Chapter 83: A Single Life
It was a small change, one that the former Commandant wouldn't have normally registered. Still fighting to recover, Van felt the previously soft easterly breeze shift into a colder northern wind that cut through his tan hair and pulled the loose strands from his eyes. As meaningless as it seemed, it was a change, something foreign to this place that had once stood isolated from the tainted world below. Things had started moving, fate began to turn its wheel and the wind was just another reminder of that which was to come.
Still heaving, Van clutched his fists willing the last of the Seventh Fonons within him to settle. They still struggled against his control but his will was iron and they were forced into submission. Only when the last of them had been coerced back into their slumber did Van dare to relax. The energy that fled from him surprised the Commandant; though he could say the same of the entire chain of events that had just transpired. It had been weeks since Lorelei had resisted him, months since the being had stood a chance against the Commandant's unyielding resolve; but somehow in the last few minutes Lorelei had completely consumed him and it had taken every bit of that strength to keep it from escaping outright.
Even now the traces of their battle still lingered; the fire that had torn through him still burned within his confines, the piercing resonance of fonons rung in his ears and the sense of being ripped in two had yet to completely subside. Van took a second deep breath, relishing the icy wind that extinguished the heat in his chest. The embers were dying now, fading into a state of mere existence. There was no longer a sense of self to the being; the rebellious spirit, the feelings of anger, resentment, and sorrow that Van had to contend with all this time had all but disappeared. Lorelei was completely exhausted; he had been defeated.
Minutes like hours he'd endured, trying to grasp everything that was happening. What had suddenly inspired such a state in the being that had accepted its confinement for so long? There was still a lingering panic, desperation to escape the likes of which Van had never felt from it before. It had clawed its way from his confines; drawing on strength that long should have been exhausted. Where had Lorelei found such power? Such raw and sheer will that it had shaken even Van's own resolve? He'd not have thought the being still capable of such a feat, but whatever reserves it had drawn upon, were now depleted; the only consolation to Van who was still reeling from the clash of wills.
Van didn't doubt the sudden change in Lorelei must have involved Asch and his replica in some way. Other than its constant pines for freedom, they were the only consideration the being seemed to have. Were they the source of Lorelei's sudden burst of strength? Had the being drawn upon their energies somehow, or rather had something happened to them that stirred the slumbering creature? Van continued to ponder as he composed himself. He doubted the replica had such will; maybe Asch had been the source after all. It mattered not, really. Regardless of how much Asch and his little friends thought they were defying fate, Van knew they would come.
To destroy the score. To free the world. Asch would come.
No matter the challenges that stood in his way.
Tear couldn't recall how she'd reached this point. The past few minutes stretched like a lifetime behind her, consumed with a confusion and grief that the melodist couldn't even begin to handle. When she'd first heard Asch fall to his knees she'd assumed he'd tripped again. No one had missed his stumble on the stairs earlier; his mind was on something else entirely and he hadn't fooled any of them. This time Tear hadn't even turned to look, but when he didn't get right back up, or mutter some kind of half-hearted excuse, she knew right away something was wrong. There was only one thing that ever left Asch so distracted.
Asch hadn't responded to any of their questions, and the more any of them demanded answers, the more Tear felt her chest seizing. What could possibly be happening? What had Luke gotten himself into? Was he in trouble? Hurt somewhere? How could they make it back to him in time? Was that what Asch was doing? Trying to figure out where Luke was? Or was he trying to help him directly?
The first words out of Asch's mouth set Tear's heart racing, each beat pounded on her lungs, knocking the air from her a breath at a time. The words Asch spoke could only be for a single person, and the desperation with which he pleaded Luke not to give up was enough to destroy whatever air intake Tear had left. Then Asch said the three words that sent Tear's world spiralling out of control.
You can't die!
The mind Tear had once counted upon to stand resolute and strong in any situation suddenly faltered. D-Die? Impossible! Asch's state told her that Luke was in trouble, and he'd have to be in a lot of trouble to shake Asch the way he had, but there was no way he could be dying. Her mind couldn't even consider the possibility. No matter how hard she thought about it, no matter how many times she tried to bring back her thoughts and feelings from the Tower of Rem, she couldn't seem to process it. Luke had always pulled through! He had always come back to her! This would be no different. To think that she'd never see Luke again, that she'd never see his smile, never hear his laugh... the thought was so cold Tear daren't touch it. She knew she'd find herself as lost and broken as Asch was if she did and Tear couldn't allow that. She would believe in Luke's strength if no one else would.
Everyone around Tear seemed to be just as frantic as she was, the only person standing firm was Jade, his eyes hidden behind the glare on his glasses. Cold and unreadable, for a moment Tear envied him such a stable disposition but such feelings were quickly choked out by another wave of worry. Besides, Tear knew he was just as concerned as the rest of them. No one would be settled until they got some concrete answers. They wouldn't find any peace until they saw Luke again, until they could see for themselves how groundless their fears were, and their fears were groundless... weren't they?
Tear wanted to be sure, she was desperate to be certain there was nothing to worry about, but the melodist found the task impossible. Asch just kept yelling, half a conversation that was impossible to decipher yet still left her doubts swelling until she could hardly think through them. She fought to keep her composure, struggled to force the air into her screaming lungs, to keep her heart steady. Asch's sudden silence came as a blessing. Surely it meant that Luke had managed to escape; Luke had just scared Asch, gotten into such a pinch that Asch had jumped to conclusions. Luke would be right after them in no time. That had definitely not been the last time she'd see him. He'd never leave her... never vanish so suddenly like that. She hadn't even the chance to say goodbye. No... Luke would definitely be okay.
