reflected by the entire planet.

It was both bizarre… and a little concerning.

Where the hell was he? More importantly, how did he get here? Nico was sure he'd have known if someone were to try and move him, he'd trained his instincts to react to even the slightest bit of hostile intent to protect him when he slept. There was no shortage of instances where assassins paid by either high ranking officials or other Agents who wanted to increase their standing would try to take his life. Though, he kept this info to himself, not telling it to Compa.

It was true that he valued honesty and loyalty highly, there was no doubt in his mind that they were some of the most important things in his life. However, the male had seen lots of treachery, betrayal and all around fucked up psychotic shit that he had become… jaded, in a sense, to the thought of trusting others. While he did trust Compa and the girls he, as much as he hated to admit it, didn't trust them completely. The fact that he hadn't told them his deepest, darkest secret yet was proof enough.

Having seen the absolute worst people for so long… perhaps it affected him for the worse? Whatever the case may be, Nico knew he had trust issues. He remembered when he first met Neptune and how she said she had amnesia. Most of him vehemently deduced that as a lie and thus promoted caution about her. Hell, the fact that she had contacted one of the few people he had that made living worthwhile was another factor. This had died down after a while, and all but evaporated when they had that conversation the night she declared him to be her 'hubby'…

He still was flustered plenty about that.

Now that there was little to distract him, thoughts about his recent nightmare cropped into his mind, like a gremlin crawling out from the deepest recesses of his mind to plague his thoughts once again. That nightmare... it may not have happened entirely the same, but it was indeed the same one he had before. As well as all the other times. It must have been caused by a divergence from his path, the path of the monster. This time though, Nico had a crystal clear idea of what caused that nightmare to resurface.

It was Neptune, Compa and the others. They were making him divert from his path. Their antics, their personalities, just being around them was causing him too want to... to be like them, to be someone who could fit in with society. To be someone who was normal, to be someone who could laugh, smile and enjoy life with them.

But that... was an impossible dream.

Nico was aware of this fate, he was aware of it down to the depths of his being. Nico knew that he would never again be a normal person, even if he somehow got rid of IT, he'd still be a DPU. Even though the DPU seemed to be able to live like a normal person, as well. Instincts told him that being a DPU would be just as bad as being THAT, he would still be considered a monster regardless. In the eyes of society, people like him would always be an outcast, an exile that didn't belong. Who would want to be close to someone like that?

Wait… why the hell was he getting all sentimental now of all times? He should be finding a way out of here!

Shaking his head to get his head screwed on straight, Nico pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. This was no time to be thinking about that crap when he should be focused on finding a way back to the others before they woke up, if they had woken up when he was taken from the Camp.

Nico hummed thoughtfully as he cupped his chin, looking down at the sandy desert under his feet. First, he needed to figure out how the hell he got here. For one, whoever got to him must be super silent, like a quiet breeze, because he'd been with some of the most careful Spec Ops Agents in the Planeptune Guild other than himself. If a bird landed on him or anything near them, they'd be ready to strike at a moment's notice. Whoever managed to grab and take him must have struck fast and quiet, quiet enough to fool even Team RAIL, something that was not that easy.

"While I do like your thought processes, the truth is much less complex than that…"

His eyes widened when suddenly an old, masculine voice sounded behind him. The voice spoke in a tone that just screamed that the owner was well experienced and had a fountain of knowledge. Nevertheless, this old voice's owner had sneaked up on him and that caused him to panic. 'What the, when did-?' he began to think while twirling around to face the upcoming threat, about to summon Rebellion from his Void Storage… however, when he felt nothing but the clothing on his forearm, not a shred of an interface, Nico looked down and saw that, much to his horror… he didn't have his Bracers.

"Worry not, Nico, you do not have anything to fear from me. You are safe." The old voice stated, and when Nico looked back at the speaker, the male became stunned as he nearly did a double take. The sight of the speaker had thrown him a loop as he gazed upon it.

The speaker… looked like HIM! Or rather, a middle-aged version of him, possibly around 40 or so. His light blue eyes looked duller than his own, having lost some life through the years, yet gained a large amount of wisdom in return thanks to paying attention along the way. His crimson red hair that Nico had usually seen as a gravity defying style, now fell normally down his head, a few white hairs being visible to show signs that he was no longer in his prime.

