10:25 pm: Marie Barron enters the Castle.
The doors slammed open, revealing the shape of her body standing on the border. She glimpsed back to spot the ongoing battle between her brother and his friends, counting herself lucky he was strong enough to stall them. The boxer put her hand to her earpiece and cleared her throat.
"Anyone who's hearing this transmission positioned within the castle, you know your mission. Make your way to the bottom to obtain access to Nullspace through the gate down below. Slaughter only the knights and do not retreat without having accomplished your mission. For the sake of a better tomorrow, advance!"
That was when Talen stopped. One second ago, everything was quiet—but now, numerous unique Fate signatures were shuffling throughout the castle. Despite the limitless number of bodies he sensed, it was undeniable their hunch was now confirmed.
'Looks like I was right.' He steadily marched downstairs. 'Those signatures must belong to the hundreds of Syndicate assassins Uriel brought along for this mission. But there's one thing I don't understand. The Syndicate's members range in the hundreds-thousands and with his aura trait, he could make them all obey without even lifting a finger. So, I don't get it. What am I missing..? Why does he need an army of Violators?'
The instant Talen reached the bottom of the stairs, his hand raised. His gaze didn't falter—still aimed ahead at the real fist soaring toward his open face.
Once her knuckles grazed his aura, an automatic hit scraped her nose and cheeks, sending her flying into the wall. Wiping the blood from her nose, Marie stood straight before aiming her fists ahead. Talen strolled along the front of the stairway, beginning to pace around the white-haired boxer.
"You're Marie. Uri's little sister. What do you gain from fighting beside him?" he asked.
Her nostrils flared. "Are you seriously asking me that? At least I'm loyal to him!"
"Excuse me?"
"Excuse you nothing! He told me what happened when he did what he did and how he reacted. If you were his best friend, you'd have stood by him despite everything! It isn't like he slaughtered innocents or anything, you know that! So why?! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO LET HIM DIE?!"
The embers of Fate ignited his arms. Guiding his Power's embodiment across his body from the chest, the lawyer was engulfed by a raging fire that charred everything around him. But Marie wasn't worried. If this was all the prestigious Talen Amit had to show for his legendary Unconquerable technique, she could undeniably surpass him.
The lawyer spun into the air, lowering his leg straight into Marie's crown.
'Last time I struck his aura, an automatic attack hit me.'
Marie sidestepped away, spotting Talen's heel dig into the concrete to crack the ground below. Talen's advance steadily mimicked the aura around him; a true master in the game of Fate. The lawyer's hand raised.
"Our difference in power is astronomical, Marie. If you think you're gonna be able to beat me, you're sorely mistaken. Tell me what Uriel's planning and I won't kill you."
"You don't have the guts."
"Try me."
Talen dashed toward her. Instantly, he punched her in the gut, grabbed her by the chin, and slammed her to the ground. Marie rolled away, summoning the pen between her fingers. Once again, the lawyer was much quicker—swatting it from her hand before chopping her straight in the throat.
Marie grabbed her neck, trying to retreat. He kicked her across the face, watching her spin onto the floor with a new bloody lip. He knelt over her and dangled his fist over her features—but despite the threat of pain awaiting her, the banished princess continued struggling. Nevertheless, something stopped him.
He could've easily punched through her skull without any issue. But, how could he ever? When unfortunate circumstances arise, he's forced to remember simpler times in the past. When she was simply the annoying little sister of his best friend. That's all that could flash through his head.
Unable to reconcile the difference between thought and reality, Talen backed away. Marie sat up, wiping her nose with shimmering eyes.
"What's happening?" she questioned. "Why'd you stop?"
He looked at his bloody knuckles, beginning to stumble into the wall he'd thrown into earlier. Gradually, he slid down the length until his bottom hit the floor.
"Your brother was the difference I needed in my life to make things better. In the past, I was so rough and ignorant; I couldn't understand anything bigger than myself. And though it took some time, with Uriel, I always felt the most comfortable. He, Alora, Anthony, and I. Even my ex too. I blamed myself every day for not doing more, for not understanding. I failed him. And, by not doing better, I failed you too, Marie."
Talen gazed with tearful eyes.
"I'm sorry."
Marie looked away and hitched her breath. After a while, she shakily inhaled. Pushing herself straight, she stood up tall and walked toward Talen.
She looked down at him. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have insulted you, you haven't done anything wrong. Our father is the one to blame."
"What? Why?" he asked.
Marie sighed. "After we thought Uri died, I was exiled royally and scavenged to survive in the kingdom. A few days ago, he reached out to me to tell me he was alive and with that, new plans. He covets the Crown, not for himself, but a revolution. There's no way the King would ever relinquish the Crown and the throne so we'll do it by force. We'll create a new world under his rule. That's the end, my brother, longs for. A world without chaos—without monsters."
Talen chuckled. "Monsters, huh?" he shrugged. "Then why attempt a jailbreak?"
His voice halted her once she started walking away. "Sometimes, the ends justify the means. To defeat monsters… you have to become one. See you, Talen Amit." She vanished into the shadows of the castle.
After enough time passed following their short-lived spat, the lawyer stood after wiping his bloody knuckles dry. Memories of the past upon remembering their conversation and the image of her face just minutes prior came flooding in—so much so he felt that the only thing he could do was break down and cry. But, he was stronger than that.
He withheld the urge with a shaky inhalation, looking down the same corridor Marie had vanished into. He still had a mission to complete. After all, Talen Amit couldn't be bound by this; he was so much stronger than petty human emotions. Removing the hand from his arm, his eyes closed, lips venting a long sigh.
