At the same time as the climax in the battle against Hubert, the battle against the Galactic Elites were also reaching their climax as well. Lowell and Homura were charging at X at once, attempting to get the better of her. The woman was still leagues above them, using her Rage blade to parry their strikes with ease. Compared to just two days ago, however, they showed significant improvement. Keeping up was taking more effort than she would care to admit. She parried one of Lowell's strikes, kicking him off to the side in the process. Homura attempted to follow up, but X slashed her away. Homura was only able to block with her swords, yet she was still sent flying backwards. X did not have even a second to rest, because a bullet flew by her face. She just barely evaded, but the sniper shot from Amira took off a few strands of her hair. "Tch...!"
"She's fast..." Amira wore a smirk to irritate X, but she knew this was one hell of an uphill battle.
"I'll get rid of you first. We should've killed you when we had you prisoner." X said while darting towards Amira. She didn't make it far, because Lowell attacked from a distance.
"Azure Edge!" Lowell swung his sword forward, shifting it to the Aries state. This prompted a large blast of wind to shoot forward and collide against X's side. X was able to hold her ground for a few seconds, but she was ultimately pushed off due to the force of it.
X kept her footing and glared at Lowell. These fighters were an annoyance to her, one way or another. She was planning to take them out in one fell swoop! But once again, someone attacked before she could. This time it was Homura, who had a bow and arrow! X wasn't prepared for this sudden change in weaponry, and Homura let an arrow fly. The arrow flew and pieced X's side, causing her to grimace in pain from such a clean blow. "She can attack from a distance!?"
"You appear surprised. Did you believe you bore witness to the full extent of my ability before? I am the Sword of Eden's!" Homura exclaimed. "And my blade will not shatter again to one who lacks the resolve to move forward!"
"What did you say?" X said through gritted teeth.
"You heard me." Homura said while equipping a sword once again. "Your beliefs are inherently flawed! Yet you will blame people for pushing the concept of good and evil, while you support the notion of erasing everything entirely. I will not lose to someone who lacks the heart to see things through!"
Those words only succeeded in angering X. "I've heard enough out of you!" Her form began to change, a devil's tail and wings appearing from her back, as her air turned a darker shade of blue, nearly black. She entered her overdrive in a fit of rage, holding a black sword with devil wings along the hilt. "This is taking too much effort! I want it all to go." She spun around a single time, sending a circular slash of ether towards her three opponents. "Vicious Rend!" It moved so quickly, all they could do was block it. But...it moved through them, and in that moment, despite no physical damage being dealt...the pain of being sliced in half was real.
"AGGGGH!?" Homura's eyes shot open and she cried out in agony, nearly dropping her sword in the process. The pain completely paralyzed her body.
"NGH?!" Amira also collasped to the ground, holding her side. She wasn't sure if it was better or not that she wasn't bleeding, but she could hardly think right now. She was just writhing in pain.
"Gaaaah..." Lowell fell to his hands and knees. "W-What was that...? My body..."
"It's in pain, isn't it?" X said with a sinister smile. "This sword...Fatal...it cuts the body without leaving any injury. In exchange for not doing any damage, anyone struck by this sword will feel what it's like to die. I've used this sword on myself a few times...but it doesn't take away that feeling." Her tone was grim. "I sliced your bodies in half with that attack. Even if your body is still intact, your brain thinks otherwise. That's how it feels for me right now, to keep on living with this stupid thing you call a heart!" She then looked up at the sky, noticing how Hubert was overpowering the Alliance. "This is the end for you all."
"I can't move..." Homura said with heavy breaths.
X slowly began to approach Homura. "You're the biggest threat here, so I'll get rid of you first. I'd rather die without a heart than live with one. My heart died when I was younger, left to fend for myself in this uncaring, unforgiving cosmos you people call home."
"Homura-chan..." Amira had one eye clenched shut.
"Move...!" Lowell told himself. He had to move! Somehow had to, or it was all over! Lowell forced himself up, gripping the Second Sword sword so tightly. "I won't give up...! No matter what pain comes my way. My sword will cleave through it!" Standing on his own two feet, Lowell started to sprint forward. "HEY YOU!"
"Huh?" X turned around, only to see Lowell approaching. "What the hell? How are you!?" Lowell ran towards X and swung his sword at her, but at his speed, she was easily able to deflect it. "What do you think you're doing?" She swung at Lowell, but he dodged while slipping past her. Lowell pivoted on his heel once again and struck, but she blocked this too. The problem was...this process was repeating, and Lowell was picking up the pace. X was still able to block his slashes, but after a certain point, she was struggling to keep up. The loud CLANG of steel colliding echoed out as her blade struck Lowell's, but soon enough, she couldn't keep up. Lowell was moving too quickly, and his sword was cutting into her time and time again. "What kinda shit is this!? You don't even have an Ether Gear!? What are you...!?"