His attire consisted of a blackish brown leather Trench coat. With a simple white shirt underneath that had a large belt strapped diagonally from his left shoulder to his right hip. He wore a pair of fingerless black gloves with armoured plates on the back, meant likely for defending against attacks in unarmed combat. His legs were covered with some brown leather pants, pockets on the thighs, tucked into a pair of black lace boots.

Even if he looked much older than him, instincts told Nico that this older him looked like he could still kick the asses of those who tried to cross him, his muscles looked trained and honed like a sharpened blade, a sign that he had kept with his training even if he was no longer in his prime. Though, even with these observations, Nico still felt one thing from him: that this man was even more dangerous than his appearance suggested.

"It appears that your instincts have not failed you, if your calculating gaze is to go by. Very good, you will need that to survive the trials ahead. However, that is for another time, as we must address the more… immediate concerns of yours." The man said, staring at him blankly… a lot like how Nico did whenever he activated DDD.

While mildly anxious that the man before him had somehow read his state, Nico remembered that he had to remain calm if he wanted to think of a way to get back to the others. "A-Alright then… while every fibre of my being tells me not to trust you, a stranger… You're my only source of conversation in wherever this is. The fact that you haven't restrained me leads me to suspect that this isn't a hostile kidnapping of some kind, it would be a different story if you had." He theorised, looking the man over for any signs of a response.

The man before him didn't lose that monotone voice nor the blank face as he stared at him. "No, this is not a kidnapping… not in that sense. Also, this place should be familiar to you, as it is a part of you. Look around you… tell me what you think this place may be." He told him, flicking his hand to indicate the surrounding area.

Raising a brow at the oddity of the man's response, Nico looked around at the desert, his eyes scanning it like a hawk, looking for any details he'd missed. For some reason, now that he was slightly calmer and less confused than before, something about this place did feel familiar to him. He didn't know why, but this place… it felt homey to him, like it had been with him his entire life and only now was he able to get back to it.

Soon, Nico looked back at the man, his confused eyes prevailing for a moment, until an idea popped into his head when he remembered some details that he hadn't noted in his search. "This place… could it be inside me by chance?" The man waited for Nico to continue to explain his question, and explain he did. "I mean, I usually wear my Bracers to bed with me, and I know I went to sleep not too long ago. The fact that they aren't on my person would mean that someone was able to remove them, or that I'm somehow inside of me. Normally I wouldn't hesitate to label the second one as absurd, but with the shit I've seen in the last few chapters, I think I'm willing to go on a little crazy idea rides."

After he finished his explanation, Nico focused his attention on the man once more, who didn't look outwardly different expression wise, however there was a slight gleam in his eyes, a gleam that Nico identified as relief. "I see… the second idea is the correct assumption, as this is your inner world. The you that is here is your subconscious, akin to when that Tome contacts you through your dreams. Your physical body has your Bracers, but your consciousness does not, hence why you do not have them on you presently."

Nico's eyes narrowed at the man's words. Inner world? What the hell was an Inner World, some sort of world within a world? How the hell did that make sense? Well, logic had flown mostly out the window ever since he joined with Neptune on her journey along with Compa and IF, so something like this shouldn't affect him as much as it would have if it happened in different circumstances. Although, that explanation about his consciousness did help somewhat. It made sense, if it was true, as it would explain why he didn't have his most prized possession on his person. Although, without it he did feel kind of naked… but at the same time, he didn't. Weird.

"Okay… so why am I here? I mean, there's gotta be a reason why I'm in this place when I never came here before." Nico questioned the man, looking around the Desert-like Inner world of his or so this guy says. Well, the more he looked at it, the more he felt that the man was right, since the familiar feeling kept welling up inside his stomach. He didn't know why he was getting this way, but for some reason he didn't mind it. turning back to the man, Nico asked yet another good question. "Also, who are you? You must have some connection to me since you look like an older me, but what that is I have no clue."

The man nodded, he knew those were legit concerns that should be answered. After all, there was a reason why the boy was here, and thus he would have to tell him. "Straight to the point. Very good. However, I believe names are a non-optional social norm, are they not?" Nico had to admit that he was right there, he sorta did jump the gun a bit with his demanding of answers before introductions were given. "I do not have a true name; however, you have named the form you use from the power I personify."

