Author's Note:
The first section of this chapter was written with Apex of the World in mind, if you wish to read with music!
Standing in front of another massive chamber lay a Vermillion army. The massive size of the chamber couldn't even fully contain their front line, meaning that the others were forced to wait behind them as they wrapped around the outside of the chamber just to fit. The amount of snakes in front of them was nothing short of a horde, one that could easily end everything.
"And so we stand here," Over raised his hand up towards his chest, "At the apex of the Twin's future."
"If we fall here, then there's no one left to stop them," Harumi affirmed, "This has to be it."
"The Twins must be behind them," Lulloyd inhaled, "We'll just have to punch right through them."
"That won't be easy," Mage nodded, "Especially with how many there are."
"That doesn't matter!" Lloyd stepped forward, "It's time we finally face the Twins for who they are, right here, right now!"
The Vermillion parted, allowing two generals to step forward. As they had always been, the two stood side by side. Blunck hefted up his wicked axe, while Raggmunk grinned and held up his sword.
"It's time I give them some more personal payback," Garmadon cackled, "I've been dreaming of this moment for weeks."
"The Twins nearly destroyed our home," Olive put her hand on her reconstructed body, "I will not let what befell me befall them as well."
"Then it is truly time for us to prove ourselves," Acronix' stated firmly, "They do not control time as well as they think they do."
"Nobody will be able to stop us now," Skylar grinned, "Nobody."
"I will atone for my sin I made that fateful day," Master Wu planted his staff into the ground.
"We will all atone for them," Emperor Garmadon growled out, "No thanks to you, brother."
The Vermillion line took a step forward. The Stone Army stepped forward in unison. The Shark Army raised their stud shooters and fish. The Elemental Army held aloft their various weapons, elements sparking throughout them. The energy was one that none of them could break.
Wordlessly, Monty deposited Ronin's body at the back of their forces and walked forward, striding through them. As he passed, everyone could feel that something was different with the ghost. When he arrived at the front, he took his place wordlessly among his friends. They each had to only take one look at him as he held his sword aloft with a new glistening aura to know something had changed. Now, however, was not the time for such questions.
"In the name of the Green Ninja!" Lloyd shouted.
"For the people of the Tribes!" Mage roared.
"For my friends and in the name of the Ultimate Rhotatae Master!" Harumi cried.
"As the commander of the greatest army ever known!" Lulloyd screamed.
"In the name of Sun," Over drew his sword with a whisper.
"And in the name of finally making them shut up," Monty added, holding his sword.
"ATTACK!" The six roared together.
The Vermillion charged at the front lines. The six of them each drew their respective weapons and shot forward, leading their own forces in a charge. The fate of six worlds, representing the infinite that the Twins would one day have the chance to touch, now hung in the balance. The sounds of their battle cries echoed throughout the chamber.
When the two sides met, it was with the thundering of their weapons all at once. Lloyd slammed his swords into Raggmunk's one, pushing him backwards. Harumi spun around, holding her hand in the air and forming a wall of Rhotatae that shot down and into the unsuspecting snakes. Immediately after, Lulloyd brandished staff and sword and swung them low, knocking them into the air where he shot up and delivered a powerful and violent kick down into them. Monty thrust his cape out behind him, his wind flapping it violently as he knocked down three snakes with a single blow of his weapon. Over brought his sword up into the air, driving it into a Vermillion's face and causing him to screech out and burst apart in his armor. Mage drew Aevum and slashed it down overhead, the metal and earth combined cracking apart the floor and knocking an entire line of them onto their knees.
Lulloyd turned around and shouted commands, causing the Shark Army to race in behind him. He held his staff forward and leapt into the fray of battle, blasting snakes aside and throwing them left and right. His men came in behind him, flanking him on either side and cutting down those that refused to fall to his own strikes. The snakes began to reform immediately into a massive behemoth, one that Lulloyd snarled hard at and held his weapons behind him.
Almost instantly, Garmadon cackled wildly and leapt up onto the stud on the staff's head, letting his son thrust him up and into the behemoth's face. Garmadon slashed it apart with four swords, landing with the swords held behind him. As Vermillion went to surround him, his face lit up with glee as he turned to slash the ones to his right. Lulloyd came flying in and crushed those on his left, the two going back to back as they fought together, father and son, in the heat of battle.
Coco came flying in a moment later, soaring through the air on a glider and firing off her bow and arrow several times before she thrust the thing down into a snake's face. She landed on the bow, driving it in and yanking it back out as she leapt over. Garmadon plunged one of his swords down and held it up, catching his wife's hand. Lulloyd flattened to the ground as Garmadon swung her like a club, letting her legs blast apart snakes and then send her flying across the room with a massive crash of her metallic armor. When she landed, the lights of the chamber flared up to frame her wild red hair like the beautiful scales on an iron dragon.
"Heads up!" Coco was given warning just as Carnelian came flying in above her, slamming down onto the ground and thrusting her head up. Seeing snakes all around her, she grinned and lit her fists on fire, wildly swinging towards each one. With space created, she held her hands up and fired off three discs into the air.
One of the Vermillion nearby suddenly shimmered, disappearing to reveal Ren's form. The girl swung her arm backwards and struck a snake as she used him to springboard into the air. The first of Carnelian's discs shot forward, letting her land on it and ride it up and over towards her. When Ren landed, she kicked the disc hard enough to sever one of the warriors in half.
Carnelian and Ren went back to back, quickly holding their arms up and sending charged blasts of fire and form-laden discs into the horde around them. As the snakes began to reform, they both nodded. Carnelian leveled her fists at the large amount of armor and blasted it with her power, causing it to superheat in a matter of seconds. Ren then flashed her power on it, disguising it as normal armor. She shot and guided a disc into it, swinging it around the room. The Vermillion had no time to duck before the red-hot armor melted right through them, dropping them down to the ground.
"You guys need to be more in TUNE!" Forte dropped down to one knee and grinned as she focused her element into her keytar. She played a hard riff, causing a massive blast of soundwaves to arc out around her and blast apart an entire wave of Vermillion warriors. When she stood up, she saw them reforming and frowned, adjusting the pitch on her instrument and playing another massive riff. The sound deafened many of the snakes, sending them fleeing away in fear of what she might do to them next.
"Do not let your guard down," Olive flash froze two warriors on sight, causing them to collapse and hit the floor. As they broke apart, Forte realized they were heading right for her. She grinned sheepishly before she turned and leveled her instrument at another wave. Olive shook her head, holding her hand forward and causing the wave to completely freeze. The next impact of sound caused them to shudder and break apart from the sheer force of the waves, an action which left them striking the ground for double impact.
