Fate/Academy: Episode 8
*Athenox is in Mr. Lanslac's room. He has just been hit with a very strong illusion spell that sends him into the floor. Scene 1.*
"Did you just?"
"It is nothing personal but we have to make sure that you don't mess anything up. The usage of your magic tends to get things and people blown up or critically wounded. We can't take any chances. I am sure you agree that we want to get the best grade that we can." Miraldes explains.
She can say all of that but it doesn't take the four pronged knife wound out of my back. If this is what I have to look forward to for teammates, then I guess that this is going to be a long and interesting school year.
"Hey, Mr. Lanslac!" I try to mouth the words as the room around me keeps shifting directions.
"Yes Athenox, what is it?" From what I can tell, his facial reaction looks a little shocked to say the least.
It is a little out of place to be disoriented and cuffed to a chair within a school.
"Are they allowed to do this to me?" I ask as his face fully examines what the situation is.
The disorientation of my surroundings seems to add an unnecessary panicked and slurred volume to my voice. As a result the whole room looks up from what they are doing and stares at me being cuffed in the chair. It is an even worse sight when the room and my head are spinning.
"I haven't seen group cooperation methods like this since my earlier days of teaching. To answer your question though. I would say that while very unusual, it is not anything too cruel or extreme. In fact, you should be proud of your group if they are willing to do your share of the work on this part of the challenge." Mr. Lanslac replies to my question.
It is very easy for him to say that because he is not the one tied to a chair with a constantly shifting sense of direction. To make things worse. I can't even try to dispel the effect because every time that I can get close to tracing it back through Adam, then the room rapidly shifts again and I am even more disoriented than before. All I can do is wait for them to be done. They each seem to be using their magical talent effectively in this challenge. Adam is making some kind of substance with various herbs and fruits that we got, while Devin and Alex are cutting apart different beasts. Wolf, Lion, Dragon, Snake, Ram, and even a Phoenix. Impressively enough the combination of fire and air magic seems to be allowing the meats to be precooked as they run them through with their blades. Miraldes is milling out different herbs and mashing them into a paste that she is then having Devin fry as she flattens them out. I look over at the next closest workstations and I can see Jane, Luke, and the rest of their group seem to be cooking in a near perfect harmony, Sarah, Mary, Micheal, and Gabriel also seem to have some rhythm in their work. I am starting to notice something else as well. The groups are hardly communicating with each other at all, and yet they are still getting their tasks accomplished. It seems off to me, because we have hardly been in our groups for very long. Anytime I operated in a group when I was younger, it would take us at least a month before we would start being effective as a group. I always preferred to work alone because I could manage better. Even when I was leading full scale operations for Hades in Undercity, I seemed to just send people off so that I could do my own thing. I never understood why but I did. The groups that are in front of me however, are capable of synchronizing in ways that are beyond me. When time is called, all of the groups have their dishes ready to present. Mr. Lanslac walks the first group.
"Group one what do you have?" Mr. asks the group.
"Well we have what has always been a favorite of mine growing up because of how simple it is. It is a Lion's Steak and Potatoes." Jane says.
She seems to have recovered from the attack in the portal just fine and I didn't notice either of them having lion meat on them, not that I was paying too much attention to them. I look over at our workstation and count of how much meat we have before I realize that Jane must have stolen it off of the bull when Devin was rushing her out of the portal.
Oh man how many times am I going to get betrayed in one day?
"If I may?" Mr. Lanslac asks as he lowers his goggles and places his hands in the air over the dish.
I can tell from here that he is using some form of detection on it, even as my head is still spinning out of control.
"It is really good but it is a little too simple. You know I said that this was a challenge right? I will give it a three out of five stars." Out of their whole group, Jane's face seems to be the angriest.
Mr. Lanslac walks on to the second group.
"Group two, what do you have?"
"We made a Roasted Wolf Stew." He scans the dish.
"It was cooked perfectly but its taste very bland. In theory this would be a tried and true survival dish but it almost makes me want to not survive any longer. Three out of five stars." He walks on and just like Jane, it seems that Sarah and Mary are also less than pleased.
It is really hard to figure out a clear measuring scale for what Mr. Lanslac thinks is a good dish and what he doesn't, since he has given them both a three out five stars for similar reasons. It seems more opinionated than anything else because what one person finds good is unlikely to apply to everyone. He walks over to our workstation.
