บท 107: Final Battle Between You And Me
The sky was black when Artemis woke up from his dream. He remembered nothing once again, just a fuzzy feeling that enveloped his body and mind.
He stood and looked around to see where he was, he was actually alone in the middle of a desert. From what he can recall, he was on his way back to the main base until his vision went black.
He staggered suddenly, unsure what his injury was. It came as a surprise to Artemis who taught of himself as invincible. Magic had not damaged him in anyway and he was practically immune to most blows the people of the new world and nature could throw at him.
Yet he staggered.
He looked down and saw his legs. They were crippled with sparks coming from the cracks. It seemed like he landed hard. Which doesn't make any sense to him. Premelium was of course nearly invincible, could withstood something that surpass absolute heat but getting damage of fall damage which science doesn't have any explanation about it.
He then scanned his surroundings for any signs of a wreckage that may indicate they were somehow shotdown by something or someone.
There was none.
He was alone in the middle of nowhere. Running through his options, he tried to access his personal database and also tried to connect to the machine network. He could not.
He was somehow disconnected. It is a surprise and a troublesome revelation for Artemis to say the least.
He uttered no words and continued to do whatever he conceived to reestablish contact. He activates his core and sends out a strong signal into the sky. This signal could be detected by most of the detection instruments used by his machines but the time it would take for them to notice was long.
He should've upgrade more of his communication, he could control millions of drones back on earth but in here, the magic of this world somehow interfere something to his systems, resulting on reducing the range of his control of his androids.
In the event that he was somehow disconnected, the drones would enter a state of dormancy until he eventually returned. Caitlyn would assume command right after his connection is distorted and he would be reinstated once he found his way back.
In his mind, he knew that he was still in the new world judging by the two moons shining in the sky. In his personal databank, he recalled that there is a desert that stretched from the west of Atira, somewhere in the lands of Herldorion.
He went and checked his compass. He pointed out the direction to the east and set out.
If he was indeed in the middle of the desert of Hanhua, in the Herldorion's land, then his best bet should have been going east to reach the base. In his mind, however, Artemis feared that maybe they had been compromised and that their foes have retaken the Senadate Theocracy, or some part of it at least.
With his connection severed, he could not access any information or contact anyone.
"We should really invest in some other forms of communication that does not rely on the machine network, just in case," he said to himself as he staggered forth.
He continued on his journey east by using his thrusters and flew in less than half of its power, he has no choice because using full power of his thrusters will destroy the landscape.
He flew for 5 minutes but he began to notice something strange. The moons were not moving at all, instead they stayed in place even though he went Hypersonic speed and few minutes had passed already.
He checked again and the moons have really yet to move. They still shined from their original position when Artemis first woke up.
"Impossible," he uttered. He hovered down and looked up at the sky to further analyze it. He did not think that the sky would somehow become an abnormality yet he was faced with the reality that it may be so.
The sky was clear, sure a clear night sky was a perfectly normal occurence for the most part but when he checked his the atmosphere itself, his instruments failed to read it.
"Strange,"
His instruments continued to fail. They measured nothing, no atmospheric pressure, no composition, nothing. There weren't even detecting the wind even though Artemis could feel the breeze from the east. Now he finally realize the situation his in, which makes sense on how his premelium armor legs cracked.
"I'm trapped in a simulation of sort," he concluded. There was nothing else he could think of. His instruments were safe and sound inside him. A malfunction would compromise other systems yet he stood fine.
He then came up with an idea.
"Whoever or whatever you are, there is no use in taking up this facade that I am alone. Show yourself so we may converse," he announced into the nothingness. Sure enough, reality distorted in front of him.
A figure slowly appeared as reality stretched and disorted itself. When it finished, a beautiful blue woman with long, blue wavy hair with her feet a feet from the ground appeared.
She glared at Artemis with her blue eyes that glowed and dark blue pupils that made known to Artemis that she was not a fan of his.
"Metal demon, you sure are keen. I must give you credit for it," the woman announced in an ethereal voice that would make any normal man falter onto their knees.
But Artemis was no man.
"A blue woman. You are the blue goddess, am I correct?" Artemis said.
The blue goddess smiled and replied, "Yes, yes I am. And let me be blunt, I am here to end you,"
If Artemis could raise his left eyebrow, he would have already done so to show that he was not buying her bullshit.
"Blue Goddess, I am in no way shocked nor do I have any regrets with the actions I have undertaken thus far. But I do have a question for you," Artemis said, staring down the goddess.
"You may ask your question, I am Goddess, not a brute who will just ignore a formal request," the goddess replied.
"If you really wanted me dead, then why send humans?"
The Blue Goddess was taken back.
"So you know?" The blue goddess said.
"Your first move against me was when the Senadate Theocracy sent out the Papal Scripture. You used them as pawns, believing that you'd take care of us just by using them,"
The goddess was silent.
"I am correct. Your silence is my answer. You failed miserably and the Papal Scripture was all but eliminated"
The goddess then replied "There is a survivor,"
Artemis shook his head.
"Valentine is not a survivor. The Valentine you and the Pope knew was killed along with the rest, she has since been made anew. She is now nothing more than another one of mine. Well, seeing her fighting against these mercenaries, I was wondering myself of how she's not using her ice magic or sword that she was once faced me. Probably Caitlyn also did something to her, I don't really know and I really don't care,"
The goddess frowned and raised her hands, out of her palms came a raging blue fire that could melt the strongest metals in seconds.
"You are despicable and an abomination to this world," she said.
"Says the self proclaimed deity who failed to save hundred millions I have sent to the depths of the afterlife" Artemis retorted.
The Goddess was about to jump on Artemis when reality changed around him as well.
A chair appeared behind him and Artemis sat down. The goddess was shocked and withheld her attack.
"I have come to a conclusion as to why you chose to throw the lives of your believers instead of throwing yourself in. You could not do so yourself, well, that's a simple way of putting it actually...
...to start, you should have a seat too and so I gave you a seat as well,"
The goddess looked behind herself and there was indeed a chair behind her.
She reluctantly sat down, she did not expect her enemy to bend their reality as well.
"Now, to start, I would like to give my thanks. If it wasn't for you, I would not have known that deities existed or even if this place existed at all, you have my sincerest of thanks...
...you frown, of course you will. You came here thinking that you can finally end me. But I guess my mental fortitude was stronger than anticipated aye?
Stronger than yours at least..
This is my mind after all,"
"So you figured it out?" The goddess said. "This is the psychic dimension. A dimension that exists in every living thing that has a consciousness. This is where you'll see what is inside the persona of a person. The fears, the secrets, the horrors. Even their soul itself,"
Artemis smirked.
"When I woke, I did not know any of that. Now I do, you failed to take in account that I am adaptable. I adapt and I learn faster than any normal human can. I know this is a dimension inside my mind, my human mind. A place where we all go to when we rest.
...Our dreams"
The goddess squinted her eyes.
"This... barren desert. You yourself would be surprised to see this desolate landscape,"
The goddess then stood from her chair and yelled.
"It is because you are a murderer! You killed your own world and now you wish to kill this one. I am here to stop you, I am here to end you!"
Artemis raised his hand and gestured her to sit.
The goddess sat down, her flames bigger than ever.
"It was rude of you to assume that I killed off my own world, my own home, accusing someone who didn't commited it. I don't know who told you or you heard about it, and I don't care what you even think...
So you can understand, shall we start from the very beginning?"
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