"Agh…ugh…"

Phoebe put everything into her legs, carrying Amos on her back, as she trekked up the winding path through Mt. Algus. The snow and wind roared down on them, slowing the Aipom considerably. She nearly slipped on patches of ice in the road, flailing until she found her footing again. She panted heavily before shaking off the fatigue and continuing onward.

"E-Evelot…hang on…" she growled.

Amos cracked one eye open and examined the weary Aipom. "Phoebe. Just leave me. I'm…slowing you down—"

"Shut up," she snarled. "We're both going to see her. Together. Nothing…would make her happier than seeing us being friendly for once, right?"

"…" Amos laughed wearily. "I suppose so…"

"F-Fuckin' dammit, though! Stupid legs…slowing me down…agh!" Phoebe's knee buckled, and she suddenly tumbled forward.

Before she could faceplant into the ground, Amos hooked his arm around her and caught her. The Aipom lifted herself back up and saw Amos balancing on one leg and his tail, obviously grimacing from the pain.

"Let's…see her together. Right?"

"…"

Phoebe hooked one arm and her tail around him. Working together, they hiked themselves up the path, braving the harsh mountain weather. As they furthered their climb, they looked back to the distant sounds of explosions and fighting, the minimal vibrations shaking and rolling snow into snowballs around them.

"…We need to hurry," Phoebe suggested. Agreeing, the duo worked double time shuffling up the path, trying to block out the sounds rumbling at the base of the mountain.

Amos focused instead on the invisible peak hiding above their heads, wondering how low they were from Evelot and, hopefully, Caractacus. Evelot. Please, just hang on a little longer. We'll be there soon.

Absalom held up against the unending wave of pressure beating down on him. All around, surrounded by static shadows of the Banette, he pummeled his way through the horde, striking one shadow after the other into nothingness only to be jumped from behind. No matter how fast he moved or how precise his counterattack was, Babylas would always stay out of reach, leaving behind a static shadow in his place.

This isn't anything like Double Team, Absalom thought as he crushed another shadow beneath his foot. Those types of afterimages are created through one's speed, leaving behind an imprint of their energy to maintain their form. They cast no shadow, and they have no presence. They're designed to overwhelm and hide the user among the confusion. But these?

Focusing on the myriad of shadows, he could feel Babylas' presence within each of them. They carried his aura, creating an illusion that felt real just by sight alone. Each time they flew at him, his instincts warned him of the attack that wouldn't come to pass. They gave off an intimidating presence that he couldn't ignore. Any one of them could be Babylas.

He's applying Night Shade to these clones. Its power increases based on the innate energy of the wielder. That's why I can't tell them apart. Each one of them could realistically be Greed.

As Absalom considered his options, Babylas hung far back in the crowd of shadow clones, his usual jovial attitude turning pensive as he studied the ape. He kept his left eye closed for the time being.

Nauseating. Seeing the world through my normal eye and this cosmic eye can be quite taxing. Still, it's my only means to stay alive until I what I want.

Babylas narrowed his eyes, noticing smaller cuts on Absalom healing themselves as more energy pooled from the earth into him.

During the battle with Amos and Phoebe, every time he regenerated, he was drawing some kind of energy out of the ground. What, though? He glared. It has to be linked to his Heavenly Emotion. Due to the effects of Heavenly Emotion, it increases one's strength and grants finely tuned manipulation of their innate energy. This regenerative quality doesn't seem befitting of a Fighting-Type's, as they usually draw upon their internal energy to increase their striking power. So, it's either his Ghost-Type working on overdrive or the two working in tandem.

His eyes skimmed across the snow-covered ground, not noticing anything particularly special about it. Not even the Outlands posed anything unique. Nothing but a vast desert.

But what is he drawing on? Even if it's abstract, he can't just be regenerating from something that doesn't exist. There has to be a catalyst. If I can figure out what powers his regeneration, it'll be the first step to killing him. He reached inside his cloak and equipped his Normal-Type knuckledusters, Breaker. Of course, getting past the regeneration is only one half the problem.

He rushed in right as Absalom dispatched two more clones, Applying Shadow Armament to Breaker, Babylas hammered two punches into the Annihilape's back, staggering him. Right as Absalom turned to retaliate, in the split second he remained out of sight, Babylas ducked within the ape's shadow and left behind a static clone. As it was destroyed, Babylas extended out from Absalom's shadow and reappeared within the sea of clones.

For as long as I've known this man, he barely sleeps, eats, or stops for anything. He's definitely some tier of immortal. Damn. I was kind of hoping I could prod him about how he achieved it, but not much time to dwell on that. Oh well, I'll be the first man in history to actually kill an immortal creature. Can't get greedier than that.

Absalom panted lightly, but not from exhaustion. He was growing increasingly impatient at all the snickering shadow clones staring down at him, each one itching to leap out and give him a scare.

