Arc: 4 [Chapter 13]
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The God Killer took off her helmet and let it fall to the floor. The orange hair was replaced by a sickly black color, but a trace of orange lock could still be found on her head. The sweet scent she had was no more, her lively skin, had turned pale and decorated with black veins. Her big brown eyes had been corrupted until it had become nothing but black. Her loving smile sent a shiver down my spine as she tilted her head to the side.

“Daisie...”

“Daisie?! But, how?” Kadence turned her glaring gaze at me.

“Oh, dear sister, you didn’t know about our prophecy?”

“What prophecy? Andre explains yourself!”

I remained silent, unable to answer her question.

“The Light!” Daisie gestured at me.

“And The True Darkness!” She mockingly curtsied.

“A battle that will decide the fate of the entire existence, a battle which none of us can run away, a destiny lock in stone! The reason why Adrestia picked her when Aphrodite picked me, no one could have guessed it, even Aphrodite didn’t know. A scandalous secret buried deep between the big three and Adrestia.”

“It doesn’t matter! You guys focus on the orb, while I keep her busy.”

“But?!” Kadence stressed.

“Her power is from that orb, if we could destroy it, we could disable her, and probably save her. Kadence! I need your help, now, more than ever. Do you want to save her or not?!”

“Damn it! Ophre, open up a hole, we are going after the orb!” Kadence ordered.

I charged toward Daisie with my hatchet tightly gripped, I brought it up for a downward slashed, but Daisie blocked it with her jagged sword. I could feel my hatchet slowly rise as she brought her sword slightly higher, I backed away and she laughed. She’s stronger than me, but I’m not trying to win here, I just need to keep her busy.

Before I could strike again, the floor shook terribly as a barrage of thundering noise roared above us again.

"Arthur, a little help here," Ophre drew her bow and aimed it at the wall near her.

"No need to tell me twice," Arthur rushed to her side and coated the energy arrow with a whirlwind.

However, before Ophre could fire her shot, Daisie hurled a jagged sword at the woman. Ophre stepped away from Arthur, and nearly missed the sword, but the sudden attack caused her to release the projectile. The arrow exploded when it hit the ceiling, and caused a strong gust of wind to burst open the roof, and swept everyone away from the center of the room.

"Tadao!"

Tadao crashed through a crumbling wall and disappeared outside. Kadence quickly chased after him by leaping through the opened crack.

Ophre was thrown and slammed against the wall. The Impact was strong enough to knock Ophre out of commission. Arthur, on the other hand, was somehow pulled up by the strong whirlwind through the newly opened ceiling, and thrown into the void.

I managed to sink my hatchet into a marble pillar and used it as an anchor. I dropped my feet and quickly ducked as a blade planted into the marble just a few inches over my head. I rolled away and raised my weapon to block an incoming downward slash. Daisie smiled as she kept slamming her sword down onto my hatchet, I felt the hatchet slowly slid out of my hand, but before I lose my grip, I kicked her away to put some distance between us.

"Why? Why do you even fight for those people? You seen the prophecy, they are nothing but a thorn under your skin, a parasite of petty and hubris. They don't deserve you or me."

“Not all of them. Beside...The prophecy means nothing to me.”

Our weapons clashed again, it was so strong that it sent a shockwave that cracks the remaining wall.

“I know you’re lying, Andre. I know that you hate what those three did to us. Bringing us back to life just so we could fight each other.”

"How are you alive?" Our weapons clashed again, but the force from her sword caused me to let go of my hatchet. Daisie swung her blade, and I caught it with my metal arm, the sword was sharp enough to leave a shallow cut between my steel palm.

"Hiro brought me back, and I'm stronger than ever."

I tried to kick her foot right under her so she could lose balance, but she moved her feet and slammed her palm against my chest. That single hit managed to send me flying across the room and crashed into the wall behind me. I rose back up, grunting in pain, the debris slid off my back after I stood up again.

“Andre, I have a proposal for you, let us destroy the worlds, and I will make your death quick and painless. Does that sound good?”

“You would kill millions of innocent souls? What happened to you?”

Her smile turned into a frown as she gripped her jagged sword tightly, and with a single blink of an eye, she disappeared into thin air. Before I could glance around me and search for her, a kick hit my side with so much force that I felt a few of my rib cages broke before I was thrown to the side. I raised my arm beside me just before my body slammed against the wall, the force from the impact went through my shoulder first before it traveled throughout my body.

I dropped to my knees, coughing out blood while an immense pain spread from my shoulder. However, Daisie didn’t stop there as she rushed at me with super speed and punched me in the face. That punch sent me through the wall and flew across the void before landing on another large floating debris.

