Conquest Arc:
Chapter 31: Finisher of the World
Naoya Toudou
Clear Sky – Dawn – 23/11/2012(Friday) – Altar of Grand Pyramid, Ankh Desert
(Friday of Conquest)
Sitting crossed-leg on the small stage, Kazuya greeted the remaining members of Naoya's team with a wicked smile spreading on his face. Naoya, Maki, Reiji, Yukino and Ryoji entered the large altar, at the same time observing around.
"Is that a tomb or a…?" Ryoji asked when he saw the tomb on the stage.
"You mean Sarcophagus, ancient Egypt's coffin," Yukino replied.
"Sarcapalagus?"
"Don't ruin the mood, Ryoji." Naoya interrupted instead when Kazuya began to speak.
"I know just as much as you do, brother. You thought you could actually stop me from taking Erio by hiding her downstairs? Or maybe, you just come here to beat me and stop lord Conquest?"
"Oh, now we're thinking like a twin. I thought Nyarlathotep hired you from the circus to copy me, are you?"Naoya mocked his doppelganger, the side of his mouth revealing a fang-like tooth.
"Oh brother, *sigh* want to take a seat? Sonomura-san? Kido-san? Yukki-san? Ah, I don't think the god of death can stop glaring at me."
"We're not letting you get any closer to Erio Kirishima." Yukino warned, sharing the same glare as Ryoji, and everyone else.
"Damn right." Reiji clenched his fist.
"Come on, there's a seat. Take it easy." Kazuya taunted them again, gesturing to the long chair on both sides. Once again, Naoya and his team refused, and Kazuya finally gave up. "Suit yourself."
Out of nowhere, a loud machinery sound could be heard all over the pyramid, they could feel the structure changing with every spin of the hidden gear beneath the wall and the floor. Kazuya paid no mind to it and proceeded with his talk.
"What do you think about the prophecy?"
They were startled by Kazuya's sudden question. Maki was the one to step forward and asked.
"Is the prophecy truly necessary?" The rest turned to Maki who asked. "I don't think that's all there is to it, isn't it?"
"Exactly."
From behind the tomb on the stage, Kandori walked in and stood behind the sitting Kazuya. "Haven't you doubt why there are 4 people to take on Four Horsemen? Why has everything going your way? You know the idea, Naoya."
"…What does it matter?"
Kazuya laughed at Naoya's response while Kandori became quiet.
"There's always a snake behind the bush, Naoya," Kandori gave his final words ashe turned to the ceiling and said.
"Raise the floor."
As the machinery sound was getting louder, the ceiling to the altar opened in a spiral. The vast desert could finally be seen from the top floor. The clouds in the sky were spinning at the center of the Grand Pyramid. The tiles on the ground were spinning, which they had to crouch down to maintain their balance. Kazuya and Kandori remained calm, but as soon as the altar room was exposed completely to the sunlight, Kazuya stepped down from the stage.
"You want the hard way or the soft way?" Kazuya warned in a battle stance. Ryoji and the rest were ready, but Naoya stretched his arm to the side, signaling them to leave this battle to him.
"Do you have the extreme way?" Naoya revealed his fist. As the two approached each other, they broke into a dash, and the first clash of fists signed the start of the battle.
Naoya Toudou VS Kazuya Toudou
DUSH!
A thundering sound of Naoya and Kazuya's fists bashing on each other's cheeks trembled the battleground. In quick reflex, Kazuya jumped slightly in mid-air and landed a boot kick on Naoya's stomach. Followed up his attack, Kazuya landed a hook punch on the crouching Naoya.
But just as his fist was closing onto Naoya, another hand locked Kazuya's attack. Before he could retaliate, a powerful uppercut successfully reached Kazuya's chin, throwing him backward. Naoya returned to his feet and finally took out his sword and unsheathed it.
"Get ready, Kazuya. Amon-Ra!"
The Egyptian king of god emerged with his wand readied in hand. Kazuya dusted his clothes and revealed a sword behind him as well.
"Don't get ahead of yourself." Kazuya raised his hand and clenched it, "O…si…ris!"