'I need to keep moving.'
Back outside, Alora slashed Uriel's face. His head threw back, barely dodging the stroke by one lone hair. Spotting Anthony fall from the sky, he instantly flipped back once the vessel decimated the ground with his fist. Sliding back onto his feet, the Prince watched as Anthony stood with idle arms.
The aura enveloping him moved autonomously while he began solely advancing; discharging missile-like projectiles at Uriel's defense. Efficiently dispersing them with one slap—Tony had closed the distance. The more punches he threw, the more predictable they were to dodge. Nevertheless, the gift of foresight didn't weaken the overwhelming Fate imbued into each of his repetitive strikes.
Uriel grabbed his fist and punched him in the gut. Anthony was unwavering; chopping his opponent in the throat and then kicking him right in the chest. The Prince soared, rolling across the ground with his hand dragging below him. Once regaining his composure, a maniacal laugh burst from his throat.
Anthony spotted a multitude of golden portals infecting the concrete ground, watching yellow spears shoot from the gateways while he dodged in mid-air.
Despite the limitless spears piercing the air, he found an opening.
Tony's Power, Effect of Disgust, must fulfill a quantity of four conditions before technique activation is acquired. However, that only goes for human targets. Using the shockwave on inanimate objects and inorganic beings was effective, but it was nothing compared to the destructive capabilities when grazing a human.
One of the conditions required for technique activation was looking straight into Anthony's damaged eye socket. Uriel unknowingly fulfilled that condition when he battled Tony at close-range moments prior.
When the Effect of Disgust is less than 100 meters away from the human target, not only is the range widened but the destruction is heightened. This means, that as long as Anthony stood this far away from his enemy, the technique's hit would be an instant kill.
"Bang."
The decimation was unparalleled. Once Alora lowered her arm and returned her gaze to the ground ahead, she sighed. All that was left for almost a mile between them was debris and the rumbling castle. Talen almost fell over while inside; instead stabilizing himself against a wall before eventually standing upright again.
'What the hell was that? Anthony's technique? Who exactly are they fighting…?'
He turned the corner while shaking his head.
'Doesn't matter. If what Marie said is true, then there's only one thing stopping Uriel from enacting this revolution. And without question that's—'
The elevator dinged to reveal her dark-skinned face. Standing amid dead bodies, the Syndicate assassins looked at Marie and saluted at her arrival. Carefully stepping over the numerous corpses, the boxer walked to the end of the corridor—blocked by a wide metal door.
The shape of her Fate manifested around her. With her technique's quiet activation appeared the trusty pen right between her fingers to which she began writing on space.
"Whatever guards the Gate to Nullspace will vanish."
On command, the remaining doors, Displacements, and knights disappeared. No sign of their existence remained, there was only the long hallway before them with the glowing Gate to Nullspace Penitentiary right at the end.
While Marie and the Syndicate marched to the Gate, Talen exited an elevator on the castle's tenth floor. Remembering the extravagant halls of the inner palace would prove difficult for anyone other than the genius lawyer simply walking out the elevator after adjusting his tie and turning the corner. At the end of the hall stood a locked door with a nameplate plastered over the entrance reading "Inmate Records."
'Bingo.'
Talen reached the hall's end and warped through the door, towered by multiple cabinets sorted alphabetically. He scoffed. Time was fleeting. To enact this war, Uriel required one obstacle to vanish. And throughout the history of Fate, he could only think of a single man capable of vanquishing that roadblock. His fingers lingered on the 'A' cupboard, flicking out the file he sought. Opening the folder would reveal that name, rivaled only by the Disastrous Monstrum in the chaos it would sow.
Apollo Moloch. Predestined Power: Eternal Constellations. Type: Theft.
'I knew it. The only one stronger than me in this era besides the King is that wretched Father of mine. Apollo's mastery is the only ability capable of rivaling Dad's original Unconquerable technique. Now that I've confirmed that...'
The lawyer's emerald gaze trailed down, noting the numerous signatures loitering below the Castle. Releasing Apollo's document from his hand, he steadily hovered both palms above each other--before clapping them together to activate the marks he'd already placed.
Just when they were seconds away from reaching the Gate, the Syndicate assassins abruptly keeled over; a newly-made hole burnt through all their chests. Marie's wide-eyed build instinctively stepped back, searching for breath through uncontrollable gasps. The subconscious urge to flee led her to begin stepping back--stumbling back into the wall that was the Unconquerable's impregnable chest.
His hand on her shoulder was followed by the familiar sounds of his menacing intonation for vocals.
"Did you think I'd let you flee so easily? I already knew they'd infiltrated before you even entered. A curse was lingering on you. A curse that only killed the surrounding individuals until only you remained. I'm sure you know the condition for such a technique is simple--the curse doesn't kill the person it's placed upon. Thanks for your help but... it's time for you to sleep."
Talen's palm raised, preparing to knock her out with one chop. Then, another familiar voice stopped him. One raspier than he remembered, yet it was undeniable.
"Hey!"
The lawyer and boxer turned around completely. Standing at the corridor's end with white ponytailed hair and a smug smirk accompanying that angelic appearance was none other than him. His dead best friend, Uriel Barron, lay bare before his very eyes.
"It's been a while."
Trivia: King Barron was only born 70 years ago from the present. It's been said he was given the fist name 'Divine' because his parents sensed his aura's greatness and his capacity to become almighty. However, more remains. How did he obtain Fate's Crown? How did he rise to become Barronia's King? And more importantly, how does the Amit Family relate to the Barrons? Perhaps more information will be released shortly.