There was a ringing in Sae's ears. Shiki was beside him, the two of them could hear the clangs of keyblades cutting through heartless as the valiant of them fought the fodder heartless. Yamato, Reforge, Iontis, Jaz, Kambria...as Komaeda who wasn't combat proficient in appearance, even seemed to be holding his own. Eth's order was for them to engage the lessers, at first it looked like the three largest of them where only going to approach one at a time and so Saebyeolbe waited. Saving his strength and having to hear those words said over and over again to him was grating at best.
"Trust them..." He muttered under his breath, "Okay."
Clutching his Alabaster in one hand, he felt a tap in the square of his back, slicking past the leather of the black coat Eth asked them to wear. "Hmm?"
"Listen Sae. Trust what Eth said...you really will be forced to put your emotions to the side for this." Shiki didn't seem particularly acute about saying this to him, but he'd acknowledge it.
Sae pulled down his hood and his silver hair jutted upward as he opened his two massive cerulean orbs for eyes. That weathered smile, far from worn as it resonated deep as he looked at with a teeth bearing grin. For what it was worth, the idea of a family was something he felt he'd found again. It was why, his All's End would take the shape of her, in remembrance.
There was a crash. Loud. Thundering.
Sae turned his head as Try was fighting wielding a massive blade of light, the could feel his bracelet resonate, it must've been Eth himself she was holding. Turning to Shiki he gave her a nod, and the shifted their attention to the spiraling demon tower that bolstered through. Sae took stance and simply put all of his focus into a controlled breathing before he took a single step. His body motioned like a blur, creating a massive sonic boom from where he stood, swiping the air so fast it created a traveling galeforce wind, that punched a hole through the demon tower. Shiki came from the side, winding up a charged Ice spell that froze the core all the way over and the fodder shadows fumbled over onto the rocks and dirt. Sae's feet were hitting the dirt fast as he quickly accelerated, and cut through the remainder of the heartless lingering around the frozen core. The two of them grasping the other's hand and creating what appeared to be a transient blade of light and dark, to cut straight down the middle.
"Session: Sunrise & Nightfall."
There was a potent mixture of both affinities spiraling upwards as the core had been completely removed from the field. Holding Shiki's palm, he escorted down from their floating stance. To think, this was something he forgot how to do up until a few days ago...sheesh. His eyes shifted again towards the bigger of the bads, they seemed to be in a frenzy to protect their mate that Try had felled with some level of difficulty. Ears were sharped, he could hear the fluttering of a cape as the heartless landed, there were now two of them.
Raising a hand, the larger one bearing a shield on each arm, a great-shield and the other a buckler. Gallant Grave X and Terminus X, they were both in the bestiary. Sae's first thought, these heartless were once...just like us? It was hard to miss what looked to be a duplicate of the master's keyblade in each of their hands, it seemed surreal seeing his blade being used by others from other worldlines, meaning that more than one of he same key...let alone person could exist.
It was a bit too quiet, suppressing their ability to speak perhaps? Whatever the reason, Sae and Shiki were indirectly being assisted by Eth and could more than deal with them in a tag team fashion.
"Saebyeolbe, the master's number 1 on this worldline. Were the circumstance different, I'd welcome you warmly...but if what your colleague said is anything to go by, this is a duel correct?"
These heartless were 100% sentient, both appeared abnormally courteous and responded with a nod and a bow. Likely a ruse to take him and Shiki off guard, but he was all the more cautious. There were numbers located on different spots on their bodies, spots that...were identical to Sae and Shikis. That nape of her neck, and his right shoulder, it was such a strange mirror to be looking in. This didn't make it easier on him, empathy was his entire identity, housing Trace and Anti temporarily, them being later identified as the enemy of similar caliber only confirmed that fact.
"Do you mind if we make this a team battle? A pure 2v2, we can switch targets at our leisure."