"Well it looks good, what is it?" He asks after turning slightly to acknowledge me in the chair.
"Chimera Enchiladas. An exotic take on an old family recipe, at least we think it is a family recipe. We can't really seem to trace it back to a particular member though." Miraldes presents the dish to him.
The reaction on his face as he scans the dish is a very radical shift from his normally professional and slightly sarcastic behavior. It is exaggerated quite a bit but I can't tell if it is negative or positive.
"Oh what did you put in this? Did you use real Chimera?" He asks while making noises that do not really clarify whether he likes it or not.
"Um, we mainly used a lot of spices that we gathered like Cumin, Coriander, Chilies, Oregano, and Garlic. Also no, we did not use real Chimera but we did use a combination of other creatures to substitute. Besides, I think it tastes better than real Chimera." She says trying to get him to like it.
His facial expression gives nothing away about his thoughts on the dish. Weird because I do not remember even grabbing anything resembling those spices. Devin must have grabbed them when I wasn't paying attention, which would mean that they had everything planned out since yesterday. My irritation is interrupted by Mr. as he bursts out with excitement.
"You are absolutely correct because it gives a fullness to the flavor that real Chimera can't offer. The spices are very well chosen. They really kick the dish into gear. I think I am going to give your group…" He pauses for a moment contemplating our score.
"Five stars." Our group seems pretty excited.
He looks at Miraldes.
"You seems to be very skilled at cooking. Maybe I should hire you as my personal servant so you can serve to cook for me every day. It would be much better than what my wife usually makes…" As he says that last word, immediately a bird shaped projectile made of void energy appears in the room and hits Mr.'s face and explodes on contact which slams him into the wall of the classroom. The magic energy coming of off the projectile was massive.
"Athenox, was that you that cast that? I must say that you are expanding your capabilities, and we do not even teach the familiar spell until sophomore or junior year depending on the class."
I found a message when I detected the void energy. It was a lot easier to detect than the spell that still has me spinning in my chair. It is from Mrs. and it was very obviously addressed to Mr., and the message simply insists that he stop what he is about to and refrain from saying another word or she will be forced to notify the governing board and he will be sleeping in the doghouse for a month. Her tone is very passive aggressive. I have that feeling that I should not have read that and upon reading I regret detecting the magic projectile more than any other magic thing that I have detected up to this point.
"Um, no sir that wasn't me. I am still spinning over here and I think I am going to throw up, and it might be purple."
I seem to have only been distracted by the dizziness for a moment while I was detecting the projectile. Now it is back in full force.
"Alright, all of the other groups get a three for now while I recover from the pain. I will look over them later and adjust your scores. Class dismissed. And Mrs. McRemitz! Please recover your fellow groupmate on the way out." They walk over and remove the cuffs and dispel the illusion. I fall to the floor.
"I will find ways to get even with you!" I shout as I try to get my bearing.
*It is later in the day, after school. Athenox meets up with Devin and Macy at the forges to receive instruction from Clara and Corey. Scene 2.*
"It is good to see everyone taking an interest in the proper modification and maintenance of one's own phantasm weapon, as should be common practice of any fighter who wishes to excel." Corey says.
He sounds just like a teacher, almost in similar tone to Mr.'s voice. Except he seems to be a lot more serious in his words than Mr. who uses them as a sarcastic tool to for hidden words of true enlightenment among thick layers of witty remarks.
"Corey, you can really cut the formalities. They have already joined the team, so it doesn't really matter if you are nice to them in their training or not. Not to mention that they asked us for help, which puts them in a position in which they are willing to do more for their own power. We could really have fun with three slaves." Clara states almost too openly.
Her appearance seems to match her oh so bright and shining personality. She is wearing a long black coat over her white uniform shirt and black jeans, topped off with a pair of black combat boots. I also sense a very intensely dark aura emanating from her but I can't tell if that is just by judging from her appearance and personality or if that is actually the magic essence coming from her soul.
"Nonsense Clara! I believe that formalities are a key part of any conversation between dignified members of society." Corey says.