"O Brilliant Blade of Coldest steel...rend the infinite darkness, and crush my enemies to nothing! SAVAGE WOLF FURY!" Lowell slid past X one final time. When he came to a stop, she was able to try and attack! But at that second, several gashes appeared along her body, causing her to gasp out in pain. Lowell twirled his sword around before swinging it forward, sending a potent blast of wind towards X. "YOU'RE FINISHED!"
X brought her sword up to try and defend against this finishing move. She was able to hold her ground for a few seconds, but the injuries sustained were too great and she was thrown back against the ground. "GAAH!"
Lowell wasn't finished yet. It took a long time, but X was finally off balance. He could see the thread...the opening for a Fatal Strike. Lowell dashed forward as X was trying to regain herself, and... "FATAL STRIKE!" He moved in, slashing across her chest while moving past her.
"...!" X's eyes widened before rolling into the back of her head. She was about to tip over backwards...but through sheer force of will, she kept herself up. "I'm not...GOING DOWN!" X roared while slashing Lowell with enough force to throw him back. There was no injury due to Fatal's properties, but the damage left Lowell on the ground with no chance of getting up. "I'm not going to lose you!" She turned, only to see Homura approaching now. She swung her sword, but X was able to block, albiet with a bit of struggle. "WHy do you keep..."
"Heart...!" Homura exclaimed. "It makes no sense for someone who wishes to live to be beaten by one who wishes to die!"
X glared at Homura as the two of them struggled. "If I can kill my heart once and for all, I'll do whatever it takes!" She slammed Homura into the ground, standing above the wounded Sword of Eden's. "This is the end for you. Any last words..."
Homura had one eye clenched tight, and she glared at X...before that glare turned into a smile. "You shouldn't underestimate what a heart can do." Her face then began to distort strangely, leaving X confused...until it was revealed that the Homura who attacked her wasn't Homura at all. It was Amira! In that case... "Then where's...!?"
"Warrior Maid, Single Sword Attack: DRAGON FLASH!" Homura came down from above with her greatsword and a mighty swing, aiming to strike X with a downward strike! X was able to block this, but her knees buckled from the weight of it all.
"Who...are you...?!" X narrowed her eyes.
"I am the Sword of Eden's, ValkyrieI am Homura Kogetsu, and I will now allow anyone to destroy the hearts of my friends or the people of this cosmos!" Flames then began to swirl around Homura, much to everyone's surprise. "If you wish to see the strength of the heart, then look no further! My heart is ablaze, and for as long as it beats, I SHALL NOT LOSE TO YOU!" The flames within her body ignited around her very sword, her very soul. For the sake of everything she held dear, this blaze was a symbol of the determination she held within. "Warrior Maid Ultimate Secret Attack: FLAME EXTOLLING BLADE!"
"N-NOOOO...!" X was losing her grip on her sword. In one fluid motion, her sword broke, and Homura's blazing sword cleaved across her chest. The impact was so fierce, X was thrown into the ground with her eyes completely whited out. She lost conscious in the face of Homura's overwhelming strength of heart. At that moment, Hermit overpowered Hubert and defeated him in space.
They won. Amira and Lowell looked on in awe at Homura's finishing move.
Homura stared at X as she fell to the ground. There was a frown on her face. "As our blades clashed, I realized something. That which guides your sword is not hate or anger...it was merely loneliness...if things were different..." She could see it now. Her and X, practicing their swordsmanship together. Perhaps in a different Universe, X got to experience some kind of companionship. Homura sure hoped that was the case...
Homura took a deep breath, her body shaking from the overall force while her Overdrive faded. She felt so cold now... "...A strong heart will yield to no one..."
.
.
Jinn, Kleene, Nina, and Julia were all thrown away from each other. The battle between the pairs of siblings was reaching its climax, but Jinn and Kleene were having a difficult time against the Roulette siblings. Their randomness was simply difficult to account for and they never knew what to expect. "These two aren't bad...!" Nina said with a grin and a few heavy exhales.
"But it's not good enough." Julia said as the weapon in her hand changed to a large club; the Ogre Club. A mighty weapon that took both of her hands to wield. She never had any choice in what she was using, but she was so familiar with her arsenal, she knew how to make it work. She leapt into the air and raised the Ogre club high, before swinging it down towards Jinn and Kleene. While the weapon itself didn't hit them, it did cause a shockwave that shattered the ground from its sheer force, uprooting the ground in the process. The Rutherford siblings were caught in this one and thrown into the air.
