"Aaaah! Why did I listen to you..." Segato shrieked at the top of his lungs as the train only proceeded to rapidly gain speed while it continued to freely toss and turn. He had boarded the train per Hubris's advice, but if he knew this would happen, he may have genuinely considered dealing with the ghosts to be the safer option.
"This is within expected results, to be honest," Hubris commented.
"I kind of hate you right now for not giving me a heads up about this experience, but I hate whoever is operating this train more," Segato growled as he still tried to gather his footing (and failed). He bounced around several times before crashing into the ground once more. It felt as if the train was toying with him.
"This train doesn't have a driver and is also beyond the script's touch, actually," Hubris clarified while he pointed at the ceiling. Segato eventually gave up on trying to stand and laid down on his back on the red and yellow carpet in the aisle. Despite his blatant anger and dismay displayed on his face, he still nodded for Hubris to continue speaking.
"When trying to quickly get to other places in space-time, Origin would often use this ghost train. He called it 'The Subspace Subway.' It is considered to be a special-class Reaper that transports beings to the afterlife. Only those amongst the living who 'kill more people than there are people to be killed' can ride it. Although they go by another name... are you still listening?" Hubris stopped talking after he saw Segato groan.
So essentially I could only ride it because my soul is currently outside of my body, Segato thought. Still doesn't answer where it is taking me-- The train suddenly came to a halt, which resulted in Segato being thrown face first into the back of one of the seats. Guh!
"It's very hard not to laugh at you right now--" Hubris started to say while giggling.
"You could at least try!" Segato cut him off mid-speech. "On a side note, where are we, anyway?"
"It's seems the train brought you to observe someone or some event," Hubris spoke. "The train always takes you to someone or something you need to encounter to find your way in life, even if you yourself can't identify what or who that would be."
"It sounds like an automated search engine," Segato commented while he shrugged.
Leave it to the successor of the one who commissioned this train's inital construction to hunt down beings like Fate and Destiny to disrespect it by comparing it to a lowly robot, Hubris thought as he loudly sighed.
"What, did I say something strange?" Segato asked. Hubris decided to not entertain that question and silently gestured to Segato to look outside through one of the windows.
"Surround the bastard! Don't let him get away!" A man wearing a black robe, hood, and mask with a purple headband above his forehead angrily shouted. He was with 30 similarly dressed men, and they surrounded what looked like a child.
Are they ninjas? And why are they surrounding a kid? Segato questioned Hubris.
"Just be quiet and watch," Hubris snapped. "I have a feeling that is not who he appears to be." The man's orange hair was in a bob cut with an ahoge sticking out from the center, as if to resemble an orange light bulb. His exhausted eyelids opened to reveal blood red irises. What threw Segato off the most was the unexpectedly deep and condescending voice that came out of the man's mouth.
"I'll give you lot to the count of 10. Vacate the premises, or I'll send you to hell."
The ninjas laughed, and I could tell that their fates were already sealed the moment they chose such an action.
I feel like I'm missing something here, Hubris. What make you so sure that this guy can handle these ninjas?
It was a simple answer: the being in front of them was not of this timeline. The being grinned briefly before he held his hand out to his side. The air twisted and formed the shape of a spear.
"You were warned," he reminded everyone right before he tossed the spear at a fast speed. It immediately impaled the ninja it was hurled toward, but it didn't stop there. It continued to pierce and subsequently dismember each ninja, as if it was homing on them. Only the first ninja who spoke earlier had enough time to block the spear with his short sword. The spear dissipated, but left the sword severely cracked.
"Call for more reinforcements! Surround the Human Monster!" the ninja yelped as he leapt away. The orange-haired being held his hands out and formed a bow and arrow out of the air this time. He quickly fired it and the man exploded upon impact. The reinforcements still showed up, but the scene they were greeted to made them all be on guard.
"You mortals never learn," the orange-haired man cruelly stated in his deep voice. "If you truly knew what you were up against, you'd be trying to kill your Deities instead of facing me."
What the hell? He's not at the same level as Hooligan, but he's definitely strong! Segato exclaimed in his mind.
"The Subspace Subway brings its passengers without fail to the destinations they want to visit," Hubris pointed out. "This man is from the previous era. You wanted to know what the Era Before Deities was like. There was a species of humankind that all species, including what would later become the predecessors for Deities, feared. They were also the ones who used this train, and Origin was no exception. They are called Human Monsters..."
So this is what you meant by them killing more people than there are people to be killed...