"Get a hold of yourself, Corey. Of the present company in this room, I wouldn't really call this group "dignified". In fact, you and the El-Melloi kid are probably the closest, but even that is a stretch given your literal proximity to the first families of your factions, the Emiya kid is just an idiot who claims to be the bloodthirsty war prince of the dark faction which is unlikely given that every fight he has been so far has just been a thoughtless unskilled attempt that only barely succeeds through pure luck alone. Then there is Macy, who we know virtually nothing about except for the fact that she is a really weak Assassin mage who our beloved President Aubrey vouched for and used her one prospect override vote on to assure that she could be on the team without any form of background knowledge, but because Mrs. is Mrs., then she just let her favorite student do what she wants to. It infuriates me to be on this team ever since Kotomine became our student organization president, and it infuriates me that I am required to be down here and help with these losers." Clara rants her apparent list of grievances against us.
Mrs. told me that the student leaders for the team are chosen based on both their skill in combat and ability to operate as a leader who is responsible for helping and guiding their fellow teammates when they seek it. So why would she ever have chosen someone so cold and cruel to be one of her leaders? Mrs. always has a good explanation for everything and this is probably no different. If I want to figure out why than I will have to talk to her about it later when I get the chance to. Clara walks off quickly and Corey begins to walk after her.
"I am very sorry for her. She can be very blunt about things. I will go try to calm her down but it is unlikely that we will be able to give you any proper lessons about weapon forging, but feel free to use the workstation. I will allow you to use it under my passcode as a student organization leader, so that way you will not be restricted on the tools or materials that you can use. Please be safe and smart about what you are doing, and also be sure to use proper safety equipment. Say, Athenox. Mr. had told me that you were familiar with some spirit essence crafting?"
"Um…yeah. I mean I have handled a lot of basic things in terms of minute adjustment…"
"Well then good. I am sure that you can teach these two individuals. Wait! Clara! Calm down!" Corey runs out of the forges after Clara.
Did he just put me on the spot like that? I am not sure what is going on with the leaders.
"I don't really understand what just happened." I say.
"Clara seemed like a nice person last week when we were at the Student organizations display." Devin tries to convince us.
"Well it seems that is was just a front to get us in the door." Macy says.
"Oh come on. I don't think she could possibly be that bad. I probably just figure that she like everyone has a past that directly influences their future." I might be stretching the limits of that excuse by a little bit.
"Do you think that the rest of the team leaders may also be this torn and conflicted with the leadership structure?" Devin says.
"I really do not know if that is an appropriate question to ask since we have not been in the team long enough to get involved with their personal affairs yet, and if they decide for us not to then we should respect their wishes. Anyway, didn't you come down here to figure out what is up with those weapons that you found?" Macy says.
I guess she is right and I shouldn't really be involving myself in their personal problems unless they ask for it, but even that bugs me because if it becomes a problem in which they cannot cooperate as leaders then they will lead the team into chaos and disarray. Even if you do not like someone, you should still be able to maintain a respectful coexistence in most cases.
"Yeah that is right. Athenox, you still have those items from the spirit right?"
"They are right here in my backpack… Well… I thought they were, but now all that is there is spirit residue." I say flustered as I look through my backpack.
"How can that be if they were intact for so long to begin with?" Devin asks.
"Well I wasn't thinking about it much but if they were the spirit's weapons summoned with the spirit's magic, then once the spirit was destroyed, the magical energy link between the spirit and the items that kept them summoned was removed and the items could only last so long with the remaining amounts of mana left in them. So sometime between Lunch and now, they must have just ran out." I explain in my best attempt.
"Well how are we going to know what they do if we don't have them?"
"Wouldn't we just have to summon them again and link those copies to someone else's mana supply?" Macy asks.
"Well maybe. The visor's design could be replicated and operated by most users as it didn't seem to require mana to use as much as it seemed to be a kind of containment or filtering device that would interrupt or mitigate the release of mana from an area, which would in this case be the eyes. The daggers on the other hand were spirit weapons and as a result would require a lot of mana to maintain and use, which I could guess would be a phantasm weapon."
"Meaning?"
"For the daggers, we would need someone to have to replace their current phantasm weapon summon in exchange for them."
"Replace their phantasm weapon? Why would anyone do that at this current stage of mage training? It would almost do more harm than good considering you are all but guaranteed to replicate the weapon with a lesser structural integrity than your previous one, and you would possibly have to get use to the mana operation and physical operation of a new weapon type." Devin asks as he always likes to ask me questions.
"What if the weapons were in a similar enough proximity to the previously used phantasm weapon summon for both the physical wielding of it and the control of the weapon's mana flow and within a margin of acceptance, structural integrity didn't matter as much?" Macy asks.
