Chapter 24 Immeasurable Loss

Abyss's P.O.V

When I had Awoken from the sleep that had claimed me some time ago, I woke with new qualities.

"What happened?"

I growled to myself as I saw the sun starting to rise.

"Did you get enough rest sleeping beauty?"

I heard NightShade ask as I stumbled A little as I started to walk. For some reason, I couldn't walk upright, no matter how hard I tried to. I looked at the skeleton of NightShade, and my vision became different. Instead of seeing normal images, I could now only see heat signatures and the outline of his bones.

"What's wrong with you Abyss?"

He asked me as I fell to my knees. It was then that I found one fact that I had overlooked.

All this time I have spent perfecting the power of the Devil Gene, and still yet I can't master it; even more so, being able to control it

I thought as I looked around wildly.

What's going on? Who else is around? What's going to happen now? Am I ready for battle?

All I could feel was pain. It felt like I was being torn apart, Impaled with spears tipped with Assassin Lizard spikes, and having an operation done on me without anesthesia, All at the same time. I heard NightShade kneel next to me.

"Abyss?"

I could hear him ask tensely. I tried standing up, but I couldn't. I tried breathing, but it hurt to do that. I tried to focus my eyes, but I still could only see the heat signatures and the outline of NightShade's bones faintly now. As I started to cough, ringing started in my ears. I couldn't see NightShade, but I felt that he was looking down at me in horror. I hadn't known it, but I was laying on the ground, trying to stay alive.

"Abyss?"

He asked again. Once again, I couldn't lift my head. I tried out my voice, but I could barely hear the sound of something gurgling in my throat.

"You're bleeding from everywhere!"

He cried as he tried to pick me up from the ground. I couldn't bare the pain that I was feeling for some reason, and I wanted to know what was causing this happen. All the while that this was happening, I felt that I was swaying; like I was being taken somewhere. I tried my voice again.

"What's going on?"

I asked with my voice being barely above A whisper. I then heard some familiar laughter.

"You're the one being carried this time Abyss"

The voice told me. My breath caught in my throat and I tried to struggle, but all of my efforts were in vain.

" I'm taking you somewhere where you'll never see the light of day again"

The voice finished. From where I was, I could feel heat below me. Intense heat that actually scared me for once. Then, I felt like I was falling. my body tilted and rotated as I fell through the air. I then hit the ground, hard. The impact knocked all the wind out of me, and I went unconscious once again.

You're not hurt; get up

A voice commanded me. As the voice told me to get up, I felt energy course through my body, and I was upright before I knew it. I looked at where I had landed. I had landed on A patch of rocks that was not far from A flat area in what seemed like to be in the center of A volcano. I had the sudden urge to look up from where I was standing, so I did. When I looked up, I could see the faint outline of something. I couldn't tell what it was from the heat of the volcano that was causing the air shimmer. I narrowed my eyes so I could try to get A better look at what I was seeing, but when I narrowed them, the object dissipated from my view. I sighed to myself and turned back to the plain. It had A Tan color to it, and it didn't look very sturdy. Under this plain were lines of Magma that flowed between the cracks that lined this flat area of land.

If I didn't know better, I'd say this volcano is living and breathing

I mused to myself as I felt A presence manifest itself near where I was standing. I didn't pay much attention to it, and I walked around the plain, looking for anything that I could use.

"I would advise not ignoring me Obsidian"

A new voice said. I whipped my head around to see if anyone was standing there, but there was nothing occupying that space.

"Who are you and what do you want?"

I asked to the empty air.

"And for starters, My name isn't Obsidian"

Laughter resounded close to me, and I kept looking around to see if I could see whoever, or whatever was talking to me.

"Is that A question you really want me to answer?"

The voice asked me as I kept looking around. I heard cracking and rumbling in the distance.

"You're broken"

The voice said. I stopped walking and stood still.

"I'm what?"

I asked with A scoff. Laughter resounded again.

"Broken"

The voice stated once again. confusion took over me as I started to walk again.

"You may not know it, but I'm the only one who can make you whole; I can fix you"

The voice said. Now I had to laugh.

"You think you can make me whole, let alone fix me?"

I said while I laughed.

"I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say that to me"

I said, but right after that, I had A feeling of dread wash over me.

"If I told you I had control over timelines, would you believe me?"

The voice asked me. I started walking again, and this time, I stretched my arms and straightened my spine as I walked along.

"You're sure that this isn't some kind of mind game that you're playing with me?"

I asked as looked up from the place I was in.

"The only mind that is game right now is yours"

The voice said to me. I laughed to myself.

"You think that my mind is feeble enough for you to take it over?"

I said with A short laugh as I continued to walk.