Sae was a bit surprised at how smooth this was. He took a breath and already understood this would be one of those instances where he may have to resort to potentially using Berserker...his body strengthening over three years to endure that recoil once...no, it was way too risky. Shiki would likely forbid Sae from doing something so stupid and reckless even if these were the circumstances, he glanced over at her briefly and back at the shielded heartless. Making eye contact ever so briefly, she was really drawn in by the other one, the Terminus X.
He synchronized his breathing, and like a veil, Shiki vanished before the group right before their very eyes. The heartless appeared startled, but Sae stomped and blitzed immediately thrusting his keyblade into the great shield with a piercing attack. The sound the and pressure from the impact alone was immense, chains escalated and flowed from the Terminus X and Sae broke away into a skid away from the Gallant Grave X.
"Session: Unseen Void."
You had to admit this took a lot of time and effort to coordinate. It seemed like one of them vanished from sight, when the reality of what was happening is that Saebyeolbe was sharing his resolve with Shiki. His body could emit light, and in return, lower the light of it or of an extension of it, in this case Shiki appeared to completely vanish. This concept was known as misdirection, as Sae took stance he aggressed the two of them at the same time. The Terminus X feed him Chains as he was moving, they just appeared to be moving far too slow to be an issue. Gripping alabaster with two hands, he gripped it with a proper stance and began cutting through the chains to ribbons as they burst apart from each of his quick and successive strikes.
His cerulean tears seemed to surface as jabbed Alabaster downward the moment all of the chain's collapsed upon him, locking them in place. His keyblade emitted a light, creating what looked like a lock at the spot he jammed downward. The chains riptosed into a straight and he leapt from the spot into a flip barreling towards the Terminus X. Even more chains with sickles attached this time, he cut through them all as precisely as possible following the movements with ease.
"Now!" Sae shouted as Shiki unveiled and appeared mounting Memento Mori into a vertical swipe.
Parried. The Gallant Grave X, was in the midst of swiping her away to the right, as Sae came from under it as it was still in the middle of its commitment to parrying Shiki from above. He closed his eyes, releasing a focused breathe, and swung vertically upward, releasing with it a massive tower of fire. This wasn't just some regular fire, he took advantage of the bracelet to boost the attack and bolstered it to light mixed with fire magic.
There was a sigh as he jumped back and Shiki landed next to him.
"Hold your resolve Sae!" she said already sensing a welling darkness explode from the pillar of light. What appeared to be a humanoid figured stepped out burning but enduring the burns. Then looking directly at Sae as it's "I" tattoo respectively illuminated. Flicking it's hand, he pushed Sae's attack back towards the Terminus X, burning through the shell of the heartless and revealing what he was fearing the most.
He clenched his teeth, holding back his urge to cry immensely, as he was hating how this was going. "It really is another Shiki..." he tensed up a bit and a hand was firmly planted on his shoulder to briefly spin him around.
"Look at me Sae. I'm right here, please!" Shiki urgently pleaded with him as the pair started to move, with their respective keyblades in hand.
"You're going to have to listen to her. Saebyeolbe." His counterpart finally engaged in speech. "The Darkness won't wait for you to sort through your feelings, and as its instruments, this is the only choice that remains."
As he spoke the Gallant Grave X, appeared in his shadow like an avatar over its shoulder. The other Shiki held her shoulder as the darkness was billowing out of her form along with the Terminus X hovering behind her. Sae released the Alabaster keyblade from his hand as it clanged against the dirt, and his counterpart saw this and was enraged.
"Thy Kingdom Come." it's faded "I" tattoo had a slight reaction, but it irradiated Sae's as he clutched his shoulder. "No! I don't want to do this anymore!? Why the hell do we have to fight people just like us?? This isn't what peace is supposed to look like!" he repudiated the request and was trembling.
"STOP YOUR WHINING! What a disgrace, is this my successor talking right now?!" the darkness welled up around him, as he leapt forward, only to be stopped by the other Shiki as Shiki herself already took up arms to protect Saebyeolbe. "MOVE SHIKI! At first he seemed respectable and would finally end it for us, but I'm disappointed and I don't have any regrets about killing him."