At this, the boy's eyes sharpened as he gave a pointed stare at the man, his mind working overdrive to figure out what that cryptic message meant. This message lasted only a couple of seconds against the intelligence Nico possessed as his eyes bulged and his jaw dropped. "You mean to tell me… you're Crimson Soul?" he asked him, but then remembered something else the man had said. "No, wait, I'm wrong, you're the personification of my demonic energy. You said that I 'named the form I used from the power you personify' and that energy is the only suspect here."

Nodding once again at the younger version of him, the man responded. "Indeed, though I believe Crimson Soul should stay an identity on its own, so I shall be known as… Biko." Nico raised a brow at the name that his demon energy's personification had chosen itself. It sounded eerily akin to his own name, just replace the first letter with a B and you get Biko. Although, he knew that this would make sense since Biko was apparently that integral to his being, another part of him, it still felt a bit weird to see someone with a name so closely resembling his own.

At least though, they wouldn't be called something like Nico and Niko. How strange would that be?

"…Alright, Biko." Nico tested the name on his lips and tongue, still finding it strange to say and hear, but he figured he'd get used to it. "I may come off as rude, just warning you, but you didn't answer my question of how I got here." He reiterated his previous question, remembering that there had been 2 questions asked, one of them nearly distracting him from the other. Fortunately, that no longer was possible now that he'd steered the conversation back on track.

He'd warned the man, but it didn't seem to have been necessary as Biko waved it off, not caring about the insult in the slightest. "Think nothing of it, for your words ring truth. I have not answered your second question. That will have to change." He responded, assuring the other male that his words weren't taken offensively. "The reason why you are here being because of several reasons: one of them being that I brought you here to finally meet you face to face."

Now THAT threw him for a loop as Nico stared at his demon energy's personification with a befuddled gaze. "You… brought me here?" he asked, getting a confirmed nod as Biko crossed his arms under his chest. "Why? Couldn't you have spoken through my mind or something? I mean, if you're who you say you are it shouldn't have been too hard." He questioned further.

"Yes, that would have been possible, however that is only possible after our first meeting. You see, your body wasn't strong enough for me to reach you, thus you had nobody to help you with your demonic arts. In addition, I wouldn't try to strain myself to reach you because if I did so, then your mind wouldn't have been able to take the strain and would have collapsed as a result, turning you into a mindless beast. I am sure you know what kind I am talking about, yes?"

Oh, Nico did. he knew EXACTLY what Biko was referring to. Nico was aware that there were some savage creatures in the world, most of them being classed as Abnormals. However, only ONE of them truly scared him more than anything. Didn't stop him from hunting them, in fact his fears only strengthened his resolve to kill them. However, it also didn't stop him from fearing them… or rather, of people finding out about his connection to them.

Seeing the recognition and panic in the boy's eyes, Biko's gaze softened slightly, before it hardened once more as he continued his explanation. "However, now that you have gained sufficient skill and control over the DPU form, you have met the requirements needed for me to bring you to your inner world. Once you wake up, we will be able to retain a psionic link through demonic energy, allowing me to speak to you. You may only think your responses, as it will be difficult to explain to your companions why you are talking to yourself. I may not be knowledgeable of human norms like you, but I am certain you do not want to sound like a, how do they say it, ah yes a 'crazed lunatic'." He explained, making weird hand gestures to further pronounce his points.

Nico nodded his head in agreement, he found the thought of conversing with a voice that WASN'T trying to drive him up the wall… refreshing, in a way. It felt like he had some form of anchor, a way of maintaining his sanity within the madness that was his head. They say that nightmares would only happen when you dream, but that wasn't the case with him. Perhaps Biko's help might keep him in check.

"Alright, I follow you so far… so what did you wish to talk to me about? You didn't ring me here just to meet me, I can tell from how you look at my body like someone whose checking out the competition in a fighting contest." He asked the man, who tilted his head at the question, or rather, some of the words that Nico had said.

Soon enough, he put his thoughts into words. "I do not know what a 'fighting contest' is… however, that is not important. What is important, is the other reason I called you here: we train you in your abilities as a wielder of demonic energy."

"Eh?"