Osiris
"Thou art I, I am thou… I am the dweller of the underworld, the ruler of dead and the judgment of afterlife. I am Osiris, the god of the underworld…"
Arcana: Hunger
Egyptian god of the underworld, death, and afterlife as well as Kazuya's new persona. He is the son of Geb and Nut and the father of Horus and Anubis. After he was killed by Set, his wife Isis resurrected him and he returned as the god of the underworld.
Just as depicted from the myth, Osiris's skin was pure green. Almost all of his entire body was covered in white bandage except for his arms and head with a few bracelets on both arms, added with a big crown on top of his head. In his palms were a crook and a flail that symbolized his status as a god. He had full white eyes and a small beard on his chin.
The two Egyptian gods gazed at each other as if they were exchanging respect. They placed their staff on their chest before preparing to attack.
"Go, Amon-Ra!"
"Take him down, Osiris."
The two gods clashed. Without wasting time any further, Reiji, Yukino, Maki and Ryoji raced to the tomb where Kandori stood.
11th floors
Erio hugged Eriko when the room spun around and shifting the size of the room. Hidehiko crouched down and hid his face under his knees as he trembled. Eriko noticed his state, and her worries overcome her.
"Hide, don't panic, I need you right now!"
Hidehiko turned to Eriko and Erio. At first his gaze was normal, but then his eyes widened in surprise when he focused his eyes.
"E-Eriko… Why… why are you so…?" Hidehiko said, "Eriko, your aura… Ah, what's happening to me?"
Hidehiko rubbed his eyes hardly, trying to return his sight. His mouth was tiredly forcing out a word. Eriko looked extremely concerned, seeing as he became worse.
"I can feel something, a-a powerful energy. This is not Nyarlathotep, this is bigger! Something's coming from the sky!"
"Hide-kun, who is it-"
"Lord Conquest is descending."
"!"
When Eriko turned to the voice, she saw Shu, the Egyptian god of air glaring at her from the corner of the room. Eriko immediately revealed her rapier and pointed it at Shu. "What do you want from us?"
"I believe it is the other way around."
"What do you mean?" Eriko asked, "Did Conquest sent you here?"
"He will arrive, but Apep wouldn't want you to miss the ceremony."
"Apep?"
Just then, the room suddenly went dark. A loud sound of something being smashed was heard from the outside. As Eriko, Erio and Hidehiko turned to the sound, the wall broke apart, and the mouth of a giant serpent was already wide open as they were being swallowed by it.
Summit of Pyramid
"Bastard!"
Naoya swung a roundhouse kick to Kazuya's left head. Kazuya blocked, but he lost his footing and fell to the stacks of chair to his right. Naoya lunged to him and vertically sliced down his sword towards Kazuya, but Kazuya landed a foot on his chest, kicking him away from him.
Naoya felt dizzy when he slammed his head on the floor when being kicked by Kazuya. He could clearly hear Kazuya summoning his persona as he used another skill.
"Osiris: Free Judgment!"
Osiris whipped his flail on Kazuya, giving him some sort of enhancement. Kazuya's face broke into a smirk and he approached Naoya with his sword above his head, ready to strike down his foe.
"Let me send you to the dream world. Bufudyne!"
With the ice power storing in his blade by Osiris, Kazuya swung down his sword at the kneeling Naoya. Just a small step, Naoya leaped sideway, dodging the powerful slash. The result was the long chairs in Kazuya's range were cut clean and frozen. Finding an opening, Naoya gripped his sword and rushed towards Kazuya.
SLASH!
Naoya knew it was a deep cut to Kazuya's throat as he landed a quick-draw with his sword, but a small chuckle from his opponent proved his mistake. Naoya quickly backed away to see the cut on Kazuya's neck was rapidly healing.
"Free Judgment allows me to be immortal for a short period of time. None of your attacks will work on me."
"Did you just tell me your weakness? A short period of time… Thanks, Kazuya."
CLASH!
The swords once again clashed before Naoya took the initiative to retreat. Of course, there was nowhere to run, as there was no stairs that can help him get down from the summit. So he had to run in a circle while being chased by Kazuya.