"Thy Kingdom Come." her voice traced all of their ears, and the "II" found on her neck illuminated and resonated with the other two. "I won't ask you for anything that is beyond what you're willing. Partner. Friend. You're precious to me, so let me do what you won't do Sae."
There was a moment of introspection from the other shiki in this moment. This...a defining moment that set the differences aside, and it looked appeared this number 1 too, would fail her here as well, but she didn't lament the thought.
Memento Mori purged into a gleam of radiant light, and forged into Memento Vivare, brandishing what appeared to be the tail of a falling star. Its blade reflective and quiet as though nothing but a mirror to its opponent like a lake of purest silver. Its thin form exudes airiness and silky sharpness; each swing and turn singing of swift sighs and deadly glances. It feels almost too light, buoyant, at ease with change, demanding to be in perpetual motion.
Sae couldn't ask her to fight for him, but she took a step forward to fight them both alone.
"I'm sorry these circumstances were just too much for you. If i must use that, then so be it. Goodbye Sae." Shiki vanished from sight, at the sametime as the other two.
Steel striking steel as she used Eth's bracelet in order to keep pace and attack the two of them rapidly with small margin for error. The song began to play, sigil and seal as she erected barriers to stave off the brunt force of Brandt's attacks. The sound of sobbing was muffled over the collision of tremendous force. Sae can't remember seeing Shiki fight this hard in a while, and she did so without him. Were these people really enemies? Their seniors? All he could feel was misery and despair and it ate away at him as the chances are he'd lose that special person dear to him yet again.
"Damnit. Damnit! DAMNIT! I'm sorry but I just can't! I don't want to create even more pain for those that still have a chance!" He was drowning in ambivalence, unsure what to do at this point. His body was shaking, and she came into his mind again, relaying an image of Shiki in the here and now. "STOP! STOP MANIPULATING ME ALISON! My heart...just breaks more and more..."
"I actually feel sorry for you." a voice, speaking for the first time spoke to him. "So all of that bonding, just to send me to my death in this time too? I probably said I'd lead you to your death this time didn't I...to think it would be by another me right?"
The Dark Wielder Shiki clenched her fist, as what appeared to be a bed of sickles and chains swimming through the rocks to collapse up Sae who was on his hands and knees crying. He was being cut apart and torn at every end, as the hood from his coat and blown off and his agonizing screams escalated across the way.
"SAE!"
"Pay attention!" Brandt slapped Shiki with the hand holding his buckler shield and she came crashing down, right into Sae's arms.
"No...no, no no no no no! This can't be happening...Shiki I...I'm sorry for being such a coward...that person, both of them..." He professed in a frantic manner, rubbing the side of her face where she'd been struck with a healing spell.
She grabbed his hand, and slowly lifted herself up and re-summoned her Memento Vivare, "I'm fine Sae." Able to stand, her Incantum Lumare, she called to cast Regen to consistently heal her as she aggressed yet again without him.
"Shiki wait!" Sae yelled reaching his hand out, but she had already re-engaged Brandt in a close-quarters fight. The rapid clangs echoing as their keyblades met repeatedly.
"Why are you protecting him, from me? If he won't use that resolve, I'm better off carrying it instead." Brandt smirked, pressing his weight forward as he and Shiki were blade locked. "Shiki! Come! Let's just kill your doppelganger first and take her resolve, then we'll deal with the coward."
The nerve was struck.
"What...." Sae's tears suddenly stopped as he lifted his head and he released a blood lust likely unseen up until now. "What did...you just say?"
Brandt's collison with Shiki was so extreme the air was rippling outwards in all directions picking up so much air and tremors as he was purposely increasing his pace to force her to utilize some manner of trump card. He was slapping with ample force against the small barriers she was creating in order to create distance. This isn't a war you could win by defending alone, she had to have a plan right? The two of them were hitting hard across the ground, both darting towards the other Shiki's location, and the dark wielder shiki responded bringing out the Terminus X that was about to completely box her in.