Olive's sensors indicated there was a massive wall of water behind her. She held up her arm and froze it completely solid, allowing Mizuko to slide right over it. She landed beside her two friends and grinned, her arms filling up with watery tentacles. She slashed them around at the snakes nearby. For added effect, Olive froze the tips of them, making them smash helmets with every impact. Forte shot several more with her sound waves, a happy grin on her face.
The very air itself suddenly began to spin into golden Rhotatae that shot down and mowed down Vermillion around her friends. Harumi spun around in the air and landed hard with her arms extended, more discs already formed. She thrust her arms hard, slinging discs hard into other Vermillion. She turned and blasted a hole in them for her friends to come together. With a solid nod, the five of them quickly ran over and took a circle around Harumi.
The Vermillion charged in at the six ladies. Harumi shouted and held her arms above her head, lowering them down and blasting several of them back. She held one hand forward and shot railgun-style, blasting them apart wherever she could. The others quickly used their own discs and powers to shoot several more of them down. The Vermillion collapsed and fell before them in droves. When they finally began to get too close, Harumi charged up her newly golden power and slammed it into the ground, the shockwave a golden beam that passed through her friends and sent Vermillion flying backwards.
Several Vermillion snakes went flying over Monty's head, who gave Harumi a dirty look before turning and spinning the SoS around. He continued to spin it while holding it backwards, effectively turning it into a wind-fueled buzzsaw. The snakes that saw it quickly turned to run before Monty cut them down. Monty's cape flared up even higher around him as he lifted himself off the ground, slamming his weight back and forth through their lines for greater effect.
A pistol, tossed by a now-awakened Ronin, flew through the air. Monty's eye glistened as he turned and used his wind to grab it. Ronin, far off at the other end of the chamber, gave him a salute and chuckled as he raised his rifle. Ronin inhaled several times, then began to fire. His hand switched from helping scope to ejecting the spent casings. Vermillion were blasted apart in the chest and head as Monty spun around and cut down the few that remained.
As Ronin went to reload his clip, Monty spun and saw a few Vermillion trying to gain on him. He held his hand forward and aimed the pistol he'd acquired, using his wind to focus the barrel. Shot after shot blew open the armor in their legs and arms, causing them to drop to the floor or drop their weapons. Ronin didn't even acknowledge it, instead inhaling and taking a single step back before he got down again and continued to let his bullets fly.
Monty turned to see a group of Stone Warriors about to be overwhelmed by a large horde of Vermillion piling on top of one another. Monty rolled his eyes and blasted wind into his feet, skating across the chamber and driving the SoS into them. A moment later, the horde was blown apart from the inside by a well-timed gust of wind. The Stone Warriors didn't even acknowledge him as they brandished their weapons and ran forward, a war cry deep in their bellies.
Monty felt a shadow through him, turning to see a large, hulking mass of snakes and armor above him. Monty's eyes flicked to his sword as he felt each vision, flicking his body back and forth to avoid their strikes. Monty drew the sword behind him again and blasted forward, slashing over and over again with the speed and ferocity of the wind itself. When he stopped, the Vermillion's arms and torso fell apart. Monty sighed and spun around as he saw Ronin take down more Vermillion, rushing over towards them to help him out.
Several snakes were cut apart where they stood, eflung backwards and sent into slowed time. Mage finished slicing Aevum and watched the Vermillion in the air as they were sent flying in slow-motion. He spun around and caught several more strikes from other Warriors on his sword. When he slashed them away, he realized he had become surrounded.
Mage took a deep breath, then opened his eyes. One eye opened a deep gunmetal and the other a hard red. Mage grabbed hold of their metal with his power and used his fire to superheat it, just as he'd seen Carnelian do earlier. As the snakes screeched out in pain, he then turned them both copper and flung them by the armor into the air, sticking them to the ceiling. Mage spun around and kicked his foot out, striking a Vermillion on the jaw and sliding away. As more moved in to attack, he dropped his control on gravity, sending those he'd sent flying up crashing down on his pursuers.
Mage swung around and held out his hand, sending a blast of poison from it that melted the armor off of several snakes. He held Aevum out and charged it with electric blue eyes, slicing his way around and barreling through their lines. The snakes were blown apart by lightning, their armor flying off in all directions. With a quick application of his powers, Mage called on metal, using the inherent properties of magnetism to suddenly draw all the armor in the air together into a massive ball. He spun around with brown eyes, using earth-fueled strength to send the ball flying right into and through more snakes.
In the air above him, a flash of green deposited Acronix', who hit the ground and rolled as he slashed his swords out in front of him. He turned towards Mage and nodded, flinging his weapons at the boy. Mage summoned his Time Matrix, the two hands turning to twist in the 3 and 6 position. The clock turned half blue, half green, letting Mage catch both of the swords and hold them aloft. Acronix flashed his matrix green and caught Aevum, focusing his attack forward on the ones in front of him.
Acronix' shouted as he slashed Aevum through rows of snakes, cutting them to pieces that slowly flew through the air. Mage shot forward with his two swords and slashed at them with the skills he'd learned after all this time, cutting into them and causing them to fly even faster in slow motion. When Acronix' released the grip that Aevum held on them, they shot out into the Vermillion lines like bullets, crashing down into them and damaging several warriors.
Mage spun around and shielded himself from seeing Skylar crash her way towards him with one arm covered in ice and the other turned metal. She grinned and swung around, punching her arms into Vermillion after Vermillion. As they fell before her, she turned to see Mage hold his hands up at her. The two ran at each other and momentarily held hands, sending each other's elements into their bodies. Skylar's ice grew spikes and her metal arm grew larger as Mage landed with his body rippling with a wind-fueled vortex on one side and shining bright arm on the other.
Krux' slammed his gauntlets together, causing a Vermillion to freeze in time. He turned to his brother who ran forward and slashed it several times with Aevum, causing it to store the energy inside. Krux' then hit it with his orange gauntlet, reversing time on it just so his brother could store even more power into it. When the two were done, the paused Vermillion released, his body rocketing forward and blasting a hole in their forces. The two brothers nodded to one another and quickly turned to face none other than General Blunck.
"You two were always a thorn in our side!" Blunck declared, "You should just lay down and give up already!"
"That isn't going to happen," Krux' smirked, "Brother, remember what that old dragon used to make us scale the mountain?"
"And here I was hoping you were going to suggest anything other than that," Acronix' groaned.
Before Blunck could react, Acronix' shot forward with Aevum, stabbing at him twice and making two dents in his armor. Blunck's body was suddenly slowed in time as he raised his axe to try to cleave into them. Acronix' huffed and ducked down, letting Krux' race forward and use him as a platform to leap onto his shoulders. With a grunt, he threw his brother into the air.
