Chapter 11: Heirs Of Fate 4: Light Scatters, Part 3
After fighting off against the invisible forces, George and his group stood separate from Abigail's forces inside the super-fortress.
"We were doing so good, but they keep coming!" Abigail said.
"We'll never get a moment's peace to speak to them at this rate. Perhaps if we..." Chuckie started to say.
Suddenly, Abigail attacked George with Flaming Erebus.
"Aaaaagh!" George cried.
"Are you in pain? Was the wound deep?" Kimi asked.
"I'll be fine. But I know her! She's been after me from the start, hasn't she? Why? Why are they all doing this?" George asked.
Abigail suddenly attacked again.
"Urk! That one almost snapped my sword in two! If this goes on any longer, Erebus is gonna break!" George said.
"What manner of demons do we face? It's time we abandoned our plans to sway them with reason. Stand back, George, and let your friends fight in your stead." Kimi ordered.
Chuckie shook his head.
"Hold." Chuckie ordered.
"Oh? Do you have a better plan?" Kimi asked.
"Maybe, George's blade there... it's Nightwing Erebus, yes?" Chuckie asked.
"Yes. Grim Razordark sparked it's transformation not long after we met. And suddenly I have an inkling of what your new plan might be." Kimi replied.
"I don't know how I didn't notice earlier. Perhaps Radiant Naginata and I can help you with your power deficit. If Nightwing Erebus is buckling under the enemy's might, let us bolster it's strength." Chuckie said. He then looked down at Radiant Naginata and ordered "Heed your master, Radiant Naginata, if you recognize me as such. Grant my request in our hour of need!".
Just like Nightwing Erebus and Grim Razordark before, Radiant Naginata started glowing purple, while Nightwing Erebus started glowing as well.
"Oh! This is the same gleam that we saw in our enemy's ranks. Which means that one among them has a sacred weapon. But how?" Chuckie asked.
"Is it working?" George asked.
"Yes, George. If your ready, I'll bestow this power upon you. Use it to reveal our enemy's true face." Chuckie replied.
"Can I do that?" George asked.
"I believe in you. With that sword in hand, anything is possible!" Chuckie replied.
There was a flash of purple before the glow around Nightwing Erebus and Radiant Naginata faded. Radiant Naginata still looked the same, but Nightwing Erebus was different. It was radiating a bluish-purple aura, and the bottom two slots of the blade were illuminated bluish-purple.
"It happened again!" George said.
"Nightwing Erebus is now Midnight Erebus. First, Grim Razordark lent you it's power... and now your sword has tapped into Radiant Naginata's might as well." Chuckie explained.
"They say Mightnight Erebus was instrumental in ending the old war. It's in your hands now, George. It falls to you to use it to end this one." Kimi added.
"You think I can? Like Mama did?" George asked.
"I have faith in you, George. Your blade won't falter twice. Have at our enemy once more!" Chuckie replied.
"Will do!" George said.
He yelled out and attacked Abigail. There was a flash of white, and when it faded, the surroundings were changed to reveal a plot of land that everyone was standing on, surrounded by chasms that went into what appeared to be empty white voids that looked similar to the sky.
"Huh?" George asked.
"Wh-What just happened?" Abigail asked.
George gasped.
"Whoa! Now that I have a good look... that girl looks just like me!" George said.
"That boy looks just like..." Abigail started to say.
"Is THIS who we've been fighting for so long?" Chuckie asked.
"What's going on here?" Tommy asked.
The surroundings suddenly changed back into the super-fortress, which included Abigail's forces looking like invisible soldiers.
"Did everyone else see that as well? For just a moment, our enemy looked... normal. They all seemed to be humans roughly our own age." Chuckie asked.
George was silent.
"Kill them." George replied.
"George?" Chuckie asked.
"They have to die." George replied.
"Gracious, George, what's gotten into you?" Kimi asked in surprise.
"My head hurt when I got a good look at them... but that doesn't matter! They attacked my home and hurt Mama. If it wasn't for them, none of this would have happened! That's why... that's why!" George replied angrily
He and Abigail suddenly transformed into dragons.
"George! What on earth?" Chuckie asked in shock.
"RRRRAAAAAAAAWWWWWRRR!" Abigail and George both roared.
"No! The dragonstone was supposed to keep his dragon form under control! George, listen to me! You mustn't hurt these poor people!" Kimi called out.