Meanwhile, on the stage, Kandori was still playing the stones in his hand even when Reiji, Maki, Yukino, and Ryoji were standing in front of him. He was too relaxed to fight anyone.
"Will I disappoint you if I say I'm already a retired persona user? But my fist is strong if you want to fight with fists."
"Why must you-"
Yukino's speech was cut off by Reiji tapping on her shoulder. "Leave him to me," Reiji said as he readjusted his gloves. Yukino hesitated, but nodded in understanding and told Maki and Ryoji to give them some space.
"What a man you've become," Kandori commented Reiji, "I'm proud of you."
"That won't make me hold back."
Kandori, in quick reflex, threw the stones in his hand to the air, disturbing Reiji's concentration before making a fist.
Reiji Kido VS Takahisa Kandori
While the battle between the twin brothers occurred, Reiji and Kandori exchanged multiple fists and rumbled the stage. Although he hasn't fought in a long time, Reiji's muscle remained strong and active, as he was able to stretch his knee high enough to hit Kandori's face.
Back to Naoya who was circling the summit for the fifth time, he revealed a smirk when he saw a faint dust coming out from Kazuya's body, signing the end of Free Judgment. Without hesitation, Naoya exposed himself from behind the long chairs and readied to fire. Kazuya readily defended himself as well.
"Amon-Ra: Agidyne!"
"Osiris: Bufudyne!"
The moment the heavy flame blasted from Amon-Ra and the frosty ice blasted from Osiris made contact, a powerful explosion happened in between Naoya and Kazuya. Their attacks completely nullified each other and pushed the Toudou brothers apart. Not surprisingly, they stood on their ground with no signs of giving up.
Dashing towards each other, Naoya and Kazuya exchanged clashes of swords. Thankfully, Naoya had a faster and stronger reaction than Kazuya. Kazuya was disarmed from his sword, but he managed to elbow Naoya's chest. They separated again, and Kazuya made the first move as he reached for his sword.
"Osiris: Underworld After!"
Osiris swung his crook and flail in a spiral, creating specks of dust around Kazuya. Kazuya pierced his sword to the ground as the dust around him forced down to the ground, aiming for Naoya.
Naoya repeated his action and summoned Amon-Ra, charging his flame into the ground and aiming for Kazuya.
"Amon-Ra: Sun Disk!"
With both powers charged again, a bigger explosion clashed, shattering apart the ground and opening up a big hole at the center. The long chairs around Naoya were burned to crisp while the chairs around Kazuya were frozen into ice. The chairs that filled the altar just a minute ago had now been emptied, excluding the small stage where the tomb and the struggle between Reiji and Kandori were still continuing. Bad thing was that Kazuya was still at the side where the stage was, while Naoya was on the opposite edge, separated by a hole created by them.
"Not bad from a veteran persona user," Kazuya commented.
"Oh, I'm SO flattered."
"But look at your friend. I think he's in trouble."
When Naoya glanced towards the stage, Kandori had just punched Reiji's jaw. Although Kandori's face was more messed up than before, his black spectacle was still intact, while Reiji was already struggling to stand up.
"Kido, what the hell?"
"Not now, Toudou! I'm just a little rusty, that's all!"
"Maki, Yukino, Ryoji?" Naoya turned to Yukino, Maki, and Ryoji who were standing by the side. Yukino and Maki were standing still while Ryoji was ready to transform into Thanatos on the side of the stage.
"He told us to not interfere. Believe in Reiji, Naoya. He can pull this through." Yukino said with confidence. Naoya hesitated, but eventually nodded.
"Yeah, he should take the spotlight while he can."
Preparing his comeback, Reiji speared Kandori with his head and slammed him on the hard tomb on the stage, successfully bringing Kandori down to his knee. Finding a clean shot, Reiji landed a powerful fist to Kandori's face, removing his spectacle in the process.
"Good, Kido." Kandori commented with his hollow eyes, "I guess you still got it in you."
Before he realized it, Reiji found his shirt being grabbed and himself being rolled.
SLAM!
In Judo style, Kandori rose and swung Reiji's body in 180 degrees before slamming him on the hard tomb. Reiji could swear he heard his spine broke, and it hurt like hell.