Then Asch screamed. There were no words; just a storm of raw emotions drowning in a sea of searing agony that burned through everyone who heard it. The sound was a dagger that ripped Tear's chest open and left her silently screaming for air. Whatever frail foundation Tear had built, whatever supposed confidence she had in Luke's wellbeing was hopelessly shattered and the falling pieces cut through every inch of her in a rain of broken glass. It just wasn't possible... Luke wasn't- wasn't- Tear couldn't even bring the word to mind. There was just no way this was happening; it was all just a misunderstanding... Luke was fine. Denial dulled the pain's edge but a constant ache still clung to the melodist. The refusal to accept the inevitable, the loss that was impossible to consider, the gaping hole left behind, Asch's voice carried all these things and they echoed through her ears and mind until the fire in her chest consumed her every sense. She couldn't... she couldn't lose Luke. After everything they'd been through, how far they'd all come together. They would be finishing it together, right? Luke wasn't gone. He couldn't be... Asch screamed again.
Fighting through the emotions that tore through her, Tear scarcely noticed the Seventh Fonons until the sound of them resonating overwhelmed her senses. The fonon of sound swirled so intently, so dangerously, that it drew her from her storming thoughts long enough to establish the imminent danger. Asch was out of control, so consumed by grief that he had no idea what he was doing... no idea of the scale upon which his hyperresonance would destroy. Tear opened her mouth, trying to call out to him. Luke didn't want this! He would never want to see everything destroyed... she just had to get through to Asch! But her voice caught in her throat, choking on tears the melodist couldn't begin to control. The fonons converged, but the hyperresonance never came.
That was when Tear saw Luke again. Seeing him, seeing his face wiped everything from her mind. She only wondered for a moment how he'd arrived, what had happened to the hyperresonance she'd feared. No, it had occurred. Hadn't it been a hyperresonance that had started it all? That had first brought her and Luke together when they'd been transported to Tataroo Valley? And here it had brought them together again. This time she wouldn't let him out of her sight. She wouldn't take her eyes off him. She'd see him for exactly how he was-
It was then Tear noticed all the blood.
She only vaguely remembered falling, everything around her seemed to simultaneously collapse as Tear buckled under her own weight. Someone caught her, but Tear couldn't even register who had broken her fall. All she knew was that the cold marble beneath her slowly crept up her veins until they'd curled themselves around her throat, suffocating her with each passing second she sat staring in shock. From Asch's hands, to Luke's jacket, to the ground around them, the blood was everywhere. It seemed to pour mercilessly from the body that lay so limply in Asch's arms. Tear didn't know what to think, she didn't know how to think. Suddenly the future opened before her, echoing with thoughts of hollow days, her heart lying frigid in a world without her sunshine.
She had to move, she had to get up. Years spent training; spent learning to tame her emotions in the face of battle suddenly seemed to fail her. Luke was dying! She couldn't just sit here and watch it happen! She had to get to him! She had to heal him! Why? Why couldn't she move? Every nerve in her body seared in protest as she begged her limbs to respond. Instead of moving, the weight over her doubled. It was no longer just her heart that was being crushed by grief. Every single inch of her felt inexorably bound to the marble, buckled under an invisible force that was smothering her until it felt like lead that flowed through her every vein, pinning her to the ground.
Her mind warred with whatever remained of her heart, fighting to stand, to go to Luke regardless of the binds her emotions had placed on her. After everything Luke had done for her, every struggle he had ever fought through for her sake, every burden he'd ever carried, she couldn't fail him now!
Tear tried again to stand, but fell to the ground as if someone had struck her, gravity tying her to the marble below. This wasn't just some trick of her mind, or play of her inescapable feelings, the weight she felt was real, and it wasn't until she noticed this that Tear realized all her friends were fighting against the same invisible force she was. The ground beneath her lit up, drawing out an unfamiliar arte across the marble floor. Though it was foreign to her, Tear didn't need to know the specifics to realize they were caught in a trap.
How had this happened? How had they gotten so tangled in her brother's web? Even Jade hadn't noticed anything... so why? Why now of all times? Her tears hitting the cold stone below, Tear found her answer. The tracings on the ground, only half of them were lit, only half the carving below them was the arte. The remainder must have been part of the original structure... the ideal camouflage. It was a perfect trap and each and every one of them had fallen for it. Was this how things were meant to be? Was this the future Yulia had chosen... for Luke to die and the rest of them to follow? Was that what she had wanted for the world?
No, it couldn't end like this! She wouldn't let her brother, let the Score win! Even if... even if the unspeakable happened, even if she lost her own personal sunshine, Tear refused to give up. No matter how hollow the storm of grief had left her, she would keep fighting. For Luke, and for the world he'd wanted more than anything! She would see that world become a reality if it cost her her life. She just had to stand!
Fighting the effects of the arte, Tear could feel the fonons as they began to cumulate. It wasn't an arte meant to bind, it was meant to obliterate what it had ensnared. They were out of time! Unable to get up, Tear dragged herself forward, inching towards the boys. They had to escape! She couldn't let this be the ending... they had to fight! They had to win! She couldn't- She couldn't let them die!
Tear registered the golden glow only moments before it engulfed her. Bracing herself, Tear only felt a calm warmth flow gently over her like a wave lapping over the shore. Bathed in the serenity and calm of the blanket of Seventh Fonons, every weight that pinned the melodist down vanished and as suddenly as it had advanced, the glow dispersed, taking the entire glyph with it as it burst and glittered into the afternoon air.
Sitting herself up, Tear felt lighter than she could ever recall feeling, like she could drift off on the breeze with the scattered fonons; like she'd never been weighed down in her life. It was only a second, a brief glimpse of freedom before the weight returned. Not the all encompassing pressure that she had just escaped, but a hollow weight that started in her chest and seeped through her as the reason she had been crushed in the first place came back to her.
Tear didn't know if she had the courage to look up from the bloodstained ground. She knew the sight that awaited her... how could she not. How many times had she seen death on the battlefield? How many corpses had she pushed aside for her own ambitions, or for those of her superiors? Death was not something foreign to her... so why? Why was she so afraid to look up?