Krux' shouted in effort as he swung his two gauntlets right down at Blunck, the red flashing first. When it struck Blunck, his body was frozen in time, as was everything around them. All aside from the two of them. Krux' landed and grinned, the two brothers racing forward and punching Blunck. When time resumed, he began to fly backwards in slow motion.
The two weren't done with him yet. Krux' struck him hard with the orange gauntlet, reversing him through the air and bringing him right back down onto the ground. Krux' held his arm out, shouting with a single word, "Brother!"
Acronix' grabbed hold of his arm. The two pulled on their powers, Acronix' flashing them forward in time and Krux' reversing it. The two flashed in and out of reality, striking Blunck over, and over, and over again. Blunck was sent forward and backwards in time, each blow landing on him in a span of time too great for him to truly react to. When it was all finally over, The two gripped Aevum and rushed him from the front, cleaving the sword upwards in one massive final strike. When the two landed, Acronix' slowly turned and held Aevum in the air.
Blunck's body, overcome with attacks that he couldn't hope to perceive, burst apart and fell into half-sliced, half-dazed snakes. The two looked down at the ones that remained and spat on them. The snakes fled the chamber in terror at being so soundly defeated.
Raggmunk, feeling his ally suddenly cease to be within the Hive Mind, blinked in terror and looked around for him. He shrugged off Lloyd's attacks and instead moved towards where he saw the snakes of his friend slithering away. Instead, he was met with a thunderous crash as someone landed in front of him. When he looked up, he saw the red and white armor of one other than General Kozu.
"You have defied the Emperor for the final time," Kozu growled, "VRRRAAAHHH!"
Raggmunk yelped in terror and dodged as Kozu sent all four massive blades into the ground, smashing apart the very floor and ripping a hole in it enough to show the gap to the next floor below it. He quickly raised his sword up, slashing it and striking Kozu hard in the face. The Stone General simply turned to look at him, his eyes flaring with rage as Raggmunk realized what a terrible situation he'd just put himself into.
"Eheh…" Raggmunk gulped. Kozu plunged one of his swords hard into Raggmunk, causing him to cry out in pain. Before he could dissolve, Kozu roared and flung the creature across the room, smashing him apart on the nearby wall.
Over spun his sword about in a massive twirl just as he felt the presence of Raggmunk flying past him. He gave a worthy nod towards his general before he turned and cleaved through more Vermillion. The full power of the armor he wore caused several of them to vaporize right on the spot. Even still, the more he used it, the more he felt the sensation of weariness dragging on him.
"Not now," Over growled, holding his hand forward, "Not until I use this power for what it was meant to be used for!"
Over suddenly slammed his foot into the ground. A massive ribbon of shadow shot up from around his body, swirling from underneath his armor and causing his deep purple eyes to become all of his face visible. Over's essence vaporized partially as the ribbons shot around him, weaving in and out of the Vermillion. Seeing him defenseless, the snakes tried to close in on him.
Instead, Over gripped his fist. The ribbons all lit up with power, bursting apart and causing the Vermillion to gain a terrified look just before they were blown apart with it. As Over reformed his body, he backed up and pressed his hand against the wall.
A dark portal opened up behind him as his arm went vapor, the massive dragon talon of the Overlord emerging from it like a demon summoned from the depths of the Underworld. The claw grabbed and clawed Vermillion back into it, smashing them apart on the wall and causing them to fall apart with it.
"Such gaudy displays," Over turned to see Emperor Garmadon, his hands filled with four crystalline swords of dark power, cleaving apart a Vermillion. He slammed his foto down onto its head, cracking the metal helmet under his power.
"As though you are any less," Over declared. He took a step forward, hefting up his sword and pointing it forward, "Reckon you can support me in battle?"
"Support you?" Emperor Garmadon snarled, "It is you who must support ME!"
With a feral growl of rage, Emperor Garmadon let the pure adrenaline of the fight fuel him. His body charged up with a glistening purple aura, letting him jump into the air and land in the Vermillion. He released his power in a shockwave to blast apart several more snakes. He grinned as he stood up, only to feel a beam of energy from Over's free hand soar past him and send more snakes flying up into the air.
"You are not the only one who can do that," Over declared. Over raced forward, flaring his wings up and taking into the air in the chamber. He held his sword down, painting a dark ribbon through it just over the heads of the snakes. He soared about in an elegant swing of his body, coming to a halt on one knee. He sheathed his sword, waiting for the snakes to close in. The ribbon trailed right up to the hilt. Once the snakes closed in, Over opened his eyes and drew the blade, releasing Kinetic Overload. The explosions rippled along the ribbon and into his sword, sending his might downward swing even harder into the metal to fully break apart another massive hole in the floor to send tens of Vermillion falling.
Over turned to see a massive blast of green energy throughout the chamber. Lloyd hurtled through Spinjitzu, sucking up snakes and armor alike. When he rocketed around back to where he started, he sent them flying in all directions. Lloyd drew his sword, his friends holding their weapons and all twisting into Spinjitzu together. A moment later, Master Wu joined them and sent the entire team hurtling together.
The combined force of seven tornadoes cleared massive gaps in the horde, lighting up the chamber for those fighting to rally behind. The Shark Army soldiers, their vigor renewed by the sight, charged even harder into the Vermillion. The Stone Warriors moved to create a perimeter around them, trapping snakes between them and the seven of them. They spread out like vacuums, sucking up more and more snakes to send them flying out around and crashing into the hard metal floors all around them.
When the seven stopped spinning, they did so while holding their weapons up. A combined cry of 'NINJAAAAAA-GO!' sent Earth, Fire, Lightning, Ice, Water and Energy in all directions to crush, burn, shock, freeze, drench and crackle the warriors into submission. Master Wu held his staff alight and gave a hard cry of 'Hiiiiii-yah!' into several snakes, breaking them apart the moment he landed his blows.
With a massive crunching of metal, the opening to the chamber was pulled open to reveal the Samurai X Mech with none other than Pixal inside. The Nindroid assessed the situation and nodded, racing in and sending missiles off into the crowds of snakes. When she landed, she crushed several more even as she swung her weapon around to break apart entire squadrons of them. The other ninja quickly moved to surround her and protect her as she fired off her blasts of lasers and missiles all the same in the confined space.
The combined force of all of their spirits, all of their wills and all of their hopes, caused the Vermillion line to fracture. With their generals now gone, the snakes began to retreat. Upon seeing and feeling it in the pushback, the armies rapidly began to charge after them. The six universal travelers joined in with them, racing after them into the next chamber.
When the Vermillion finally turned to stop, their reinforcements ready, the force of the armies slammed even harder into them. Blasts of power arced out in all directions. The instinct, the drive to protect their homes met the pure power of chaos and raw anger incarnate. The forces of good slammed into those that took their commands from evil. With every moment in this battle, they inched ever closer to their goal to finally reach the Twins.