"Gah!"
Reiji screamed as he dropped from the tomb. Blood was spraying out of his mouth as he coughed. Yukino and Maki widened their eyes while Ryoji was ready to bust through and take Kandori down.
"Don't interfere!" Reiji suddenly shouted. Ryoji who was already on his way to him stopped. Yukino frowned, at the same time worried.
"Reiji, if you keep being this stubborn you could die!"
"Shut up!"
Kandori stood tall with his hollow eyes as he commented, "You didn't disappoint me, Kido. Don't worry."
Kandori was dusting his clothes while reaching for his black spectacle on the ground. Before he could grab it, another hand reached it first and crushed it in his fist.
"Why can't you… stay dead?"
Releasing the shattered spectacle in his hand, Reiji slowly stood up with his bloodied lips. Kandori was slightly awed by the man standing in front of him, and he had no words to give.
"When we defeated you decade ago, I thought I don't have to fight you again, it's over. But then you're alive, we had to kill you again. By that time, I guess somewhere inside me pitied you for living only to be killed..." Reiji's gasping voice said as he clenched his fist.
"…But now here you are again, ALIVE! Now I get sick of it, sick of you alive and doing shit! Just stay dead for good you bastard!"
It was only a split second, but Reiji was already in mid-air. Using his remaining energy, Reiji landed a kick to Kandori's chin, throwing him out from the stage. He caught his breath, watching Kandori on the ground without moving an inch. "Damn, should have used my persona from the start…" Kido mumbled.
"Kido!"Yukino and Maki gladly smiled. Ryoji looked relieved.
"Good one, Kido!" Naoya shouted, before turning to Kazuya, "How about that, Kazuya?"
"*sigh* Kandori…" Kazuya rested one hand in his pocket, "But that won't change a thing."
Out of nowhere, a shadow of a giant serpent was seen at the summit of the pyramid. Naoya palmed his head, mumbling 'Not him again' under his breath. Reiji, Yukino, Maki, and Ryoji could only stare in fear when Apep made his second appearance.
"Apep, give her to me!" Kazuya screamed. Apep, with his mouth seemingly full, spat out three people they recognized too well: the Kirishima twins and Hidehiko, all slimy from Apep's saliva.
"What the…! Eriko!" Naoya screamed. Eriko, Erio, and Hidehiko were coughing and catching their breath, before being assisted by Yukino, Maki and Ryoji nearby.
"Maki? Yukino? How…" Eriko said with a shocked face. "We were in the room and then Apep came in..."
"Looks like that snake brought you to the top to witness Conquest," Yukino answered, at the same time checking Erio's pulse, only to see her being weaker than before. She turned to Ryoji and ordered him, "Protect Erio at all cost."
"Durga!"
"Verdandi!"
Yukino and Maki summoned their personas and attacked Apep. But it was a waste of time, as Apep easily fended off their attack with his tail and viciously marching at them with his fang. Ryoji managed to protect Erio under his arm, but only her. In only a short amount of time, Maki and Yukino fell under Apep's attack. Seeing the event, Kazuya couldn't help but laugh at Naoya for his friends' pointless effort in stopping him.
"I told you, nothing changed! You can't stop me, Naoya! You only did it because you have no choice! How long are you going to lie to her? Sooner or later, she will know. Give me the role, Naoya, give it to me!"
"KA-ZU-YA! AMON-RAAAAA!" Naoya summoned Amon-Ra. The Egyptian king of gods channeled all his power into his wand. Naoya's easy-going attitude was completely replaced by rage. "If it's not me, then no one can!"
"Such excuse! Osiris!" Kazuya summoned Osiris. The Egyptian god of underworld placed his crook and flails on his chest and charged his power. "This boring world needs a repeat and start from the scratch again, with my ideal and principle!"
With both personas fully charged and their eyes fully opened, Naoya and Kazuya unleashed their blast.
"Ultimate Skill: Eye of Ra!"
"Ultimate Skill: Eye of Horus!"
Two massive sizes of eyeballs, one in intense orange and one in icy blue was staring at each other with a powerful glare. The two eyeballs slowly approached closer and closer, and as the 'pupil' connected, it exploded.