"Well for my case as a Saber mage, where a sword is literally the namesake of the class, daggers would hardly be compatible as a primary weapon, even though it is the second class on my class composite as of right now and I have trained to use them. I still would not take them as my primary weapon though."
"Macy, you are getting at the fact that Assassin mages do not have a rigid restriction on their phantasm weapons or weapon quality compared to other classes, but if they did then they would be daggers, or knives, based on their common style or usage of waiting to strike until close up at an opportune time." Devin states.
"Macy, what is your current phantasm weapon? And are you sure that it is worth giving up?"
"If I am to become a better Assassin mage, then I will need weapons that fit better than what I currently have."
"If that is what you truly want and you are prepared to face the consequences, then I as a fellow mage who likes to keep pushing my abilities further, will help you." I gladly agree.
"I guess I can agree with that, but what will that require, if she doesn't have the actual weapons here to bind with, nor did her soul choose those daggers to qualify as hers from birth."
"I know it is possible, as many mages have been known to swap their phantasm weapons throughout the course of their life. Check Corey's notes on the workstation. Search near his first or second year."
"We really shouldn't go through his stuff like that. It seems like an invasion of privacy to look at someone's private content and research gathered from embarrassing amounts of trial and error." Macy says.
"We do not have a choice since I am not fully familiar with the process, and I also do not want to take any unnecessary risks of this going wrong."
"Here! It is a section on summoning, specifically about weapons. I will read it. It says that summoning, Projection, or Gradation Air, as it is commonly referred to in ancient text, is the baseline ritual for summoning items through magic. Summoning weapons as phantasm weapons requires a more heavy duty version of the spell to create the item with enough accuracy, precision, and structure to operate as an individual's permanent weapon. This version is known as Soul Tracing, for it requires the user's soul to force the weapon into its control. It requires the new intended recipient, both the new and old phantasm weapons in question, and a link to the weapon in either spiritual or physical form. It should be noted that the spell requires three to seven people to maintain. Anymore and the effect would dilute the quality of the weapon by one measurable increment for each additional participant as it is not a Unified Hybrid spell, and any less would cause far too heavy a strain for any currently known mages which could cause severe cases of mana drain with effects including the loss of limbs, organs, or the loss of one's soul or body entirely, but in minor cases would likely just cause dizziness. And the word clumsiness is crossed out and I can't tell what that means."
"Well then it is a good thing that we have three people here. Let just hope it counts the person who is transferring their weapon." Macy says.
"How involved are the directions, and does it say specifically that we can do it without the original phantasm weapon?"
"It uses a seven step process to convert the imprint from the previous weapon to the new weapon. Each step serves as an activation gate and some weapons could have an activation gate that would be locked from being safely accessed by the casters of the spell. In order it goes Concept, Structure, Material, Skill, Experience, Years, and Manufacturing. Each individual keyword serves a critical purpose and a weapon is not considered finished or stable until it has reached the end of the Manufacturing phase, since certain weapon effects are not added in until certain phases. If you happened to lack certain parameters for the requirements of the spell, then you substitutions can be made. A soul forge or collection of soul forges can supplement the mana cost, and if the intended new phantasm weapon is not in possession then a design of one may be used, or even further, an item that holds relevance to the phantasm who used the weapon if that is more convenient."
"Well I guess works." Devin says.
"Think again. We don't have the blueprint for the weapon nor an item of relevance to that spirit because they both dissolved earlier today. Did you not remember what we already established, Devin?" Macy says to Devin.
"Yes I do, but I was not talking about the items that we got from the spirit. Devin replies to Macy's condescending question.
"Macy, he may actually be right. In theory, I have already seen both of the items, and when I was fighting the spirit I did replicate and use those daggers against her. Part of me being able to replicate an opponent's weapon required my magic energy to be absorbed into it. I should be able to create a link for you using the visor that I had intended to create, and with the forge I should also be able to make the outline of the weapon for you to imprint or reshape with your old weapon summons."
"Okay, Athenox. If you think that will work then can we please be done with this over explanation and just get started?"