"To answer your question, I'd like to ask you A question"

The voice said to me. I stopped walking and I shrugged.

"Go right ahead; it's not like I have anything to do right now"

I said absently. I heard the voice laugh quietly.

"Do you know where you are right now?"

It asked me while I looked around some more for anything of use.

"Not really; I've been unconscious for most of the time i've been here"

I said quietly as I looked at the ground below me.

"Like I said, your mind is at my disposal"

The voice said expectantly. I started to walk again.

"You're in A Caldera Obsidian; A place that becomes A depression after the magma has been ejected from the chamber underneath the place where you have been standing"

The voice told me as I kept walking around. I sighed.

"So you're really what you say you are"

I said quietly in amazement.

"I've lived many timelines, so I know A thing or two"

The voice said to me. I stopped again.

"Wait; you're telling me that there's more than one timeline of existence?"

I asked as I continued to walk again.

"I wish I could say that, but that's not as easy as it is to say"

The voice said to me as I sharpened my claws against some flint I found on the ground.

"If you can do it, then you should be able to explain how it works, right?"

I said with some annoyance as I continued to sharpen my claws against the flint. Every stoke sending A shower of sparks to the ground. Then, I had A thought.

"If you can see multiple timelines, then you can show me what's going to happen soon, right?"

I asked as I looked up once again. I looked to the left and saw nothing, but when I looked to the right, I saw something that looked odd.

"A Bipedal frog?"

I asked myself with A laugh. I looked at the outline that was somehow partially illuminated from the volcano's Magma.

"Have you any right to observe how I look like to you?"

The voice asked me somewhat annoyed. I half-smiled.

"Do you have any Idea what I am?"

I asked the voice. The voice laughed again.

"Why are you questioning me when you could have everything you've ever wanted?"

It asked me as soon as I finished my sentence. I let out a long and low breath.

"That's right; and to prove it, let me tell you what's going to happen next"

The voice said. I watched the outline of whatever this thing that was speaking to me move from where it was standing, to be placed somewhere around the area where I was standing. I had to look around for some time before I found the outline again.

"It's kinda odd to be talking to something I can't see"

I said with some anger as I looked at the outline.

"It's also kind of odd to be talking with one of your species that can't recognise an opportunity when it presents itself"

The outline told me as the shade of the outline became more defined. My breathing slowed and I started to feel lighter.

"What else do I need to do to gain your trust?"

The outline asked me. I watched as two long and serrated sword outlines appear on this thing's back as the outline became as defined as it could be.

"I have some questions for you to answer"

I started.

"After you answer the questions that I have, then i'll trust you"

I said as I started to feel dizzy.

"What are your questions Obsidian?"

The thing asked me. It felt like I was in A trance by the dizziness and the weightlessness that I felt.

"What are you?"

I asked the figure in front of me as my vision started to fade.

"I am commonly referred to as the Shadow Stepper; there's none like me and the will be no more like me"

The figure told me. It seemed that the figure had said this many times before by how fast and pronounced the figure presented itself.

"Alright, then who threw me into this infernal place?"

I asked as I tried to shake my head to clear my vision, but I couldn't for some reason. The outline laughed softly.

"If I were to tell you, would you go off into A rage?"

The figure asked me.

"I'm in no condition to, whoever you are; just look at me!"

I cried. Through my blurry and spinning vision, I thought I could barely make out A smile.

"NightShade was the one who threw you into this Caldera"

The figure said. I almost lost my balance that I barely had control over and growled softly.

"What's going to happen if you were to manifest yourself to me right now?"

I asked softly. I now had A headache and was feeling nauseous.

"You would explode into A million pieces and I would have to clean up your remains"

The figure said without missing A beat. I managed to scoff, which made the figure visibly twitch.

"You don't believe me?"

The figure asked. The feeling of dread became even more pronounced, which made me drop to my knees.

"I have one last question"

I managed to say from gasping for air.

"What is your last question?"

The figure asked as I tried to stand up.

"What's going to happen if I make this deal with you?"

I asked quietly as the figure picked me up from my kneeling position and stood me in front of it.

"If you were to take the deal I have offered to you, you would become the most formidable individual in this part of the universe"

It told me. As soon as the figure finished its sentence, I started getting numb all over. The dizziness started to fade and the nausea went away.

"Are you sure?"

I asked with the most hopeful voice that I could use.

The figure smiled slightly.

