"Ack!" Shidou raised his arms, both to shield his eyes from the afternoon sun and to raise up a wall of icicles to deflect the blade flying towards him. I can do this, I can do this-
"Still too slow." Kyo's eyes blazed with pale violet light as he easily blitzed through the ice, smashing the flat of his blade into Shidou's side with crushing strength and sending the boy flying into a tree. "But I guess it was better than that attempt you threw at me last week," he added grudgingly.
"I… cough, worked hard to achieve this!" Shidou slowly stood up, pain emanating from his side as a flickering ethereal flame burst to life over his ribs. "Not just me, but Yoshino, too!"
"Oh… is that so." Kyo gave him a long look. "How's the kid doing nowadays?"
"Eh?" Shidou paused his struggles. "I think she's doing fine… she seemed really happy while teaching me how to use [Zadkiel], even if her explanation was a little hard to understand…"
A voice suddenly buzzed in his earpiece. "Does he actually care about Yoshino, or was there some other intent behind that question?" Kotori mused in his ear. "Ugh, if the Fraxinus could get a reading on his mood, it would be so much easie-"
SHRK-
Shidou jumped as Kyo's sheathed blade slammed into the ground before him, raising up a small cloud of dust. "So you got her to help out, huh? Tell me, was it Yoshino instructing you, or the puppet on her hand?"
"Well, I guess it ended up mostly being Yoshinon- whoa!" Shidou scrambled backwards, narrowly avoiding another swipe of Kyo's sword.
"Is that so?" He sighed, letting his arms drop to his sides limply. "Tch. Figures."
I'm guessing he isn't happy with my answer, then… "Do you have something against Yoshinon?" Shidou ventured. "Even though you were the one who made that harness for her?"
"Are you joking? I- ugh, it doesn't matter. What matters is that the kid gets her happiness, and if that means living in delusion, then so be it." Kyo's eyes blazed. "But I won't make that exception for you. So, stand back up."
"Don't push yourself, Shidou," Kotori warned. "Remember yesterday? You collapsed after only using [Zadkiel] six times. If you feel like your body can't handle it anymore, tell me, and I'll pull you out, no matter what Kyo says."
"Urk…" Shidou clenched his fist. I can't give up now. "I'll be fine. Come at me- AUGH!"
Kyo's oncoming slash sent him flying backwards through the air once again.
————————I am the dividing line that skips time————————
Pain. A cold, excruciating pain that was so chilling, it burned. Shidou could barely feel his limbs as he struggled to breathe, his ears barely picking up the sound of footsteps heading toward his fallen figure. Small embers flickered to life all over his body momentarily before fading away, having accomplished seemingly nothing.
"Oi. You've reached your limit already? It's only been twenty minutes, man. How're you supposed to do anything like this?" Kyo mocked, poking at his splayed-out arms with the tip of his sword sheath.
"I- cough, cough!" Shidou struggled to finish his sentence. Even my tongue feels numb.
"Shidou. Shidou! What's wrong?" Kotori asked from his ear. "Fraxinus is showing that your vitals are suddenly plummeting! Hey, Shidou! Answer me!"
"Augh…" Shidou groaned, his body shivering involuntarily. It's so… cold…
"What the fudge is up with you?" Kyo leaned down, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
"Shidou! We're retrieving you now! Hold on!" Kotori shouted, various sounds of panic coming from behind her.
But the boy in question was already unconscious.
—————I am the dividing line that shifts time and perspective—————
"What the hell did you do?!" Kotori yelled furiously, attempting to grab Kyo by the collar with tightly balled-up fists. "What did you do to my big brother?"
"Wouldn't you love to know," Kyo grumbled, slapping her hands away. "As far as I'm concerned, Shidou's powers only stop working if the Spirit he sealed retakes them."
"You- you're accusing me for this?!" She screeched, tears already beginning to form in her now-glowing eyes. "You think I did this?!"
"Calm it, Commander," Kyo scoffed. "I can already feel the room heating up. And besides, I know I didn't do anything other than slap him around a bit."
"YOU-"
"Now, now." Reine slowly walked into the Fraxinus' medical bay, holding a pile of files. "If you need to fight, do it somewhere else. Shin needs his rest."
"...tch!" Kotori gave one last glare before storming off. In the distance, Kannazuki's joyful yelp echoed off the walls.
Ugh. Fudging creep. Kyo shivered before turning to Reine, who had set her stack of files to the side and sat down next to Shidou's bed, softly caressing the unconscious boy's hair. "So, Reine. Wanna explain?"
"...explain what?" Reine kept her gaze on Shidou.
BZZZT-
Kyo sent a bolt of lightning at the camera in the corner of the room, silently confirming that its operating systems were entirely fried before continuing to speak.
"Oh, I dunno. Maybe your lackluster ability to properly grant powers," he snarked, leaning against a nearby wall. "Wasn't your entire plan to slowly grant him power by letting him seal Spirits one by one? So why exactly are his abilities so half-baked that he falls over whenever he so much as makes a cold breeze?"