"Yeah, it's because they exist out of time itself once they reach this level. There's another stop the train will probably take us to before we head back. Be prepared," Hubris warned Segato.
What are the odds I'll have to fight that guy during the Potato Wars? Segato groaned as he begun to worry.
"I doubt you'll have to worry about that," the orange-haired man responded next to Segato's ear. Segato quickly jumped back.
"What the hell! How did you get right next to me when we were just looking at you?" Segato screeched.
"I am, or rather was, a professional killer. Erasing my presence while using the warp speed technique is normal back in my day. Don't you mortals have something similar like wind steps or something?" The man spoke as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
That's not natural at all! He would have to be moving almost as fast as Speedrun! Segato cried out in his mind. Hubris decided to ignore Segato and wait for the man to continue.
"As you said, the Subspace Subway brings people together for a reason. Introductions come first. The name's Sparrow De Aroné. I am one of the qualified Reapers of Life for this train. That's all you need to know about me for now if you don't recognize me... aside from one other thing. Escort me to the Potato Wars. In return, I can help you reach new heights with your training and activate that 'oh-so-interesting' Ordinance of yours."
"I need to know how you know about my situation so well before I can trust you. A lot of people are known for backstabbing me in the past..." Segato's voice trailed off when Hubris held his hand up as if signaling to stop talking.
"... It's been a long while, Mood Killer," Hubris greeted Sparrow with a bow. "They say everyone from the original timeline died, but I am not surprised that you've survived somehow."
"You could stop treating me like a stranger, then, Seiga Evol. I've been wandering the various universes searching for familiar souls. You're the second survivor I found."
"Second? Who did you encounter--"
"Ahem. How long before you guys remember I am in the room!?" Segato growled.
"We never forgot you were here, Segato," Hubris remarked. "In any case, it'd be good for you to accept Sparrow's proposal. On the way back, could you fill in Segato and myself on what you've been up to, Sparrow?"
"It'll be a long story. Thankfully, time flows by a little slower when you are in the Spirit World. Let's start with what happened right before the Great Collapse..."
"Unlike most people at this time, I was busy subjugating the Divine Ones. They are the beings who claim dominion over the various existences that make up the Omniverse. Per Segato's request, I was to avoid fighting them in public areas--"
"Call the Segato in your story Origin so this remains less confusing for everyone. I am pretty sure the person you took orders from wasn't me, after all," Segato interrupted. Sparrow turned to Segato with his head tilted.
"It's a thing. Similar to why he calls me Hubris," Hubris added while he shrugged.
"I don't think it matters much, but sure," Sparrow grumbled as he held his forehead with his right hand in annoyance. "Now where was I..."
"--per Origin's request, I was to avoid fighting them in public areas. So I devised a plan to lure them all out of their various homes and hideouts using a certain somebody's Arbiter Weapon as bait. The plan worked very well. I was getting ready to launch an exceptionally powerful skill of mine to destroy the universe and the Divine Ones with it. Unfortunately, the universe started to get swallowed up into a black hole of sorts by the time my skill was ready. My trap went off very early and pierced whoever was at the center of this phenomenon. The being in question fled. It was only a month or so later that the Great Collapse plan Origin made was put into action."
"Going off of this, you unintentionally hit EOAT with your trap. This explains why the Divine Ones eventually evolved into the first official Deities. They never actually got hit and had time to flee. It is evident that this event has nothing to do with the changes in the space-time continuum, though," Hubris pointed out.
Segato sighed, then nodded his head while he said, "At least you survived. We also can debunk that Origin is responsible for the Great Collapse with your testimony. He couldn't have caused it and have the showdown with EOAT at the same time. We should meet up with Ezrah and compare stories."
"The Armory Gangster survived? How amusing," Sparrow spoke while he held his chin in astonishment.
Hubris frowned while he replied, "Not exactly. It'll become apparent once you meet him."
"So if you're as old as you claim, how come you look the same?" Segato questioned.
"Did somebody not teach you what a Clockwork Child is yet?" Sparrow groaned. "Clockwork Children never age."
"You guys are supposed to be rare to encounter. That's the general gist of what anyone's told me outside of you guys being strong," Segato stated. This made Hubris shake his head.
"Layla is going to kill you if she finds out you've already forgotten about this," Hubris warned. Segato gulped in response.
"I am curious about this new Flipside. Please tell me more as we travel," Sparrow spoke as his eyes sparkled.
"Like you said earlier, we have time," Hubris agreed. He then turned to face Segato. "I'll let you do the honors. It'll be more entertaining for it to come from you."