"Yes; more powerful than your father, more powerful than the Mastermind and more powerful than your greatest enemy"

It said. As soon as it said that, I fell back to the ground, unconscious once again. When I woke up, I was feeling much better, my sight had returned to normal and the shadow figure had left. As I got up from the ground, I rubbed the back of my aching head as I looked around. I had been placed in the middle of the Caldera, and I was wondering how I had got here when I heard scrabbling behind me. I whipped around to come face to face with A giant two-toned lizard that was many times the size of me. It growled and lowered its head so that it was at eye level with me.

"You...I remember you"

The giant lizard growled to me. I took A step back and decided what my next action was going to be.

"You're not going to get away from me this time...Killer"

The lizard said maliciously and with anger in its voice. I kept taking steps back until I was backed against A wall of Obsidian.

"Who and what are you?"

I asked nervously. I now knew what it was like to be scared. I had no Idea what power I had, or if I even had any power to fight. The lizard scraped its claws against the rocks beside me with its left hand, sending A shower of sparks over my head.

"I am Ignis, and I am going to avenge the death of the individual that took me in when my life as this vessel started"

This lizard said as it brought its hand back down the the ground and with its right hand, grabbed me and held me against the Obsidian wall as it brought its face close to mine. I could see the genuine rage that this individual possessed.

"Don't you lie to me; you know what you did!"

The lizard yelled as it brought me from the wall and slammed me back into it. Oddly enough, I felt no pain when I impacted the wall, instead, I felt power starting to course through me again.

"It's not polite to interrogate someone that you don't know the name of"

I heard the familiar voice say as A wall of water impacted the side of the lizard and sent it rolling across the Caldera. The lizard rolled about five times before it righted itself and dug its claws into the ground, sending sparks everywhere as the lizard skidded to A halt. It glared at the outline that was next to me.

"Shadow Stepper?"

I asked incredulously as I rubbed my neck. The outline took an awkward stance and spouted water from what looked like its palms in A taunting way while it spoke.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size you overgrown lizard?"

It asked as it got into its own fighting stance. I regained my balance and looked at the giant lizard. For some reason, I thought that i've seen whatever this was that I was looking at sometime before.

"It's been A while Ignis"

The figure said as blade made of water formed in the figure's hands.

So that's who this is

I told myself as the giant lizard started to crawl to where we were slowly. It seemed like this creature knew what this figure was, and what it was capable of.

"Just because you know what happens in all of the timelines doesn't mean that you're all powerful"

Ignis stated sharply as the creature studied the figure.

"Is that so?"

The figure asked in A taunting manner as the blades that were made of water finished materializing in the figure's hands. The figure brandished them and Ignis took A defensive stance.

"If I fight you again, the time that I spent trying to kill you would be for nothing"

Ignis stated with the same sharpness.

"And why would you say that?"

The figure asked without missing A beat. Ignis hissed.

"It's because you would reset everything; in other words, all of our actions would be for nothing"

The creature said as it suddenly launched forward from where it was standing and started slashing wildly at the figure with its huge claws.

"I won't allow you to be tyrannical anymore!"

Ignis roared as he slashed. I watched as the figure avoid every slash that Ignis made with ease. Every time the creature slashed, the figure would easily parry the swipe, or would would artistically dodge the slashes that Ignis made. As the two fought, I continued to look around. I was expecting something else to happen; something that would make even me not be surprised by the action that was going to take place, but nothing happened. There was A tense feeling that started to drop over me as I walked away from the fight that was taking place.

Why is it that I feel so weak?

I asked myself as I walked. Then, I started to think about some other things.

What happened to all of the power that used to rest in me?

I thought.

What happened to the Mastermind? what happened to John? What happened to Venom?

I thought about these as I walked along as well. Along with being scared for once, I was also nervous. After this thought, I noticed that I was actually wringing my hands. I sighed.

"I'm not gonna deal with this anymore"

I told myself as I looked at the obsidian wall that I was standing in front of and put my head against the wall. I looked at the ground and found A sharp rock that was poking out from the ground.

Just put yourself out of your misery; no one wants you around anyways

A voice sounded in my head. Right after I heard that, A new feeling welled up from inside me. This was one that I hadn't felt since I had been little more than A hatchling: grief. It felt like I was isolated, lost, cold, dark, desolate and stricken. I continued looking at the pointed rock that was poking up from the ground.

"It's all I have left"

I sighed as I ripped the chunk of rock from the ground and twirled the rock in my hand. The light from the molten magma glinted off of the many edges of the rock as I twirled it. Suddenly, and without warning, something took over my consciousness and I stopped twirling the rock, and plunged it into my chest. Pain coursed over me, and this time, it was so unbearable, that I fainted as I fell to the ground.

"He did it; he actually did"

A voice said in amazement.

"Of course he did; I commanded him to do it"

Another familiar voice said. I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn't. I felt like I was being confined to something, but I knew I was still lying in the same area that I had been in.