"For the fate of everything, men!" Over roared out, "For your homes!" Over held his sword alight, summoning more ribbons that shot forward and cleaved into the Vermillion lines, bursting apart in them. The group charged once again, ready to take one step closer, one even minute charge in the direction of the ones that stood unopposed at the top of their world.
Ophiod glowed with ethereal magic, summoned forth form his very core. Acronix stood with the Forward Blade in his hand, waiting for Ophiod's attack. The two of them stared each other down, two men with conviction that could never have come to an agreement, that could never have truly ended their meeting in any other way. The will of the future Snake King met with the Hand of Time that would end all destinies.
"Come on at me then," Acronix laughed, "Unless you think your anger is truly that shallow!"
Ophiod slowly focused his magic. He couldn't let his rage and grief take over right now. Right now, it was up to him to channel his magic. It was his job to try to defeat the Twins, or to weaken them before the others arrived. Regardless of what his chances were, regardless of what his emotions were… he would use it all in this very moment. When he opened his eyes, Acronix was surprised to see they were calm with absolute, unbridled fury.
"You've started the countdown to your own demise, then," Ophiod snarled, "Let us hope the Hands of Time have some time to spare."
Ophiod suddenly spun into Spinjitzu, throwing himself across the room. The magic he'd summoned around him shot forward and at Acronix, arcing through the air and smashing into his guard. Acronix didn't dare use the blade as he saw Ophiod approaching him, watching as the pure power in his Spinjitzu blasted across the room.
Acronix shot his blade out, puncturing the tornado. Ophiod's tornado faded instantly, his tail moving and wrapping twice around Acronix's wrist. Acronix used the blade, blipping them forward in time and trying to use that to disorient Ophiod. The Viper, however, slammed his eyes shut and instead twisted his tail around, spinning Acronix in the air and slamming him into the ground. Acronix opened his own eyes to see Ophiod raising his hand, his magical swords pointed down at him and flying for his chest.
Reacting quickly, Acronix spun his own body just out of the way, kicking one of the blades at Ophiod. The magic melted just before it hit him, the point right between the snake's eyes. It reformed into a massive gauntlet around Ophiod's wrist, one that lit on fire as he threw a punch at Acornix. Magical fire burned at Acronix, threatening to consume him in an orange blaze.
Acronix raised his blade, firing at the magic and causing it to appear behind him, scorching the metal floor. He finally turned and smashed the blade down on Ophiod's tail hard enough the Viper let go by pure reflex. Ophiod spun into Spinjitzu and flew backwards across the room, putting distance between himself and Acronix.
Thinking he had an advantage, Acronix raised his blade to attack. Instead, he saw Ophiod beginning to chant a deep magic. The metal in the floor around him suddenly lit up with symbols, and Acronix only had a brief moment to leap away before they blasted massive chains of orange magic at him. They tangled up right where he stood. Not deterred, Ophiod spun his hand around, weaving a magic circle in the air and thrusting it at the chains. The chains untangled and moved to focus on Acronix, attempting to grab him with an ethereal clanging.
Acronix rapidly jumped and leapt throughout the room, dodging the chains. Symbols appeared all around him wherever he touched, causing more of them to fire out. When he finally stopped, he was right in the center of it, stuck in a web of chains connected from floor to wall to wall to ceiling. When he turned to see Ophiod, the snake had chanted another massive shout, causing four balls of light to break apart around him and charge up a massive blast of power as the chains all suddenly clenched in around their trapped target.
The Time Twin's eyes widened just as the chains caged him and the magic blasted right into it. A moment later, Acronix flashed forward in time behind Ophiod, shouting as he turned and tried to ram the weapon into Ophiod's back. The Viper spun away with a deft flick of his tail, planting his hands together and then pulling them apart. Acronix ran at him as Ophiod jerked his body gracefully from side to side, sinuously sliding in and out of the blade's dodges. When he finally planted his hands back together, Acronix saw two magical circles forming around his wrists.
Ophiod formed the same circles around his own hands, thrusting them apart. Acronix felt his own arms pulled apart in turn. Realizing what Ophiod had done, Acronix spun himself around and wrenched his arms forward. The control moved back onto Ophiod, revealing them connected through the spell.
Suddenly, Ophiod twisted into Spinjitzu, causing Acronix to rapidly be jerked about in the air by his own arms. The Time Blade, now out of charges and slowly sparking back to life, left the Twins to be thrown about by it all. Ophiod shot forward and used the puppetting to slam Acronix into the wall. When he stopped, he used his tail to wrap around Acronix's torso and fling him around, sending him soaring across the room.
Before he could hit the opposite wall, Acornix thrust his legs out and landed with a harsh skid, wobbling as he lacked control of his arms. Ophiod tried to move his arms to puppet the Twin again, but Acronix instead flashed his eyes red. Suddenly, the wall behind Ophiod opened up, revealing Vermillion ready to devour him. Acronix grinned and thrust his arms out, causing Ophiod's guard to open up. Needing to defend himself, Ophiod cancelled the spell, letting Acronix go and forming a magical slab between him and the snakes.
Acronix, now free of his bonds, grinned as he raced right for Ophiod, his blade held out and drawing a secret dagger from his armor in turn. Ophiod touched the slab, causing it to grow spikes and thrusting his arm out to send it flying at Acronix. The Twins dodged it by rolling forward and swiping viciously at Ophiod. The Viper thrust his tail up in front of him, catching each blow on it and using it as his momentum to keep Acronix moving. When the Twins tried to impale him on the Time Blade, Ophiod hardened his tail and thrust it forward, catching the prongs on it and reaching out to grab the wrist with the dagger and hold it back.
"Prime never cared about you, did he?!" Acronix grinned wildly, "You must have been so heartbroken when you told Over to finish the deed! Why, you couldn't even do it yourself!"
Ophiod snarled back at him, a hiss that became so feral it boomed through the air, "I have made peace with my decision. But I will not make the mistake of letting something like this happen again! I will end your reign now, Acronix!"
"You're weak, Ophiod, you always were… not without your little knighty-whitey!" Acronix grunted in exertion to force the weapons closer, "But maybe I should kill your friends more often, you've gotten my attention now!"
Ophiod's eyes flashed, "You will not use Prime's death as some pawn in your twisted game!" Ophiod roared, "And neither will you use ME!" Ophiod gave a hard flex of his tail, pushing Acronix back enough to finally twist into Spinjitzu. Rather than going right for Acronix, however, Ophiod instead shot for the entrance to the room.