"Tch. How annoying." Absalom cracked his fists. "To think I actually have to put in some damn effort against someone like you. I acknowledge your battle intelligence, Babylas. It takes real skill to contend with the best, especially the likes of the Fairy Knight."

Babylas narrowed his eyes. What's he up to?

"But you only drew with him, remember? You're stepping into a world of monsters now. If you don't stay ahead of the beasts, you'll be devoured." Taking a deep breath, Absalom slammed his fists together, sparking a flash of dark blue across his body. "Because I've decided to show you just how powerful I really am."

An intense pressure erupted out from the undead ape, slamming into the crowd of shadow clones. Babylas kept a hand over his face, blocking the snow whipping against him. He watched as his shadow clones were blown apart one by one in the high winds, drowning in an endless sea of snow.

Focusing through his left eye, Babylas watched as Absalom's energy spiked tremendously. When the storm cleared near the center, he saw the undead ape glowing like a star. The floating strands of fur on his body illuminated brightly while a fierce energy encompassed him. He opened his eyes, glaring at the remaining Banette with piercing blue pupils in his red eyes.

"Silent Fury Lv.2."

Babylas glared. Well, that's a problem.

Absalom kneeled, then burst forth at incredible speeds, kicking up a wave of dust behind him. He launched with a straight jab at Babylas' face. The Banette, keeping his left eye focused on the ape, stepped aside and narrowly dodged the attack as the air whipped across his face.

Babylas smirked. Ooooh, that would actually kill me if he landed one of those. He fluttered backwards, stepping out of reach from Absalom's wild swinging. Each punch carried a tremendous pressure behind every swing, the aura radiating off them distorting space before his eyes.

Babylas studied the energy flow coming off of Absalom, the mixture of energies working in harmony with one another. "So, that's what you've been doing. Silent Fury. You can store up pain from the attacks you received and release it at a later point. It's an accumulation technique. While the first level likely releases a portion of it through your punches and kicks, the second level increases physical power. Let me guess: if I were to start attacking you, that'd just increase the duration of this technique. Eh?"

Absalom merely narrowed his eyes, throwing a heavy punch from the side. Babylas leapt forward, flipping off the ape's head, and skidding gracefully across the snow.

"I've seen a lot, Absalom. I can pick up on tricks pretty quickly."

Absalom suddenly launched into a backflip. Babylas jumped back, but the force of Absalom's landing caused the ground to break apart, sending sharpened debris scattering through the air. Babylas weaved through the flying rock, but gave the undead ape time to charge through with a barrage of punches.

"You fascinate me, Greed," Absalom stated, throwing out punch after punch as Babylas continued ducking and weaving around his strikes. "You possess an unnatural Inherited Will. Seeing the energy spectrum of another creature is beyond a normal inheritor's capabilities." He glared. "You bonded with one of those creatures, didn't you? It took on the form of your missing eye."

Babylas smirked. "Perhaps."

"But that means you possess an incomplete Inherited Will." Absalom feigned a punch, keeping Babylas' focus upward as he swung his leg and kicked the puppet's legs out from under him. "You need at least the energy of two to make a complete Inherited Will!"

BAM!

Babylas' body rattled as the undead ape hammered a powerful punch into his chest, the shock of the impact rippling the air. Absalom sent the puppet flying through the snow, sending him careening into a mound of it.

The ape huffed, cooling the aura around his fists. "Even if you completely bonded with one to gain this power, you'll never reach your full potential without another." He glared. "Is that why you seek the girl? To get the other half of hers?"

For a moment, it seemed as if Babylas wouldn't get back up. However, shifting under the snow, Babylas arose with barely a scratch. He snickered, his glare gleaming at the undead ape. "I do what I want. I always have." He lifted his cloak, revealing he had his shield equipped. It, too, was without a scratch. "If I were to have the other half of her power, bonding with two of them, I would obtain a body that'll ceaselessly rejuvenate, right?"

Absalom glared. "Pardon?"

Babylas smirked. "Oooh, seems even you don't know everything. Gaining their power is one thing, but bonding with these creatures is a completely different experience. All I ever wanted was to live forever! To see the world until the universe collapses!" He tossed his shield, ricocheting it off the ground.

It struck Absalom square in the face, disorienting him briefly. Babylas rushed it, catching his shield, and bashing the edge again into the undead ape. He traded it out for Breaker, unleashing a barrage of punches into Absalom.

Absalom stood his ground and slammed his foot down, overturning the earth under them. Launching Babylas into the air, Absalom ripped out a chunk of rock and hurled it at him.

Babylas whipped out the Divine One, spinning the chain staff and obliterating the rock in one strike. He kicked off the airborne rocks and landed back on the ground, trading out the staff for his psychic bow and electric arrows. "Psimon and Galvano!" He loaded three arrows and fired them.