The Spec Ops Agent blinked owlishly, caught off guard by Biko's response. Of all the things he would have said, Nico didn't expect something like THAT to be the reason. "Um, train me? Why? I mean, not that I don't appreciate the help, but I thought I had good usage of the demonic energy already?"

Biko shook his head, for the first time showing distain since they first started talking. "While your control over the DPU form is admirable, it is far from perfect. Your body's movements in that form were sluggish and unrefined, in addition to the various other weaknesses that were noted during my observations of you using your powers. I even made a list of them." Reaching behind him, the man pulled out a scroll, holding it in front of him. While Nico was curious as to why he was using such an outdated means of writing stuff down, those thoughts soon grinded to a halt when he saw the Scroll roll down to the ground, continue across the desert sands and reach the tips of his feet.

Wow… this guy had done his research fully.

"While you have much to learn, do not think this as you not getting anything right. The fact that you have discovered as much as you have is impressive enough. The DPUs before you took much longer to get to where you are today, it took some even centuries to gain proper control over their true forms." Biko explained, now sporting a pair of eyeglasses that had appeared from seemingly nowhere… also reminded Nico of Noire's pathetic attempt at a disguise. Fortunately, he knew that the difference here was that Biko was using them to look more professional and not as a flimsy disguise.

However, when his words fully registered in Nico's mind, it halted like screeching tires. "Say what? You said other DPUs just now. does that mean, that I'm…"

Momentarily pausing his reading of the Scroll in his hands, Biko looked up from the Scroll at the stunned redhead male, whom had been stunned by the revelation that Biko had dropped on him in the most casual manner possible. Raising a hand, Biko calmly pushed his glasses up onto his face and responded with a firm nod. "Indeed. I am a demonic personification, and from the DPU Core that you absorbed to turn into a DPU, I gained memories. Memories that are fragmented at this point, but memories nonetheless. They tell me that you aren't the first DPU in existence… but they do say there hasn't been one for some time, millennia in fact."

Nico gripped his chest, feeling a deep pounding in it as he tried to wrap his mind around this new revelation, a revelation that shook him down to his core. He wasn't the first… he wasn't the first! For a while, he had conflicting thoughts about this topic, there hadn't been any records on DPUs before other than what Histoire had told him. And even then, there wasn't much, though he could hardly blame her. Still, Nico had been curious for a long time about the DPUs, what were they like? What was their history? Were there more? how long have they been around for? So many questions that he had wanted to ask Histoire, which was one of the more… selfish reasons why he had agreed to tag along on this journey.

However, to hear that while fragmented, memories containing the answers were right before him… it was a lot to take in. "These memories… will they be repaired, or will they be like that forever?" he asked, with some difficulty. Nico was almost scared of the answer, for it represented te possibility of him getting the answers sooner than he'd expected or not. The tension was killing him inside at the thought of learning more about himself. Knowledge was power, true enough, and Nico right now craved for some truly powerful knowledge.

Biko didn't answer right away, and the other male couldn't read his expressions to find out what he was feeling considering how he always had this monotone look about him. Fortunately, this didn't drag on, and Biko responded. "The memories… they have been designed into the DPU Core to be repaired… through your training. How or why is unknown to me, however what I do know is that the answers will only come if you are strong enough to wield them."

Hearing his response gave a feeling akin to frustration, yet not quite, to Nico's gut. While he felt annoyed that he wouldn't be getting the answers he wanted, the male rationalised that there was a faster way to acquire them. There was also another reason why Nico felt compelled to the training though, and it was to do with his DPU powers.

That reason: Biko was indeed right about him having much to learn, Nico had felt it whenever he became Crimson Soul. There was so much power in that form, so much knowledge and techniques that he wasn't aware of. There was only so much he could learn by himself and while he had done a decent job at learning about the abilities he did know, Nico was sure that compared to the DPUs of old he must have looked like a pathetic ant learning to walk for the first time. They were unpolished, unrefined, and mostly unknown to him. This was unfamiliar territory, territory that he hadn't had the chance to explore as much as he'd liked due to the other matters that him and the Party had to attend to.

Idly, his mind noted that the name of the Crystal that he'd absorbed was called a DPU Core…

Fitting.