Sae saw this, and their was a sliver of light that flit through his eye, "The Zone" he bolted faster than the next breath, scooping Shiki from being ensnared. "Are doing things to deliberately provoke me?"
"Oh, hey Sae, when did you get here?" She was trying to be funny, but now wasn't the time for jokes.
"Thy Kingdom Come." Sae's "I" tattoo branded on his right arm was lit, in acknowledgement. "LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Screaming wasn't enough to work through the collection of energy that weighed on his emotions and his heart at present, but it was a start. Saebyeolbe, regulated his breathes and expanded his lungs giving him a return of much needed stamina. Within an instant he move towards the other Dark Wielder Shiki and applied what was the equivalent of Brandt's pressure to Shiki. Brandt saw this, and broke his concentration to intervene.
"You're already making that mistake now?" Sae said without looking at him, but instead grabbing onto the other Shiki and throwing her towards Shiki to be contained in a ten-layer barrier. Mid float, he turned to slam his Alabaster to connect with Brandt's keyblade.
There was no way in hell Sae could renege on his feelings now, as threats seemed to be a sore spot for him. Shiki had done so much for not only him, but she put the lot of them ahead of herself in several instances. That's a kindness that would be repaid in full, The Scarred kicked it into a higher gear and switched targets to take on Brandt to give Shiki a moment to rest. Clasping Alabaster, his keyblade was brimming with an incantation of flame, as he gripped the handle and guard. Releasing blow for blow, slash attacks that met Brandt head on like a complete mirror. Sae was starting to understand the slight variations in their rhythm, it was almost as if....no, he needed to see more before he could affirm his thought.
Sae split himself into to three and attacked him mercilessly from all sides and wore deep into Brandt's endurance. Dismissing the other images of himself, Sae tackled Brandt forcing them both to drop their keyblades, and tumbled across the rock before Sae jumped straight up into the air with his arms bound to Brandt's body. Brandt was fighting with every ounce of strength he had to knock Sae away from him and he could engage as normal, but Sae wasn't having it.
Once they cleared the highest Mesa, Sae began setting up for his trump. (0:36 start)
"Listen Brandt...we're a lot of like." Sae started to talk as his body began to glow, red and fused with light. "You're me...from another future...or another Worldline...and you've been suffering for so long..." The very space around them was now being influenced by Sae, his thoughts were to go higher and higher. Heat was rising as his body first was releasing steam, it then started to combusted into what was an agonizingly hot bed of flames.
"Burn up....and be put to rest." Sae closed his eyes, "All's End: Alison's Flame Garden."
His body was ablaze, and the image of Alison that had been embedded in his heart since she'd protected him became this spectral figure covered in flames, burning that clutched Brandt and Sae, and the heat coupled and rose straight up. The flames released burning everything in the air and the surrounding area in a radial cylinder shooting upward. The shrieks of pain being released by Brandt all in a frenzy as he could finally be released. Sae clutched even tighter as Eth's bracelet responded to his All's End, and burned the very dark passenger as Sae took extra car to mitigate as much direct damage to Brandt as possible with his All's End's release.
Falling like a smoldering chunk of rock, Sae fell and fell...and fell clutch tight to Brandt's unconscious body. When he hit the rocks, and hard. Tsssssss! Was all the sound you could hear and a visible patch of steam constantly flowing off of Sae and Brandt's body. Managing to muster the resolve to stand, he'd completely burned through the black coat Eth gave him and he awkwardly realized he was standing there in his birthday suit.
"Oh...well, this is awkward." He said before he clutched his right fist, and whaddaya know, the bracelet gave him his regular clothes back. "Saves me from embarrassment for now at least." he said before falling over to one knee, and Shiki grabbed him to prevent him from slipping into unconsciousness. Leaning down, she checked Brandt's pulse and sure enough, he was alive, albeit out cold, and no presence of his dark passenger could be traced.