She flew at high speed and crashed into me with her foot against my chest. I coughed out another cup of blood onto her armor boot, she glared at me as she hunched down closer to my face.

“I am like this because of you! You ignorant piece of shit! I hate you!” Daisie slammed her boot against my chest, the crated deepened behind me.

“I hate you!” She slammed again, and my body deepened into the sharp crater.

“I hate you!!” She kicked again, and I lost all of my breath inside my lungs.

Daisie panted heavily and moaned as if she was in ecstasy to see me in so much pain. She sat on my belly and with a smile, she caressed both my cheek, “Aww, my cute little fiance, what wrong? Are you in pain?”

“Look at you, I see that you lost an arm, did I do that? Does it hurt still? Do you remember the pain? Do you remember how I cut that little birdie?”

“Leave her alone…” I searched for my weapon, but I couldn’t see it so I called upon my hatchet.

“Oh, now, finally! That’s the look I want from you. That...rage!”

I screamed and the hatchet flew right back into my hand, she jumped away as I swung my hatchet wildly in front of me. My sight was reddened from the dripping blood from my head, I didn’t feel the pain, but my vision is getting blurry by the minutes. I rushed toward her at breakneck speed, and she avoided the fast attack by skipping dancing joyously away.

“Now! We are talking. Don’t you want to kill me? The one who hurt your precious bird friend.”

I remember that rainy day like it was yesterday, Agnes’s body slowly turned cold while my arm was drenched by his blood. Furthermore, I remember that same anger, rage. My hand was shaken while my teeth gritted together, I charged toward her with so much animosity and readied myself for another downward slash. However, in my dash, she materialized a different sword with black mist around it and used it to block my attack. I was shocked when my hatchet shattered into a million pieces on impact.

My heart started pounding as I stumbled back with wide eyes as I realized it’s the same scene as the day I lost my arm. The old pain resurfaced and reminded me more of that day. No, this time is different, I reached deep down in me and pulled the corruption out. My horns extended even higher while my teeth and nails sharpened, and black fur began to cover my body. I growled while black tar dripped out from my razor-sharp mouth while a black bushy tail sprouted behind me.

My monstrous form is my only hope now.

I hunched on four before dashing toward her with triple the speed I had. She avoided me like I was nothing, taunting me by caressing my jaw and tail. Every taunt she did, I grew angrier and angrier while my moves become rabid and straightforward.

"This was your ace? This is The Light?! All I see is a scared little dog, who is alone, and knows that no matter what she did, she can never win this fight," She sprouted two swords and with a simple turn, she ran her blade against my chest, while her other blade grazed against my cheek up to my right eye.

I screamed as the corruption dissipated out of me, my fur shed like water off my skin while I returned back to my normal self. I dropped on fours with my right eye blinded while blood dripped out of my open wound. My left eye spotted the broken hatchet, using my mechanical arm. I tried to reach it, but my effort was scoffed when Daisie planted her feet against my hand and caused my body to drop against the platform.

"Not this time," She sank her sword between my stump and mechanical arm and twirled it. The metal fused with my bones were pulled apart, breaking every connected muscle and meat. Spouting blood onto the arm, I scream my heart out at the overwhelming pain.

"Watch as the world you know crumble before you, and know… that it is all your fault," Daisie grabbed my head and make me watched as Kadence, Tadao, Arthur, and Ohpre tried to defend their lives against the army of Darkness while Odesza and Hades being fried alive by Hiro.

"No! Please, No!" I struggled as much as I could, huffing out dust from my lips, but to no avail, even her strength overpowered my own.

Why can't I use my power! I tried every way to summon it, but no matter what I did, it won't come to me.

I heard Kadence’s scream as The Darkness laid its claws against her body, piercing through her armor.

"Kadence!" Tadao yelled out. Kadence dropped to one knee, letting her guard down. That action was going to be her last mistake as another Darkness brought its claw down onto her. However, she was somehow protected from that strike because Tadao had embraced her quickly, and taken the full-blown strike with his back.

Tadao’s back was repeatedly clawed until his armor was torn off.

"No! Let them go and take me!”

“Do you think you have a choice here?”

*

Please, not like this.

'You failed us, Andre,' The disappointed look of Iris's face shattered my heart.

'Greater good always outweighs your own self-interest, and you failed to understand that,' Zeus's voice echoed.

'I chose you for this precise moment, and look how wrong I was. To think that you could save us,' Adrestia shook her head in disappointment.