Absalom charged and slid under the fast-moving arrows, flipping back into a sprint. "You think I can't dodge a few arrows, Greed?"

Babylas smirked. "The question is, why do you need to dodge them, immortal man?" He plucked his bow's glowing drawstring.

The flying arrows suddenly turned around midflight and rocketed back at Absalom. He stopped, detecting their presence, and spun around to retaliate. He managed to destroy two of them with a single punch, but the third flew in from a blind spot behind the second arrow. The moment he took out the second arrow, the third stabbed him in the wrist.

Babylas snapped his fingers, and Absalom erupted in a maelstrom of psychically charged lightning. Absalom howled in pain, dropping to one knee and struggling to move.

"I don't know what the deal with your body is, but you clearly still have some form of nerves and muscle under there. A direct shock to the system, and you can't move!" He dashed at the stunned ape, whipping out his dragon-shaped blunderbuss pistol. He snapped it open and inserted a silver-glowing bullet through before snapping it closed. "Let's see you regenerate from this, immortal man! The Dragon's Iron Breath!"

CLICK!

BOOM!

Babylas recoiled upon firing his pistol, an explosive wave of silver and crimson erupting upon the electrical geyser. The ground was utterly obliterated within the blast, firing scraps of rock that managed to scratch Babylas' cheek.

Babylas snickered. "Checkmate, Wrath."

"Don't get arrogant, boy."

Babylas spun around with a start, finding the undead ape hovering above him with eyes filled with murderous intent. He caught a glimpse of Absalom's leg, noting how mangled it was compared to the rest of his body. Was that the only part of his body that was hit by the explosion?

There's no way he would still have a leg taking a bullet that close.

Absalom swung his other leg, attempting to kick off Babylas' head. Babylas instantly deployed Sacred Jewel, tanking the kick as it sent him flying. He rolled to break his fall and leapt to his feet, sending both weapons back into the void.

"Alright!" Babylas pulled out the light-green whip, Stinger. He cracked it across the air, sending forth its winged, stinger-like tip.

Absalom landed on his undamaged leg and tried to dodge the whip strike, but the tiny wings allowed it to change trajectory in an instant. It punched a hole through the ape's leg.

Babylas smirked. "You've never seen a weapon master like me, Wrath. Thanks to my time with the Fauchers, I've developed some rather unconventional weaponry!" He wildly cracked the whip, sending forth a barrage of stinging strikes upon Absalom's leg until it was riddled with holes.

Unable to stand, Absalom collapsed to the ground. Seeing that his aura wasn't petering out, Babylas kept his distance upon retracting the whip. He pulled out Psimon again and kicked up some rocks. He pulled the drawstring back, letting the rubble fall against it, and fired into the sky. With a pluck of the string, the rubble changed trajectory and bombarded down on the fallen ape, punching open his body with even more bloodied wounds.

"Come on, immortal man. Don't make this too boring for me," Babylas taunted. "You're strong, but speed always triumphs in battle. I'll just keep bombarding you with attacks until you lose the will to live—"

"Malicious Fog."

The dust burst open, making way for a massive, shadowy fist charging straight at the mercenary. With a smirk, Babylas whipped out his ribbon sword, Majestic Wind, and sliced the attack in two with but a flick of his wrist. The shadowy wind rushed harmlessly past him.

"Was that supposed to scare me—" His eyes widened as Absalom suddenly got up in his face, moving with an incredible boost of speed. "Eh—"

Absalom seized him by the face and slammed him through the ground, burying him within a crater. As the dust settled, Absalom scoffed to find a Shedinja within his grip instead.

"Of course." He moved to crush the carapace, but felt a trembling pressure hanging above him. He had barely enough time to glance over his shoulder, spying the silhouette of Babylas armed with his war hammer, Terra. His movements were slick and swift, moving like the very shadows that accompanied him.

BAM!

Absalom's face caved in as the hammer landed its mark. A powerful shockwave erupted through his body, shattering his bones and blowing out the back of his head in a mass of blood and guts. His mangled body sailed across the snow, painting a carpet of bright purple as it dragged along to a stop.

Babylas landed, ordering his Shedinja to return into his shadow. He settled the hammer over his shoulder and glared. He's faster than he looks. He can accelerate himself with sudden bursts of speed. Those kinds of fighters are incredibly dangerous, especially with strength like his.

Predictably, Absalom rose like the living dead, his limbs twisting and mending themselves anew while ghostly flame erupted to replace the missing flesh. Absalom stood anew, his aura blazing prominently from his fur. He opened his eyes, which seemed to glow even brighter than before, like diamonds in the candlelight.

He even seems to regenerate faster the closer to death he is. Some of his minor injuries take a moment before they're repaired, but I couldn't leave him dead for more than a couple seconds. He smirked uneasily. This is an annoying puzzle. Still, why am I having so much trouble seeing this mysterious energy source he's drawing from? Unless there's something I'm missing, I don't see anything out of place.