When Ophiod stopped, Skales wordlessly joined him. He held his golden blade aloft, pointing it at the Twin and standing sideways beside Ophiod. Ophiod wrapped his tail around Skales' legs, reaching out with one hand to gently grasp his hand.
"Fight by my side, Skales," Ophiod whispered, "Even when I do not deserve to ask it."
"And you know I will always do that," Skales whispered back, "No matter what."
A flash of magic shot from Ophiod's body into Skales. Skales' body began to light up as his colors changed to the deep blue and copper of Ophiod's own body. Aside from his red eyes, he transformed to look just like a Viper. In turn, he held his blade alight, causing it to glow and transform to a large, grander weapon that almost looked fit for a king.
"The last time you used this spell was against those girls," Skales chuckled, "We end this just as we started it, then." He slowly gripped his weapon, feeling the power, strength and speed that his body now held in it. Ophiod simply nodded to him and gripped his hand together.
"You know the only reason I've let you do this is because it amuses me," Acronix stepped forward towards Ophiod, "You truly can't fight without him now, can you?"
"A true King knows when it is his duty to raise his sword alone," Ophiod countered, "And when he must stand beside those that he is charged to protect, and loves."
"Blah, blah, blah," Acronix grinned, "Let's just get to the fun part." His Time Blade flashed, revealing it had recharged from its three initial uses.
Ophiod took a deep breath, just in time for him to see Acronix disappear. He thrust Skales away with his tail, giving them the speed they needed to twist into Spinjitzu. The two shot across the room, their tornados sparking of copper and blue as they convened in the center of the room. Acronix appeared in front of them and reached down, commanding the floor to open with more snakes and attack them. The two, however, rocketed right over him and instead convened together.
Acronix spun around, realizing what they were attempting. Not wanting to let them get closer, he quickly moved and drew his dagger, flinging it into the tornado and holding his blade up. He instead sent the blast right into Ophiod's tornado, believing him to be the weaker of the two and sending him across to the other side of the room. To his shock, there was only a single moment of delay before Ophiod suddenly turned his tornado right at Acronix and cancelled it just to send his tail hurtling through the air and crash into Acronix's face.
As the Twin slid backwards, he snarled as he watched Ophiod enter Spinjitzu from the force of him hitting Acronix, going right towards Skales. As the two of them met one another, the two opened their eyes together.
"Ophiod!" Skales shouted. Ophiod felt the barrier of their Spinjitzu clashing fade away, and in turn, he saw Skales in front of him. Ophiod reached out, taking his hand. All at once, Ophiod felt the power of their Spinjitzu combine. The familiar feeling of their Dyad poured through them, reverberating through them and growing stronger, larger, more powerful than before. As the two reached out and gripped each other in a lover's embrace, Ophiod felt a sense of relief and joy as their tornado grew.
Acronix watched as their Dyad grew stronger. The small ceiling in the room was first struck by the Dyad, then began to suddenly churn up and break apart as the force of it grew. Their power of copper and blue was suddenly sparked with orange and gold as Ophiod's magic poured into it. The sheer force of it caused everything in the room to suddenly begin to shudder and twitch, powering off towards it and trying to rip everything away from its hinges.
Acronix spun around, readying his blade to try to escape. Instead, he felt something strike his arm. Faster than he could see, the blade Skales held had flung out from the Dyad and struck his Time Blade, sending it down onto the ground. The force of suction the tornado generated finally hit him as he was dragged off towards it, feeling his body's gravity no longer enough to keep him down. The room was suddenly lit up with a powerful copper light as Acronix planted his foot down desperately onto the metal floor.
Thinking fast, Acronix tried to command the Vermillion to aid him. The panels in the floor opened up, but the snakes that tried to attack were simply ripped up and into the vortex. Before Acronix could stop himself, he finally felt his grip loosen. He let out a single grunt of anger before he was sucked forward, his body flying right into the tornado.
Just as Acronix hit the tornado, it cancelled itself out. Ophiod and Skales brought their fists together and slammed him into the ground, then shot out into their own Spinjitzu in a circle around him. Skales reclaimed his blade as the two moved forward, merging into a Dyad again just as they hit Acronix. The moment of shock and confusion left Acronix wide open for exactly what he was about to experience.
The full force of the Dyad hit Acronix hard, slamming him back and forth against their power. Within the vortex, he was wildly whipped around, snapped back and forth throughout it and unable to stop himself. Ophiod smashed his tail and Skales his blade back and forth against him, knocking him about in their attacks and leaving him no ability to fight back. The world around him blurred as the sounds of their kicks and punches filled his ears harder than anything else.
"NINJA-GO!" The two shouted together, just as they threw Acronix down and out of the tornado. The two, however, weren't done yet. They both shot out to either side of him, slithering and running as fast as they could. Ophiod turned and thrust his magic out, using his magical chains to grab Acronix by the neck and yank him into the air. Skales drew his blade back and rushed right at Acronix, smashing him with his foot hard enough to snap the chains and push him down.
That, however, was just what Acronix wanted. He slid down on the floor, gasping out for air as pain went through every muscle in his body. Slowly, he reached down and picked up the Forward Blade from the ground, a grin on his face. When he stood up, he was stumbling, but he just laughed and held it forward, "Is that all you two have?"
The two of them didn't respond with words. With actions only years of experience together could craft, Skales and Ophiod rushed him and began their attack. Ophiod swung his tail out and smashed it into Acronix like a hammer, each blow coming from a new direction. Skales' enhanced magical speed let him keep up, flashing his own body back and forth and striking at the Forward blade with his weapon to keep it occupied. Acronix held on even still, weaving himself through their attacks nimbly and keeping the attacks of the tail on his elbow and knees as best he could.
The world around them started to fade into pure color as the two shot and fought their way around Acronix. They traded blows as quickly and desperately as they could, refusing to give him any ground now. They gave him every punch, every kick, every swipe and every blow. Acronix flashed forward in time and the two appeared here to fight him. They swung and beat him down with their attacks, their moves timed, synced, a powerful union between them that right now, in this moment, nothing could hope to stop them from achieving.
Finally, the two shot forward in one more strike. Acronix held his blade forward. Skales crouched down and knocked his blade up in the air. Ophiod struck his tail into Acronix's gut like a spear. Skales slid behind him and swung his leg into his back. Ophiod coiled his tail under him and leapt into the air, swinging it around and down into his left side. Skales grabbed his right shoulder and threw him back. As he stumbled on his feet, the two spun into one final Spinjitzu together, drawing him into their Dyad and throwing him across the room. Acronix hit the wall with one last gurgled gasp from his lips, then crumbled down. The two Serpentine came to a halt, their chests heaving from the strain. Ophiod held his tail behind him with his hands extended, while Skales hugged onto his side and turned to look mockingly down at the fallen Twin.