'This was my point, sending us to a battlefield just to die,' Agnes scoffed.

'I guess we're not having that date after all,' Aki brought gaze down.

"You've seen the outcome, Andre. Either I or you, and you are too weak to pick me," Daisie whispered in my ear.

...

Suddenly, a small blue ball of fire ignited behind Hiro. He turned to the ball of fire and stared at it closely. A scythe cut through the fire and opened up a large portal. Hiro flew away as a small boy with long fiery blue hair chased after him with a large blackened scythe.

"Shin," I muttered.

“Andre! Don’t you dare give up!” Agnes flew in with an army of monsters, candidates, and gods. With their power, the gods gathered the broken pieces of Olympus and formed a massive platform for the battle. The other candidates quickly rushed to the Kadence and Tadao, fighting back the Darkness and brought them back to heal.

“Agnes!” I smiled as a ray of hope rose inside me.

“Oh perfect, now I don’t need to hunt every last one of them. Let’s start with the bird,” Daisie formed a jagged sword above her hand, ready to take Agnes down.

“No, you won’t!” I grabbed my detached metal arm and hit her in the chest; that meager attempt of an assault managed to make her miss.

She looked at me with intense anger, and was about to pummel my head with her boot, but was interrupted by a flying arrow. James flew out of the portal on a familiar-looking bike with a red-headed girl wielding a bow. She sat behind him and fired a couple of arrows at the Darkness. I pushed Daisie away with what was left of my strength and took off into a run before leaping off the broken platform.

I have to admit leaping off the shattered platform without any plan was stupid of me, now I am just falling straight down toward the void. However, my non-plan actually worked out somehow when Agnes flew down and caught me with his talons.

"Why did you come?"

"Because—because of you, I just couldn't get you off my mind and also Kraus and Uvoah convinced me that this was the only way to ensure our species survival, but don't get me wrong, I am still angry at you."

"Your so cute when you're bashful," I giggled.

"Don't make me drop you," He pouted.

"Okay, okay."

"Thank you…" I muttered to myself while a tear dripped down my cheek.

He carried me to the others and dropped me right next to Apollo. I looked at him, he had covered his eyes with a bloody bandage. He waved his hand right near my torn arm and closed the wound with his healing magic.

"I see the truth now. Plagued by the horrific vision of the future cause me to take the wrong choice, I'm sorry, Andre."

Shin blocked Hiro's thunderbolt with a single swing of his scythe. Hiro looked at the young candidate with a smile. The friendly face that Shin had known is tarnished by the truth that Apollo has shown to him.

"How could you? People looked up to you, you are the best of the best, but what happened? What happened to the Hiro I know?"

"Nothing happened, I am the same as I was before, the only difference is I know the truth now. I realize that the gods I looked up to, especially my father doesn't deserve to live. The damage they had caused because of pettiness, jealousy, and horrible acts, I… just had enough of it."

"I don't understand."

"Of course, you don't, I’ve been with Zeus for a long time. The disgusting acts he enacted when he was on the throne, sickened me down to my core. I saw what it had caused, especially on my mother… She suffered alone and in silence as her husband committed acts of atrocities across the realms, but she wasn’t a saint either, the woman who was the victims was treated like shit."

"Because of your father, you betrayed us? And killed your own mother?"

"It's not just Zeus, every one of those gods was not innocent and benevolent as you all view them to be. Even my mother, Hera, was apart of the problem. Look at Ares's world, it is littered with war and death, innocent mortals are dying every day and the gods did nothing to stop it. The life that they created, they viewed them like toys," Hiro took out a dog tag, it had a woman's name engraved into it; he clenched it very tightly and glared at the boy.

Shin stared at the dog tag, it couldn't belong to Hiro. He is not from the mortal world, he is a Pureborn just like himself, he was born on Mount Olympus.

"So I decided to end it all and create a new one. A better one."

"There are millions of innocent souls that will die due to your cause."

"A necessary sacrifice, to create a utopia."

"Are you sure you won't mend your way?"

"Why should I mend my way when my cause is just!"

"I have shown you mercy, despite the fact you have committed acts of atrocity against the gods and hurt my father. Prepare yourself."

"Me? Prepare my-self? Do you know what kind of power I held!" Hiro body was enveloped by electricity then he discharged the tremendous electricity back into the sky, brighten up the dark clouds and demonstrating the humongous power he had gained.

"I am the King of Kings! I have power beyond anything you can comprehend, what do you have?" He challenged the small boy.

"Living family," Shin grinned.