"Stand down, George!" Chuckie ordered.
"You are the ocean's gray waves." a voice sung.
"What's that singing?" Chuckie asked.
Zack suddenly flew into the scene on top of a pegasus and flew up to Abigail and George
"Easy, now... that urge to kill isn't yours, George. Let it go and return to us." Zack said.
Both Abigail and George reverted back to their human forms.
"Ungh... huh? What happened?" George asked.
"You've both regained yourselves. Good." Zack replied.
"Who are you?" George asked.
"I'm Zack. Your still trapped in an illusion. Are these people you see your hated enemies? Do they truly deserve to die? Think carefully and you'll find you know the truth already." Zack asked.
"Hmmm... your right! I shouldn't be fighting them. Why did I ever see them as enemies? I don't get it." George replied.
"They are humans who carry divine weapons, just as we are. We have everything in common. So why..." Chuckie started to ask.
"Something tells me these are not the fiends who struck our Deeprealms. I fear we have allowed ourselves to be used as pawns in someone else's game." Kimi replied.
"Well done. Let's dispense with the illusion entirely, shall we?" Zack asked.
The surroundings changed again, revealing the same plot of land everyone had been on before. Abigail and George both turned to face each other.
"Oh! Your her!" George said.
"Oh! Your him from before! So you ARE a human. I mean, sort of." Abigail said.
Tommy frowned.
"I knew something was off about all this. But why? And where the heck are we?" Tommy asked.
"Your in The Confederacy." Zack replied.
"That's not a country I've ever heard of." Tommy said.
"Nevertheless, it's where you've been ever since you left your Deeprealms." Zack said.
"But we clearly weren't! Just a second ago, I was standing inside a Japanese castle! And there was a dragon right where that kid is standing! You guys were all there too, right? Tell me I'm not crazy!" Dil asked.
"That's not what I remember. We were at the Great Wall in America, were we not? Not any Japanese palace, and certainly not wherever this is." Chuckie replied.
"That's the illusion at work. You remain in this world while seeing visions of another. It's all part of the enemy's scheme to have you kill one another." Zack explained.
"W-Was that their aim all along?" Chuckie asked.
"It's all right now. You've escaped the trap no worse for wear. Let's find safer ground where I can explain it all to you in more detail." Zack replied.
Zack led everyone towards the bottom of a canyon, where he proceeded to explain what was going on.
"It sounds as though their web of illusions had us snared fast. Nonetheless, I apologize for attacking you so relentlessly." Chuckie said.
"Nah, we both fell for it. We're fine in my book. If I blame anyone, it's this Confederate dragon Zack's been talking about. Am I understanding you right, Zack? Is this Reptar guy the real target?" Tommy asked.
"I just went over this, Tommy. Yes. The dragon king of The Confederacy is our true enemy." Zack replied.
"But if all he wants is to wipe out the human race, why doesn't he do it himself? From the way you describe him, he could smash an entire kingdom in one blow." Savannah asked.
"The Silent Dragon is much less powerful outside of his kingdom. Without his ability to make direct assaults, he set his sights on adjacent astral planes. Or in other words, your Deeprealms. He knew the warriors would come running to protect their children. With a bit of luck, he might have gotten his chance to kill a king or two." Zack replied.
"His scheme worked, then. My father was defeated, along with many others." Chuckie said.
"Yes, but because of them, you survived. Which is why Reptar has moved onto the next phase of his plan." Zack said.
"Your talking about the illusion stuff?" Darryl asked.
"Yes. His hope was that you would kill each other and save him the effort. It used to be impossible to reach The Confederacy except through the Bottomless Canyon. But I suspect portals here can be opened on astral planes without an Astral Dragon. That must have been how he took your parents to his homeland. If we act quickly, I believe we can get them all back." Zack replied.
"I have a question. The illusion didn't fool you, right, Zack?" Angelica asked.
"Hey, yeah! Way to go! It's lucky we had someone to bail us out. Oh, but wait... how did you find out about any of this? And how did you get here?" Dean asked.
"Oh, that's simple, I... hmm. I seem to have forgotten." Zack replied.
"For real? Talk about suspicious!" Lil asked.
"It wouldn't be the first time, though, would it? After all, we lost our memories of George." Wally replied.
"It's getting to where I can't keep track of what I remember and what I forgot." Nicole said.