As if a meteor crashed on top of a mountain, the summit crumbled in destruction. The rest of Naoya's team, the fallen Kandori and even Apep was blinded by the sudden light before realizing that they fell to the lower floor. Naoya and Kazuya were losing their stamina as they were thrown back by the impact.
The top two floors were destroyed and bricks filled the widened stage. Everybody was either unconscious or half-conscious, except for one. Not far from there, Thanatos revealed himself as the first to rise from the ground with Erio Kirishima unhurt under his protection. Hidehiko was however in the worst state, almost losing his life getting slammed by the brick on top of him.
"Erio's fine, she only has some small injuries!" Thanatos said, wiping the blood on Erio's head.
Eventually, the second and third to return to their feet were Naoya and Kazuya. Kandori still couldn't lift his head while Apep was still paralyzed, injured by the clash of the two ultimate skills.
"Thank you for that, Thanatos. I need her alive." Kazuya grinned, scanning the area searching for Kandori. "Kandori, are you-"
But all of a sudden, his face turned to panic and pale. Naoya and Thanatos turned to where Kazuya was staring, and they froze for a moment.
The tomb that was hanging sideway, which was said to hold the 'sacrifice' for Conquest… was slightly opened…
"Shit…"
…And Maki, who was the fourth to regain full consciousness, was right next to it with one hand already inside it.
"Ouch… Huh? What's this?"
"Maki, NO-"
That exact moment when she tried to peek in it, a strong gust of wind blew the air around them.
"…Guys, do you hear that?" Thanatos suddenly said.
RING… RING… RING…
They slowly glanced upward to see a bright light slowly descending from the sky. The cloud around the light dispersed and evaporated immediately upon closing on it. Naoya was speechless and could only mutter a single word.
"Conquest…"
On the other hand, Kazuya could only stare in horror as he could not reach his hand to stop Maki. Eventually, her eyes peeked inside the darkness and slowly stared…
Naoya, Thanatos, Kazuya, Apep and the finally standing Kandori stared intensely at Maki. As if she was processing the image of the person inside, Maki observed carefully. Then, she furiously slid away from whoever was inside it in panic.
"Maki?" Thanatos asked, worried to see her motionless without a response. Slowly, Maki turned her head and focus her eyes on her friends. Only god knows how to describe her expression when she said it.
"HOW?"
"It is all part of the destiny."
Maki felt a powerful and strong presence in front of her. The rest stared in horror and intimidated to see the figure. Maki turned to her front again to see the bright white silhouette closing the case of the tomb.
It was during that moment, the rest of the team awoke to the sight of bright light, only to see Conquest standing there. They almost couldn't believe their eyes when they saw the godly figure.
"What the hell…?" Reiji cursed as he rubbed his broken back.
"Is that Conquest?" Yukino muttered while checking the frightening Hidehiko next to her.
"He's too dangerous…" Hidehiko weakly said under his breath, his consciousness slowly fading.
"Erio-chan, Naoya!" Eriko screamed upon wiping the dirt in her eyes. She ran towards Thanatos who was protecting her sister and worriedly checking her body.
"Eriko… nee-chan…" Poor Erio whispered. Eriko could still felt her sister's trembling skin when she touched her.
Conquest stood tall in the middle of the chaotic situation. Apep, Kandori and Kazuya gave a small bow to him in respect. Conquest, however, never averted his dark eyes from Naoya and Kazuya. The ringing sound that Thanatos heard a while ago was slowly increasing its volume.
"A cycle isn't always the end; it is but a new beginning; a circle that overlapped countless circles, that is the Cycle of the World." Conquest spoke, "I am the one who found that 'overlapping point' in the world cycle. I am the one who finished this world."
"I am more than happy to help you do so, lord Conquest. Erio and I will fulfill what's left!" Kazuya said proudly. But Naoya's word caught Conquest's attention.
"Conquest," Naoya calmly approached the white silhouette and said, "Remember your promise."
"…I sense a calm wind flowing through this world. Pray that itwill be a good omen."
Conquest spread his arms and began.