To start I just have to focus on the visor and all that I remember from that fight, what purpose it serves, what it is made out of, how it would have been created, how much effort would have been put into making it, how long it would have taken, and finally as I throttle an excessive amount of mana into my hands. I can feel it taking shape but it isn't quite right. I am still missing something very important, and that is the name. The visors will not be able to take shape properly with enough structural integrity to be used if I can't materialize it with its name in a proper designation as a one word aria. Think, the spirit used it to disable the function of magic in her eyes, to break it almost like it was a curse she didn't really want, and that scene when I tried to counter the effect. I want to use it to limit or break the intense effects of my own detection. I want to use it to break the void magic into following my will. That's it!
"Void Breaker!"
I shout out as the visor appears in my hands, even though they do not quite look as I remember. It isn't even a visor at all, but instead a pair of black and red glasses, with purple tinted lenses.
"I think you messed the spell up, because those are not the same visors that you pulled out of your backpack at lunch, which means that they are also not the same visors that were recovered from the corrupted spirit." Devin states.
"I do not know what happened. I was sure I remembered what I had visualized and what I felt when I use the counter magic effect on it."
"Well do you think that it will work?" Macy asks.
"Well it is based off of the item from the spirit, so there is no reason why it shouldn't work. Athenox, put those glasses on so you don't have your hands full for the ritual. Then maybe you can see what you did wrong with the summoning of them." Devin says.
"A pun really, right now? You just really felt the need to? Even I know that there is a time and place for everything."
I put the glasses on and as of right now I do not feel any different other than the bizarre difference of looking through the purple tint.
"Wow, your already purple eyes look weird through the purple tint. It kind of makes them glow." Macy exclaims.
"Yeah, after first meeting you without glasses, they make you look different. Now on to the weapon summoning spell." Devin says.
Macy takes out her phantasm weapons, which are a pair of hammers and places them on the table of the workstation. We use the spirit essence from the forge to cover the hammers. The hammers start to shatter as Macy starts to over empower them. Then we arrange the essence into an "x" shape that represents the crude shape of a pair of crossed daggers, and then we start to chant the keywords required for the spell.
"Concept."
The vision of the daggers emanate in my mind. Daggers are used as weapons designed for quick, close ranged, and subtle strikes. The chains attached could be used as a clever means to control an opponent's actions in a multitude of different ways.
"Structure."
Metallic, no argument there, as I felt when I dealt with the strikes of that weapon dealt by the spirit.
"Material."
The specific type of metal that the mana is forming as is unclear to me, although it feels old and shadowy. Older than any metal I am familiar with, which are just metals used today such as copper, steel, iron, and aluminum so I am not the best expert on that front. The weapon seemed to want to use the shadow veil of its user to hide itself, like it wasn't the main weapon that the corrupted spirit had but instead just the most appropriate.
"Skill."
It had a very complicated and intricate design that would have required a confident weapon forger to make, but the spirit summoned it autonomously, like it was so easy that it just had to ask for it.
"Experience."
The spirit handled them in an effective manner that could only be from heavily disciplined usage. The speed, and the way she could use them were almost more beautiful and graceful than violent.
"Years."
The lifespan of the daggers seems quite extended, which may also explain the weird feeling I get from the shadowy metallic structure. I can't put a number on it, but if I had to approximate then I would say definitely older than a million years ago before the cataclysmic event that all of the records after suggest happen. The event when corruption flooded the world.
"Manufacturing."
The daggers seem to be responding to the chanted words, and forming in the exact shape of the ones that the spirit used. Upon their completion, they seem to react and reappear in Macy's hands.
"Then I guess it worked?" Devin asks.
"Yeah it worked really well." I finish my sentence as drop to my knees suddenly.
"Athenox what happened?" Macy and Devin rush to try and help me back up.
"I am not sure. I barely used any mana." They put me in a chair near the workstation.
"How much effort did you put into the spell, because I think you may have miscalculated?"
If that is true then I didn't even realize it. Although, the keywords for the spell seem to imply a required knowledge needs to either be known to be gathered about the field. Neither of them really knew that much about the weapons other than their appearance. They didn't fight with or against them in combat, but I did and as a result I had gained that knowledge with my void magic. Meaning that I was the one putting in the primary magic power of the spell. Oh well, it worked. This isn't as bad as any of the other times so I should be fine in a few minutes. In the meantime Macy and I instruct Devin how to repair his weapons.
*After the long and interesting day, Athenox is asleep in his room when he encounters another dream. Scene 3.*
I am back in the same desert place from which all of my dreams seem to start. As the sands shift and alter the landscape in its usual manner. My mind is flooded with thoughts. The scene of the spirit I saw within that reality marble. Her calling out my last name.
