The sound of battle was echoing throughout the streets. Jen and Fam were pretty much even. Jen would brush aside Fam's punches if she couldn't duck or dodge them. There were times she had to take a hit, but she retaliated back. Fam also did the same. Brushing aside Jen's punches if he couldn't duck or dodge them. Even he ended up taking hits at times. Both of them were going back and forth. Kicks, punches, even headbutts. Jen knew no fear, and Fam was steadily impressed by her tenacity; however, Jen became tired. She was only human, after all, albeit a human with some kind of supernatural power.
Boss, on the other hand, was still toying with Avarice. Sure, she had increased her speed, but it seemed Rose was still capable of deflecting her attacks. Whenever she did, there was a small window of time where she was open to attacks, and Boss always followed up perfectly. This was largely due to the Seed Power: Link that Rose was using. Avarice stumbled back with a groan and put her hand to her stomach. "Some kind of gentleman you are...." Avarice spat with venom, but Boss just smirked and gave her a 'come on' signal with his hands. Avarice dashed towards Boss, but instead of going for a lethal strike, she would slip past him and change her target for Rose.
After all, her original plan was to take out Rose. Rose and Avarice clashed dagger to blade multiple times. Avarice would slash a few times, then swiftly move into Rose's blindspot, which would make Rose have to turn her body to deflect Avarice's attacks. Avarice would follow up with more slashes and a few thrusts before repeating the process over and over. She was dancing all around Rose, unleashing a barrage of attacks that Rose was doing her best to defend against.
Boss charged at Avarice. Sure the speed at which the woman was moving was pretty much invisible. Avarice was nothing more than a blur to him, but he had seen Rose shift on her heel more than enough times to realize what Avarice was after. He reached out his hand, and there he caught Avarice, who was at Rose's backside. Since there wasn't anything to keep a firm grasp on, Boss quickly pulled Avarice back by the shoulder while sweeping her off her feet by kicking her legs up. Avarice wasn't expecting a mere human to be capable of stopping her, let alone take hold of her, so she was completely unaware of what just happened.
Then she felt an immense amount of pain in her chest. Her body cratered into the ground, and there Boss stood with his fist hanging over her body. She coughed out blood all over the inside of her visor, which caused her to growl. "Scerw this. Fuck the orders. These people are clearly not Grade 1 or 2." Avarice would shout before her body started to shimmer and disappear from view. She was still lying on the ground, but her body had become invisible. She would roll over and get up only to dash towards Boss.
Boss was surprised to see the woman had disappeared. He looked around but saw nothing. "Watch out!" Rose's voice called out to Boss. Shortly after, a spark of light ignited just beside Boss' head. Rose managed to deflect Ava's blade. The moment Avarice started to disappear, Rose used her Seed Power: Sixth Sense. She was capable of seeing all the auras around her and saw that Avarice was getting up. The woman didn't teleport anything. Instead, she went invisible! Rose then saw Ava's aura charge Boss, and instantly she knew what was going on. She used her Spatial Slash to deflect Ava's attack once again.
Avarice would grit her teeth in silence. She was right the first time. She needed to take out Rose if she wanted to kill the man. Since she was invisible, she felt that she would be able to manage it this time around. She dashed towards Rose and started the onslaught of attacks just like before; however, Rose was having a harder time dealing with the attacks this time around. She wasn't used to prolonged battles like this. Her stamina was fairly low for a hitwoman. If she was a normal woman, then her stamina would probably be average or decent at best. But, Rose wasn't normal. Boss couldn't get a read on Avarice, unlike last time either, so there wasn't much he could do.
There was no blur. Instead, it was looked like Rose was finding off against thin air, but Boss knew something was up. The thing that annoyed him the most right now was how little he could do. His Seed Power was Armor Break. It wasn't anything like how it sounded. It allowed him to bypass Armor, Shields, and even Walls to hit whatever was inside. This was why he was able to damage Avarice. His Seed Power even boosted his inner strength a bit, which allowed him to maintain composure even though he had pretty much punched Avarice's NS armor which could withstand explosions.
