Chapter 8:
After the melee inside the dimly lit temple, Ivy and her group found themselves walking through a passageway. They had been traveling for a while and seemed like they weren't going to reach what they were looking for. It seemed like they were going to be lost or trapped here forever but a glowing red and orange light started to reveal itself at the end of the passageway.
"What is that? It's so bright?" Cassandra asked.
"Whatever it is, it must lead us out of this passageway." said Mitsurugi.
As the group ventured closer and closer to the light, Taki, Yoshimitsu, and Ivy's weapons started to glow and uncoil respectively.
"I'm sensing evil energy." said Taki.
"Thou also sense thy malevolent aura from the exit." Yoshimitsu chimed in.
"You don't think it could be Soul Edge?" Seong Mi-Na asked.
"Soul Edge? Here?" Cassandra inquired.
"There's only one way to find out." Ivy replied.
As the group headed towards the red and orange light, Taki and Ivy stopped.
"Why did you guys just stop all of a sudden?" Setsuka asked.
Taki looked a her Mekki-Maru, Ivy at her uncoiled whip sword, and Yoshimitsu holding out his unsheathed katana.
"It must be Soul Edge." said Taki.
Ivy and her group emerged out of the passageway and entered into a large chamber where Soul Edge was now being held.
"My God, it's here." said Ivy.
"...Soul Edge." said Mitsurugi.
The demonic sword, Soul Edge had been radiating a red and orange aura around the chamber, giving off a warm, inviting but dark energy around it. The chamber itself held two people captive as the sword began to radiate its energy around. To the far left of the chamber, Zasalamel was unconscious, apparently from some previous battles during his time in Astral Chaos. To the far right of the chamber, held the Azure Knight. He was trapped in what looked like a burnt orange crystals, that had entrapped his body. As the group moved closely towards the sword, Soul Edge called out to them.
"Grasp my hilt to wield my full power!" the demonic sword began.
"Grasp my hilt, so that you may rule over all that resides in chaos!" the demonic sword added.
"Silence!" Ivy demanded.
"None shall do no such thing." Ivy continued.
"You have brought much pain and suffering as you have lead countless souls to their demise." Ivy added.
"Demonic sword, now you shall no longer exist!" declared Taki.
As Taki stared down the demonic sword, she readied her kodachi and using tactical precision, she began piercing the eye of Soul Edge, hopefully trying to destroy it at its very source of power. As she was doing this, Soul Edge's evil energy started to show its true power, overwhelming her. Taki tried to pull her kodachi out of the eye of the demonic sword but she was stuck. Taki struggled, trying to free herself as the evil energy was about to take hold of her. This lead to Mitsurugi and Setsuka, working together to pull Taki away from the sword. As they did, Taki started convulsing a little.
"Taki, are you alright?" Seong Mi-Na asked.
"Do not test my power!" said Soul Edge.
"For none are worthy of destroying such energy that courses through me!" Soul Edge added.
"Enough of this!" said Ivy.
"Now it's my turn!" Ivy added.
As Ivy flailed her whip sword at Soul Edge, The blades themselves started to wrap itself around Soul Edge.
"What's your sword doing now?" Cassandra asked.
"The blades themselves seemed to have latched on to this damn sword." Ivy replied.
As Ivy struggled to free her blades, Soul Edge, sensing Ivy's might, intentionally freed the blades, sending them flying every which way.
"Watch out!" said Cassandra.
"Damn you, Soul Edge!" growled Ivy.
Apparently, Soul Edge's power had highly increased as became sort of a magnet whenever weapons of equal malevolent energy is attached to it.
"This sword is impossible to destroy!" said Ivy.
"Stand aside." Mitsurugi began.
"I shall test myself." Mitsurugi added.
"You do so, you will be killed." warned Setsuka.
Mitsurugi looked at his katana. Knowing that his sword was not infected with evil energy like Taki's or Yoshimitsu's or a product of alchemy like Ivy's, he knew he would have a chance.
"My name is Heishiro Mitsurugi! You shall falter under my might!" Mitsurugi declared.
As the samurai jammed his katana blade into the eye of Soul Edge, sparks began to fly as the sword itself was pierced by Mitsurugi. One of the sparks flew at Zasalamel's face, causing him to wince but wake up soon enough, grasping his scythe and balancing himself up. He looked and saw how Mitsurugi struggled to destroy the sword.
"What are you doing?" Zasalamel called out to him.
Mitsurugi looked at Zasalamel and saw that he was slowly moving towards him.
"You're not going to destroy Soul Edge that way!" Zasalamel added.
"Not when I have a chance to do so." said Mitsurugi.
As the sparks flew across the chamber, several of them bounced off the burnt orange crystals that imprisoned the Azure Knight. As the sparks started to singe the crystals, they started to fall one by one until the Azure Knight was freed from his stationery position. As the Azure Knight was freed, Cassandra, Seong Mi-Na, and Setsuka charged at him but was easily knocked away by his deformed arm.
"No, he's alive?" said Zasalamel.
Mitsurugi saw the Azure Knight as he punched him in the face, sending him flying towards Zasalamel.
"How dare you attempt to vanquish Soul Edge!" said The Azure Knight.
"Nightmare!" said Ivy.
"So you have journeyed to stop me, Ivy?" Nightmare asked.
"I had slumbered here, waiting for the moment someone would dare success me but since you foolishly chose to take up the cause of ending such malicious reign, I shall extinguish your lives by devouring numerous souls, including yours!" Nightmare declared.
As the Azure Knight grasped the hilt of Soul Edge, the chamber started to rise.
"What's going on now?" Cassandra asked.
As the chamber ascended, the warriors now found themselves battling against the Azure Knight. One by one, each of them were being overpowered by Nightmare's newfound strength, thanks to Soul Edge.
"Thanks to the evil energy that swarms this chamber, I can feed off it by making me even stronger than any force combined." said The Azure Knight.
As the chamber made it stop, Nightmare knocked the warriors out of the chamber. They had now found themselves on the floor of a coliseum, where the souls from the temple, were now the spectators, looking down on the warriors themselves.
"Where are we now?" asked Cassandra.
"It appears we have stumbled upon a place where spectators are looking down upon us." said Yoshimitsu.
Just then, as Nightmare emerged from the chamber, a voice boomed out from the sky.
"Welcome to your final judgment!" the voice boomed.
"Who is that?" Ivy asked.
"I...am Algol!" said the ancient god as he descended from the sky and placing himself on his throne amongst the spectators.
"I have pried on your quests to destroy Soul Edge and your ambitions to destroy a sword that has brought me glory will be the same sword that will put an end your disgusting, frivolous lives once and for all!" Algol declared.
"But you are not the only ones who shall suffer..." Algol continued.
"The ones who dare to wipe the existence of Soul Calibur will meet the same fate as you once they are brought to this very place of judgment!" Algol added.
Ivy and her group looked confused as to what was going on but they knew Xianghua's group was already in danger sooner than later.