章 39: Beyond Perfection

"Can the universe be infinite? Is there more out there that is still yet to be explored?"

Akwan's voice whispered while standing among a vast plain of stars and violet nebulas. He conversates with himself while tinkering with the tiny lights floating among the field of darkness.

"Eight. The symbol of infinity, the constant flow of energy and power. Material wealth and the thriving moment of success. A holy number beyond the perfect seven. What could this number signify? I'm curious about it myself..."

Akwan's blonde hair stains into a dark tint of gray, his golden eyes blend to a dark cyan, and a blue halo appears over his head, with a constant stream of blue luminance surging into his mind.

"Infinity. An entity that doesn't have any bounds. Just who am I? Why do I have constant conflicts between my two forms? Do we matter in the grand scheme of things? Was I in the past of Gincad, and the adventure the twins embarked on had already ended? Or perhaps, this is a precious present?"

Questioning his thoughts, he sits on the reflecting floor, puzzled and confused.

"I guess I will never know until time reveals it."

The white fireflies swarm in a beautiful pattern, with his dream being affected by the outside realm and the skydome surrounding him fading to an endless cluster of stars.

"Is there a limit beyond perfection? Did I have a life beyond my knowledge? Why do I remember the twins? Was I related, or could I be the very enemy of them? I will never know…."

He floats into the sky, with his attire changing to black and light blue. The crimson color in his eye drains back to his chest, glowing like a pulsating red heart. Luminescent vein-shaped strings surround him in a heavenly manner, while giant ones stretch in the background.

"I feel like I have a connection with someone. My blood is neither red nor dust. So who can I possibly be? Why was I fabricated into a realm with no goal? What is my purpose at all?"

He shuts his eyes, with the color on his eyelashes flashing into black. He opens his palms and forms stars, questioning if this is a dream or reality in the process.

"Was I the son of someone? O-Or could I be… a star?"

Black mist surrounds Akwan, feeling as if the universe is at his fingertips. Beautiful circle particles scatter over the darkness, illuminating the night of the starry sky. Akwan mutters to himself with his quiet middle-deep voice.

"Size is blinded when it isn't known. Size can be amplified if one can benefit from knowledge or the specific increment of numbers. But is it best that we should know? Or could we possibly remain ignorant, and maybe… create our implication of 'Size?'"

He holds himself tightly, with two strands of dark hair growing from his bangs. Akwan shuts his eyes, with his beauty surrounding the entirety of his existence. A luminance shines in between his palms.

Before Awkwan entirely engulfed himself in light, his height stretched for a few meters before stopping completely. His shadow flees from itself before vanishing into thin air. His voice echoed one more time before getting muted from the abrupt end.

"Without balance, existence… is utterly meaningless."

* * *

Asahi and Aletha swiftly jump upwards, in shock to find that I know their names. I peered at the device behind them and saw the luminance glowing within the floating blue sphere. I tried to get closer to it, but Telos blocked me.

"Arisanna, what are you doing here?"

I shrugged my shoulders, trying to captivate the thought as well. I was hovering over the ancient brittle floor. I knew Akwan was inside that device, but I couldn't get anywhere close. Asahi questions while staring at me, trying to figure out how and why I am here.

"Arisanna, you look… so different from when we first met."

I knew what they saw, but obviously, they didn't understand me. So, I lifelessly glared at the twins and replied… trying to control my thoughts.

"Sometimes, even Gods have to change, eventually. I know what is inside all of your minds, wanderers. I know… everything, including your thoughts."

Telos slowly whispers to himself while staring at the device.

"Arisanna, I never thought I would see you after you got cursed by your father. What happened when you were gone?"

I couldn't understand my past either. Even I was purely surprised seeing my father curse me with this… strange element and invisibility. I was normal without this curse of knowledge, but now… I am unrecognizable to my past self and follow everything.

I knew at this very moment; I had to answer Telos, or else… I wouldn't be able to tell them again, but You.

"I was following the wanderers and everyone else the entire time, invisible and immortal for an agonizingly long period. You wouldn't understand my capabilities, and you shouldn't do. It would crush your soul."

The wanderers backed away from me like it was a complete surprise. They thought I was ignorant and changed, which, yes, one of those statements remains true, but they still couldn't understand the fact that I am everywhere.

In the past, the present, and the future, spectating everything.

For a brief moment, I knew something was off, and I quickly informed the wanderers.

"I wasn't supposed to be revealed to anyone. Wanderers, I know what is in that device. It is your friend… Akwan. He was… 'transforming,' you can call it."

Asahi and Aletha gasped.

"You know Akwan."

I couldn't help myself but giggle.

"Of course, wanderers. I know… everyone... and everything."

I would never have thought I would hear myself laugh again. But here I am, giggling and showing emotion, standing on solid ground, and feeling everything once again.

For a moment, I thought I shouldn't have informed them, but of course, I did the right thing and followed what's good rather than what's wrong.

As seconds elapsed, Telos unsheathed his sword and pointed it towards one of the creatures. He knew something was suspicious about them and quickly claimed.

"These are members of The Ending! They have been wrongfully stealing crops to charge this device!"

The cyclops-like monsters slowly stood up and growled at Telos. The wanderers swiftly unsheathed their blades and approached the sickening monsters while I stood still, spectating them like I always do.