"At least you took care of the biggest threat right away"

Another voice said with relief. There was A moment of silence and A rumble of thunder. Immediately following that, I was stood up.

"You can make do with what you have, right boss?"

I heard NightShade say as I opened my eyes.

Finally! Maybe i'll stop being so weak and I can make an example of him while I get rid of Emperor

I screamed in my mind as my vision came into focus. Everyone that I knew was standing in front of me, but I was being held by the Mastermind, and as usual, its LED lights were Red.

"Fancy seeing all of you here"

I managed to say while A stream of blood leaked from the side of my mouth.

"Don't speak"

Venom commanded me. The rest of them, except for the Mastermind nodded slightly.

"The only reason that you're alive is because I'm keeping your heart beating"

The Mastermind said softly as it yanked the obsidian rock from my chest. Blood started pouring out from my chest, and I looked down in horror at the hole in my chest.

"What's the matter?"

Gold asked me as I tried to take my transfixed gaze away from the hole in my chest.

"Haven't you said yourself that I've seen blood before; it's nothing new?"

He asked mockingly as the Mastermind closed the hole in my chest by waving its hand over it. I felt the pain go away, and all of the ailments that kept me from achieving my goal.

"What… did you do that for!?"

I raged, but The Mastermind shook its head, and I looked at the eye sockets of the terrifying thing, and I noticed that instead of the lights being A light Red color, they were Blood Red and that Tendrils of blood were leaking from where the tear ducts were supposed to be on A normal individual.

"If you hadn't known, that was supposed to be the entryway for John"

The Mastermind said with annoyance as it let go of me and turned to the lying body of Venom.

"John said he wanted to inhabit you, so I honored his request, and as for you Ivo"

It paused as it turned to him.

"You're going to take care of my unwanted visitors"

The Mastermind stated softly. Ivo saluted the Mastermind stiffly and ran off to an odd device that I had never seen before. Ivo left the area in this machine and left the rest of us alone, in the almost silence. For A little bit of time, no one spoke.

"what's my job then?"

Venom asked as I saw him being calibrated in A sort of way by the Mastermind. Venom's overall appearance had not changed, but his Purple irises glowed an unnatural Purple.

"You're going to stay here and make sure that Ignis is dead"

The Mastermind stated softly through Venom. After the Mastermind told Venom this, the body of Venom slowly dissipated, leaving just me and the Shadow Stepper.

"I like it how they think they have control over their actions"

The individual said with A little laugh. When I heard that, My breath caught in my throat just as My vision sharpened and I felt power return to me. I saw Orange and Red rings of light form on the ground in front of me. I smiled to myself since I knew what this meant.

"It's good to be back"

I said with A half-smile. The Shadow Stepper didn't look impressed though.

"Are you sure that this is what you want to do?"

It asked me as I stretched my arms and legs absently. I scoffed.

"Do you really think that I have any other choice?"

I asked as I felt the changes take over my body. As this took place, the Shadow Stepper shook its outline of A head.

"There are many choices that you could make, but this one is the worst you could make right now"

It told me. I felt my spine decompress A little as my bone density rose and the spikes started to grow from my elbows, back, and head. As the changes took place, I felt another emotion: Greed. I wanted everything to be under my control, I wanted more power, more of everything!

"You may find yourself in an unpleasant situation because of your choice Obsidian"

The Shadow Stepper told me as I finished my transformation. I smiled nightmarishly.

"I think that this is the best choice Shadow Stepper"

I said as I caught sight of something moving far behind the outline of the Shadow Stepper.

"Oh?"

The outline said as it turned to look at what was going on.

"So this is the choice you've made then?"

It asked as it turned to look back at me. I nodded slightly as I walked past the Shadow Stepper.

"I'm telling you this now"

The Shadow Stepper started as I made my way to the center of the Caldera.

"You'll win this time John, but you'll only hurting yourself"

The Shadow Stepper said as it fell in pace with me. I looked at the outline as it walked with me.

"And how will that come to be?"

I asked as we neared the center of the Caldera. The outline laughed softly.

"Im sure that I could tell you, but..."

The outline said as I looked at it with narrowed eyes.

"But what!?"

I growled as I felt the burning rage that went with the Evil Spirit of John. the Shadow Stepper looked at the ground.

"That would require for you to die"

It said as it looked up at me. As I looked at it, I could feel my power drain as I looked at this creature's eyes. I started feeling numb all over, so I tore my gaze from the creature's eyes and focused them on some moving objects that were walking around the ring of the Caldera.

"Since you have made your choice, I'm going to apply this timeline that you've picked here"

The outline said decisively as I looked at the individuals that were slowly causing their way down into the Caldera.