"If everyone else here has lost memories, some of mine must have slipped away too." Chuckie said.
"It's a side effect of the illusion taking hold, unfortunately. Little by little, Reptar meant to steal your memories, your sense of duty, everything. Eventually, your will would be his. It's a subtle form of mind control. Your safe from the effects now, but I don't know that your memories will return. Though it's possible that they may be restored if Reptar is defeated." Zack explained.
"So beating this Reptar kills three birds with one arrow. We save the world, get our parents back, and remember everything we forgot. What are we waiting for?" Dil asked.
"Well, we've gotta all introduce ourselves, for one thing!" Prudence replied.
"Who knows who knows who? / I think it's a fine notion / Who'd like to go first?" Francine asked.
"I'll go! I'm Abigail, and my papa's name is Peter. It's nice to meet everyone!" Abigail replied.
"My name is George, and my mama's name is Petra." George introduced.
"As for myself, I am Susie, daughter to Randy Carmichael." Susie introduced.
"I am Chuckie. My father is King Chaz of Japan. I'm honored to make your acquaintance." Chuckie introduced.
"King Chaz? Of Japan? I thought Hiro was king out there now." Harold asked.
"M-My father? I think that I would know if he'd been coronated." Kimi replied.
"Well, SOMEONE was, because everyone knows that Prince Chaz died in the war. Just like Princess Melinda." Harold said.
"Father and Aunt Melinda? S-Surely your mistaken." Kimi asked.
"Er, while we're on the subject, allow me to clarify one thing. Queen Elaine rules over America, yes?" Kimi asked.
"What? No. My dad, Stu, is king." Tommy replied.
"I see. And pray tell, did Prince Ben survive the war?" Kimi asked.
"Obviously, or I wouldn't be here!" Dil replied.
"How very peculiar. My father's account had both Prince Stu and Prince Ben passing away." Kimi said.
"But that doesn't make any sense!" Dil said.
"Your not saying King Hiro killed my dad, are you?" Tommy asked.
"I could turn that question on you. Would you have me believe that the Queen of America struck down Father?" Chuckie asked.
"I hate to break up a good argument, but your both wrong." Zack replied.
"Huh?" Tommy asked.
"Your assumption is that you all hail from the same world. When in fact, you all came from two contradictory worlds." Zack replied.
"Whaaaaaat?" George asked.
"Is that why there's two Erebuses?" Abigail asked.
"Yes. Two versions of such a singular blade ought to be all the proof you need. I'd have told you sooner, but I thought it might become confusing. Those of you with the little girl come from a world in which America won the war. Whereas the opposite side won for those of you allied with the little boy." Zack replied.
"Hmm." Tommy said.
"I... see." Chuckie said.
"Then... we really were enemies?" George asked.
"Well, I won't deny that your parents were at war with one another. But it's often the case that events happen differently in different worlds. The important thing is that here, you all have the same goal, so..." Zack started to reply.
"It's not so simple for me." Tommy said.
"I'm sorry?" Zack asked.
"I don't really care that things are different in this guy's world except for one thing. If Dad is dead in his world, Chuckie's naginata is probably what killed him." Tommy replied.
"What an absurd claim!" Chuckie said angrily.
Tommy smirked.
"How sure are you that it wasn't? Are you just as sure that it doesn't have ANY of our parents blood on it? Maybe even mine?" Tommy asked.
"If we're indulging baseless speculation, I could accuse you of much the same. Your precious Midnight Skadi may have run my father through. Or his retainers. Or scores of his people. You haven't any way of knowing how many or whose lives that blade has claimed!" Chuckie replied.
Dil shifted uncomfortably.
"This alternate worlds thing is more complicated then I thought. Even my bow could have done some damage for all I know." Dil said.
Kimi frowned.
"Yes, about that... it's best that you put it away for the time being. Just, er, to be on the safe side." Kimi said.
Tommy scowled.
"There's NO way I'm fighting alongside these jerks! My dad would be ashamed if any of YOU saved him!" Tommy shouted angrily.
"Likewise. I think it would be best for myself and my allies if we kept our distance from you. Our paths shall part ways here." Chuckie said angrily, though a little more calmly.
Zack just quietly watched everyone.
"No, this is all getting out of hand! If they can't work together, then their doing Reptar's work for him." Zack thought.