Hiro immediately felt that two words pierced his heart, his hubris smile turned into a frown as he glared at Shin. He tightened his grip around his thunderbolt spear and flew straight towards Hiro while leaving a trail of electricity behind him.

Shin with flowing blue fiery hair, enlarged his blackened scythe and charged toward his opponent while leaving a trail of black smoke behind. The two of them clashed, and lead to one of the most amazing spectacles ever witness, lightings and blue fires decorated the skies. Both of them somehow evenly matched each other.

….

James landed the bike in front of me. Even Though my body was in agonizing pain, I rushed to the bike and hugged the fuel tank. The cold steel pressed against my cheek, and I don't care, because it has been so long since I saw her.

"My Brutale! Oh, how I missed you!" I felt the strange gazes from everyone as I kissed the fuel tank.

"Andre…" Iris called.

"Huh? Oh!" I turned around and sat with my legs crossed.

"Andre, you need to do it. Take her life, save us all."

"Nope, I won't do it," I childishly shook my head with a pouted lips.

"Please, Andre. Don't be stubborn."

"Apollo, you see more clearly right?" I looked at the Apollo, and he nodded his head, "Good, watch closely."

"Don't worry, y'all do your thing while I keep her busy."

"Here comes the big one!" One of Kadence's sisters with a humongous shield shouted as she slammed one of the creatures in the head.

A massive monstrous creature rise from the sea of monsters, bigger as the vision portrayed it to be. Our army held on to their weapons and shields, readied for a stubborn defense, but before the humongous creature could attack, another massive figure made out of stone emerged from Shin's portal.

"Rhea!" I cheered my heart out, after seeing that humongous woman.

"This is for my son!" Rhea punched the creature on its snout and sent a shockwave across the battlefield. Fluttering our clothes and hairs, and shook the platform underneath us. The creature howled in pain as it fell onto a number of his comrades.

Everyone cheered, I stood up and turned to my comrades, "I'll need a weapon."

Tadao slipped through the crowd with his naginata, he was about to fall onto his knees, but he managed to stand up straight with the help of bladed staff. The wound on his back is still not yet healed because the bandage covering his injury started to soak up and run red. Kadence makes her way to him despite herself being injured by the battle earlier. She embraced his side and helped him stood up more firmly. Tadao nodded his head at the woman as a sign of gratitude, and the woman responded with a warm smile.

"Take mine," Tadao pulled apart his bladed staff and revealed a thin sword with only one side sharpened like a knife.

"It's a katana belong to me, reforged to befit a god. It has a long bloody history with me back when I was still a mortal. You should use it," Tadao extended the sword to me.

"Are you sure?" I laid my hand on its grip.

"Whatever path you choose, will be our fate. So pick wisely," Tadao let go of the sword letting me take it.

"I will," I brought the sword closer to my chest.

"Andre, you are not alone in this fight!" Agnes said as he looked at me with a determined gaze.

"Thank you, Agnes and all of you for being here," As I glanced around me, and I could see an illusion of Aki amongst my allies.

"Lend me your strength," I whispered to myself.

A rush of warmth flowed from my heart and throughout my body. This power I am feeling right now is familiar, it the same as when Aki saved me from the depths of despair. She put her faith in me and pulled me back. If she can do it, then I can.

All Daisie needed is someone to pull her back and that someone is me. Even though she is fighting it with her might, but I’ll make sure she comes back, even if it cost my life.

Golden light enveloped my body and sprouted two large wings so beautiful that it rivaled late Adrestia. I turned my glare at Daisie, stood on a platform far away from us and separated by an army of terrifying creatures. Everyone was so in awe by the light emitted from my body that they stepped away and gave me a straight path toward the frontline.

An arm, a sword, two legs, a pair of wings, and a lot of friends. I stood at the frontline, the Darkness's attention was pulled toward me. Everyone stopped fighting for a few seconds before I raised my katana in the air, I let it shone so brightly across the battlefield that it seared the creature’s flesh and caused them to stumble back in pain.

My battle cry echoed across the battlefield as I rushed forward, my allies followed behind me with their battle cry dripping with newfound hope. My wings lifted me off the ground before I landed again and planted my blade into the Darkness’s head.

James and Corona along with other gods flew above me and rained down attacks on the enemy down below. I removed my sword from the creature’s brain and bumped into a group of huntresses. Their movement and teamwork were so fluid and in sync that even though I was there, my presence was like a rock in a river. They worked around me, taking down their enemy in a team of three, regularly changing their members so that their opponents couldn’t anticipate their pattern of attack since every each of the member fighting techniques was unique to their own. They even choreograph their move to include me in their attack, I ran up to the shielded one and use it as a platform to rush on top of the creature back, slicing off its appendages while the third member attacked the back of its knee with a pair of energy daggers. So it lost its balance and fell on its belly.