The two stood there together, panting hard. Acronix dropped the Forward Blade where he lay on the ground, not making any move to do anything. The two held onto one another still, trying to ground themselves after such a hard effort on their part. As the two stared at him, the pounding of their heartbeats in their ears refused to go down.
"Is he… down?" Ophiod asked, "... Something isn't right."
Skales was about to say something, only to widen his eyes, "Ophiod!" He pushed Ophiod out of the way just in time for something to fire out from the ceiling and strike him. The moment that it did, Skales froze in time, his body covered in a red sheen.
Ophiod, realizing what was happening, snarled as he spun around to attack. Instead, he felt something hit him. A strange buzz filled his scales as suddenly the world around him seemed to flick onto a slide, putting him right before Skales had been struck. Thinking fast, he threw Skales onto the ground as the blast of red flew over their heads.
"Whew!" Acronix, suddenly glowing with orange energy, stood up as though nothing had just happened, "I admit, I was almost going to let you all try something else. Still, that move at the end? You two really do have something."
Suddenly, Ophiod felt something in his back. He turned around slowly, seeing red dripping down from two holes in it. He stumbled forward, the sudden pain knocking the very breath from his lungs. With a vicious kick, Ophiod was sent crumpling to the ground, a pool of red forming around him. Skales, his eyes widening in horrified anguish, let out a shout of rage and held his blade up just as he was suddenly frozen in time again.
"We wanted to let you have one more shot at taking us down, as a thanks for all your service," Ophiod raised his head shakily to see Krux walk around from behind him. He held two blades in his hands. The red blade he held was dripping with blood. Ophiod gasped in air as he weakly raised his head, forcing his blurred vision to focus on Krux.
"Sadly, it's nothing like my brother and I have…" Acronix grinned, "Oh! But that was a great show! Perfect timing for us to finish this thing!"
Acronix hit a button. The floor behind him opened to reveal a strange device. Ophiod, upon seeing it, blinked in confusion. The device had four glowing objects inserted into it. The same four objects he had become familiar with.
"But… those blades…" Ophiod grunted out, "You had… only those from… Over's world…"
"We'll let you figure out where we got these," Krux grinned, "But for now, you've served your purpose."
Ophiod blinked as he saw the Forward Blade activate. Before he could say anything, something struck him on the back again. He let out one hard gasp before he slumped forward, hitting the metal floor and feeling himself go limp. When he raised his head, he saw Skales collapse beside him, the magic on his body fading to reveal his normal colors. Just as he tried to reach up to chant a spell, something struck him hard on the temple and his vision went black.
The Vermillion line staggered up against the force of the armies slamming their full fury against them. The snakes repealed the forces of elements, weapons, battle cries, and determined glares that all sought to try to destroy them and finally end their power. The chamber that they had been forced to was filled with even more broken glass tanks, now which Vermillion were climbing into in order to make more room for them to push further back.
"Fight!" Acronix' shouted, "Fight, men! Fight for everything that you believe in! Fight for those that they've taken, for all of those that you've lost!"
The forces continued to slam their power, their fury and their rage up against the Vermillion. As they did, however, the Vermillion continued to force themselves to hold firm, to refuse to give any ground. Behind them lay a single elevator shaft, one that would take them right to their commanders. Even now, with everything taken from them, they would fight to the last snake.
"We aren't making any progress!" Skylar shouted, "The snake won't give in!"
Acornix' and Krux' both slammed their powers into the snakes. Even as they fell, the snakes that had all been clumped together were reforming faster than ever. By some twisted last will of the hive mind, the snakes were determined to hold firm. The snakes continued to reform, to rebuild. They weren't retreating. Just building up to withstand them even more.
"We won't make any progress this way!" Garmadon grunted out, "Hey… hey come on now!" Garmaodn slashed a Vermillion back from climbing over his friends, "You stay back down there, right now!"
Acronix' looked down, seeing the state of the battle. He was about to say more, just as he suddenly saw something. The red lights of the room, previously framing them all in the colors of the Vermillion, now suddenly had flickered. To the shock and horror of all those who remained in the room, the lights suddenly had just turned a crystal clear white.
"What in the?" Krux' blinked in confusion. The others in the army began to tremble in a similar horrified anticipation.
"Harumi," Andrus suddenly flared up on the woman's watch, "I do mean to alarm you when I say that the Iron Demise is now beginning to tap into emergency energy reserves."
"What?!" Lloyd stepped back from the front line to hold up his watch, "How?!"
"It seems the damage to the circuity connecting the Doom and Demise was lesser than we thought," Andrus admitted calmly, "I suggest that you find your way to the central control room now and begin the process of shutting it down before the Iron Demise becomes fully operational again."
"We need to get through, now!" Monty shouted in anger, slashing more snakes back, "If… these guys would just… stop!" He twirled the SoS in his hand, reflecting three Vermillion raising their blades before he brutally cut them down.
Acronix' paused, then he turned to look at Mage, "You all. You need to go, now! We will make a hole for you! Escape through it, now!"
"Are you sure?" Mage asked. The boy didn't give him a look of disbelief, but rather one that asked for the reassurance that Acronix' knew what he was asking.
"You have aided us here, but this is not your battle!" Krux' shouted back for his brother, dodging an attack and reversing the snake back onto the floor, "Just go! Finish this fight!"
"I have an idea!" Coco beamed, turning towards the Samurai X suit, "Sweetie?" Coco turned around, sword holding back a Vermillion behind her back, "Would you be terribly upset if we used your mech?"
"Normally I would require an explination as to what you planned to do with it," Pixal informed her, "Yet I believe this situation calls for action."
"Hop on out then!" Coco called out, "Honey! Come on, let's do this!"
Garmadon, bashing the head of a Vermillion in, slowly blinked and then let out an evil grin. Warlord and Dragon ran backwards just as Pixal leapt from her mech, striking it hard with their fists. All at once, the mech flashed with the blue lines across it, then turned to bricks and fell apart. Pixal's eyes widened as her sensors struggled to comprehend what she'd saw.
"And… there!" In almost no time at all, Coco now sat in the seat of a massive turret built from the arms and torso of the mech, with the actual platform formed from the legs. The sword had been plugged into the barrel as a pseudo-scope. Coco slowly rotated the thing and pointed it parallel to the ground in front of her.
"Give me something to shoot!" Coco called out.
"On it!" Ren shouted, turning to see what was happening. She tapped Forte, and the two of them rapidly began gathering armor and tossing it back through the air. Mage held his hand out and caught it in the air, stuffing the barrel of the turret full with it.
"Dad!" Carnelian shouted, "Help me heat this thing up!"