All his thoughts paused however when a new thought entered Nico's brain, processing itself before being brought for attention as he addressed his demonic personification. "Um, I may have found a slight hiccup with that plan. You want to train me in these powers, I get that and I'm all for it, I really am. But there are time constraints and appearances to think about, so…"

"You need not worry about time constraints, Nico." Biko began, finally dismissing the Scroll after he rolled it back up. The Scroll vanished in an explosion of embers, the same thing happening to his Eyeglasses as he addressed the issue that Nico had brought up. "the passage of time is different in the Inner world compared to the outside world. For example, 10 hours in here, will be like 10 seconds in the outside world. Thus, we will have ample time to train in your existing abilities, as well as get to know one another better. We are connected down to your soul after all, thus it would be fitting that we not be strangers to each other."

Biko then turned around to face the direction of what looked like the setting sun. He began to make his way there, and soon Nico realised that he wanted him to follow suit, so he did.


"One question, before we begin..." Nico began while they walked through the dunes, the man before him not breaking his emotionless stare. However, if one looked very carefully at the random twitches his body went through, one would be able to tell that he was indeed curious about the question Nico was going to ask. "What exactly are you? I know I said you were a manifestation of my demonic energy, however I feel like there's more to it than that. My instincts tell me there is more to you than meets the eye."

The man looked behind himself, at Nico as he eyed him up and down, and for a moment, retained his silence. Nico stared at him intently, waiting for his answer to his question. A silent breeze blew through the desert-like landscape, churning up a brief cloud of sand. After a moment or two, the man's mouth opened as he made to speak, turning his head back so he was looking forwards. "Like I said, I am a manifestation of your powers, you could say that I am your powers given form. Your powers are sentient, but not enough for them to form a willpower or mind of their own, did you not notice how your power behaved seemingly erratically?"

Nico did indeed notice that. His powers sometimes seemed to be way harder to control at times when he hadn't been using them at all. On days when he had used them in small chunks, like when fighting monsters, they seemed a lot more tame. He had always suspected something was... different about them, like they were alive, this just proved it. Now that he had evidence, Nico had a few ideas for how to proceed, but he kept silent.

His silence was taken as a means to continue, and so Biko did. "Your powers, they wish to be used, to be let loose within your body or outside. However, since you lack experience, you have been bottling them up inside, which led to their inevitable overwhelming of your mind. DPUs of old let their energies flow around their bodies to give them freedom, as well as to manage the excess energy, but since you didn't do that they created me to guide you."

The man then pointed backwards with his thumb, towards his right hand, the hand that when in DPU form, held his demonic sword Soul Edge. "Did you not notice? The sword that you call Soul Edge is like me, a form created by your powers. It has all your untapped potential stored away inside of it, which is why the eye bleeds flames when your skills activate. This is so that you don't lose control and become a power hungry psychotic berserker. It may want to be used, but your powers don't want to be ended prematurely. Once you have fully unlocked your full potential, Soul Edge will become just another form your powers will take, an empty vault if you will."

Glancing down at his right and, Nico hummed in thought. He could almost feel the phantom sensations of a hilt, the hilt of Soul Edge as he gripped it for battle. Those words explained a lot actually. The sword known as Soul Edge was a sword manifested from his powers, huh? That would explain how it could shapeshift like it did in the battle with that Seeker. It didn't have a proper form to call its own, but that meant it could change its form to suit its need. A very handy ability if he did say so himself.

Also, about it being a 'vault' that contained his yet-to-be unlocked powers. Nico did admit that he hadn't expected that. He also didn't know how the hell that was even possible, but then again this was deity stuff. Most of the tales people hear about deities and their interactions with mortals were weird at best. Like turning into a swan to have sex with someone? Vomiting baby gods? Birthing beings from the mind?

Yeah, deities were weird.

But still, this would be a blessing to him. From what Biko told him, as long as he kept his training, these powers would likely transfer over to him from Soul Edge. At least, that was what he suspected, Nico had no official answer as the two trudged through the Dunes. However, his gut told him that he wasn't wrong, and he trusted his gut highly. It HAD saved him more times than he'd care to mention.


The walk took what felt like hours to the male, although he didn't complain. Long walks like this were the norm for adventurers, let alone Spec Ops Agents who were out in the field potentially for months on end. Depended on the Quests and missions that they had undertaken for the Guild. They walked and walked, until they reached a building that Nico had spotted in the distance during their travelling.