"We shall begin."
"I am ready, lord Conquest." Kandori said, approaching the bright light. He never hesitated to give his body to the giant, and he was proud to do so.
The white silhouette glowed brightly, blinding all presence around him. As the light dimmed, he exploded into countless white dust, scattering the air. Bit by bit, the dust were absorbed into Kandori. The processed sped up, and all the dust was forced into him like a black hole.
"What… what a powerful energy!" Thanatos commented when he sensed Kandori's current power. The others tried to comprehend the situation, but not one could explain it. Even the cloud in the sky was spinning in high speed and slowly darkened by the merging.
What first to be Kandori was now a bright white serpent, with its eyes gazing to the sky. Then the tomb that held the sacrifice was slowly opened. What bursting from inside were a mass of small blue snakes. The white serpent and blue snakes collided and mixed, changing it into a giant figure encased in a sphere made up of blue fog. The ringing sound reached its peak when a small white light find its way out of encased blue fogs. Then, everything turned to white space as the bell rang the opening of the first seal.
RING! RING! RING!
[[[FIRST SEAL OPEN]]]
Atum/Conquest
"Thou art I, I am thou… As destiny foresee, the sun will set at the end of the cycle. To see the end, to mark such end, I shall fulfill my part of the prophecy, to conquer the wisdom lies in mankind, to finish what is meant to be completed. I am Atum, the finisher of the world. Refer me as Conquest the conqueror."
Known as: Finisher of the world, the complete one
Arcana: Fool & World
Archetype: Philosophical theory of origin of universe
Archetype symbol:Great serpent
Egyptian god of creation, pre-existence, post-existence and the self-created god who created Shu and Tefnut at the beginning of time. Everything is said to be made from his 'Ka' as the creator, and he is the solar deity associated with Ra. In Egyptian mythology, he is the first being and god born from the primordial watery abyss Nu in a form of a serpent, and his existence marked the beginning of world cycle. When the world cycle is complete, he will return everything back to watery chaos and begin anew.
In Seven Seal of God prophecy, he took the role as Conquest, the white rider of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
He was too overwhelming to be compared to any shadow they ever faced so far. This is the presence of a real deity, a real god. His dress was pure white. His chest, legs, and arms were encased in gold armor. He had a white mask with golden palette and two bright white eyes, added with a big crown carved with Hieroglyphein symbols on his head. On his left hand was an obsidian Ankh while on his right hand was an obsidian staff with an extra curve on both ends. He had an appearance of a general in a war suit before joining the battle. He was roughly five meters tall from where Maki stand and he had a rather muscular body size and deep, echoing voice.
"Atum the creator… is Conquest?" Thanatos said, now in human form. "A primordial god is an apocalyptic rider inthe prophecy? I-I thought Nyx is the last of the primordial shadow to descend to our world… This is bad, really bad."
"God of creation…" Maki said.
"Atum the finisher?" Yukino whispered under her breath upon the sight, she too could feel the aura from the god of creation.
"He's too powerful!" Hidehiko covered his eyes and hid behind Yukino.
"So this is a rider of the Four Horsemen." Kazuya admired with a slight smirk.
"I am not finished." Atum aka Conquest claimed, he stretched his arm and ordered, "Apep."
Apep, who was watching the whole scene at the back, began to roar furiously. His gigantic and long body was slowly 'torn' away like a snake shedding its skin in a rapid process. But what emerged from the head of Apep was not a new clean skin, but rather…
"What the f*ck is going on…?" Reiji gasped.
A big and white horse in golden armor shook off the skins of the snake over his head. It was hard to see from the distance, but it was clear that his eyes remained as a serpent. A single step of his horseshoe could be felt from meters away. Conquest jumped on the white horse, and the white rider is completed.
"The ceremony is complete, nothing will suffice me on this fallen pyramid. 'Emperor', your choice will be decided here. Will you be content?"
"No, leave Erio Kirishima out of this," Naoya warned, "Kazuya and she aren't supposed to be a part of the prophecy."
"*sigh*, sorry to say this, brother." Kazuya walked towards Conquest and lazily responded, "But I'm doing what I'm told to do too."