Fam noticed Avarice wasn't playing around anymore. He frowned inside of his visor. "I guess playtime is over. I was having fun... pity." Fam would release a soft sigh. The core of his armor began to glow brightly. Fam would stomp on the ground, which caused Jen to stumble a bit; he would then slid against Jen with his forearm and shoulder, shoulder bashing Jen to knock her off her feet. A shockwave of force could be seen coming out around his body. Jen would grit her teeth and brought her arms across her body in a cross formation. She couldn't dodge in mid-air, and it seemed like Fam wasn't done. She was correct in that thought. Fam had pushed off his heel and approached Jen in a blink of an eye. He would stomp his foot on the ground once again while bringing one arm forward, aiming for Jen with an open palm. His other fist was balled up and was slowly being brought to his core to build up energy. Then, a loud BOOM could be heard within a blink of an eye, a shockwave pulsated from them, and Jen was sent flying away.
The power level wasn't on par with Ire, but it seemed strong enough as it was since it created a shockwave. Fam was standing there with his arm and fist straight out. The palm he had opened for aiming and steadying his balance was brought back to his core. Shortly after steam would release from Fam's entire body, the bright core slowly returned to its normal opacity. Fam would stand up and look over at Jen, who had managed to get back onto her feet. Fam's brow rose curiously. Jen didn't look to have any broken bones, and if anything, Jen seemed to be able to bear the pain.
Jen's Seed Power was known as Unbreakable Force. When she activated her Seed Power, her bones became so dense that they would never break. Her muscles were strengthened well beyond that of a normal human, so much so that she could probably lift an entire tank with one hand if she wanted to. She wouldn't even break a sweat doing it either. However, she could still feel the pain, and the more she fought with her Seed Power activated, the easier she would tire. "You'll have to kill me if you want me to stay down." Jen would spit out some blood from her mouth and wipe the blood from her forehead. Boss had looked to see if Jen was okay, and in his opinion, she wasn't. Neither was Rose.
Boss knew that if this battle continued any longer, they would lose. He looked towards April and noticed she was out of it. April was just staring at the ground in front of Don. She was no longer sobbing but instead seemed to have just shut down completely. Boss would shift his glance towards Don, and a smirk would curve across his lips after a moment. "I guess we'll be joining you soon, bud." Boss would remark.
Meanwhile, their battle was going on; two people sat in an empty white room. There was no ground or sky. Only two types of setting arrangements. A large beanbag and a wooden chair. Sitting in the beanbag was a pale boy with short platinum hair and sky blue eyes. The boy had some kind of handheld in his hand, which he had been looking over with faint interest. Sitting in the wooden chair was a man. From the looks of it, that man was Don. Don would slowly open his eyes and lift his head. "Whaa..." Don would murmur. The sound of movement and a voice drew the boy's attention, and he looked up from the handheld. "Welcome back, Donathan." The boy would greet Don with a smile. Don would groggily look around. Then, seeing nothing but pure white emptiness, Don would turn his attention towards the voice and saw the boy. "Where am I?" Don asked, although his voice came out weak as if he was sleepy.
"Nowhere." The boy replied.
"Nowhere?" Don asked in return. He didn't quite understand what that meant. He also felt exasperated and sleepy. It looked as if, at any minute, he would pass out.
"Just that. This Place is Nowhere. If anything, you could call it the realm of the between." The boy would explain, but Don still didn't seem to understand.
"Hmm... let's put it this way. You are dead. Your soul is currently on its way to the spiritual world where your fate will be decided." The boy would explain.
"I'm dead, eh? Well... Go figure..." Don would mutter, "What about my fate being decided?" Don asked.
"To put in human terms. You will either go to heaven or hell." The boy would reply, and Don would fall silent.
"Actually, you shouldn't even be awake right now. Just the fact that you can communicate right now is quite interesting. The Collector would have a field day with you if she saw you. I never expected you to come to me of your own volition either." The boy would remark to break the silence, and Don looked up from the ground to the boy with a sleepy expression.
"What do you mean? I shouldn't be able to communicate with you? What do you mean you never expected me to come to you? You didn't bring me here?" Don asked several questions, albeit they came out sluggish.
"Well, your body is pretty much dead." The boy would comment while tapping against his head. "The primary function of any physical body is the brain. If it dies, then the body is pretty much dead. You will not function properly. Since your body is dead, you shouldn't even be capable of communicating with me, let alone having any rational thought. So I can assume it has something to do with your Seed." The boy would explain.