When they got close enough, the male saw that, to his awe and amazement, that it was a large Stadium-like building. It reminded him of the Coliseum building on a special floating Island in the middle of the islands the four Nations resided on. It had an ovular design, made from wood, bricks and stone to give it an outdated appearance, and yet it also had a vibe that screamed how much history this building contained. "What is this place, Biko? It feels ancient, but… that's not all… I can't explain it, but somehow this place feels like its… alive."

It was difficult to describe as Nico had said, to describe the feelings he was getting from this place. However, if he could best describe what he was looking at, then he'd say that it was like looking at a living breathing heart from the outside. This place thrummed with life and energy, more so than the buildings that he was used to in the four Nations. It was like this place had something that they didn't: life, life that was sentient and intelligent. It was like he was staring at an intelligent creature and not a construct made from natural resources.

Biko nodded his head, fully agreeing with Nico's sentiments as they went through the side entrance, the shade that the shadows made by the setting sun blocking out the heat for them which made Nico breathe out in relief. It felt good to feel the heat subside for a bit… even if it was for a short while. "This is one of the few buildings that represent fractions of your soul, Nico." He began to explain as they travelled down a tall corridor towards the main arena section of the Stadium. "Each building, each representation, is scattered around this vast desert as a means of keeping people who have special mind abilities from prying into your secrets, and if they can navigate through it the dunes have more defences, defences that didn't activate for you since you are the original maker of this world. The Coliseum represents your desire for combat, for training, and the ability to grow through life-or-death experiences."

Humming in thought, Nico nodded his head at the explanation, looking around the Coliseum with increased interest. To be honest, this was the LAST thing he had expected to find when he fell asleep tonight, the ability to come into a world made by his soul as a consciousness, meet a being that represented the energy that he used, and learn more about himself than he ever thought possible.

Something that was both unexpected… but also intriguing too.

Sure, beat the normal dreams he'd have.


Finally, they stopped when they reached the centre of the Coliseum's Arena, where Biko turned to face him with his eyes still as level and flat as when he'd met him. It was such an unnerving spectacle to witness, and yet he couldn't complain. Was this how people saw him when he turned into Crimson Soul?

Seeing that Biko was about to speak, the physically younger redhead paid his full attention to him. "Here, we shall train in your abilities, your human and demon based arts. For as long as you get stronger, we can trigger a 'Power Transfer.'" Biko told him. He then looked to the side, his eyes gaining a slight distant look to them amidst the blankness of his normal expression.

Power Transfers were what he called the moments where Soul Edge bestows on Nico some of his latent abilities. As long as he kept training and developing his mind, body and soul, he would become strong enough to handle his own full power. Heh, being a mortal-turned-deity wasn't a walk in the park, Nico had to admit. There was just so many issues that one had to go through, learning about their powers, how to control them, and to train in order to use them properly. Let alone mastering them.

This was the case for several minutes, before he turned back towards Nico and continued. "As for the other buildings, you will know where they are as they have been downloaded into your consciousness when you first came here." Biko explained as he threw his arm to the side. From his hand and forearm, energy trails burst out and spiralled together in the space above his palm, their colours not unlike the colours his energy took.

Idly, Nico noted that he DID know where the other buildings were, like Biko had said. It felt bizarre to him, knowing where something he hadn't seen before was located. However, he didn't ponder on it for long due to the fiery trails having finished combining to form a weapon: Soul Edge in one of the blades that it took the form of when assuming its Dual Blades form.

He guessed it made sense, considering that Biko was the personification of his demonic energy, thus manifesting the forms that Soul Edge took when he wanted it to shouldn't be much of a problem for him. Pointing its tip towards Nico, Biko began to speak once more. "For your first lesson, we shall focus on honing your existing abilities in your DPU form, including the use of your tail, your wings and Soul Edge. Your human arts have a lower priority at the moment, considering you refine them every day, for the majority of your lifetime. Come, transform into Crimson Soul so that we may begin." He ordered, a slight intensity in his voice that made his tone different from his usual one. It made him feel more like a military general than a mentor…

And the male wouldn't have it any other way.