Yet the thought of seeing Luke that way paralyzed her. A bloody, lifeless doll dangling limply in Asch's arms... she couldn't handle that. She didn't want to remember him that way... not cold, writhed in pain. She wanted to cling to his care-free smile, to his laughter, his tears for the fallen, his gentleness, his kindness... she didn't want those precious memories drowned out by the sight of a body.
"Are you alright?"
Asch's voice consumed Tear's every thought. The implications of such a steady, calm voice coming from the uncontrollable mess that had been there moments ago had barely begun to work their way through her mind. It couldn't be...
Tear's gaze flew up, passing the pools of blood spattered across the earth, past the shreds of fabric, past the once white jacket that was now stained red, past everything except the Luke who was sitting before Asch. His skin was still deathly pale, the only colour coming from a faint golden glow that still seemed to encompass him. His hand was planted firmly in Asch's, the only support he had as he wobbled unsteadily, but Tear saw past all of it. All she saw was his green eyes as they met Asch's, his mouth move as he replied something so softly she didn't hear it. He was... he was alive... Luke was actually alive.
Relief washed over her like a torrent of water, taking all her strength and energy with it. The burning in Tear's chest reminded her she'd forgotten to breathe and tears streamed silently down her cheeks. That... That idiot! Did he realize how many years of her life she'd just lost? How could he do that? How could he scare her like that? Tear senselessly wiped the water from her cheeks. She was going to give him a piece of her mind once this was done!
Luke began to sway more violently, fighting to maintain his grasp on consciousness as the last of the golden glow faded away. Losing the battle, his eyes fell shut and he collapsed. Every imagined transgression instantly forgotten, Tear scrambled towards him but her feet tangled in themselves and she crashed onto the marble floor. Embarrassed, she quickly righted herself in time to see Asch catch his brother, Luke cracked open his eyes again and Tear released the breath she'd been holding. Steadying himself against his sibling, it became evident just how weak he still was. That didn't matter though... because he was going to survive. Luke was going to be okay.
"Need some help?" Natalia's voice seemed almost foreign on Tear's ears. It wasn't until she saw her best friend smiling down at her, offering a hand up, that Tear realized how completely she'd tuned out the world. Though her expression was happy, Natalia's eyes were still red, her gloves wrinkled and stained with tears. Looking at her surroundings for the first time in an eternity, Tear felt as if she were waking from a dream. Anise's eyes looked redder than Natalia's, and Tokunaga was still ensnared in her arms. If the poor doll were alive, it would have been suffocated long ago. Guy had turned his back, hiding whatever display he had made, and Jade seemed as untouched as ever, save for the warm smile on his face.
"Thank you," Tear replied, accepting the gesture, allowing the help to her feet. She took a deep breath, calming herself as best she could. Her heart still fluttered, a mix of nervousness and sheer elation. Though she still felt exhausted, there was a satisfaction she couldn't erase from her mind. Since losing them on Eldrant's outskirts, everything had been off kilter, everything just felt wrong... but no more. The world was right again.
"What a touching reunion."
The sneer drew everyone's attention and the flash of green hair had Jade silently cursing the God-General's timing. Not that he expected any less. The trap they'd triggered wouldn't have been unmanned, and given its use of the Seventh Fonon and the sheer force it had displayed, Jade would wager it was some form of Daathic fonic arte, further strengthened by the excessive number of Seventh Fonons that were still abound no doubt. Jade stepped forward defensively, in case Sync decided their shaken and weakened state warranted no pause before his assault. Jade immediately noted the brief hesitance in their foe; something wasn't quite right with the God-General. As much as Sync tried to hide it behind a sneer and cocky posture, there was a confusion in his eyes that was evident. He didn't have any more idea than Jade did as to what had happened to his trap, and he wanted to know exactly what he was getting into.
Standing on a rock overlooking his opponents, Sync's cold analytical eyes scanned each of them in turn, as if daring them to speak up, to explain who had ruined his perfect snare. Finally his eyes settled on Luke and Asch, lingering longer than Jade was comfortable with when he saw shock sweep across Sync's face. The boys? They couldn't have disarmed the arte. Asch had still been unstable, to put it mildly, and Luke, well he could barely stand now, much less have done anything to disrupt the glyph at the time. Regardless, it wasn't as if the arte was halted, it had been outright disintegrated, neutralized with the utmost finality. Jade knew of few powers that could achieve such a thing. Even among fonic theorists there was only...
Impossible... Jade visited the thought but considered it with great difficulty. A second order hyperresonance? Such a thing had never been witnessed, it existed only in theory; an occurrence so rare that few thought it even possible at all. If two simultaneous hyperresonance were to interact, it was believed to possess the power to neutralize the effect of any and all fonons. Even if he were to account for the twins' unique power, to have that level of synchronization... between two separate individuals? It shouldn't be possible. Yet, what other explanation was there?
"Impressive feat for a corpse," Sync taunted, sneering at Luke, who failed to maintain his balance, even with Asch holding him up. The look in his eyes told Jade he'd come to the same conclusion, and wasn't quite so hesitant to accept it as the truth. "Too bad for you, a power like that might actually pose a threat to Van."
"What do you want," Asch demanded.
"Easy," Sync answered, every trace of his previous hesitation gone. "I just need for you to die."
In a flash Sync launched himself from his perch, diving at the unprotected redheads. Adrenaline kicking in, Tear jumped in front of the pair. Her hair still flowing about her, the barrier flew up, protecting her friends from the sudden assault. Tear's determination hardened into an iron will. She had almost lost Luke once; sat helplessly on the sidelines and watched him bleed, and she was not going to let that happen ever again. She would protect what mattered and would defend those she cared about. This time she would take fate into her own hands!
Sync collided with the barrier, recoiling with all the grace they'd come to expect from the last remaining God-General. A scant few seconds after he'd launched his assault, Sync stood on the white marble, coldly staring them down.
With no intention of allowing them a moment to gather themselves, Sync attacked again but Jade was ready and the arte he launched cut Sync's trajectory, only grazing the boy as he swiftly dodged the strike. Anise and Guy jumped in the fray, diverting Sync from his initial target, but not moving quickly enough to pin down the speedy God-General.