"So what's going to happen All Powerful?"

I asked sarcastically as I kept watching the individuals make their way down the side of the Caldera.

"I believe that I'm going to take my leave now"

The Shadow Stepper said softly as I saw it disappear into the Blackness of the Obsidian around me.

"Get ready for your final battle Obsidian"

It told me as the individuals were close to the bottom of the Caldera. I smiled to myself.

"Last battle?"

I asked sarcastically as I finally got to take A look at who had decided to take A stand against me. I then remembered what the Mastermind told me some time ago when I had almost taken what was mine from my hated enemy, which was oddly my own brother.

You will not succeed in what you are trying to do

This echoed in my head as I felt an odd weight of what seemed like dread fall over me. I looked at the line that was assembling before me. The weight over my shoulders grew A little heavier as I felt the seething anger continue to grow inside of me.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

I asked sarcastically as I looked at the line that had formed.

"What we have here is the team assembled to kill you"

Rojo said softly as he balled his hands into fists at his sides. I was partially amazed by the fact that he was still living, but that didn't take my total attention. What did though was the fact that Emperor had taken the Reborn off of his back and was unfurling it with the bladed edge facing me.

"I'm dispersing troops this time Rojo"

He said quietly as he pointed the tail part of the Reborn at Marine.

"Rojo and Marine will keep fighting Ivo, Rose and Lemon will fight the outline that almost killed Ignis, Cynder and I will fight Abyss"

Emperor dictated. Halcyon scoffed silently.

"Just like him to leave me out"

He muttered as he disappeared into the wall. The others went off to their posts and I continued to watch and stand in place as the line dissipated to leave only Cynder, Emperor and I.

"How about we settle this once and for all?"

Cynder asked as she cracked her knuckles and gave me A sharp toothed smile. Emperor put the Reborn across the back of his shoulders and stretched. Cynder looked at Emperor and scowled. When Emperor caught sight of her, he smiled sheepishly and got back into A more aggressive stance.

"You're really being this way now?"

Cynder asked angrily as she swatted the back of Emperor's head with her hand. I saw flames licking the edge of her mouth as she narrowed her eyes at me and I stomped the ground hard. Lightning chains of Black and Purple color crawled across the ground towards the two. As the lightning crawled close to Emperor, he half-smiled and used the Reborn as A small device to hover above the ground for A moment as the lightning chains crawled across the ground under him. Cynder didn't even move, and I became somewhat nervous when the lightning seemed to charge Cynder.

"Things have changed Abyss"

Emperor sighed as he dropped back to the ground and put the Reborn on his back in one fluid motion as he landed. I shook my head slowly as Emperor started to speak again.

"With the newfound information of science, I have been able to counter all of your attacks Abyss; you can't win this one"

He said as Cynder started materializing some Invisible Nightmares and some DeathBringers. When he said this, I started feeling numb all over.

Did the Shadow Stepper actually tell the truth?

I thought as I saw Emperor change the Reborn's Phase into Damage.

Can I actually finish this fight?

I thought as I felt the spikes all over my body start to grow longer and become more pointed.

"Cynder?"

Emperor asked quietly. Cynder took her fierce gaze off of me and looked at him.

"I need you to leave"

He said quietly. Cynder's eyes widened A little, but she didn't say anything.

"Now Cynder, go!"

He said as he pushed her away. She left reluctantly, and when she had left the area, Emperor looked back at me, and I crossed my arms.

"Well, if it isn't the deep Green scum"

I said maliciously as I let an evil smile cross my face. Thunder roared in the distance and lightning flashed, Illuminating Emperor's tense face. As he fell to his knees for some reason, he put his hands over his head as if he had A splitting headache.

"You are A fool to challenge me"

I said as I let the metal blades that were between my fingers emerge from the skin. I raised that hand when the blades were fully extended to slice his pitiful body into three perfect slices as I watched him kneel before me.

"Maybe you should've weighed your options before fighting me"

I said as that hand started to glow Blue, White and Purple. As I was about to bring down my hand to slice him, he suddenly sprang up from his kneeling position and jumped back, resetting with A roll to face me. I could hear his heavy breathing as I let my hand drop to my side. It wasn't glowing anymore, but the blades were still out, so I took A thoughtful, mocking stance.

"It looks like the Emperor wants to challenge the master"

I said mockingly as I turned around as if I was announcing this to an audience. As I turned back to him, he was shaking his head. He didn't shake his head much longer, and when he was finished, Emperor looked up at me as if he didn't know me anymore.