He raised his hand and snapped his finger, "Nameless Mist, give me Erio Kirishima."
That exact moment, both Hidehiko and Erio fell unconscious. Hidehiko was still in Yukino's arm as he fell. Ryoji was in time to catch Erio as she fell. Naoya could only watch in horror as Eriko rushed to her sister's side while Yukino and Reiji were checking on Hidehiko's pulse.
"Hidehiko, talk to me."
"Hide-kun!"
"Ryoji, is he okay? Erio, Erio!"
"I don't know, let's hope she's fine."
"The pond…" Maki who was still on the ground said, "It must be something in that pond, where Erio and Hidehiko bathed!"
"Dammit…" Naoya clutched his fist, "Is that…"
"[Limbo Recall], I suppose you didn't see that coming, don't you?" Kazuya smirked. He reached his hand towards the fallen Erio, "Now come to me, Erio-chan."
Thankfully, Erio opened her eyes. Unthankfully, her eyes were red. Pushing away Eriko and Ryoji aside, she stood to her feet like a doll, speechless and emotionless.
"Erio?" Eriko called out for her, but it seemed obvious she couldn't hear her voice. Ryoji, who at first looked worried, finally sharpened his sight and stopped Eriko.
"Eriko, she's not your sister anymore." Ryoji explained.
"What do you mean?" Eriko pretended she didn't hear that. But when Ryoji stared deep into his eyes and repeated his sentence, she stubbornly pushed him away.
"No, she's my sister!" Eriko ran and blocked her sister's path, shaking her shoulder hoping that she woke up for good. "Erio, wake up! It's me, your sister!"
Erio replied with a push to the side. Perhaps she was no longer the Erio Kirishima they knew from the looks of the blazing gaze in her eyes. Kazuya was extremely excited to see her 'willingly' came to him that he dashed towards her and spread his arms for a hug.
"That's right, my girl, that's right. I'll protect you from those bad guys." Kazuya gently cherished her long hair and said, "If you are mine, I'll protect you, I'll give you anything you want, nobody can hurt you."
"Kazuya!"
Kazuya's gentle face suddenly turned dark. "What do you want?"
"Forget her already. Don't do this, you can't have her."
"That's not the problem, brother. As long as the bond between you and her (turning to Eriko) remains strong, so do us." Kazuya's eyes became fierce, "It's all about who comes first."
"…" Naoya paused, gritting his teeth hard. The rest, including Eriko, could only stare quietly from a distance. Eventually, Naoya resolved himself. "You're not worthy of the power."
"Whatever, I have my own rule in this expired life, I don't care about you." Kazuya replied with an empty tone, before he shouted, "Nyarlathotep!"
"Good, good, Kazuya Toudou!"
Out of nowhere, a familiar figure appeared from a black fog in the middle of the battleground. The last person they wanted to see was there joining the conflict. The rest in Naoya's team revealed their weapon and stance while Naoya took a deep breath and confronted his long rival.
"Good to see you, Nyarlathotep." Naoya sarcastically said.
"It seems the 'emperor' is still standing. Very impressive, Naoya Toudou!" Nyarlathotep laughed.
"Oh yeah? How about you come and face me, Crawling Chaos!" Reiji challenged him, but he paid no attention to him.
"Kazuya and his woman are in my hand, I don't have time to waste with someone like you." It was only a while, but it seemed that Nyarlathotep will be leaving soon, and not without the pair. "But worry not! We will meet again in the future to see your decision. I'll be waiting to see that! Ahahahaha!"
"Nyarlathotep, wait!"
Slowly, a black fog began to envelop Kazuya and Erio. Naoya and Eriko broke into a run to catch up to them. But the white horse blocked their path as Conquest gazing down on them.
"Gabriel!" Eriko summoned Gabriel and launched an attack on the white rider. It was almost too stupid to attack the almighty god of creation, but she couldn't care less.
With a single swing of his obsidian staff, Conquest reflected the charging attack, destroying Gabriel into fragments of light, returning it to Eriko. She groaned in pain, but that didn't stop her from approaching him.