Absalom glared. "You can ponder all you wish, but the fact remains: you cannot kill me, Greed." He advanced slowly. "In a battle of attrition, I always come out victorious. You? You'll eventually run out of stamina, or get unlucky and take a bad hit. Either way, there's no victory in your future."

Babylas smirked. "Ooooh, and you can see that, can't you? Well then, give me the good news of my fortune!" He snapped his fingers, summoning his three Shedinja behind him.

Before Absalom could react, the three carapaces raised their halos and unleashed Flash, casting a massive spotlight on the ape. Absalom recoiled and shielded his eyes. More importantly for Babylas, the intense light cast a long shadow across the snow, reaching behind Absalom.

"Because I've always made my own luck!"

Absalom's eyes widened as Babylas suddenly jumped out from the shadows behind him. He spun around in time, striking back against Babylas' hammer. The two forces clashed, sending ripples that blasted away the snow and split the earth under them.

Babylas snickered and pulled out the silvery-blue chain, Aeros, from his cloak. "Surprise!"

Absalom felt a tug on his foot and saw the other end of the chain was wrapped around it. He was dragged down into the shadows. The chain uncoiled from his foot as he was left in freefall in pitch black.

"Endless Darkness."

From all sides, Absalom was ceaselessly pummeled by a barrage of fists. He was struck so hard in the eyes that he went blind, not that he could see anything to begin with. Eventually, the pummeling turned into a torrent of slashes, ripping through flesh and even hacking off his legs and one arm.

"I went easy on the company because going overkill on them was unnecessary." Babylas' fiendish smirk permeated through the dark. "But you and rest of the sins? Oh, I wouldn't have hesitated hacking any of you to bits. Especially you. You're too much fun."

Absalom narrowed his closed eyes.

"So, all-powerful Incarnation of Wrath, still think you're the top dog of the sins?"

"…Cocky brat."

Babylas laughed. "What threatening words you have there—" He stopped himself as Absalom started glowing brightly. "Ah crap!"

"God's Messenger of Wrath: Full Release!"

The darkness on the surface swirled, and Babylas hastily ejected himself as the ground split open from a powerful geyser of dark blue light. The force of the blast sent Babylas sailing through the air. He struck the ground, tumbling toward the chasm Phoebe created earlier, and barely caught himself before hitting the edge.

Babylas shook his head. "The shadows directed all the energy skyward upon exiting, so I've avoided the brunt of the blast." He glared. "That's an annoying technique. He's losing, so he just obliterates everything around him while he heals up afterwards." He glared. "Though, the fact it destroys his body means one of the components has some kind of recoil effect. Based on the scope of the power, I'd wager a guess on Final Gambit—"

"Don't daze off yet, Greed."

Babylas snapped from his analysis as Absalom suddenly lunged from the smoke, his body half-charred as it rapidly repaired itself. He swung a wide-reaching kick across the air, one Babylas effortlessly dodged as the wind rushed over him.

A flying roundhouse kick, huh? Was that supposed to—

Absalom, still airborne above him, suddenly twisted his body and swung his heel down.

Immediately switching to an axe kick!

Babylas narrowly sidestepped, watching Absalom's kick strike the ground like a hammered nail. However, he realized too late the mark wasn't his skull, but the ground itself.

The shock of his attack caused the edge of the Aipom-made chasm to collapse. Babylas, having only just regained his foot, felt himself slipping under the break and falling into the abyss.

Acting fast, he pulled out Aeros and Fangs. Linking the poisoned dagger to his chain, he spun and threw the combined weapon into the earthen walls. After successfully anchoring himself, he held on tight and swung toward the wall, gripping into whatever handhold he could find. His safe escape wasn't without injury, having hit the bottom of his jaw against the rock.

He massaged his sore jaw irritably. "Well, that was decidedly unexpected."

CRASH!

Babylas looked up as Absalom landed on the same side of the chasm as him. The undead ape straightened up, standing on the wall with perfect posture while keeping his feet buried through the rock to anchor himself. As if walking on leveled ground, Absalom calmly walked toward the cornered Banette, taking each step with a thunderous stomp.

Babylas could only smirk at the sight. "Oh yeah, if I didn't believe you before, I do now. Only an immortal would be this over-the-top."

Absalom glared. "You are about to die, and you continue with your taunting? It's a miracle you've survived in this world for as long as you have with arrogance like that."

"Big talk from the guy who's been getting his dusty rear kicked in by scum all morning. Maybe you're the one who's being arrogant."

Absalom's glare darkened. He calmly slid his hands into the pockets of his shadow-made coat as the aura around him spiked. Babylas dug his fingers in as the chasm began to shake violently just from the rise in Absalom's innate pressure.