"Yes Sir!" Nico bellowed with a salute, quickly calling on the demonic energy to allow him to transform. He was momentarily fearful that being in his Inner World and not in the outside one would hinder his transformation, but his fears were proven to be unjustified since his form was encased in his fiery cocoon, soon enough dispersing to reveal Crimson Soul in all his glory. His fierce eyes gazed at Biko as he readied Soul Edge, flaring his wings slightly for a lunge. "I am ready for combat training, instructor."

Biko nodded, before flames erupted from his back, forming a pair of fiery wings as well. Crimson Soul noted that unlike his bird-like ones, Biko's wings were comparable to that of a stereotypical devil's, only that they were consisting of the bones of a devil's wings. They hung downwards behind him, before unfurling slightly in a ready stance as he pointed his own Soul Edge towards him. "The first lesson: Wings. As you know, they can shapeshift into various forms, however what you do not know is that they can do so much more. Observe."

The older man swiftly flapped his wings and took to the skies above them. Crimson Soul held Soul Edge readily, eyeing Biko for whatever attacks he may try. However, he almost didn't see what he did next thanks to the setting sun, however what he did see was a series of 40 silhouettes, which soon were revealed to be missiles, missiles made from the flames of his wings, erupt from the flames in his direction.

Crimson Soul swiftly responded, flaring his wings and taking flight, flying in a circle as he avoided the missiles. The male noted that they seemed to be moving in a specific direction, which was further proven when his mentor seemingly turned slightly to keep the barrage going, almost like the barrage was chasing him. 'So, those wings can launch missiles, can they…? An ability I did not foresee.' he thought with a calculating gaze. His eyes flared with a red light as a weakness dawned on him. 'However if it cannot hit me, then-'

"You are open!"

Eyes widened when Crimson Soul saw how Biko spun a full 360 degrees while still firing those fiery missiles, making it a wide spread attack instead of just a mere one directional one. In this state, the attacks suddenly became twice as fast, almost like blurs through the air. The male hurriedly stopped his flight, sliding across the ground to morph his Wings into a large shell, floating in front of him that was as big as he was tall and connected to his back by trails of fiery energy. The shell contacted some of the missiles, but held firm with the initial barrage.

By the time that the volley had ended, Crimson Soul noticed that the Shell looked like it was beginning to fall apart, much to his surprise as he morphed it back into his Wings. This allowed him just seconds to raise his blade in time to block the slash to his head made by Biko's sword. The DPU form of Nico gritted his teeth, the strength that was behind this blow was considerable, surpassing the Killachine and the Seeker by a wide margin. This fight seemed to be, in Crimson Soul's opinion, the first true fight he had in his short existence.

Plus, while these new abilities his wings had were impressive, it still wasn't enough to break through his defences.

This thought process however, soon was stopped cold in its tracks. The cause: Biko's lips twisting into a sinister grin, the first time he'd seen him do that this entire time that they had known each other. No matter what form he was in, the male was sure that Biko didn't express emotions very much. "You believe your safe do you…? Well then, I believe I should change that."

Crimson Soul gasped when he felt the fiery bone-like demon wings suddenly shift, before they enlarged and wrapped around him, sealing his movements like his Wings had done to the seeker when they had gripped its shoulders. His eyes widened even further when he felt energy and fire beginning to gather within them, concentrated to a single point. The wings began to flare in an unstable manner, alarming Crimson Soul and informing him of what was going to happen next.

"Oh no…!"

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A massive, and that was an understatement, MASSIVE explosion of fire and smoke erupted when the energy within the flames was released in its concentrated state, the smoke rising to the skies and tainting its orange colour with its blackish grey. Small flames fell from the explosion, landing on the spectating seats and the main floor of the arena, though they didn't burn it.

Both Crimson Soul and Biko emerged from the side of the explosion, strafing sideways while regarding each other. One of them looked like he had been through hell with lots of his armour gone, several burn marks on his body and laboured breathing, the other being completely fine.

One could guess which was which.

"Th-Those wings…" Crimson Soul breathed heavily. While his armour was mostly damaged by the attack, he had barely morphed his Wings into a complete shell around him in time to negate some of the damage. He hadn't expected that attack to be so powerful though, which explained why he took more damage than initially predicted. "N-Not only can they shapeshift… but they are also conductors as well…!"