"Shiki I...I'm sorry...!" Sae looked away,
"Apologizing after a victory? You really never change Sae." Shiki grinned for but a moment but her attention shifted, naturally, to the Dark Wielder Shiki.
"Trust them..." He muttered under his breath, "Okay."
Clutching his Alabaster in one hand, he felt a tap in the square of his back, slicking past the leather of the black coat Eth asked them to wear. "Hmm?"
"Listen Sae. Trust what Eth said...you really will be forced to put your emotions to the side for this." Shiki didn't seem particularly acute about saying this to him, but he'd acknowledge it.
Sae pulled down his hood and his silver hair jutted upward as he opened his two massive cerulean orbs for eyes. That weathered smile, far from worn as it resonated deep as he looked at with a teeth bearing grin. For what it was worth, the idea of a family was something he felt he'd found again. It was why, his All's End would take the shape of her, in remembrance.
There was a crash. Loud. Thundering.
Sae turned his head as Try was fighting wielding a massive blade of light, the could feel his bracelet resonate, it must've been Eth himself she was holding. Turning to Shiki he gave her a nod, and the shifted their attention to the spiraling demon tower that bolstered through. Sae took stance and simply put all of his focus into a controlled breathing before he took a single step. His body motioned like a blur, creating a massive sonic boom from where he stood, swiping the air so fast it created a traveling galeforce wind, that punched a hole through the demon tower. Shiki came from the side, winding up a charged Ice spell that froze the core all the way over and the fodder shadows fumbled over onto the rocks and dirt. Sae's feet were hitting the dirt fast as he quickly accelerated, and cut through the remainder of the heartless lingering around the frozen core. The two of them grasping the other's hand and creating what appeared to be a transient blade of light and dark, to cut straight down the middle.
"Session: Sunrise & Nightfall."
There was a potent mixture of both affinities spiraling upwards as the core had been completely removed from the field. Holding Shiki's palm, he escorted down from their floating stance. To think, this was something he forgot how to do up until a few days ago...sheesh. His eyes shifted again towards the bigger of the bads, they seemed to be in a frenzy to protect their mate that Try had felled with some level of difficulty. Ears were sharped, he could hear the fluttering of a cape as the heartless landed, there were now two of them.
Raising a hand, the larger one bearing a shield on each arm, a great-shield and the other a buckler. Gallant Grave X and Terminus X, they were both in the bestiary. Sae's first thought, these heartless were once...just like us? It was hard to miss what looked to be a duplicate of the master's keyblade in each of their hands, it seemed surreal seeing his blade being used by others from other worldlines, meaning that more than one of he same key...let alone person could exist.
It was a bit too quiet, suppressing their ability to speak perhaps? Whatever the reason, Sae and Shiki were indirectly being assisted by Eth and could more than deal with them in a tag team fashion.
"Saebyeolbe, the master's number 1 on this worldline. Were the circumstance different, I'd welcome you warmly...but if what your colleague said is anything to go by, this is a duel correct?"
These heartless were 100% sentient, both appeared abnormally courteous and responded with a nod and a bow. Likely a ruse to take him and Shiki off guard, but he was all the more cautious. There were numbers located on different spots on their bodies, spots that...were identical to Sae and Shikis. That nape of her neck, and his right shoulder, it was such a strange mirror to be looking in. This didn't make it easier on him, empathy was his entire identity, housing Trace and Anti temporarily, them being later identified as the enemy of similar caliber only confirmed that fact.
"Do you mind if we make this a team battle? A pure 2v2, we can switch targets at our leisure."
Sae was a bit surprised at how smooth this was. He took a breath and already understood this would be one of those instances where he may have to resort to potentially using Berserker...his body strengthening over three years to endure that recoil once...no, it was way too risky. Shiki would likely forbid Sae from doing something so stupid and reckless even if these were the circumstances, he glanced over at her briefly and back at the shielded heartless. Making eye contact ever so briefly, she was really drawn in by the other one, the Terminus X.