"Emiya!" She reaches her hands out as the twelve dark figures from before rip away at her eyes and manipulate her form into a dark creature herself.
The dessert around me is split open to reveal a building that looks like a school. I rush through the front gates and then immediately find myself on the roof. The spirit herself is standing in front of me. Unlike when I fought her, she isn't covered in shadowy aura, but her presence is still very dark. Almost like it her mana I being held in. As I approach, she starts to speak.
"What do you intend to do? You are nothing but a weak magus. I have been following you around upon order and have gathered that much. Your involvement is unnecessary and killing you would bring about no serious repercussion in this war." She says to me.
I don't understand what her words mean. What war? Why would someone I apparently know kill me?
"Rider wait! You don't have to do this. We can work around this. Your master should know better."
Wait.
Why did I say that? Those weren't my words at all.
"Actually, not only is it critical that I do so, I am also forced to through my new master. As you know, the series of complications caused by your actions led to this. So know it is time to carry through on my order." She readies her daggers and rushes for me."
"Trace On!" I shout.
That isn't a phrase that I have ever heard before. It must be an incantation because as soon as I say it, a strange pair of blades appear in my hand. What is going on? I have never seen these blades before. They are also far weaker than my normal blade, Caliburn. About 50% weaker to be specific. I barely manage to block the daggers as she reaches me. I try to evade and counter a few of her strikes but she has me on the defensive and I can't do much about it. It is like my body is lagging behind my thoughts. It is like I have no control. My blades break after absorbing another strike. I feel exhausted, which is a strange experience this early into any fight. My body feels like it might break. I don't know what this fight is but I just know that I can't lose. I need to win, at whatever costs. I must be determined to win at whatever costs, so I reach out my hands and force mana into my hands. I produce Caliburn and in turn the sky takes on a dark red tint. She looks surprised but not thrown off guard like when I took her weapon in the corrupted forests outside of Avalon City. I rush at her seeming to gain an advantage. I observe that this Caliburn is still in no real comparison to mine but it seems to be enough to turn it around. I try to finish her off. I am unable to and she is getting stronger and faster. Teleporting around in a way that is inhumanly possible for any skill level of mage. I simply can't keep up with her.
"Wait, Shirou. That's my sword!" A voice seems to convey to me in my mind in some kind of telepathy.
Whose voice is that? If someone else is claiming to have this blade then I must know who it is. My thoughts are interrupted by a loud scream that echoes over the whole area. Suddenly the spirit I was fighting is directly in front of me and stabs the dagger right through my heart.
"Sorry, but you are not allowed to cheat." She says as she leans in close to me.
What does she mean cheat? All I did was summon a different weapon. One that I have more skill with.
"What are you talking about? I don't even know what is going on here. I have no clue what is happening on or why you want to kill me. This doesn't even make any sense! Dreams are supposed to be about my memories and experiences.
"Selfish idiot!"
A different voice shouts at me as the spirit pushes me off of the building. As I fall the landscape changes again. I land impaled on a bed of swords. More of my organs are pierced through. I should easily be dead by now, and yet I still seem to try to be getting up autonomously. The pain is unnerving and is the sharpest pain that I have ever experienced. Through all of the blood in my eyes, I see a figure standing in a cave. Everything else is hazy and the fact that I can see that much is a feat itself. The figure starts to speak as it discerns itself from the rest of the cavern.
"You are a weak and insolent being whose actions have meant nothing and whose end will mean even less. The fact that you think that you deserve the right to call yourself a hero is an outrage to heroes everywhere. Now die in the noblest death that you deserve!"
The figures voice is that of a woman. She raises her sword in the air. Oh no. I have seen that move before. It is the very move that I was taught to use when fully empowering Caliburn. I feel the severity of how broken and drained this body is and know that I have no defense against it and nothing in which I could possibly try to do will escape it.
"Ex…"
The glow from her raised blade is intense and dark. Whatever that blade is, it must be strong to produce that level of energy.
"…Calibur!"
She shouts as the sword slams down and releases all of its energy and the blast wave tears right through my body. Destroying me at the molecular level by tearing my cells apart from each other. It is so painful that it can no longer be felt due to the pain registering and then overloading my nerve endings. I lose any form of recognition that I am even a physical person that exists. I do not blackout, but my vision simply fades out as an overwhelming white noise.
*End of episode 8.*