Sync had certainly not slowed since their previous encounter at Choral Castle, and even bearing no arms he was a force to be reckoned with. His punches could match any mace, his kicks held untold force behind them. Adding to that his speed and array of artes, he was not going to be a foe they could simply brush past. His identity long since revealed, Sync proved he'd inherited more Daathic fonic artes than the curse slot they'd seen from him and the fight grew ever more complex. He fought with a certain level of abandon, Jade noted. He wasn't being reckless, but he had no future battles in mind, no reason to spare them his full strength. For him, this would be was a battle to the death and Jade had every intention of obliging him.
"Why are you fighting us, Sync?" Anise asked, ducking as Tokunaga absorbed several of Sync's punches.
"I guess I should learn to expect that level of stupidity from you by now." Sync pounded Tokunaga with an arte, sending Anise flying from its back. Natalia launched an arrow that grazed Sync's arm, forcing him from the recovering Fon Master Guardian. "I fight because the Score needs to be destroyed!"
"You can't tell me you believe in the crap the Commandant is spewing do you?" Anise demanded. "Don't you realize he's going to kill you once his plan succeeds?"
"Why should I care what happens to me?" Sync asked between his attempts to disarm Guy. "I came into this world a piece of trash, I'll go out as one."
"Are you talking about how they almost threw you into Mt. Zaleho?" Anise asked. "Are you really going to destroy the whole world because Mohs is a good for nothing pig?"
"This has nothing to do with Mohs!" Sync fought back. "It has to do with the Score, the Score didn't decree that I would die, it was the reason I was born in the first place! Van saved me from the fires so that I could help him eliminate that curse from this world, and I have every intention of doing it!"
Sync overpowered Guy and the blond took a sharp blow to the stomach, following up his attack, Sync was knocked off balance by Tokunaga who sent him flying across the battlefield. Quickly recovering, Sync renewed his assault, but Anise matched his attacks, allowing Guy the chance to force some air back into his lungs. Natalia fired a volley of arrows, none of which hit their mark but forced Sync back none-the-less.
"Surely you needn't be so beholden to Van for saving your life," Natalia stated, pulling her bowstring taut. "It doesn't mean you have to follow him into this madness!"
"You think I'm following Van because he saved me?" Sync's kick knocked Natalia's arrow clean out of the air. "Don't be ridiculous. Why should I feel indebted to him for saving something so worthless? Thanks to the Score I've been forced to live this meaningless existence. Frankly I don't care who it is as long as the Score and the Seventh Fonon are destroyed for good."
"For someone who considers his life worthless, you fight awfully hard to protect it," Jade pointed out.
"Shut it Necromancer, I won't let you stop Van's plans to eliminate the Score."
"Do you really hate your life that much?" Anise asked incredulously, unable to keep the sorrow out of her tone.
"Don't pity me you worthless scum!" Sync stuck Anise, his hit landing cleanly across her face. The taste of blood exploded in her mouth and she skid across the ground, Tokunaga breaking her impact. Natalia ran to her side, and Jade's arte forced Sync back several steps where the recovered Guy intervened. "Everyone, life itself treats me like the garbage I am, why should I give a damn what happens to anyone?"
"Everyone treated you like garbage?" Guy asked.
"Tch," Sync spat. "They would if they knew the truth."
"You don't know that!" Anise insisted, climbing back onto Tokunaga. "You can't say for sure that-"
"Oh can it," Sync cut the girl off. "You just need another replacement now that the other Ion kicked the bucket. Well guess what? I'll never be Fon Master for you, so give it up with the pretty speeches!"
"You're right," Anise replied, a renewed determination in her voice. "You'll never be able to replace Ion. Ion was precious and no one will ever be able to take his place. We don't want you to even try it! You're not Ion, you're Sync! Stop being whoever other people tell you to be! You're no different than Arietta was, always listening to someone else and what they want. If you had to make a decision for yourself you'd be lost, so instead you just convince yourself that you have no other choices, that way you don't have to make them."
"Don't compare me to that failure," Sync retorted.
"Arietta was not a failure!" Anise's mace narrowly missed its mark and Sync was forced on the defensive. "Sure she might have been annoying and made her share of mistakes, but she died fighting for something she really believed in. She died for her own dream, not someone else's! You convince yourself that destroying the Score is what you want, but you gave up so long ago that you never even tried coming up with a purpose yourself. Of course you won't find any meaning in your life, you've never lived it!"
"Don't act as if you know the first thing about me!" Sync retaliated and the two clashed again. Guy dove in but Sync easily matched both fighters. In a single fluid motion, Sync slipped down, knocking Guy's feet out from under him and nailing him to the ground.
Natalia forced Sync back with an arte of her own, but even with Jade and Anise's assistance, they were slowly being overpowered. Someone had to tend to Guy... Natalia glanced behind her and found Tear still standing defensively before the twins. She had the right idea, they didn't dare weaken their guard, it was the boys that Sync was really after. If they died it would be game over for everyone. Natalia nodded, indicating she would tend to the fallen Guy and Tear returned with a grateful smile. She just couldn't leave Luke unprotected right now.
"Luke, no," Asch argued and Tear glanced behind her long enough to see Luke reaching for his blade that Asch still held onto. He'd been carrying Luke's sword as well as his own since the two had parted companies. Tear had noticed at the time but hadn't inquired, partially because she knew she didn't want to hear the answer.
"They need our help," Luke insisted, though his argument lacked any strength. The younger redhead stood up but nearly fell over again, caught at the last minute by his sibling.
"See what I mean," Asch argued, not having it in him to get angry with Luke. "You've lost way too much blood, you can barely stay on your own two feet, much less fight. Whether you like it or not, you're sitting this one out. And no artes either!" Asch cut Luke off before he had the chance to even think it. Luke opened his mouth, but was so light-headed he barely got a protest out. Conceding Asch's point, Luke sat back down, and focused on not passing out for the third time in the last ten minutes.