I marched forward again and was stopped when a group of Darkness encircled me, but I did not fall into fear as Persephone, Demeter, and Danielle erupted a giant vein creature on the platform and controlled it to laid waste to a lot of enemies including the group that was in my way. Suddenly, a sweet grape scent playfully lingers under my nose, I looked up and saw Daryl with Arthur’s help, drenched the enemy with wine and caused them to sleep, giving the monsters clan a chance to kill the enemy without resistance.

Kraus, on the other hand, charged in then stopped in front of me, he swung his new giant sword and cut through a dozen enemies like it was nothing.

“Push on!” Kraus swung his sword again, pushing the Darkness back.

I grinned and nodded before I fully took off into the air with a pair of wings. However, while I was in mid-air, one of the darkness launched itself in my way, trying to stop me, but as I mentioned earlier, I have friends. A human-sized tornado flew and pierced through the Darkness like a drill. The tornado changed its course and I could see who was inside of it, Arthur and Aria, they had locked hands and embraced each other like a well-matched couple. It seems that Aria was controlling the tornado while Arthur served as its catalyst.

“Thank you!” I yelled before continuing flying.

Despite having only activated this power again, I can feel it slowly draining away, I have not yet mastered this strength so I only have a limited time of using it before I become fully exhausted. Daisie was in my sight, I raised the katana and brought it down with full force.

Daisie blocked the strike with her sword, sending a shockwave of energy around us, and creating a crater below her boots. Her smile grew more manic after I flipped away and landed on the platform she’s on.

"I see you've acquired a new power, but I know that power can't last long, look at you, straining to keep it together, and yet you came. You should have run. However, I thank you for saving me the trouble of hunting you down."

"Your name is Daisie Brewer." I swung and she blocked, creating a shockwave that blew the small rubble off the platform.

"What are you doing?"

"Your father's name is Pierre Brewer, your mother's name is Siena Brewer."

"Shut up!" She swung her sword with anger, I ducked down, missing her strike and rolled away.

"You're a kind girl with sisters that love you, and a goddess who see you as her own."

"Whatever you are trying to do, stop!" She brought her blade down on me, I dodged to the right, missing the weapon, and let the sword cracked the ground.

"We were in love, and I broke your heart."

"We were not!" Daisie swung her sword again and I avoided it like the plague, trying to cut me down.

"You blame me for your father's death."

"Shut up. Shut up. Shut up! Shut Up!!" Daisie swung her sword again but this time with fury, I blocked that slash. A deafening sound of crackling thunder roared, Daisie was shocked when her sword was shattered right in front of her.

"What…?" She stumbled back, her eyes wide as she looked at her broken sword.

My pair of wings retracted back into my body and the energy coursed through my veins. An arm made from golden light materialize from my stump, it felt real, it weighs like a real arm, but I know it's temporary, so I charged toward her with that arm pulled back.

“Clench your teeth!!”

“Wait!”

I punched her right on her face, and the force from that single punch broke the sound barrier. Daisie’s head dropped straight into the ground before her body does. She slammed against the platform, creating another crater, and buried herself in the rubble. I took a couple of steps back as Daisie rose again with a bloody nose and bruised cheek. Dirt dropped off from her armor as she stood before me with bloodshot eyes.

“You don't get it? Do you?”

She materialized another sword in her hand.

“No matter what you do, no matter what you said, no matter how much you deny it! This is me! I’m not the same as the kind scared girl you know! So quit it!!”

“If that is so, then why didn't you kill me when you had the chance? Why are there tears underneath your eyes?”

Daisie reached onto her cheeks, and just like I said, there were tears underneath her eyes. She doesn't know, she was crying, but why? Why is heart so much in pain? Why is this woman right before her, looked at herself with pity? Her heart is exhausted, her soul wanted it all to stop, her brain could only tell her that this woman was the cause of it, and she needed to eliminate this woman.

“You don't really want to fight? Do you? All you wanted was peace, just like me. I’ve been where you are, Daisie. I understood your pain more than yourself did.”

“No! You understand nothing! I and you are different, you killed my father!”

“And he killed you! The one who was supposed to take care of you. Betrays you. Revenge is empty, Daisie. I wish I had known that sooner.”

“Shut up!!!” Daisie disappeared into thin air.

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