He synchronized his breathing, and like a veil, Shiki vanished before the group right before their very eyes. The heartless appeared startled, but Sae stomped and blitzed immediately thrusting his keyblade into the great shield with a piercing attack. The sound the and pressure from the impact alone was immense, chains escalated and flowed from the Terminus X and Sae broke away into a skid away from the Gallant Grave X.
"Session: Unseen Void."
You had to admit this took a lot of time and effort to coordinate. It seemed like one of them vanished from sight, when the reality of what was happening is that Saebyeolbe was sharing his resolve with Shiki. His body could emit light, and in return, lower the light of it or of an extension of it, in this case Shiki appeared to completely vanish. This concept was known as misdirection, as Sae took stance he aggressed the two of them at the same time. The Terminus X feed him Chains as he was moving, they just appeared to be moving far too slow to be an issue. Gripping alabaster with two hands, he gripped it with a proper stance and began cutting through the chains to ribbons as they burst apart from each of his quick and successive strikes.
His cerulean tears seemed to surface as jabbed Alabaster downward the moment all of the chain's collapsed upon him, locking them in place. His keyblade emitted a light, creating what looked like a lock at the spot he jammed downward. The chains riptosed into a straight and he leapt from the spot into a flip barreling towards the Terminus X. Even more chains with sickles attached this time, he cut through them all as precisely as possible following the movements with ease.
"Now!" Sae shouted as Shiki unveiled and appeared mounting Memento Mori into a vertical swipe.
Parried. The Gallant Grave X, was in the midst of swiping her away to the right, as Sae came from under it as it was still in the middle of its commitment to parrying Shiki from above. He closed his eyes, releasing a focused breathe, and swung vertically upward, releasing with it a massive tower of fire. This wasn't just some regular fire, he took advantage of the bracelet to boost the attack and bolstered it to light mixed with fire magic.
There was a sigh as he jumped back and Shiki landed next to him.
"Hold your resolve Sae!" she said already sensing a welling darkness explode from the pillar of light. What appeared to be a humanoid figured stepped out burning but enduring the burns. Then looking directly at Sae as it's "I" tattoo respectively illuminated. Flicking it's hand, he pushed Sae's attack back towards the Terminus X, burning through the shell of the heartless and revealing what he was fearing the most.
He clenched his teeth, holding back his urge to cry immensely, as he was hating how this was going. "It really is another Shiki..." he tensed up a bit and a hand was firmly planted on his shoulder to briefly spin him around.
"Look at me Sae. I'm right here, please!" Shiki urgently pleaded with him as the pair started to move, with their respective keyblades in hand.
"You're going to have to listen to her. Saebyeolbe." His counterpart finally engaged in speech. "The Darkness won't wait for you to sort through your feelings, and as its instruments, this is the only choice that remains."
As he spoke the Gallant Grave X, appeared in his shadow like an avatar over its shoulder. The other Shiki held her shoulder as the darkness was billowing out of her form along with the Terminus X hovering behind her. Sae released the Alabaster keyblade from his hand as it clanged against the dirt, and his counterpart saw this and was enraged.
"Thy Kingdom Come." it's faded "I" tattoo had a slight reaction, but it irradiated Sae's as he clutched his shoulder. "No! I don't want to do this anymore!? Why the hell do we have to fight people just like us?? This isn't what peace is supposed to look like!" he repudiated the request and was trembling.
"STOP YOUR WHINING! What a disgrace, is this my successor talking right now?!" the darkness welled up around him, as he leapt forward, only to be stopped by the other Shiki as Shiki herself already took up arms to protect Saebyeolbe. "MOVE SHIKI! At first he seemed respectable and would finally end it for us, but I'm disappointed and I don't have any regrets about killing him."
"Thy Kingdom Come." her voice traced all of their ears, and the "II" found on her neck illuminated and resonated with the other two. "I won't ask you for anything that is beyond what you're willing. Partner. Friend. You're precious to me, so let me do what you won't do Sae."