"Luke's right though," Asch stated to the melodist. "They're not going to be able to beat him on their own like that. Can I leave him to you?"
"Of course," Tear replied firmly. "I'll protect him no matter what it takes."
"I know you will," Asch said with a smile and a nod. "Just make sure you protect him from himself too," he added, more as a jab to the disgruntled Luke sitting on the ground.
For one last moment, Tear briefly caught a look in Asch's eyes. They seemed deeper somehow, as if the walls that had once been around him had finally given way, and for the first time, Tear felt like she and Asch had actually connected.
"One more fool added to the bunch," Sync taunted, dodging Asch's initial assault, still going toe to toe with the redhead and his comrades.
"I'm the fool? Don't even get me started!" Asch retorted. "You use the fact that you're a replica to invalidate your existence but that's not true. You can be a replica and still find meaning in your life."
"All of you and your idealist crap; you're like a broken record. You make me sick!"
"No you're the one who makes me sick!" Asch fired back. Sync danced around Asch's blade, and the redhead's frustration grew as he met nothing but air. Asch knew he wasn't in the right frame of mind. He was still shaken from Luke's brush with death, and still didn't have his feelings in check... but he'd be damned if Luke had survived that only to be killed by Sync now.
"Awww," Sync sneered condescendingly. "Does the naive little baby not like the fact that some lives are just worthless? That not everything is precious and needs to be protected? Can't take the fact that a replica is nothing but a throwaway?"
"The only thing that's worthless, is that trap of yours so do us all a favour and shut it!" Asch snapped, but his defence broke and Sync slipped through. Sync's kick felt like a brick to his chest and Asch was knocked back several paces. Guy jumped in, forcing Sync off the redhead, meeting the God-General's flurry with an assault of his own.
Asch coughed, trying to get some oxygen back into his system and berated himself for making such an idiotic mistake. Why was he letting Sync get him so riled up? Was it the way he went on about replicas? No, Asch knew exactly why every word Sync uttered pissed him off. Sync didn't value his life at all. He had time, he had a future... Sync had something Asch and Luke wanted more than anything, and he was throwing it away for nothing.
"Maybe you are a waste of space," Asch said with a laugh, calling Sync's attention back to him from the blond he was slowly overwhelming. "You're a waste because you don't realize how good you've got it!" Asch launched the first attack and was met by Sync's fist who easily deflected the blade. "You squander everything whining about how your life is meaningless, you use the fact that you're a replica as an excuse to call yourself a throwaway, but it's all a load of crap. Luke was born no differently than you; he was born to replace me, to be discarded in Akzeriuth by Van but that doesn't make his entire life meaningless!"
"You could never understand," Sync spat. "That replica is not the same as I was, he had a purpose, he was needed by someone. I was salvaged from the trash because there was a chance I might be useful, to be thrown back once I'm not anymore. You could never understand what it's like to have no one or nothing need you!"
Asch froze at those words, shadows from past creeping through his ears. Narrowly dodging a strike, Asch unleashed a flurry of ice that forced the God-General back, and in the split second his eyes met Sync's they looked painfully familiar. What would have happened to Asch if Luke had never needed him all those years ago? What would he have done had he never found a sense of purpose for his life? Would he be like Sync was now, alone and chasing death, desperate for an escape?
"You're right, maybe we don't understand," Anise intervened. "But you don't understand anything either. That's why you're following Van, because you don't understand why you were allowed to live, and you're scared of the answer!"
"I follow Van because he's vowed to destroy the Score! The Score caused me to live as nothing more than a piece of meat, so I'll destroy the entire thing!"
"You're wrong!" Luke's voice echoed across the battlefield. Asch spun around, cursing him for drawing attention to himself, but not really able to say he was surprised. He had an arm over Tear's shoulder for support, but he was back on his feet. The only thing that re-assured Asch he wouldn't do anything dumb was that Asch still had his sword.
"Big words from someone who can barely stand," Sync laughed and attacked the vulnerable duo. His attack screeched to a halt a scant few feet before them, and scoffed. He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice and the ice in Tear's eyes told him he wasn't getting through her barrier while she was still breathing, or at least while she was still focusing. She couldn't keep it up forever, he'd get them eventually.
"Maybe," Luke continued, looking Sync straight in the eye with an unwavering gaze that unnerved the young God-General. "But you're still wrong. If you want to blame the Score for being born, go right ahead; but every moment after that was up to you. It may be the Score's fault that you were born a piece of meat, but it's your fault you lived like one!"
Sync's eyes narrowed and he struck the barrier with all the force he could throw behind a punch. The air crackled as his attack and Tear's will collided, but the barrier was flawless and Sync was forced back. Jade's arte was over him in a flash, and Sync was hasty to doge the rocks that spurred up from the earth. Several arrows flew at him, and though he managed to dodge each of them, he ended up face to face with Guy.
"It's a pity you sided with these fools," Sync sneered at Guy whose sheath narrowly missed the boy's head. Sync retaliated with a punch at his core, buy Guy wouldn't make the same mistake twice and he sidestepped the strike. His sword was met by Sync's fist who easily knocked the flat of the blade away. "You made for such a useful pawn."
"That's not going to work, you know," Guy replied. "Come to think of it, I probably owe you a thank you for that." Guy swung wide, forcing Sync back several paces.
"What are you talking about?"
"If it weren't for that curse slot, I never would have confronted my past; I never would have had the courage to face Luke and Asch with the truth. So really, I should be thanking you." Guy attacked again, but Sync dodged wider, evading not only the blond's strike but the Necromancer's arte. A second arte flew seamlessly after the first and it was only years of refining his speed that saved Sync from the blast of heat he could still feel shimmering in the air beside him.
"Naive, good for nothing idiots, every one of you!" Sync spat. "I can't believe you buy that crap!"