"Wait, dad?" Kai, blinking as he saw her gaze on him, stepped back from the front line, "Wait, wait, what?!"
"...Dangit," Carnelian hissed out, then shook her head, "Nevermind that! Come on, help me out here!"
Carnelian turned and blasted the front of the barrel with fire. Krux', realizing what was going on, grinned and jumped into the air, punching it with his red gauntlet to pause it in time and let them store even more force into it. Quickly, Kai raced over and held his fists up, letting out a stream of fire alongside his daughter. The ball inside the turret became both superheated and filled with energy.
"Move down just a little bit!," Ronin leapt on top of the turret, flattening himself to the barrel and aiming down the length with his rifle. Coco acknowledged him and moved down just ever so slightly.
"And here, we, GO!" Coco chirped out, hitting the button. The firing mechanism sent a plunger depressing, slamming into the paused ball. For a moment, nothing happened. She hit the button again in confusion. Just as she was ready to slam it again, Krux' grinned as he let his power go.
The massive ball shot forward so quickly that it struck the Vermillion before the sound of it firing even hit the group. The snakes had no time before a flaming ball of metal propelled right through them, carving them up in a line that stretched far longer than it meant to. Two streaks of fire were left on the floor once it hit and began to roll forward, an unstoppable force. When the thing finally came to a rest, it was with a massive explosion of snakes and a crashing of armor, cleaving a path that went right through the Vermillion and all the way to the elevator beyond.
"GO!" Acronix' shouted. As the Vermillion tried to pass through the flaming corridor, Mage set his eyes red, letting them withstand the heat. Over grabbed hold of Lloyd and Lulloyd, his wings extending and flying him right through their opening. Harumi and Monty took off into the air, hovering as they flew through the flames. Mage simply turned one eye silver and shot forward with speed, flashing through the crowd until he stopped just at the elevator before the others. Acronix' threw Aevum through the air, hitting it with forward energy as it did.
Mage threw his twin swords back to Acroinx', holding his hand up and catching Aevum. Before his grip was even fully there, he gave a downward slash and sliced the door to the elevator open. The Vermillion began to gather around him as he jumped inside. The other five came racing in, Lloyd slamming his elbow over to send them up. Just as one Vermillion began to climb inside, the elevator activated and sent them up into the depths of the Iron Demise.
All at once, the sounds of battle faded away. The six of them stumbled on their feet, breathing heavily in effort and trying to resolve what they had all just endured together. Over and Harumi pressed their backs to the elevator wall, both straining from using their powers. Lloyd and Lulloyd gripped each other's shoulders to keep upright. Mage planted Aevum on the floor and gripped its hilt, holding onto it with dry gasps. Monty looked the least winded, but even his grip on the SoS trembled.
"...Are they," Lulloyd gasped out, "Going to be… be okay..?"
"Like they said… this wasn't… our fight," Over shook his head, "They are there to… ensure that we… are able to complete our task."
"This is… this is it, right…?" Lloyd panted out, "At the top… of this thing… we'll fight… the Twins."
"Warning," Monty sighed, "Once you go forward, you can't go back. Are you sure you want to proceed?" Monty rubbed his head, "Too late for that now."
"Isn't that… an RPG thing?" Harumi smirked at him. Monty rolled his eyes.
"I trust them," Mage panted, "They're… they're strong. They won't… lose now."
"Indeed," Andrus' voice flared up on their comms again, "Though I would temper your expectations. I'm not a probability man, but Millie doesn't like your chances."
"Andrus… you truly know how to temper any victorious mood," Over sighed, "What do you have to say to us?"
"Remember how I told you that the Iron Demise was activating backup power?" Andrus nodded, "Right now it looks like they're still warming up their main systems. I've analyzed their main generator units. By my conservative estimate, you have perhaps ten minutes before the machine is fully operational again."
"Their systems are damaged though, right? Where are they drawing power from?" Lloyd shook his head, "Harumi and Over destroyed the core!"
"The Time Blades themselves, I reckon," Andrus informed them, "They have two sets of them now, don't they?"
It was then that it hit Lloyd firmly. The Time Blades that the Twins had used until now had been those from Over's world. But they'd been using their original ones to that point. They'd boarded the Iron Doom from Over's tomb with two of them on board.
"I imagine that the Twins are draining Over's set of Time Blades for power right now," Andrus continued, "And given the state that they were in here, I imagine Over's won't last long. But if they had access to infinite worlds, I think it's reasonable to assume that they replaced their lost blades. That, or they recovered it from Mage's world out from under your noses."
"That's… that's why the dragon can't take their power here," Mage looked up, "If they're are two sets, then that means this place is saturated in energy. The dragon won't be able to take all of it…"
"Then we just have to stop them right here, right now," Monty frowned, "So what if they ended up getting their old ones back? No problem here. We'll beat them," Monty held up the SoS, "I've already got a new trick up my sleeve."
"Now that you mentioned that," Over nodded, "May you enlighten as to what happened with Oni?"
"Oh, I unlocked the ancient power in this sword and now I'm unstoppable in combat," Monty shrugged, "Nothing that needs further explanation."
The others most certainly wanted a further explanation. Monty, however, turned to look at Lloyd letting him see that Monty was serious about what he was saying. As the others realized that, they all simply smiled at Monty. The action caused Monty to blink in confusion as they all just gave them those warm, friendly smiles of congratulations and respect.
"...No need to make a big deal out of it," Monty grumbled. The others chuckled.
"The interference is getting stronger," Andrus informed them, "Morro and his friends are standing by. If that thing starts moving, we'll open fire. You'll survive."
With that, Andrus cut out. The others reached down, turning their watches off. There would be no retreat from this battle. There was no point in retreating from it. This was time for them to finally fulfill their destiny. The six of them stood, waiting for when the time arrived.
Lulloyd Garmadon. The son of a warlord and his old flame, brought up as the Green Ninja to help defeat his father and stave off his takeover. He'd overcome everything to be with his father again, and now had accepted his true calling as a Warlord Ninja. The armor of General Number Son shone on him as he planted his warlord staff into the elevator floor.
Harumi Garmadon. The daughter of Lloyd Garmadon and Harumi. Her father had given his life for her on the Dark Island, relinquished her power to avange him, and now she had reclaimed her True Potential. She'd overcome her guilt, grief, and everything else in order to become the woman she was now. Around her, small Rhotatae formed and vanished around her.
Lloyd "Mage" Garmadon. The Dragon Lord and savior of the World. Wielder of all elements and the powerful apprentice of Acronix'. He'd come with them to prevent more danger from befalling his world. Now, standing with the sword of his mentor and having saved Over from his grief, he was ready to make good on his promise.