"Eriko, stay back! I'll handle him!" Naoya screamed. But the fog around Kazuya and Erio was already covering their entire body except for their face. It boiled his rage when he saw Kazuya's evil smile.
"See you later, brother."
"Kazuya!"
Then, the three of them vanished, fading into fog and smoke. Truth to be told, everyone was already at their limit, but Naoya was the only one who still had the strength to stand. Even when Conquest was in front of him, he never faltered.
"Rest yourself, 'emperor'. You have done enough." Conquest echoed the atmosphere that slowly fading into silence.
"Why must you stop me? I'm so close."
"What power you have to stop her? That is not enough to return her to her sense, just as your friend. Cease yourself."
Naoya turned to his back to see the unconscious Hidehiko who was pale and weak, not even Maki's help could help him this time. Naoya and Maki made eye contact, and her eyes were sad. He turned to Yukino next to Maki, and she shook her head. He checked on Reiji to see that he already dropped to the ground. He saw Ryoji, and he looked away. Finally, he turned to Eriko, but she's hiding her face under her hair, probably hiding her sadness.
"Conquest… No, I mean Atum, I want to know." Naoya's voice was fading, "Is there no other way? No even Philemon?"
"That is for you to decide."
World Finisher Bow- The obsidian staff in his right hand was changing shape, it slowly curved inward at both end and forming a half transparent string that connected to both end, forming a bow. Then, the Ankh in his left hand was combined with the bow to complete the golden color. He stretched the string hard and formed a white arrow out of thin air.
"Dodge!" Naoya screamed. Upon seeing the arrow ready to be released, Yukino and Maki hurriedly dragged Hidehiko to the side. Ryoji grabbed the depressed Eriko's hand and pulled her aside. Reiji made a slight jump to the side. Naoya jumped sideway with all his energy and took cover.
Ethereal Arrow- With a thundering sound, the gigantic arrow was released as Conquest released his hand. The sound was so loud, that they had to shut their ears. The area in the target's range was blasted into ashes. It was moving extremely fast, and it was aiming at the center of the desert, right in between the SEBEC building and the lake.
The blast of the arrow created a massive portal. Blue fogs were gushing out from inside. Conquest disconnected his bow and moved his horse as he was ready to leave.
"Return to your world as I have given you a way home. It is not your destiny to fall in this scorching hell."
"What?" Naoya returned to his feet and turned to the portal, "Is that…"
"Our way back," Ryoji said, carrying Eriko in her arm. The rest slowly regained their stamina after seeing some hope on their way back.
"Now leave."
When Naoya shifted his eyes back towards the deep voice, Conquest was no longer there, leaving a trail of white dust behind. "Leaving already?"
He turned to his friends as his eyes became blurry. Then he realized he was already beyond his limit after endless walking, staying awake, and fighting. He glanced at his hand, but he saw two and three hands instead. That time, his only thought was Eriko. When he focused his eyes on her, she was sitting there, speechless and sad, and he could do nothing about it. Still, he braved his heart to take a few steps towards her and tried to at least comfort her.
"E…ri…ko…"
At his first step, Naoya's eyes saw nothing but darkness as he felt himself falling to the ground and remembered nothing more after that.
A/N: The first rider of the Four Horsemen has descended! What a hard chapter to write… It makes no freaking idea to what will happen next. Who is Conquest's sacrifice? What is the relationship between Kirishima twins and Toudou twins? By the way, so sorry for the months late of an update, I'm very busy these days.
How was this chapter? I guess most of you never guess Conquest's identity as an Egyptian god of creation. Theoretically, Atum is not related to the Four Horsemen, but his role does do the job of 'conquering' the world cycle. However, note that the real white rider really does use a bow and an arrow as his weapon. As described, Apep is now Atum's horse, and so do the next three riders to have their own special horse, though you will find it odd since Apep is a natural enemy of Atum. As for Kazuya and Erio, they will disappear for now, until the time is right for them to appear again.
I hope I can finish next chapter before the end of this year so that I can prepare for the continuation of 'Paradox' arc and progress Minato's part of the story because the next chapter will be the last chapter of 'Conquest' arc. Onto the next wait…