Asch intercepted Sync as he decided to test Tear's focus again, this time landing a hit that drew blood from Sync's arm. The God-General attacked, completely unfazed by the injury. His blood spattered across his uniform, flying from the laceration as his strikes increased in intensity. Asch lunged, but Sync leapt overhead and the redhead hastened to evade his landing. Sync arte shredded the marble ground, sending dust flying into the air and everyone into a fit of coughing. Anise jumped in front of Natalia just in time for Tokunaga to absorb most of the force from Sync's ensuing attack but the God-General wasn't deterred and Anise took a second blow to the head.
"You could never understand the torment I've been through, the pain of being forced to live on as an expendable piece of trash. You all live the high life; I don't need or want your pathetic ideals or sense of justice."
"Who decided you're expendable?" Asch demanded, forcing Sync from his injured companion and his fiancée who was tending to her. "Who made the choice that you can just be thrown away at any point?"
"No one did, I was always expendable! Mohs threw me away a few pathetic hours after I was born. I was never worth anything more than that!"
"You let Mohs decide you're worthless?" Anise asked, pulling herself up onto Tokunaga's back.
"Anise!" Natalia protested but she wouldn't be dissuaded.
"You let that pig decide for you that you were a piece of trash?" Anise continued, her fervour giving her some of her energy back. "I can't believe you! Sure we might not have always seen eye to eye, but I had more respect for you than that!"
"Tch," Sync spat. "Respect? You never respected me, no one ever has. Who respects the dirt on their shoes, or the meat rotting in a back alley? You're full of inflated ideas and pretty words."
"That's a load of crap Sync! Lots of people respected you. You were the tactical leader of the God-Generals, you were the Chief of Staff! No one else did that Sync, you did! Those people all respected you for your skills and your talents, not because of what you are or why you were born."
"You expect me to be impressed? Why should I care if scum looked up to me?"
"Fine!" Anise swung wildly at the God-General, letting her growing frustration fuel every blow. "If your life is so worthless and pathetic, why are you even still here? Why didn't you just throw yourself off a cliff two years ago?"
"I won't die until I see Lorelei perish!" Sync unleashed a Daathic arte whose blast sent everyone stumbling back, the conjured wind tearing through the air like daggers, landing hits on each of them. Sync wasted no opportunity and struck out at Anise who was still trying to regain her balance.
"It's about time you admit your life has some purpose." Jade forced Sync back with several energy blasts and Guy intercepted him as he renewed his assault. Back on his feet, Asch sparred only a moment to ensure that Tear's barrier had held through Sync's arte before rejoining the fray.
"Are you okay?" Tear asked her charge.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Luke replied, more strength returning to his voice each time he spoke. Tear couldn't help but notice how much of his colour had returned and while he still used her for support, what had once been all his weight on her shoulder was now only a mild pressure. She smiled, though she couldn't help but wonder how Luke was improving so quickly. True she had using every moment she could spare some of her focus to heal him, but she didn't dare take down her barrier for long and knew full well that she hadn't given him that much assistance.
"What do you have there?" Tear inquired, noticing a lump tucked away in the nook of his free arm.
"Oh." Luke held out the object so she could see it, but not so much that their opponent might take notice. It was the Jewel of Lorelei. Tear was somewhat relieved, ever since she'd seen him rummaging through Asch's pack earlier, she'd been worried he intended to try and join the fight somehow. Tear doubted Luke's recovery would continue quite so smoothly if he decided to try exerting himself.
"But wait..." Tear realized something. "Doesn't the Jewel-"
"Scatter fonons?" Luke finished. "Yeah, it's supposed to, so I can't say I really understand how it works either."
It suddenly hit Tear why Luke had gone looking for it in Asch's affairs at such a peculiar time. It was the Jewel that was helping him recover so quickly.
"I noticed it after the Tower of Rem," Luke continued when he noted the question in her eyes. "When I had it on me, it always helped me recover my energy faster. It may scatter fonons, but it has some kind of healing properties to it too."
"That seems strange," Tear commented, her eyes still following the battle. In a heartbeat her barrier flew up again and Sync collided with it, scoffing in disappointment while using it to recoil back at Asch who had chased him down. The battle moved away again but Tear was reminded she couldn't let herself be too distracted.
"Is it really so strange?" Luke asked. "The Sword and Jewel were gifts from Lorelei to Yulia; the Sword to strike down her enemies... and the Jewel to heal her wounds. They were made to look after her and care for her in her struggle."
"Lorelei told you a lot."
"Not really, I'm just guessing," Luke admitted. "But I think I understand how Yulia and Lorelei felt back then. Raising the Outer Lands... creating the Score, it must have been really hard for them to accomplish, and I don't think they had much support. And here we are, undoing everything they worked so hard for."
"But that's also part of what they wanted, right?" Tear smiled.
"Yeah," Luke agreed. "I just wish that people like Sync and Master Van could see that. I wish they could accept that the future can always change."
"Some people are just too stubborn that way, I'm afraid," Jade cut in.
"Jade!" Luke was startled by the Colonels sudden interruption. He almost laughed at himself, Asch was right, he'd never survive this fight, he'd practically tuned out the rest of the world around him. It was still just so hard to focus on more than one thing at a time.
"Glad to see you're well enough to be entertaining at the very least," Jade replied, though his taunting aura immediately faded and the air about him almost seemed to crackle. "Though the two of you may want to step back a bit."
Tear and Luke silently did as they were told.
"Oh and Tear, do me a favour and lower that barrier of yours for a moment. I normally hate to use the injured as bait but you're the catch of the day I'm afraid, Luke."
"That's never stopped you before," Luke shot back and had he not been facing away, he'd have seen a smile cross Jade's face.
The movement instantly caught Sync's eye. Fools! Did they think they could slip away without him knowing? They underestimated him if they thought he was too distracted by their dumb little friends to notice their attempt to escape. The replica was already weak and barely clinging to life, all he had to do was kill him and Van will have succeeded. They made it too easy!
"Fools! You're wide open!" Sync launched himself.