"Remember how I said I'd show you just how powerful I really am?"

He pulled his foot out of the wall and bent it back.

"I lied."

With a mere kick, the entirety of the chasm wall fell apart below him like a sheet of ice breaking away from a window. It happened so fast, an avalanche of rock and dust raining down over Babylas with nothing else in sight.

His immediate recourse was to vanish within the darkness as the rubble closed in around him. However, when he popped back out of the shadow, a hand suddenly seized his neck. His eyes widened as Absalom, having predicted where he would pop out from, stared at him with those unfeeling eyes.

"My wrath…is immeasurable."

BAM!

Giving the Banette no time to act on his trickery, Absalom walloped him across the face with a bone-crunching punch, blasting him across the chasm and into the opposing wall with such destructive force that a second avalanche occurred on the other side.

However, before the avalanche fully obscured the Banette, Absalom caught one last glimpse of his body. He saw it melting into darkness and caught a glimpse of a shattered carapace in its place.

"Predictable," he spat. "You're getting sloppy, Greed. I knew you would try and escape through my shadow to get the high ground, same as I knew you'd waste one of your Shedinja. That's two left. Feeling lucky?"

Once the second avalanche passed by, Absalom spotted Babylas opposite of him, clinging to the wall and panting. Despite making the switch in time, Babylas bled from his mouth, taking the punch for a millisecond. Even that fraction of a second being exposed to Absalom's strength rattled him, hiding his anxiousness behind his usual grin.

"Sorry you had to go out like that, little guy," he whispered.

Absalom scoffed. "Pathetic." He bent his legs and launched himself across the chasm.

Babylas rolled along the wall, barely avoiding the ape's impact. Cracks spread over the wall, causing smaller avalanches that nearly took out Babylas' handholds. He considered hiding away in his shadow again, but using the same trick over and over wasn't going to win him the fight. Besides, even if he did appear back on the surface for safety, shaking off Absalom was not only impossible, but leaving him to his own devices was unacceptable.

Instead, he pulled Terra out from his cloak. Despite the unwieldly situation, clinging to a wall while holding a heavy war hammer at the same time, he wound his arm back and struck the wall. A tremor erupted ahead of the hammer strike, breaking apart Absalom's perch and sending the ape falling down the chasm.

Babylas sighed and started sinking into the darkness. I'll hide out for a moment to catch my breath, then—

BAM!

His eyes flickered in surprise as something akin to a dark blue laser fired from below and struck his hand. He pulled it back in the nick of time, but the attack shaved off a semicircle of his fabric-like flesh from his hand. More importantly, Terra slipped from his grip and fell into the chasm.

"Crap!" He reached his hand out and tried to call the hammer back into his vault, but a second projectile fired at his face next. He tilted his head, and the rock flew past him, leaving a gnarly cut across his cheek. When he turned his eyes back down, Terra had already disappeared into the abyss, far outside the reach of his vault.

He heard a distinct roaring from below and looked down just as Absalom charged up the walls on all fours, similar to how he chased after Amos and Phoebe when they dropped him down there.

Forgetting the loss of his hammer, Babylas pulled out Aeros and Sacred Jewel. He hooked the chain onto the inside of the shield, wrapped it around, and partially melded himself with the shadows inside. He tossed the shield, pulling himself into the darkness a split second after, and let the shield fly with the added air power. It ricocheted between the far walls, gaining more and more height before flying off into the sky.

Absalom picked up speed and launched out of the chasm. He caught up with the airborne shield and caught it. "Neat trick, but not good enough."

"Gateway to the Underworld." Absalom felt a chill behind him as Babylas' arm reached out of the shadows of his coat. "You forget, Absalom. The darkness is my domain." Producing Fangs with a flick of his wrist, he stabbed through the ape's shoulder, drilling the blade deep through the flesh.

Before the poison could spread, Absalom brought his hand down and chopped off his arm along with a section of flesh. He grabbed Babylas' arm and tried to drag him out of the shadows, but the Banette's head popped out from under the shield.

"Galvano!" He unzipped his mouth and spat an electric arrow into Absalom's eye.

The ape roared, releasing his grip and plucking the air loose. Babylas retreated back into the shadows and let Sacred Jewel sail the rest of the way before touching the ground. Liquid shadow wrapped around it, switching places with its weapon meister.

Babylas glanced at his torn hand for a moment before pulling out Psimon and a cluster of Galvanon arrows. "Shadow Armament!" He applied his darkness around the bow and arrows, drastically increasing their power. He pulled back on seven arrows and fired, each one piercing the air with a trail of dark, crackling lightning.

Absalom landed on the ground as the arrows encircled him. He raised his foot and launched a kick skyward, creating a vortex of Malicious Fog as the arrows descended upon him. The fierce, dark winds smashed up the lightning arrows, igniting the vortex in a blinding flash of purple.