"Tch...!" Jinn grunted.
"They're strong...!" Kleene gasped. This was a much harder battle than she could've ever expected, but they couldn't afford to lose either. She looked up, only to see that Nina was already above them with her hands pointed down.
"Let's see what else is in the arsenal! Firing!" She had no idea what she was about to unleash, but the Roulette siblings lived by the code of the gambler's spirit. Spears of fire, lightning, and ice began to rain down on the opposing siblings. "Oooh, I'm feeling lucky today!"
"Wind Snatch!" Kleene held her hands together, creating a helix of wind in front of her. This wind proceeded to suck in the elemental spears coming her in Jinn's way. Not only that, but it sucked up the nearby rubble, and also threatened to absorb Nina as well! But Kleene knew that wouldn't work, so she thrust her arms forward, releasing this Wind Snatch in the form of a powerful cyclone that consumed Nina and blew her back.
"Gaaah!" Nina was thrown back from the wind, landing harshly on her back after a direct hit. She was briefly down, and Jinn tried to follow up on this.
"Skymech Ninjutsu Attack: Sky God's Wind Slash!" Jinn sent an X shaped slash of wind hurtling towards the downed Nina. But before it could reach her, Julia swing her Ogre club at the incoming slash, completely shattering it before it could come close to her sister. He expected as much, and was already moving in for a second attack. "Hurricane Shuriken!" Multiple wind shuriken formed within his fingers and he hurled them forward, all of them moving around Julia to cut into her body.
"Gh..." Julia felt the slash marks along her skin. She planted her foot onto the ground and spun around with her weapon for a mighty swing. The sheer strength of this weapon sent a powerful shockwave hurtling towards Jinn. He was prepared to brace for impact, but Kleene appeared in front of him with her arms crossed, shielding him from the impact.
"Kleene!" Jinn gasped.
Kleene was able to withstand it, but she could feel the damage racking up quickly. "I'm okay! But these two...if this battle drags on, I don't know if we'll make it."
"They're reaching their limit too." Jinn could see it on their faces.
"I could do this all day!" Nina said with a dry laugh. She couldn't hide the exhaustion she felt, but that didn't mean she wanted this rush to die so fast. "I can see this through to the end!"
"We're not going to give up when we've made it this far." Julia replied. "We've been through hell and back, betting everything on a moment that suits us. This is our gamble, and we're not quitting until we bust or take it all!" No matter the outcome of Alexei's plan, the Roulette siblings were going to give their part everything they had. The gambler's spirit made them dangerous.
"As can we!" Kleene shot back.
"This isn't over yet." Jinn said firmly.
"How lucky are ya feeling, sis?" Nina asked, holding her hand out.
"Luckiest woman alive." Julia responded while taking Nina's hand. The ether between them spiked considerably as they held their hands up high. A solid mass of ether began to form above them, taking the form of a meteor with various types of ether abilities placed within it. The sight of this shocked Jinn and Kleene. "When you're down on your luck, sometimes you have to make your own!"
"And this is what we've made together!" Nina exclaimed.
"FALLING STAR!"
This meteor of random ether began to descend towards Jinn and Kleene. Obviously, if they took that head on, it would crush them. So they had to prevent it. Jinn and Kleene drew their arms back, gathering as much wind as possible between the two of them. This was a clash of sibling wills, and they weren't going to lose it. "VARAIBLE CYCLONE!" They exclaimed at once, sending a large funnel of wind clashing against the Falling Star. The two attacks collided and a shockwave boomed out from their stalemate. Neither side was capable of overpowering the other.
"Gh...!" Kleene grit her teeth. She and Jinn slid back a bit, but so did Nina and Julia. Both sides were putting their all into it, refusing to give in. "Brother! I can hold it! Win this for us and the Eden's Zero!"
Jinn thought Kleene was mad for a second. But she was putting faith in him to bring this to a close. He had to trust that she could withstand the force of their attack. As much as it worried him...his sister was a reliable woman, he trusted her. "Okay!" Jinn nodded and broke off from Kleene, leaving her to deal with the Falling Star.
"What!? You're abandoning her!?" Julia gasped. What kind of gamble was this!? She would never!
"That's one hell of a gamble!" Nina said with a widening grin. She thought Jinn went mad. They'd crush Kleene and then finish Jinn off! As far as she was concerned, Jinn was handing them the win!