"Which leads to your next two questions. No. I did not bring you here. Unlike the first time we met, you came here of your own volition this time. It probably has to do with your Seed. Yours is far more unique than the others. Your Seed hosts two properties instead of one. Although I guess after the first rewind, you forgot all about it." The boy would put down the handheld and look at Don fully.
"Your Seed is both Time and Space." The boy would remark.
Don's brow rose slowly. He didn't get what was going on. It made sense that his body was dead. He pretty much figured that out, but what did his Seed have to do with any of this? Time and Space? Plus, what did the boy mean by the first rewind?
The boy would see Don was looking for answers, and a devious smirk curved across his lips. "Technically, I am not supposed to tell you. It is against the rules because telling you could cause a major paradox. Buuuut... Rules are boring, and I want something interesting to happen. So far, watching you mortals struggle has been my only entertainment. When I brought you over to this world, I felt something was different about you. Sure there were plenty of men who killed, and sure there were others who tried to protect their friends, but you weren't like them. You didn't kill for the enjoyment, and you only protected those close to you. You never betrayed them once and even shouldered all of the burdens, yet you never broke. That was until she died." The boy had to stop himself from saying any more. He had this tone of fancy and fascination when he spoke of Don, but he didn't want to reveal too much yet.
The boy would clear his throat.
"Anyway. The first rewind referred to when you made an interesting decision. Instead of going home, you made the wish to return back in time. Your Seed Power was Time. You could slow the flow of everything around you but not completely halt it. You could even accelerate your own flow of time. It was interesting watching you use your Seed Power, but you could never go back in time. No matter how much you tried or wanted to. So when lived out your first year, and obtained your wish. You wished to go back in time. That was the first rewind. When I heard your wish, I summoned you here. Sure, other mortals wanted to stay on that planet by gaining more power, riches, or pleasures, but... you are the first and only mortal to ever wish to go back in time. It interested me so much so that I found myself solely watching you. No other mortal was as interesting as you. The actions you took each time you went back were always interesting. Never once did you do the same thing. It fascinated me, and even now, I am just as fascinated that you have managed to make it here on your own. You the first and only mortal to be able to make it here. I honestly believe I should reward you. So tell me, what is it you want?" The boy's lips curved into a wide grin. His eyes sparkled with pure fascination like none other. He couldn't wait to hear what Don had to say. Would Don ask to go back in time again? Or would he ask to go to an alternative world? Maybe Don would ask him to save his friends. There were plenty of thoughts that went through his mind right now.
Don had to take a moment to process everything, and as he did, memories slowly began to flood his mind. Memories that he knew nothing of. Memories he had never even experienced. They were of various life-times. Many of which he saw people he knew die, and some he didn't even know. Although, what Don took from each memory the most was that he was the sole survivor. No one managed to make it out alive. Everyone died... even April. Reliving these memories that were being forced into his soul was will-breaking, and yet...
Don would look up from the ground. He no longer had a groggy look from before. Instead, his eyes were open, but they had a look that wasn't normal. It looked as if he had plunged himself even further into the Abyss, so far that no one would be able to bring him back... not even April.
"It seems like you knew what I wanted answers to, but you forgot one more thing. My Seed. You said it was both Time and Space but have yet to tell me anything about the Space part." Don would remark. If the boy could grin any wider, he would. "Of course! But, do I need to tell you? I can tell you seemed to have recalled everything. Several lifetime's worths of memories shouldn't be possible for one soul to handle, yet here you are. Nevertheless, you should be able to recall why." The boy would remark.
Don took a moment to recall why his Seed was unique. "Because I tried to travel to another timeline..." Don would remark, and the boy would nod.
"Correct. You created a Paradox of your own which caused your Seed to mutate and have two properties instead of one." The boy would finish while rocking back and forth excitedly.
"So tell me, Don, what do you want? What do you wish? For making it here all on your own, I want to reward you." The boy would remark once more.
Don didn't need to think about this. He no longer had questions for the boy either. All the memories he recalled was more than enough for answer any further questions. Only one thing came to mind. One desire. One wish. One reward.
"Resurrect me."