I, who stand in the full light of the heavens,
command thee, who opens the gates of hell.
Come forth, divine lightning!
This ends now!
Glyphs erupted around the God-General, racing towards the blackened sky, pulling electricity from the earth as they flew upward, trapping Sync in the arte. Sync barely had time to follow their path, when they converged into a massive lightning bolt that struck mercilessly down in a brilliant flash of light.
Electricity ripped through Sync, searing his every nerve and eliciting a cry from the normally confident boy. Knives pierced his limbs, and pain overwhelmed his senses. Every wisp of energy drained, Sync's unresponsive body was left to fall limply to the ground.
He heard his enemies approach over the ringing in his ears. He fought with his leaden arms but they refused to move. The electricity still raced through him, erasing any commands his mind might have made. This was how it was going to end? Sync silently cursed. He was pathetic to the last.
"Heh," he sneered at Asch who stood over him, that same condescending look in his eyes every one of them had. "Looks like... you win. Now... finish me off already."
Asch looked long and hard at the subdued Sync, at the harshness with which he was being regarded. It wasn't a look of defeat, of contentment; Sync still had a fire in his eyes and Asch knew that when the effects of being electrocuted wore off, Sync would be right back on his feet. He tightened the grip on his blade, but he still couldn't quite erase Sync's words from his mind.
You could never understand what it's like to have no one or nothing need you!
Sync had been wrong. Asch knew all too well what that felt like, and though he'd only a brief glimpse of it, he could see it in the God-General all too clearly now. Asch had been down that dark, spiteful path, and because of that, Asch knew exactly what had to be done.
"No," Asch replied, sheathing the Sword of Lorelei. The look of dread that swept across Sync's face instantly told Asch he'd made the right choice.
The look on Sync's face vanished as quickly as it had come and the God-General spat at Asch. "Stop pitying me!"
"I don't pity you, not in the least," Asch replied coldly. "You want to die?" Asch tossed a small dagger to the ground where it landed a few feet from the God-General. "Here, do it yourself. I'm not doing your dirty work for you."
"You think I wouldn't do it? Is that it?"
"I know you won't do it. If you would, you'd have done it by now."
"I'm not that weak! I won't die until the Score is destroyed!"
"It'll take hours before you're able to move any more than a crawl, days before you'd be able to fight. By the time you've recovered enough to face us, we'll have stopped Van and freed Lorelei," Asch stated simply. "No matter what you do now, the future you've been fighting for won't come to pass. So there's nothing stopping you."
"Why you!" Sync tried to move but was barely able to get onto his side.
"You use pretty excuses like destroying the Score and the Seventh Fonon to hide it but even if you don't realize it, you've got a desire to live," Asch pointed out. "I suggest you try figuring out your reasons for yourself. If you don't want to, well, that's what the dagger is for."
Asch turned his back, walking towards the temple.
"Come back and finish the job, you cowards!" Sync yelled after the departing party. Fighting against his unresponsive limbs, every inch of him screamed defiantly as he rolled over onto his stomach. Gritting his teeth, Sync raised his head, his opponents nothing but shapes in the distance, disappearing behind the temple's large doors. Damn them all, underestimating him, the worthless fools!
The sun's light glimmered off the dagger that Asch had dropped. He'd show them, he wasn't as weak as they thought he was! Inching forward, Sync weakly dragged himself along the ground towards the discarded weapon. Every inch of him still stung, coursing with the lingering electricity from that damned Necromancer's arte, but Sync wasn't about to succumb to it. Forcing his arm forward he snatched the small dagger, the effort leaving him to collapse back onto his back. A grin crossed Sync's face. Van would stop them, he took satisfaction in that. Van would show them just how weak and pathetic the whole lot of them were. He would see the Score destroyed and Lorelei killed once and for all. Sync had done his job; he was of no use anymore. The knife's tip danced dangerously close to his own neck.
Finally this worthless life would be over!
Sync flinched, his arm seizing, refusing to move. Why? Why now? The blade's tip barely pierced the skin, a small trickle of blood ran down his neck. He wasn't weak! He wasn't the pathetic sap the rest of those fools were! He didn't want to keep living this good for nothing life! Sync cursed his arms. All they had to do was plunge the knife down. Move damn it!
The steel dagger clattered across the stone ground.
Sync's frustrated scream was the last thing Asch heard before shutting the temple doors behind him, and barring them closed.
Natalia glanced backwards when she heard Sync's cry, wondering only briefly if he'd conquered Asch's challenge but realized just as quickly that she was wrong. That hadn't been the sound of someone dying... it was that of someone defeated.
"Are you sure you did the right thing?" Anise asked hesitantly. "I mean, it almost seems cruel."
"Killing him was exactly what he wanted," Asch answered. "I'm through playing into everyone's hands. We're fighting in order to protect the future, not destroy it."
"You're going to start sounding like me pretty soon," Luke teased, his voice still somewhat softer, but with much of its old energy back.
With those words, everyone's attention turned to the younger redhead. Asch couldn't help but release a sigh of relief. His colour had mostly returned and while he still seemed a bit weak, he was standing on his own and had kept up with the rest of them easily enough. Silence fell over everyone. No one knew what to do; no one knew what to say... it was like looking at a ghost. If they dared reach out, they feared he might vanish before their eyes.
"Luke..." Natalia finally began, breaking the tension. "Are- Are you truly alright?"
Luke smiled softly. "Yeah, I'm alright."
"You idiot!" Guy yelled, marching straight for the redhead. For a brief moment, Luke was expecting Guy to punch him, and he'd every intention of letting his best friend do so, but at the last minute Guy's shoulders sagged and the fire in him fizzled out. Instead his hands came to rest on Luke's shoulders, growing heavier as more and more of Guy's weight seemed to be supported by this single gesture. "Do you have-" Guy choked back his feelings. "Do you have any idea how much you scared us? Don't ever do anything like that again! We are so- so-" Guy couldn't finish.
"I'm sorry for worrying you," Luke replied.