There was a moment of introspection from the other shiki in this moment. This...a defining moment that set the differences aside, and it looked appeared this number 1 too, would fail her here as well, but she didn't lament the thought.
Memento Mori purged into a gleam of radiant light, and forged into Memento Vivare, brandishing what appeared to be the tail of a falling star. Its blade reflective and quiet as though nothing but a mirror to its opponent like a lake of purest silver. Its thin form exudes airiness and silky sharpness; each swing and turn singing of swift sighs and deadly glances. It feels almost too light, buoyant, at ease with change, demanding to be in perpetual motion.
Sae couldn't ask her to fight for him, but she took a step forward to fight them both alone.
"I'm sorry these circumstances were just too much for you. If i must use that, then so be it. Goodbye Sae." Shiki vanished from sight, at the sametime as the other two.
Steel striking steel as she used Eth's bracelet in order to keep pace and attack the two of them rapidly with small margin for error. The song began to play, sigil and seal as she erected barriers to stave off the brunt force of Brandt's attacks. The sound of sobbing was muffled over the collision of tremendous force. Sae can't remember seeing Shiki fight this hard in a while, and she did so without him. Were these people really enemies? Their seniors? All he could feel was misery and despair and it ate away at him as the chances are he'd lose that special person dear to him yet again.
"Damnit. Damnit! DAMNIT! I'm sorry but I just can't! I don't want to create even more pain for those that still have a chance!" He was drowning in ambivalence, unsure what to do at this point. His body was shaking, and she came into his mind again, relaying an image of Shiki in the here and now. "STOP! STOP MANIPULATING ME ALISON! My heart...just breaks more and more..."
"I actually feel sorry for you." a voice, speaking for the first time spoke to him. "So all of that bonding, just to send me to my death in this time too? I probably said I'd lead you to your death this time didn't I...to think it would be by another me right?"
The Dark Wielder Shiki clenched her fist, as what appeared to be a bed of sickles and chains swimming through the rocks to collapse up Sae who was on his hands and knees crying. He was being cut apart and torn at every end, as the hood from his coat and blown off and his agonizing screams escalated across the way.
"SAE!"
"Pay attention!" Brandt slapped Shiki with the hand holding his buckler shield and she came crashing down, right into Sae's arms.
"No...no, no no no no no! This can't be happening...Shiki I...I'm sorry for being such a coward...that person, both of them..." He professed in a frantic manner, rubbing the side of her face where she'd been struck with a healing spell.
She grabbed his hand, and slowly lifted herself up and re-summoned her Memento Vivare, "I'm fine Sae." Able to stand, her Incantum Lumare, she called to cast Regen to consistently heal her as she aggressed yet again without him.
"Shiki wait!" Sae yelled reaching his hand out, but she had already re-engaged Brandt in a close-quarters fight. The rapid clangs echoing as their keyblades met repeatedly.
"Why are you protecting him, from me? If he won't use that resolve, I'm better off carrying it instead." Brandt smirked, pressing his weight forward as he and Shiki were blade locked. "Shiki! Come! Let's just kill your doppelganger first and take her resolve, then we'll deal with the coward."
The nerve was struck.
"What...." Sae's tears suddenly stopped as he lifted his head and he released a blood lust likely unseen up until now. "What did...you just say?"
Brandt's collison with Shiki was so extreme the air was rippling outwards in all directions picking up so much air and tremors as he was purposely increasing his pace to force her to utilize some manner of trump card. He was slapping with ample force against the small barriers she was creating in order to create distance. This isn't a war you could win by defending alone, she had to have a plan right? The two of them were hitting hard across the ground, both darting towards the other Shiki's location, and the dark wielder shiki responded bringing out the Terminus X that was about to completely box her in.
Sae saw this, and their was a sliver of light that flit through his eye, "The Zone" he bolted faster than the next breath, scooping Shiki from being ensnared. "Are doing things to deliberately provoke me?"