"You're not Abyss; you're A monster"

He said quietly as he narrowed his eyes at me. I could tell that he was starting to become something other than himself by the way he was starting to become hunched over and that his voice was becoming deeper. I stood up straight.

"That's right, and now you're going to die before me"

I said as I put A mask over my face.

That's odd, I don't remember having anything like this before

I said to myself as the mask seemed to attach itself to my face.

"If you can promise not to bleed all over my scales while i'm gutting you, i'll make your death quick and painless"

I said as I got into my fighting stance. Emperor had A look of shock go over his face, but he quickly recovered and drew the Reborn off of his back.

"Why are you doing this Abyss?"

He asked tensely as he changed the Reborn's phase to Damage once again. I grinned.

"Why have you come to challenge me when you know you're going to lose?"

I countered as I looked away absently. I heard Emperor growl, saw the Reborn flash Purple, and felt him drive A kick into my chest. I looked back at Emperor, who looked at me fearfully.

"What… how?"

He said as I saw him clench his teeth in what seemed to be pain and anger. He brought his foot down, and tried A spinning inside crescent kick, which I dodged. He resetted, jumped into the air and tried to axe-kick my head. I casually took A step back and resumed my casual stance. Emperor tried to RoundHouse kick me, but he lost his balance during the span of time he readied his kick.

"I don't need to explain myself to the likes of you"

I stated coldly as I backhanded him so hard, he spun like A corkscrew and landed face-first on the ground and skidded to A halt A few feet away from me.

"It seems like you're losing your touch Emperor"

I said as an evil grin crept across my mouth. Emperor groaned on the ground as I resumed my casual stance.

"I can't believe that I actually lost to you twice"

I said as Emperor tried to get up from the ground.

"You call this your best?"

I started as I watched him try to get up unsuccessfully.

"What I call this is pathetic; just look at how weak you are!"

I taunted as he pushed himself up from the ground and faced me. The Reborn seemed to be sparking, and it was turning A Red color.

"I'm gonna break that mask, and your skull!"

He yelled as he launched forward, and prepared A powerful double spin kick, I waited, unimpressed by his actions and his reverse heel kick impacted the side of my head. A loud ringing noise went through the area. It reverberated through my head, causing my ears ring and my vision my vision swim for A moment. Emperor held his kick stance.

The ringing probably hurt him so much, he's paralyzed

I thought as the ringing sound slowly dissipated.

"Why would I avoid your attacks?"

I asked him as he looked at me again in disbelief.

"To take them would be preposterous!"

I yelled as I flipped him into the air. He spun in the air momentarily, and when he was right in front of me, about to hit the ground, I slammed my elbow into his chest. When I hit him, A flash of Blue illuminated the area, lighting up the fear in his face as I hit him. He spun away from me and hit the ground and skidded across it, but amazingly, he recovered from the rolling action and skidded to A halt. His head was down and I could see that he was breathing heavily. He looked up at me, and I could see that his eyes were completely Black.

"You're gonna pay for that"

He said quietly as the Reborn had turned A deep Red color. It was glowing softly too. I materialized some DeathBringers and I looked at him coldly.

"You're going to put your life on the line to save your friends?"

I asked as I felt them nudge my back slightly. Emperor growled softly.

"I would die for them"

He said as I commanded my DeathBringers to fire. Emperor dodged all of them and tried swinging at me with the Reborn, but he missed every slash.

"You're not going to win"

I said softly as I grabbed him by his neck and tossed him away from me. He rolled A couple of times and resetted in an upright stance. Emperor growled loudly, and when he did, an explosion of Red mist surrounded him for A second and he started charging at me. He tried another spinning RoundHouse kick to my side. He was able to hit me, but it didn't move me at all.

"Why don't you understand that you're only doing harm to yourself?!"

I yelled as I held him with my right hand and brought back my left hand and slapped him so hard, he spun like A corkscrew again and skidded to A halt A distance away from me.

"It seems that you're not getting the point here Emperor; I'm afraid not"

I said with mock sympathy as I resumed my casual stance once again.

"Nothing can destroy me, let alone you"

I said as I studied my elbow spikes.

"The way I see it, I'm bringing about the end of your tyranny"

I said as I looked at him.

"There's also nothing you can do to stop me"

I declared as I crossed my arms.

"I'd also like to let you know that your friend Lily is going to be the sacrifice to my new order; our new salvation to my new and ideal world that I will create"

I stated as Emperor looked at me furiously. I could see pinpoints of White light in his Black eyes as he bared his teeth, which were now long and sharp. I took A step forwards and put my arms out at my sides.

"You should be proud to have played A part in my master plan"

I told him as a smile creeped across my face. Emperor's eyes widened and he growled loudly.

"What did you say!?"