Babylas shielded his face from the stray bolts flying off. He looked inside his cloak, finding he only had three Galvano arrows left. He grabbed two before running away.

Absalom marched out of the storm, his arm and eye regenerating anew. He scoffed at the retreated Banette, lifting his leg and striking the ground with an axe kick. The force of the kick split the earth ahead. The pressure raced past Babylas, knocking him off balance.

"Malicious Fog." Absalom fired a massive wave of darkness, intending to crush the Banette under its dark influence.

TWANG!

Babylas fired his two arrows, using Psimon's drawstring to fire them around the wall of darkness. The arrows locked onto Absalom, blazing through the air at near-hypersonic speeds, but the undead ape merely caught them and crushed them within the pressure of his aura.

"Desperate, Greed?" Absalom taunted. "I expected better from you." He waved his hand, parting the darkness from where the Banette stood, only to find he had vanished. He scoffed. "Running away? Have you grown bored of such cowardly tactics?"

"Says the unkillable immortal~."

Absalom looked down at his shadow, spying Babylas' scheming grin. He immediately jumped back as a vicious, cold wind erupted from his shadow, coating his body in a thick frost. He bounced once off his hand and landed, panting as the ice crept over him.

Babylas burst from the shadows, wielding the gunbai war fan, Glacial. He attached Aeros to it and spun it over his head, summoning a storm of ice and frost. Absalom recoiled, shielding his face as more and more ice crawled over him.

"Time for you to chill out, Wrath!" Babylas taunted.

Absalom glared, feeling his eyes freeze over. "How fitting…for a clown's final words." He lifted his legs, struggling against the growing cold, and stomped with all his might. Vibrations rumbled through the earth, stirring up the surface just enough to throw off Babylas' tempo.

Absalom increased his aura output, shaking with such intensity that the ice evaporated off him. He then picked up a rock and reared his arm back. "God's Messenger of Wrath: Justice!" He infused his dark blue aura into the rock and chucked it, creating a miniature sonic boom behind it.

Babylas barely moved out of the way in time, only catching a glimpse of the rock before it exploded into Mt. Algus like cannon fire. It carried the same trail as the attacks served to him in the chasm. They carried tremendous force, a simple rock becoming a concentrated cluster of Draco Meteor thrown by Regigigas himself.

Absalom stomped the ground, kicking up more rock. "Dodge this, Greed." He punched the airborne rocks, launching them with the same force as the previous attack.

Babylas' left eye flickered wildly, tracking the movement of the individual rocks. Babylas reacted accordingly, weaving through the projectiles with split-second evasion. One managed to pierce his cloak and clip his side, tearing off a chunk of flesh. He grabbed his bleeding side and leapt back, now feeling a sweat run down his face.

"Do you see the difference in our power yet, Greed?" Absalom asked, picking up another rock.

Babylas pulled out Psimon and reached for his last arrow, but Absalom's next throw blindsided him, destroying the bow out from his hand. He grabbed the intact drawstring and drew it back inside his cloak before leaping away. He attempted to dive into a shadow, but another rock exploded in the direction of his landing. He barely rolled out of the way in time.

"You're too reliant on weapons," Absalom stated. "A blade forged with time and consideration by a dedicated craftsman…can still be destroyed in the throes of war. No matter the strength of a weapon, the body must be strong to wield its power. And the body itself shall become your weapon."

Babylas smirked. "Again, kind of hard to make a point when you have anti-death powers."

Absalom shook his head. "If you really were a skilled weapon master, you wouldn't limit yourself to handcrafted tools. As you say, anything can be a weapon." He picked up another rock, but this time crushed it within his grip.

Babylas glared. "Eh?"

Absalom grinded the rock down before revealing the sand in his palm. "Anything. Right?" He applied his aura through it and sprayed it through the air.

Babylas realized half a second too late. He jumped out of the way as a barrage of particle-sized bullets exploded through the air, riddling the ground and mountain in holes the side of a needle's tip.

"…Gah."

Babylas couldn't get out of the way in time. His right arm, waving like a tattered flag, was riddled with tears and pinprick-sized wounds. Blood tricked from the wounds, pooling together into a river of purple dripping down his arm.

He smirked angrily. "That…hurt."

Absalom scooped up two more rocks and crushed them in his hands. "You're slipping, Greed. How will you respond?"

Babylas backed toward the mountain before stepping over a pile of snow. "Well…what can I say? I'm just a coward who likes to run away, right?" His smirk grew. "But if you really think you can take me, let's play Hide-and-Seek."

He whipped out Glacial and slammed it down, manifesting a snowstorm at Absalom. The undead ape recoiled, the sand blowing out of his hands. He cast Malicious Fog to remove the storm and glared as Babylas fled up the mountain path, disappearing behind more self-made snowstorms.