Reine stopped petting Shidou and looked up at Kyo, her eyes suddenly hardening. "You… really know a lot, don't you?"
His eyes met hers with equal intensity. "I didn't lie, Takamiya Mio."
A period of silence passed before Reine responded.
"...the circuit isn't complete," she finally said, turning back to Shidou. "When Shin seals a Spirit, he creates a Path that circulates Reiryoku between him and the Sephira Crystal. But before he forms a connection with at least five Sephira, the Paths will always be unstable."
"..." Kyo massaged his temples. "And you couldn't have made that number, say, three? I hear that three is a magic number."
"Five was the lowest I could make it." Reine shook her head. "I made a mistake in allowing Shin to continue practicing with [Zadkiel]."
"And what, you think letting him just run around with a defective healing factor would do better for his chances of survival?" Kyo snorted. "What was up with that, anyway?"
"...it seems as though [Camael]'s protection is no longer working, but I can't understand why." Reine's eyes showed a hint of worry for the first time. "The tests I ran show that the Paths between Shin and all three Spirits are all no longer stable, which is something that should only happen when a Spirit experiences a drop in mood. But that isn't the case this time…"
Oh, that's great. Even Mio doesn't know what's wrong with Shidou now. Although, I suppose there's nothing stopping her from lying to me right now… Kyo sighed. Well, I guess it doesn't really matter to me.
"Don't worry; Shin's vitals are making a swift recovery. He should be physically fine within two days," Reine commented, apparently mistaking his sigh as an expression of concern for Shidou.
"Right…" Kyo stood up and clutched [Naught], still attached to his necklace. "In that case… bye."
——————I am the dividing line that shifts perspectives——————
Reine glanced back at Kyo, watching as his figure faded from sight. That one… he's truly dangerous.
"Ugh…" Reine immediately refocused on Shidou as he let out a pained groan, carefully tucking the hospital blanket around him.
"Don't worry, Shin. You'll be fine." But, just in case…
Reine's eyes flashed. It's time to wake her up.
—————I am the dividing line that shifts time and perspective—————
It was midnight when she first opened her eyes. Blinking rapidly to clear the fogginess in her vision, she slowly began to note her surroundings. A room full of flashing equipment and beeping monitors. Rows of white beds, all of them unoccupied. All except one.
The boy on the bed breathed softly, a strained appearance on his face. A familiar, yet alien face. Despite everything, her heart wept for his discomfort as she slowly cupped his cheek in her palm.
"Don't worry."
Those words slipped from her mouth before she knew it. You won't have to suffer anymore. I'll make sure of it.
Raising a hand above her head, her figure suddenly illuminated with white light. "Come, [Eden]. Descend upon this world, and bring forth eternal paradise."
Her clothes morphed into a pastel purple dress accompanied by a hooded veil and cloak decorated with golden embroidery. A shining headdress was the last to appear, glimmering with power. Once her Astral Dress had fully manifested, she turned her eyes to Shidou once more. A tender feeling grew in her heart, and she could not resist the urge to trace his face one more time.
"May you awaken to a perfect world, Itsuka Shidou."
As she chanted those final lines, an invisible wave of Reiryoku emanated from her body, gradually encompassing the room, then the airship, before finally, it engulfed the entire city.
I'll always be watching you.
——————I am the dividing line that shifts perspectives——————
"Holy baby!" Kyo immediately threw his game controller down on the couch and threw off his blanket, his hand instinctively shooting to [Naught]. In one swift motion, he tore it off his necklace and grew it to full size. What the fork was that?
"Whoa!" Nia, who had been sitting beside him, gave a worried glance and quickly paused the game before summoning her Astral Dress. "W-what's happening?"
"No clue." Kyo tightly gripped the handle of his sword. "That surge of Reiryoku was so large that I can't even begin to guess where the epicenter came from."
Nia's brows furrowed. "Why are you so worried? Don't tell me… "
"...this event never happened in the future I know." Kyo narrowed his eyes. Shoot. Something must've changed. What happened? Which Spirit was it? "Nia, [Raziel]. Please."
"Uh…" Nia only hesitated slightly before summoning the all-knowing tome. "Fine, fine. Let's see… ah…" She paused, as though she were suddenly lost in thought.
"...hello? Earth to Nia?" Kyo waved a hand in front of her face.
"...nothing happened. It's fine," Nia said flatly, almost robotically. She quickly opened [Raziel] and began flipping through the pages.
"What?" Kyo frowned. "You're sure it's nothing? And what's with the change in tone?"
"It's nothing," Nia reaffirmed, snapping [Raziel] shut and dismissing it into particles of light. "The surge of Reiryoku came from Fraxinus, so there's nothing to worry about."
"Uh… huh. Alright then." Kyo hummed. That really doesn't sound right, but it is [Raziel], after all…
"...ah! Never mind that, let's finish this battle!" Nia suddenly perked up again, grabbing Kyo's abandoned controller and handing it back to him. "I'll smash you this time for sure, you dirty Kirbo main!"
Kyo chuckled, returning [Naught] to his necklace and accepting the controller. "Says you, you damn Child Rink main."