"Oh, hey Sae, when did you get here?" She was trying to be funny, but now wasn't the time for jokes.
"Thy Kingdom Come." Sae's "I" tattoo branded on his right arm was lit, in acknowledgement. "LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Screaming wasn't enough to work through the collection of energy that weighed on his emotions and his heart at present, but it was a start. Saebyeolbe, regulated his breathes and expanded his lungs giving him a return of much needed stamina. Within an instant he move towards the other Dark Wielder Shiki and applied what was the equivalent of Brandt's pressure to Shiki. Brandt saw this, and broke his concentration to intervene.
"You're already making that mistake now?" Sae said without looking at him, but instead grabbing onto the other Shiki and throwing her towards Shiki to be contained in a ten-layer barrier. Mid float, he turned to slam his Alabaster to connect with Brandt's keyblade.
There was no way in hell Sae could renege on his feelings now, as threats seemed to be a sore spot for him. Shiki had done so much for not only him, but she put the lot of them ahead of herself in several instances. That's a kindness that would be repaid in full, The Scarred kicked it into a higher gear and switched targets to take on Brandt to give Shiki a moment to rest. Clasping Alabaster, his keyblade was brimming with an incantation of flame, as he gripped the handle and guard. Releasing blow for blow, slash attacks that met Brandt head on like a complete mirror. Sae was starting to understand the slight variations in their rhythm, it was almost as if....no, he needed to see more before he could affirm his thought.
Sae split himself into to three and attacked him mercilessly from all sides and wore deep into Brandt's endurance. Dismissing the other images of himself, Sae tackled Brandt forcing them both to drop their keyblades, and tumbled across the rock before Sae jumped straight up into the air with his arms bound to Brandt's body. Brandt was fighting with every ounce of strength he had to knock Sae away from him and he could engage as normal, but Sae wasn't having it.
Once they cleared the highest Mesa, Sae began setting up for his trump. (0:36 start)
"Listen Brandt...we're a lot of like." Sae started to talk as his body began to glow, red and fused with light. "You're me...from another future...or another Worldline...and you've been suffering for so long..." The very space around them was now being influenced by Sae, his thoughts were to go higher and higher. Heat was rising as his body first was releasing steam, it then started to combusted into what was an agonizingly hot bed of flames.
"Burn up....and be put to rest." Sae closed his eyes, "All's End: Alison's Flame Garden."
His body was ablaze, and the image of Alison that had been embedded in his heart since she'd protected him became this spectral figure covered in flames, burning that clutched Brandt and Sae, and the heat coupled and rose straight up. The flames released burning everything in the air and the surrounding area in a radial cylinder shooting upward. The shrieks of pain being released by Brandt all in a frenzy as he could finally be released. Sae clutched even tighter as Eth's bracelet responded to his All's End, and burned the very dark passenger as Sae took extra car to mitigate as much direct damage to Brandt as possible with his All's End's release.
Falling like a smoldering chunk of rock, Sae fell and fell...and fell clutch tight to Brandt's unconscious body. When he hit the rocks, and hard. Tsssssss! Was all the sound you could hear and a visible patch of steam constantly flowing off of Sae and Brandt's body. Managing to muster the resolve to stand, he'd completely burned through the black coat Eth gave him and he awkwardly realized he was standing there in his birthday suit.
"Oh...well, this is awkward." He said before he clutched his right fist, and whaddaya know, the bracelet gave him his regular clothes back. "Saves me from embarrassment for now at least." he said before falling over to one knee, and Shiki grabbed him to prevent him from slipping into unconsciousness. Leaning down, she checked Brandt's pulse and sure enough, he was alive, albeit out cold, and no presence of his dark passenger could be traced.
"Shiki I...I'm sorry...!" Sae looked away,
"Apologizing after a victory? You really never change Sae." Shiki grinned for but a moment but her attention shifted, naturally, to the Dark Wielder Shiki.
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Spoiler