"I'm really glad you're alright, Luke, like... really glad you're okay but..." Anise interjected hesitantly. "But how are you alright? I mean, we all saw how hurt you were... I can't see how anyone could have survived something like that. Look at you..."
There was no denying Anise's statement. While Luke had mostly recovered physically, evidence of his drawn out battle with the Oracle Knights left traces all over his clothing. Where the fabric hadn't been torn, blood stained most of the blue outfit a dark brown colour. His once white jacket was painted almost entirely red and while some had been his opponents', much was his own. The remnants of his injuries could be seen from the tears in his clothing and there was no way to hide the long drawn scar across his abdomen where the sword had pierced him.
Luke ran his hand over the scar uncomfortably. "I don't know."
"What do you mean?" Tear asked.
"I really don't know," Luke answered again, this time his tone wavered betraying that he was as confused and uncertain as the rest of them. "I don't know how I survived... how I'm okay..."
"I don't blame you," Anise admitted. "Everything happened so fast, my head is still spinning. Between Asch freaking out and you getting better and Sync's trap exploding I don't have any clue what's going on!"
"I'm rather confused as well," Natalia confessed. "How did Luke even get here?"
"A hyperresonance, plain and simple," Jade said. "No different than the one that first transported Luke and Tear from the Fabre manor. Simply a different manifestation of it than we're accustomed to."
"Okay, so that explains why we didn't all go boom," Anise provided. "Thanks for that by the way, Asch," she snidely added. Asch scoffed and ignored her jab. "But that still doesn't explain how Luke managed to survive, or what happened to Sync's trap for that matter."
"Really, you needn't worry about it quite so much," Jade stepped up. "What other explanation is there?"
"Is Lorelei always your explanation for anything you can't understand?" Guy asked tauntingly.
Jade smirked but shrugged off the accusation. "I don't suppose we'll ever know for certain, though you can't deny those two have a rather intimate connection with the being and given Asch's state of mind at the time, we can be assured he isn't the one responsible." Asch folded his arms across his chest, pretending to ignore the statement outright.
"As for the latter..." Jade continued, looking at the twins expectantly. "Boys? Care to enlighten us?"
"Wait? You two did that?" Anise asked incredulously. "How did you pull that off?"
"No idea," Asch shrugged. "We just kind of... reacted."
"But you used your power, yes?" Jade asked.
"Kind of," Luke replied. "It was different though, I don't really know what we did either," he admitted sheepishly. "It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Like Asch said, we just kind of reacted."
"A second-order hyperresonance," Jade mused. "You combined the power of your respective hyperresonance to create a power that can nullify the effects of any active fonons. The degree of synchronization between hyperresonance necessary is such that it has never been observed before."
"That sounds handy," Anise commented. "You could pretty much nullify any arte or fonon-based power with something like that."
"It can be destructive in its own way, yes," Jade provided. "But if the synchronization between the two hyperresonance is even slightly off, it will fail and simply produce two separate first order hyperresonance. A double edged blade to be certain."
"Don't worry," Asch stated. "We're not planning on trying it again anytime soon."
"I certainly hope not," Jade replied, adjusting his glasses. Asch shot him a glare but didn't miss the look in his eyes. Leave it to Jade to remind him. The eldest redhead sighed, tuning out the conversation his companions carried on.
'Are you really okay?' Asch asked Luke privately.
'I'm getting better,' Luke answered. 'Still a little light-headed here and there, but between the Jewel and Tear's help I feel a lot better. By the time we get to Master Van I should at least be able to hold my own.'
'Are you sure? That whole ordeal took a lot out of you.'
'I could say the same thing about you,' Luke retorted and Asch should have known better than to think Luke hadn't noticed.
'I guess that's to be expected with how much of our power we used,' Asch said with a shrug. Luke smiled apologetically but Asch cut him off before he could utter a word. 'I wouldn't have it any other way.'
Together.
"If the two of you are done over there," Jade interrupted. "We'd best be moving on before Sync decides to come after us with the weapon Asch so conveniently left with him."
"He's not getting up for hours and you know it old man," Asch shot back.
"It's only Master Van left now," Luke commented.
"Yeah, and he's not very far."
"How do you know that?" Natalia asked her fiancé.
"It's faint, but I can sense Lorelei up ahead," Asch replied.
"If it's faint, doesn't that mean he's further away?" Anise inquired.
"No," Luke provided. "It's faint because Lorelei is dangerously weak right now. We don't have much time left."
"We can't let Lorelei perish," Tear spoke up. "If Lorelei dies, the world will try to restore the lost Seventh Fonons, destroying its own balance in the process. We came here to make sure that doesn't happen. We came to stop my brother and to ensure his world of replicas doesn't come to pass."
"Yeah," Anise agreed. "Besides, it's way too irresponsible to just erase everything and start over! We're not going to let him destroy what everyone has worked so hard to build! Ion believed in this world and that it could be a better place, and I will live to see that happen!"
"It's time we go put an end to Van, once and for all," Jade stated.
"You make it sound so simple, old man," Asch said.
"It is simple," Jade replied. "He believes the future is set in stone and wants to erase it, we believe it is but one of many possibilities. We've come to a point where we're unlikely to settle things with words alone."
"I'm not going to give up," Luke insisted. "The future can change, I believe that and I want Master Van to be able to see that too. I want to show him how we can change, our resolve to build a better world on the foundations of this one!"
"You've finally figured out how to carry the lives that have been consumed," Guy said with a smile. "As mean as this may sound, you have to keep on living. Keep living, keep growing and we'll all be here next to you to help carry the burdens along the way."
"That's right!" Anise piped up, echoed by an agreement from everyone else.
"We've come this far together," Asch said, placing a hand on Luke's shoulder. Luke looked back at his brother, a flicker of sorrow passing through his eyes before giving way to resolve and hope.
"Yeah," Luke agreed, his old energy flooding his face and determined smile. "It's time we finish this once and for all!"