"Absolutely pathetic." Absalom rolled his shoulders and calmly advanced toward the mountain path. Run, run, run, Greed. You've stepped into the business of the sins thinking you were untouchable. Now, it's time you understood what it was like being hunted.

Caractacus wasn't the comforting type. He never was. He had no experience with comforting. Hope and mercy? Concepts that had no use for him during his youth, and even recently. What was someone to say in this situation? Everything's going to be okay? The future still looks bright? He didn't believe in that stuff, and he was supposed to convince this once beacon of hope to remember her hopes and dreams?

He felt worthless just staring at the quivering and crying Mimikyu, who just moments ago expressed her lack of hope. He wanted to say something, but the words weren't forming the way he wanted them to. Each time he opened his metal jaw to express whatever thought was on his mind, he shut down the first syllable, knowing his brazen manner of speaking would've just worsened the situation.

Who among the company was even qualified to talk to the Mimikyu? Amos and Phoebe certainly weren't the definition of peace-loving and hopeful. They've known the Mimikyu longer than he had, and even he had doubts of how much they can inspire confidence in Evelot. After seeing those two destructive forces of nature dispatch waves upon waves of foes, how much better could they do than him?

Then again, they weren't nearly as maniacal as they were before—

…

Caractacus narrowed his eyes and stepped forward. "Evelot. Come on. We need to get off the mountain."

"…" She sniffled, wiping her eyes and standing up. She looked ahead, her right eye blazing with red light. "I can't go back. This is all I have left. This is all I have left to give."

Caractacus shook his head. "What's there left to give? You're talking about revenge, Faucher. Are you really going to be happy with yourself if you kill Harriet? Is it going to fill the emptiness in your soul?"

Evelot glared over her shoulder. "Doing nothing doesn't sound any better. She brought her grudge against my family, so what difference does it make if I respond in kind?"

"Look, I'm not a saint either, but there's a difference between hunting a robber who invaded your home and one of the strongest mercenaries in the region. And that crap you said earlier? Are you seriously going to abuse the knowledge gifted to you by your parents to be just like every other demented alchemist in the world? You going to become the next Nightbane? Or are you going to end up like Abel's brother? Yeah, remember what he did to him? Is that what you're going to do?"

Evelot curled her fist. "If it means that monster suffers—"

"You were terrified of Abel when we found him! I don't need to be a specialist in alchemy to know what Underhill did to him was beyond sickening. That's the kind of person you want to end up as? Because you don't care anymore?" He scoffed. "Good grief, you sound worse than I did."

Evelot scowled. "What would you have done in my position, huh?! I lost my whole family in one night! Slaughtered before my eyes! And I apparently died that night! TWICE! Twice, Caractacus! That's not normal! You don't know what I've been through!"

"…" Caractacus narrowed his eyes, massaging his metal jaw and examining his metal paw. "No. No, I guess I wouldn't know, huh?"

"…" Evelot eased up, looking away from the Boltund shamefully. "I…I didn't mean it like—"

"My mother was a bitch who abandoned me in the Outlands, and I don't even know who my father is. I've known only one group of people I could confidently call my family, you know." He curled the digits of his metal paw, glaring at it. "And I ended up being the reason they died. Whether because I was hiding there or because of the explosives I set up, it didn't matter. They all died because of me. Heh. I wonder if all of that could've been avoided if I just surrendered. Could've spared their lives. They could still working the farm and secluded away from the rest of the region like they wanted." His glare darkened. "But no, I ruined everything."

"…" Evelot closed her eyes.

"First thing I saw when I woke up was Ma carrying me out from the fire. I have no idea how she managed to scare off the jackal in the explosion, but she's the reason I'm alive. I'm surprised she was still alive. She was barely recognizable. Flesh charred to a crisp, yet she prioritized getting me to safety. The only survivor."

Drip, drip, drip…

Evelot looked back, watching tears splash into the soft snow. Caractacus wiped his snout, then ran his sleeve across his eyes as he groaned.

"I hate it. Feeling guilty. It sucks. It's a terrible emotion I've tried to rid myself of, then you all came along and started making me care again. I'd say I hate you all for it, but…" He sighed. "I've come to realize how much of a terrible person I've been. I've been in denial just to protect myself, but I've been scared ever since I fled the village. Thought I would've been easier to just…not feel anything. Guess I was wrong."

"…" Evelot looked down.

"Maybe if I was more proactive, I would've sought revenge like you are. Maybe I could've finally gotten satisfaction in a world so pointless. But I chose to hide, letting the Outlands dictate my life once again." He smirked wearily. "I could've done some good had I just escaped and started my future in a kingdom, but I was too far gone. I'm not meant for civilized society."

"…"

"…That's what I believed until you idiots showed up."

Her eyes widened. "Huh?"