Biko nodded as he floated down to Crimson Soul's level, which was just above the ground. "Indeed, a DPU's wings are incredibly versatile, not like a CPU's wings which change depending if they have different processors or not. Not only do they shapeshift, but they count as both offensive, support or in your case defensive weapons by themselves. I say support…" Biko paused his speech while pouring energy into his wings. The flames that made up the Wings suddenly enlarged, losing their form slightly as Biko took off towards him, his speed so great that Crimson Soul barely blocked in time.

"Because they can enhance our speed and other stats when energy is put in them as well!"

Their two Soul Edges collided in a flurry of slashes and parries, lasting for a few drawn-out moments until they became deadlocked in a stalemate. Their wielders seemingly ignored this in favour of staring into each other's eyes, not breaking eye contact for a second. This lasted much longer than the initial clash… until Biko raised a brow when Crimson Soul suddenly smiled. "What is amusing about your situation, Crimson Soul?"

"Merely a realisation… one that helped me with seeing how those wings of yours worked…"

Biko's eyes narrowed at this information, then they shot open wide when the Wings Crimson Soul had erupted, releasing a large heat wave that forced him back. He then had to strafe from side to side to dodge several volleys of fiery missiles. A shadow loomed overhead, and Biko looked up to see a massive fist made from orangish red flames, bringing itself down in an overhead smash. Biko swiftly wrapped his Soul Edge in flames, rearing it back for an upward slash, before doing that very motion. The flames making up the hand were slashed in half, the two halves dissipating into tiny embers. This however, made a brief moment of respite, before he raised Soul Edge and blocked the larger blade of Crimson Soul, whose Wings shined brightly with the amount of energy being put in them.

"I see... so your DPU form enhances your learning capacity as well. Not only does it enhance your physical power, but your mind as well. It is more in tune with your body than any HDD transformation." Biko commented, grinding his sword against the enemy. Crimson Soul however, felt a tugging sensation in his gut, one that came with the usage of a certain ability he possessed. Flames erupted from the ground, rising upwards and forming a series of long arms. Each one grabbed onto his body, before pulling him down to the ground and slamming him into it.

The demonic personification grunted slightly, briefly hissing as pain shot up his spine. A fiery heat meeting his face, brought his attention to Crimson Soul however, who was gathering power into his wings. His eyes widened while the DPU's narrowed, the energy condensing into a sphere above his head, one large enough to rival a double decker bus.

Crimson Soul raised his Soul Edge and slashed in Biko's direction, hurling the sphere down at him. the Sphere shot towards him, its speed surprisingly comparable to that of a bullet. Its scorching heat roared from it like a raging lion, heating up the surroundings. Outside of his gaze, Biko noticed that the stands were slowly melting from the massive heat emitting from the Sphere.

Gripping his own Soul Edge, Biko stood up as the sphere made its way to burn him to ashes. He then raised the weapon to the air above, and in an instant he was engulfed in a fiery pillar that reached the inner world's skies. The heat from the pillar roared with just as much intensity as the sphere's, and when the two attacks collided, both fought briefly for dominance like a pair of animals trying to rip each other apart.

Finally, Crimson Soul's sphere gave in under the built pressure, and imploded in on itself, becoming an explosion of fire that rivalled that of an exploding star. Heat shrieked and roared in a mad frenzy, engulfing the stadium and the surroundings 400 metres in every direction. It looked so hot that even a blind man would have his eyes burned to ashes just by looking at it.

In time, the explosion died down, and was soon swept away to reveal the two fighters... without a single burn mark on them. "Our bodies are resistant to demonic energy, as well as normal energy. Attacks like this are nothing for us, it would take no less than a thousand star eruptions to even dream of damaging us... that or another more powerful DPU." Biko explained as he and Crimson Soul floated before each other, their auras swelling around them like wild beasts. Lightning sparked and danced occasionally around them, showing just how erratic and volatile the demonic energy within them truly was.

However, instead of being dismayed or stunned at the apparent learning ability Crimson Soul possessed… Biko simply smirked once more, which was mirrored by his opponent. He raised Soul Edge, prompting Crimson Soul to do the same as they got ready to continue. "Excellent… most excellent, Crimson Soul! This training will improve you yet!" Biko bellowed, before he dipped forwards and charged with the speed of 3 bullet trains combined together. "Now come! Let us continue this bout, shall we?!"


Chapter end!

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