Monty. A ghost that was a reject of destiny in every sense of the world. A thief, scoundrel, and all around the opposite of the heroic type that the others had. Yet he had been the one to unlock the ancient power within the Sword of Sanctuary none of them had known. Without his guns, and only a cape and sword, he was ready to end it.
Over. The fallen Emperor of a world subsumed into the Void. He stood now as the Golden Master, his soul burning as brightly as the darkness in his essence. Overlord and Lloyd, with the powers of the light of Sun's knighthood and the charge of the Dark Emperor Over All. It had fallen to him once today to perform a dark deed. Now, it was time for one of valor.
And finally, there was just him, Lloyd Garmadon. The one that had started all of this. It had been his own fight that had let the Twins loose, his own chase that had brought them all together. He was, in a sense, the prototype for them all. Yet now, he stood with his mind focused and his will ready to overcome whatever could happen. The Green Ninja. Leader of the Resistance. And now, one of the ones to stand between the multiverse and the utter annihilation the Iron Demise could bring.
The elevator stopped. None of them said a word. They each knew that right now, there was no more need for words. They were ready to end this fight. Slowly, Lloyd took point in front of them. The elevator opened to a large, spiralling stairwell with tight, metallic walls. At the top of the stairs was a faint, trickling pure white light. Without waiting for any confirmation, Lloyd moved forward and started up the steps.
The walk there was relatively short, but to each of them, it felt like a milestone they had to face. Each step caused their feet to clang against the walls around them. Over's armor and Harumi's robes glowed a deep gold, while Monty's sword let out a faint blue light. Other than that, however, the only source of light was the deep white that they were now walking towards.
When the group reached the top, they were met with a hallway that stretched perpendicular to how they entered. The hall, however, had a massive seam in it that revealed it to be a connecting tissue of sorts. The floor was grated, showing several massive wires that ran underneath it. The ground beneath the grate was several stories down. It was clear to Lloyd now: they were about to enter the heart of this machine of death, the Iron Doom. Across from the stairwell was a long chamber from which the light emanated from.
Lloyd took point again. When they walked down the hallway, they found themselves in another section. Lloyd recognized it instantly as the interior of the Iron Doom. The machine had plugged itself into the Iron Demise as its pilot, and from how the light was burning inside of it, its core.
The six of them emerged into the cockpit of the Iron Doom. When they entered, Lloyd saw that someone was slumped against the wall beside the entrance. Ophiod lay there, faintly breathing and groaning out from several wounds in his side. One of his arms fiercely clutched Skales. The golden blade that Skales so readily used lay limp against the two of them. As Ophiod saw them enter, he didn't bother to form words. He instead just gave them a small blink, then pointed his head towards a pillar behind the two chairs in the room.
The pillar was one that Lloyd knew as well. It was originally the holder of the crystal that had stored his and Morro's powers inside them. Instead, it was now a hastily thrown together machine. It looked similar to that which they'd used to initially draw the Iron Demise to them at the Summit not so long ago. Plugged into it were four now faintly glowing Time Blades. Their colors had begun to fade, and the pillar was sparking white light in every direction. Cables that ran the length of the floor seemed to be siphoning off their energy into the Iron Demise.
"So…" Acronix's voice filled the air. The group looked around just in time to see the Twins emerge from the shadows. Acronix held fully charged blades of blue and green. Krux held those of orange and red. The two had shed their original armor, however, instead wearing something that almost looked more lordly and regal in appearance. Long, flowing capes were on their bodies, hiding everything else. The two, however, wore metal lining on their heads.
"You have finally arrived," Krux growled out, "The meddlers have come to try to stop us again!"
"Surprised to see these?" Acronix grinned, holding up his blades, "Once we got away from your pesky interlopers, it was easy to send Vermillion out, just like we did to her precious little timeline," Acronix grinned, "It looks like your tribe didn't hide that one as well as you thought!"
Krux held up the reversal blade, "Of course, Wu was too scared to try to destroy the Pause Blade!" Krux held up the pause blade in turn, "So it was easy to find it in that precious little vault you ninja thought was so secure! Pah! Modern tech can never overcome throwing something down a hole along with anyone who knew about it."
"And now you stand here," Acronix sighed, "You're still determined to stop us after all this! Well, too bad. His blades are going to give us all the power we need!" Acronix laughed as he gestured at Over, "Too bad we were able to steal more from his world before we ripped it apart!"
"We've made a decision now, actually," Krux grinned, "Once we kill each and every one of you and all your pathetic attempts at an 'army' you brought with you, we'll make sure every possible world we find that won't submit to us is sent to meet that cute little boy you all liked so much," Krux nodded, "What was his name? Sun? A name that is as meaningless as his existence!"
"If you intend to stop us," Acronix smirked, "You must know that you don't have long before we get enough power to the Demise to open fire again. Even if we don't have all the Vermillion we brought with us, we have enough to crush all of your friends."
"You think since you undid what we did to her world, that it will stop us," Krux moved towards his brother in a slow pace, "You've done nothing! You took back something that wasn't yours to take! You may have gained the power of a god, but even gods bow to time."
"We thank you all for your help in tying up loose ends," Acronix took a stance beside his brother, "Prime was truly going to be an annoyance for us. And you saved us the trouble of tracking down Oni. It's sad what has to happen to him…" Acronix revealed his Forward Blade had dried blood on the tips, "But he chose to defy us. It looks like the snakes will need a new Prince."
"If you intend to destroy us…" Krux inhaled, "We invite you to give the first strike!"
Suddenly, both Twins moved to throw their capes off. They revealed their armor was now something that was unlike what they'd seen before. Each of them almost looked as though they were wearing the Iron Doom, with the hard and spiky shoulders, plated designs down the sides, and the metal that encased their legs. Their necks were all that remained, their snakes still plugged into their necks that let them control the Hive MInd. The only difference between them was their faces and the blades they held. In their chests, their symbol of a clock, that of the Hands of Time, burned brightly.
"Come at us!" Acronix laughed, "I've been looking for a good fight!"
"Are they done now?" Monty asked with a long sigh.
"I believe so," Over nodded, putting his hand on the sword he now held, "Do we take them up on this offer?"
The six of them readied their weapons. Mage charged up fire and lightning in his fists. Over drew his sword and held it forward, forming his dark staff in his other hand in a dramatic flourish. Harumi formed Rhotatae around her body that spun in the air around her. Monty held the SoS aloft and called upon his Chi, causing it to burn with blue light. Lulloyd smashed his sword and staff together, gaining a look not unlike his father. Lloyd, seeing this, took a step in front of them and held his swords aloft, charging them with his own power.
"It's time we end this, Twins," Lloyd declared, "Once… and for all!"