I remained powerless, weak, and frail when it comes to ability… but I am beyond powerful when it comes to mental strength.

The wanderers pierced their blades and struck at swift speeds, shredding the Cesspids' arms into the air. Crops flew all over the room. The Crops splattered, mushed, and disintegrated on the walls and floors.

At the same time, the wanderers, Sadiki, and Telos continued to fight the monsters; Sadiki used his godly swings from his luminescent blade to end the creature's lives.

Streaks of light filled the room, with the mixture of violet, blue, and white luminescent lines piercing through many of the Cesspids' swarms.

As I continued to lay my back against the solid surface of the wall, I saw the device slowly losing energy. The Crops' doing led to this onslaught of mayhem and the reveal of my being.

Without the crops fueling the machine, the trapped energy would drain.

Countless resounding noises of their blades clashing against the monsters filled the entire room.

Telos struck most of the Cesspids and Marchers with just one swing of his long dark twilight sword.

The wanderers attacked the monsters with their gradually developing Waker's Blades, and Sadiki immediately slaughtered hundreds of small creatures, fueling Telos' Cosmic energy. I closed my eyes and warped into the device.

* * * * * * * *

Akwan is floating among the vast sea of stars, meditating and feeling himself draining from the leeching dim energy.

Inside the device, time isn't mixed, unlike outside, which gave Akwan the isolation.

A shining bright light blue aura surrounds his figure, with hundreds of threads striking from his sky-dome, tearing itself in and out.

The strands of the Universe are beginning to break, shattering like thin, fragile twigs. He faintly whispers while feeling his space crumble behind him.

"Nihilism is useless. What is the point of destroying something you painfully worked hard to create? It's utterly meaningless unless you want to abandon all your progress."

Akwan's eyes illuminate with a shattering flickering luminance, flashing from gold to blue.

* * * * * * * *

As I felt my entire existence slowly faded into reality, I felt my knowledge weakening, too. With the connection to the Universe at stake, it could bring massive consequences.

The wanderers, Telos, and Sadiki all slaughtered The Ending's Monsters as I returned. However, Telos warned them while he saw a dark shadow growing from the hallway's walls.

"There is… an Ending Gallant approaching from the hallway,"

His dark blue eyes widened; he lifted his blade upward while he noticed that the Ending Gallant wasn't alone.

Telos shouted at the wanderers as the Gallant and another approached closer and closer to the room.

"With The Princess!"

The walls start to tremble, the device begins to enter phase four, shimmering its blinding light to the room, and the wanderers, then Sadiki, all prepare for the battle. I lost my train of thought and fell to the floor.

The Ending Gallant's heavy boots echoed over the walls. It had fierce black armor, a dark helmet with a blinding black misty visor on it, and a pulsating glowing dark violet vine-shaped pattern that stretched from his ankles toward its neck.

The Princess wore her dark cloak, with a quarter of her skin covered in purple and bluish crooked glowing patterns over some of her scorched skin. She held nothing but her hands while the Gallant's were armed with a heavy obsidian sword.

The wanderers' hands tremble while watching it approach closer and closer towards them. The menacing height of the Gallant stood nearest toward the ceiling, taller than Telos and the others but having a slender figure.

Telos roughly whispered to the wanderers and Sadiki while directly swinging his dark twilight blade behind.

"Asahi, Aletha. When the device loses its power, make sure to grab Akwan, and leave this place,"

Aletha tremblingly replied.

"B-B-But…"

Telos interrupted, giving a profound, deep, and respectful tone towards both of them.

"Don't tremble in fear; that is how you show weakness. Stand still, tall, and confident if you want to get anywhere in a duel. Now,"

Telos pointed his fingers towards the dark corner, of which I so happened to sit.

"There is another hidden exit at the corner of where Arisanna is sitting. Though she is visible for a moment, she will return to her normal state until the curse has truly been lifted."

Asahi, Aletha, and Sadiki all grab each other's hands and jolt towards the corner. I moved away from it, knowing precisely what Telos was doing.

As I see the glowing blue orb slowly losing luminance, I feel my existence slowly fading away, drawing me back behind the wall between reality. I think time is returning to the present, and the Universe is restoring itself.

As I see Akwan slowly emerging from the dim sphere of the device, Telos looks at me and grins. He whispers while peering at my eyes.

"You will be fine, Arisanna. Someday, your curse will be lifted."

I shed a tear over my eyes while feeling the warm embrace of Telos, comforting me and giving me strength. He, too, sheds a tear behind my back. I knew he cared for me because I was his sister millennia ago, and I, too, loved him and protected him whenever we were given an exam from our instructor during magic practice.

Though I failed academically, my heart said that I succeeded. I gave all my knowledge to Telos so that he could succeed but eventually led myself to failure.

That's the true meaning of knowledge, knowing both sides of a situation or a person.

While the wanderers and Sadiki all sprint toward the secret entrance, my tears dry up, and my existence fades entirely back behind the wall. That marks the end of my moment, for now.

クリエイターの想い
Sunny_Shad0w

For suspenseful purposes, each day for the rest of the week, I will add 300 words to this chapter. This one is a special one, so don't expect it to be too short. This will be the one really long chapter that will truly mark the beginning of Asahi and Aletha's journey, so don't miss it. Also, check out the new beginning chapters! I have massively revised them to have more action, plot, and overall exciting things.

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