He practically screamed at me.

"If you do something like that, I wouldn't hesitate to do anything less than tortue you until you beg for mercy!"

He started.

"If you think that I would let one of my friends be sacrificed to your delusional plans, you must be lost!"

He yelled at me as I stretched.

"I'll say it until I lose my voice Emperor; one of your friends must die, preferably Lily"

I started as I resumed my casual stance.

"Last time I checked, you had no feelings for Lily anyways, so what would you lose?"

I asked as I got ready to taunt him again.

"With the power that rests inside of Lily, I can take full control of this world, and then, I will go on to conquer everything!"

I declared loudly as I put my arms out to my sides. Emperor reeled as if I had hit him.

"Who do you think you are to do that!?"

He yelled as I saw him tense up. I crossed my arms and looked at Emperor coldy.

"I am the ruler of this planet, and then, I will be the ruler of the universe!"

I said quietly, but A loud laugh came from my mouth after I said that statement.

That should do it

I told myself as I saw Emperor clench his teeth and growl loudly. I saw his eyes light up and his body glow A bright Green color for A second. Emperor stomped his left foot on the ground so hard, the ground cracked underneath his foot.

"I'm going to kill you Abyss!"

Emperor screamed. As he launched towards me. A loud boom went through the area as he launched, and I saw the air around him get displaced as he launched.

"Wait… how did he?"

I asked myself as I saw Emperor launch towards me at such A fast pace, I barely had time to react to what he was doing.

"He's actually done it"

I said in disbelief as he kicked the center of my mask so hard, my mask cracked all over. My eyes widened in horror and amazement when he impacted me. For A second, nothing happened. I couldn't hear anything but the cracking of my mask.

"Did he actually?"

I started to ask, but the air around me exploded into wind, and I was thrown backwards at A high rate of speed. He hit me with so much force, I couldn't plant my feet correctly, and since I didn't do what I was supposed to do, I was knocked out momentarily. I was still conscious, but I couldn't move. I barreled through the air so fast, I skimmed the top of the magma that was underneath me, and I displaced the top of the pooling magma as I flew over it. I felt the mask leave my face as I traveled backwards. I barely saw it go flying away from me at A diagonal trajectory as I contemplated what my next action would be. I flew through the air expecting to impact nothing, but as I was about to convince myself that nothing would happen, I impacted the back of A rock and went right through it because of the force that I still carried. Even though I was far away from him, I could see Emperor impact the ground and skid to A halt. The mask that I was wearing fell near his head and it shone in the brightly colored magma. I felt the air resistance slowing me down, and when I was going slow enough, I dug my clawed hand into the ground. I saw my claws cut into the ground below me and sparks fly from my claws as I slowed myself to A halt. I tried standing up and slowing my breathing, but it hurt to breathe. My vision swam as I stood up. It took me A moment to catch my breath and to get my vision to become sharp once again. I staggered A little as I stood up straight and I put my hand over my face. My body temperature was very hot and I didn't know if I was going to be able to do much more fighting. I heard my blood rushing through my veins and my heart beating loudly as I was finally able to steady myself. I looked at Emperor coldly. I could feel numerous cuts, and scrapes stinging from the cuts the mask had made. I must've looked pretty bad to Emperor, because he managed to smile and comment on how I looked up from the ground and focused on me.

"Of all the times i've seen you, you're the ugliest now"

He said softly as he strained to look up at me.

"So is your temper and the action I'm about to take"

I said as I let my face became expressionless as I started to walk towards my impending victory.

I'm so close, I can taste my victory!

I exclaimed in my mind as I started walking forward.

"I knew that I was going to win"

I told myself as I got close to where my enemy was lying. He was still looking up at me.

"You're not going to win this one Abyss"

He told me as he let his head drop to the side. I scoffed.

"Looking at the current situation, I believe that I'm in total control at this point"

I said as I raised my hand up, with my palm facing sideways.

"You're going to die before me"

I announced as my hand started to glow Blue, White and Black.

"It was such A shame that you of all the individuals that I could kill had to be the one to fight me"

I started with mock pity as I felt my power peak.

"But with you out of the way, I will succeed in all my aspirations!"

I yelled as I brought my hand down, right in front of Emperor. I heard A cry of pain as I saw A line of Blue and White color make A shockwave arc that made A line that glowed as my target was slowly cut in half. I couldn't wait to see Emperor in half in front of me. I saw and heard sparks and the sizzling of flesh as the line cut not only through him, but all of the land behind Emperor and went on to cut the Caldera in half. I heard rumbling in the distance as the land under me was cut.

"How does that domination feel?"