He sighed. "Evelot, look at the people you surround yourself with. Lancaster is a bitter loner with no patience for anything that's breathing. Phoebe is a volatile lunatic who makes joy out of other's misery. Magni's a creature-eating wall of muscle. And I'm a brilliant inventor whose arrogance reaches the heavens. None of us would buy into your hopeful crap…" He shook his head. "Except for the fact we not only bought it, but we're also actively fighting to get you back because we believe in it."

"…" Evelot glared at the snow. "You're just saying that."

"If that were the case, we wouldn't have fought our way through a deranged skunk and an immortal monkey to do so. But we did. We risk life and limb to get here just to convince you to come back to us." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Emphasis on life."

Evelot's eyes widened. "W-What do you…?"

"…Magni sacrificed himself just to make sure Amos and Phoebe could reach you."

The Mimikyu recoiled, the dark voids of her eyeholes spiraling as tears brimmed through the costume. "M…Magni's…?" She went limp on the snow, staring down in horror. "Oh…Oh my Arceus…"

Caractacus nodded. "He fought bravely. He wanted to make sure those two could see you again even if it meant his own life."

She covered her eyes, trembling as tears stained the outside of her costume. "N-No…! No, I never meant to…!" She clenched her eyes shut. "Magni can't be…no…" The head of her costume went limp, covering her face. "He's dead…because of me—"

"Is that how you want to view his sacrifice? As your fault?"

Evelot paused, tears dripping down her hands, and looked up in quivering confusion at the Boltund. "W-What?"

Caractacus glared. "My actions brought the end to my family. You? You ran away to pursue your choice. We could've just walked away. There was literally nothing forcing us to rescue you. We ran here as fast as we could because we wanted to save you. Magni pushed himself by his own choice because he wanted to save you. Because you saved him."

Evelot narrowed her eyes sadly. "I…"

"You're the one who advocated for him as your steed, right? You gave him hope again. He devoted himself to the company because you gave him something to believe in again. He would've gone to the ends of the earth for you. You inspired him, and you inspired us." He gestured down the mountain. "Those two idiots down there are fighting tooth and nail just so they can see you again. You may think there's no hope in the world, but look at them. They're the most deranged people I've ever met, and that is a high bar to clear, yet they're risking everything to save you! You may not see it, but you've been helping them turn their lives around just by being you!"

Evelot trembled. "But the things Absalom showed me—"

"Yeah, I get it. Virdis is a screwed-up region with a monstrous history. What are you accomplishing right now that isn't justifying that view? Revenge? Just another bad thing perpetually an endless cycle of violence. It takes a strong will to fight for a peaceful future." He sighed. "Exactly the kind of thing Absalom's afraid of."

"H-Huh?"

"He fears you. He thinks if you continued down the righteous path you set up for yourself, you'd ruin his master's plans or whatever. That's enough confirmation for me that you have a good heart that wants to see a better tomorrow. You can give up right now and just accept the fact nothing will ever get better. Or you take the present by the horns and steer it toward the future you want."

"Caractacus…"

"Amos, Phoebe, Magni, and myself. We didn't believe in a good future until you came into our lives. If a few rotten apples like us can be saved, why can't the rest of the region?" He held his paw out to her. "Let's strive for a future we can all live in together."

Evelot stared at his paw hesitantly. "I…I'm not strong enough to—"

"Stop doubting yourself. If there's one thing this world needs more than anything, it's an unbreakable and kind heart. You are our light. And even if you're not strong enough, we'll hold onto your beliefs and make certain your vision of peace comes true."

"I…"

"Take my paw, Evelot. Let's walk down the mountain together, reunite with the others, and get out of here. The Broken Glass Alchemical Company isn't done yet."

"…" Evelot stared unsurely at his paw, wringing her hands together as she kept checking over her shoulder.

All she had to do was walk away. That's it.

Was it true what he said? Had she really changed their lives just by being kind? If she were even more jaded than she was now, she would've written it off as a child's logic. The horror she witnessed through Absalom's eyes painted a Virdis that could never change.

But when you only see the bad done in history, how often do you forget the good? If the world really was as bad as it seemed, why were there still ten kingdoms standing? With people devoted to those kingdoms?

She wasn't sure if the ten kingdoms would ever get along with their differences, but…

Maybe, if Outlanders can change, why couldn't Virdis?

Blinking her tears away, Evelot slowly lifted her hand over Caractacus' paw. "I…I want to believe—"

"Well. Would you look at that?"

The duo's eyes widened, suddenly feeling a presence hovering over them, one they had no sense up until now. Their eyes darted upward to the higher hills, spotting a robed Mienshao sitting atop the hill's peak. The wind whipped against her sleeves, snow fluttering against her fur. Her eyes, cold and analytical, examined the terrified duo as an energy seemed to radiate around her in a serene, yet ominous pressure.

"Master Absalom said my destiny would be complete on this day. What fortunes…will you bring me in your deaths?"