"I would never abandon my sister! I just trust her to hold the two of you off. Unlike you two...we don't gamble with our lives!" Jinn slid to a halt a few meters away from the Roulette siblings, pointing two fingers forward as wind gathered around his palm. "Our faith in each other is never a gamble! Skymech Ninjutsu Attack: Wind God's Dragon Lance!" And from his fingertips, a sharp, spear-like blast of wind shot forward. Before Nina and Julia could react, it pierced through the both of them at once. At that moment, Kleene was able to break through the Falling Star, and the two Roulette siblings fell tot he ground, unconscious.
"When there's so much at stake...we have no choice but to win, no matter the odds." Kleene said with a soft exhale.
.
.
Shiki and Casey raced down the path to the core of the Black Moon. In their wake, they left a number of Galactic Fleet soldiers behind them. They couldn't stand up to the might of these two captains. "I see an exit..." Shiki said.
"We're coming up on Alexei." Casey stated. The two of them pushed through the opening in the corridor, coming to a large, wide open space that was nearly pitch black. But as soon as they stepped inside, a black light filled the area, giving it an ominous, eeire feeling. There was a large black orb of ether floating in the center of this room, and there was Alexei, his back turned, looking up straight at it.
"There he is!" Shiki grunted, using his gravity to practically land behind Alexei, with Casey following soon after. "Alexei! Give it up! We're going to stop you!"
"So you've arrived." Alexei did not turn to face them. Casey attempted to attack with a blast of fire, but Alexei's Ruler of Space simply made the attack curve around him before it could reach. "We stand before the apex of a power unknown to most of the cosmos. This power alone, though nearly limitless, is not what I seek, however. This power is simply a means to an end, to allow me to reach Mother, where I will have my dream become reality."
"Do you really think we're going to sit here and allow you to take away people's emotions!?" Shiki clenched his hand into a fist. "We know what happened to your planet. How it was overtaken in a civil war between humans and androids, but..."
"Even if you know that, you do not understand." Alexei turned around slowly. "I was forced to relive that moment, time and time again. There was nothing I could do to change the outcome. I learned on that day, that there will always be hate in the hearts of every living creature. That hate will spill over, and blood will be shed in its wake. It matters not if it is a human or an android...it will end the same."
"The cosmos is bigger than your planet." Casey scoffed.
"And the amount of blood shed is bigger as well." Alexei calmly responded. "Drakken Joe and his evils, Shura and his war, Ziggy and his machine empire...all of these conflicts that infringe on the peace of the galaxy stem from one thing or another. The hearts of a machine are complex...they can be manipulated, but others have their own free will. The hearts of people are much the same. This freedom to choose will continuously plunge the universe into a state of unending chaos. There is no universe where everyone will be happy. But in this third universe, I will create a place where there will be nothing but peace."
"Don't tell me you're trying to frame yourself as the hero now!" Shiki said while taking a step forward.
"Far from it." Alexei's arms were crossed behind his back. "I do this for no one but myself, for I believe it is the best course of action for everyone involved. That, too, is a selfish endeavor. We all wish to live in peace, do we not? I am not afraid to do whatever it takes to reach that goal. The number of lives it took to reach this point...it means nothing to me. It is all for the benefit of the universe. Even if people disagree with my methods, I will carry on this path. There are many I have met who want to live without the pain of emotion. That sickness has made their existence painful...and so they joined me on my quest. I know that there are people in the cosmos who could only wish they had this opportunity. This new universe...will usher in a grand era of everlasting peace."
"There's no reasoning with him." Casey said firmly. Alexei was clearly too set in his path. "Anyone who goes this far for their goals is long gone."
"...Yeah." Shiki nodded in agreement. "We knew how this was going to end anyway. We're going to stop you, Alexei!"
"Are you?" Alexei turned back to the core of the Black Moon, and held his hand out. "Do you know what the Black Moon really is? The buildings that cover this desolate planet? Some say that eons ago, this was a planet that was close to Mother. But the people here moved it in its entirety, sealing it away into this cosmos due to the power of its core. I believe it's old name used to be...Mars. But that was a long time. Now...it simply serves as a guide to those who wish to seek Mother. With the resonance from the Black Moon Star, the two merged together in a brilliant flash of light. This light then began to flow into Alexei. The entirety of the Black Moon began to tremble violently as a result. "I hold within me now, a near infinite mass of ether! This ether will guide me to Mother, and from there, I will create an era of peace!" Alexei's appearance changed as this much Ether activated his Overdrive, but the angelic-like appearance was now that of a dark angel.
Black lightning sparked everywhere as the planet continued to tremble. Shiki and Casey crossed their arms to protect themselves from the fierce winds that were kicked up.
"No..." Shiki shook his head, his body entering Overdrive along with Casey. "Alexei...you've come a long way, sacrificed a lot lives, all to get to this point. But this is where I tell you: This is your last stop!"
It was time...for the final battle.