I asked mockingly as the light died down. I knew that I had been victorious, but I wanted to see with my own eyes that I had accomplished the task that I had been waiting for. I had spent so much time, effort and training to achieve this moment. I had to blink my eyes A couple of times before the light faded, but when the light had died down, I growled loudly.

"How is this possible!?"

I screamed as I looked down at who I had cut in half. The individual was A Red color and I stomped my foot in frustration.

All this time, all this energy and all this work; and it was for nothing!

I screamed in my mind as I looked at the line that was burned into this individual. I traced the line with my eyes, but I felt A sense of accomplishment. The one that was before me was on his knees, and he fell backwards when I had let my hand drop to my side. I was about to leave when I heard him speak.

"I told you that I would never let you forget my name, right?"

The individual said as I turned halfway away from him. I laughed to myself.

"You're the one who defeated me before"

I murmured to myself as I looked back at him. The individual laughed very softly.

"Yeah; that's me alright"

He said as I heard him sigh heavily.

"How have you not died already?"

I asked as I looked at the Red lightning that was crackling around the Caldera.

"In my opinion, I don't have permission to die yet"

Rojo said softly as I turned to look back at him.

"Is that so?"

I asked as I walked to stand myself in front of him. The ground started cracking open and drifting away close to Rojo, and I smiled A little.

"You might want to consider this as your permission from me"

I said as I grabbed him by his neck and held him in the air, over A portion of lava that had just cracked away from the original placement.

"If the land that we live on doesn't spit you out from how bad you would taste, I recommend that you never come back if you wish not to die again"

I said maliciously as I narrowed my eyes and dropped him into the lava that was underneath him. I picked up my mask from the ground and put it over my face so I could watch my victim melt in the lava. I watched the lava bubble furiously and his scales sizzle as they were slowly burned away from the sheer heat of the lava. The mask cut most of the light from the magma, so I could watch the entirety of this event play out.

"It's funny that he had the Fire Element inside of him, but yet, he's dying to the very element that chose him"

I said to myself as I turned away from the carnage that I had created. Suddenly, I had A thought.

What if I didn't' kill him fully

I started in my mind as I started climbing up the side of the Caldera.

Does he have the ability to come back?

I thought about this as I crawled up the side of the Caldera. It seemed like there really was nothing that could stand in my way now. It didn't take long for me to reach the top of Caldera, and when I did, I pulled myself over the ledge to meet everyone that was with me.

"Did you accomplish your task Abyss?"

Gold asked me nonchalantly as I watched Gold and Black lightning chains crawl around his shoulders and hands. It seemed as if he was angry or distressed about something. I took A deep breath and I tried to center myself and tried to stop sweating so profusely.

"I... kind of did that"

I said quietly. Gold and Venom looked at me oddly.

"What do you mean you kind of finished your task Abyss?"

The Mastermind asked through Venom as I saw his fingers twitch oddly. I saw Venom sneer to himself.

"I knew he couldn't do it"

I heard him whisper. In reaction to this, I stomped my foot on the ground.

"What did you accomplish then!?"

I roared back at him and he looked at me with mock pity.

"I'm so deeply depressed that you couldn't finish your work; we were counting on you"

He said even more tauntingly. Now, I had had enough.

"So you think I'm dead weight, right?"

I asked him furiously as I felt heat course over my back.

"Tell me who you killed in your battle!"

I yelled at Venom. I saw his eyes go completely Black and white pinpoints appear in them.

"I know exactly who you killed Abyss, don't listen to Venom"

The Mastermind stated coldly as it looked directly at him. Venom rolled his eyes and looked at Gold, who was looking down at the Caldera.

"I can tell that you killed one"

He murmured as he narrowed his eyes at something in the middle of the Caldera. The rest of us lined up on both sides of him and looked down at what he was seeing.

"Didn't you try to make A joke about how your opponent died Abyss?"

Venom asked me as I caught sight of something floating near the surface of the magma that was bubbling out of the thin layer of ground that the Caldera once had.

"I did, yes"

I replied nonchalantly as I felt something cross my mind.

If my thoughts are correct, then Rojo will come back again

Right after this, I took A sharp breath, which got the attention of everyone that was with me.

"If you killed him, then why are you nervous Abyss?"

The Mastermind asked me as I tried to get A better view of this object.

"I think it's because he may be lying to us?"

Gold suggested as he shrugged. I scowled at him.

"What reason would I have to lie to any of you?"

I growled as I stabbed my finger at Gold. he smiled to himself as he looked at the ground.

"I don't know Abyss, what reason do you have to?"

He asked me as he turned to the Mastermind.

"So what's you plan now?"

Gold asked with mock interest. In response to that, the Mastermind only laughed cruelly.