Tales of a Lost Sword 89

Episode 89 At Heaven’s Precipice
Far below, within the depths of the Fatalists’ castle, Cynthia continues to wander about on her own, lost. The cacophony of war within the castle is lost to her deep within the upper reaches of the castle.

She comes to a stop at the head of another staircase, bending over and panting heavily. She stares out a nearby window, where the forest and the ground below have become far fainter than before.

“There’s…no doubt about it,” Cynthia breathes, “I’m heading further up this castle. Just wait, Kunai…I’ll be there to help you defeat Arai!”

Arai breathes heavily, sniffling slightly, his head tilted towards the ground. He is surrounded by dusty rubble. Lillia’s body lies quietly on the ground nearby, almost peaceful in death.

“Seraphe!” Arai howls, summoning the black-haired woman Fatalist.

She appears in a flash, bowing low to Arai. “You called, Your Majesty?” she asks, her face hidden behind her mask. The Fatalist glances briefly at Kunai and Fayvard as she notices them standing by the staircase. The two merely gaze back, speechless.

“Heal her,” Arai whispers, gesturing at Lillia’s broken body without even looking at it.

Seraphe stares at Arai with some confusion. “But…Your Majesty—she has passed.”

“Heal her!” Arai repeats with a snarl, much more viciously this time.

However, Seraphe does not move. She merely bows her head instead. “Even Fatalists cannot heal the dead, Your Majesty,” she says in the softest of voices.

Glancing at Arai’s still back, Seraphe waits for an answer from him. But Arai does not reply. Bowing low again, Seraphe mutters, “Well then, I shall take her away.” Bending low, Seraphe easily scoops up Lillia’s body from the ground, cradling it in her arms. In another instant, the two of them vanish with a breath of wind.

His back turned to Kunai and Fayvard, Arai remains still, only his back rising slowly up and down with his every rattling breath. Cautiously, Kunai steps forward. “Arai—”

Without warning, Arai bursts into an evil, maniacal laugh. He spins in place, rounding upon Kunai with his eyes glowing psychotically. Still, Kunai persists. “Arai, I’m not sure exactly what’s going on with you and Grendel, but—”

“Do you now see why, Kunai, you and your dimension must be destroyed?”

Kunai gulps, taking a step back from Arai unwillingly. He narrows his eyes, his breathing slowing. “Destroyed?”

“Your existence is a sin, created by the evilest of wizards,” Arai continues, his voice low but deadly, as if in a trance. “There is nothing to do but to eradicate you. You cannot be allowed to continue to exist. This is a wrong that must be righted.”

In a flash, Kunai raises Myou in his hands, its black blade gleaming keenly in anticipation of battle. “Arai…” Kunai growls warningly. “You still don’t understand. Didn’t you see while you were there, in our dimension? Just because Grendel created us for his own evil reasons doesn’t mean you have the right to erase us when you’re tired of us! Think of all the lives there, all the people with hearts and souls! It’s all real, just as real as anything that can be found in your dimension! You have no right to destroy all that!”

Arai bursts into another high-pitched laugh that causes Kunai to shiver involuntarily. “That doesn’t matter. We are your God. We created you, you owe your existence to us! If we had the power and the right to create you, then certainly we have the power and the right to destroy you! That is why we are the Fatalists…we have the power to create and destroy things as we need!”

“Well then, I don’t agree with that!” Kunai counters, his body now shaking with rage instead of fear. “How can you talk of saving your dimension when you’re just throwing another one away in the process?!”

With a hiss, Kunai draws his sword, concentrating all of his mana into its blade. “There’s only one way to settle this. SOUL COMBUST—”

Arai teleports past Kunai and reappears directly above him. Kunai spins and darts out of the way, just as a heavy hammer of ice hard as rock causes the ground below his feet to buckle up into the air. His breathing heavy, Kunai issues a second flare of flames from his sword to counter the blow.

Shards of ice rain down from the sky as the brief encounter ends. Kunai slumps over, his breathing heavy from the effort of blocking Arai’s counterattack. Meanwhile, Arai now stands in between Kunai and Fayvard, his staff held high aloft in his hands as he gazes upon Kunai with a condescending look on his face.

“Arai…” Kunai goes on, still shivering fiercely, “I get that you want to stop Grendel, but considering all that you’ve already sacrificed…Ayame, Lily…Ivy! Even Ryuu as well! And now you want to sacrifice even more for your own selfish goals?!”

“They were all necessary sacrifices,” Arai answers quietly. “Their deaths were required for the success of the Fatalists, Ryuu’s included.”

Kunai growls, hatred seeping into his black eyes. “Even if you did not kill him yourself, Ryuu’s blood is on your hands! Who was it who was there to comfort you when you were alone? Who was it who was there to be your friend when no one else was? Ryuu! You owe it to your friendship with Ryuu to do the right thing! Call off your destruction of our dimension!”

“I cannot do that, Kunai,” Arai answers sternly, his voice rising. “Your existence is a sin to humanity. The Fatalists cannot allow you to continue to exist. God does not will it!”

Frowning, Kunai returns Arai’s hardened glare. He cuts the air with his sword. “Well then, in that case, I’m gonna have to force you to view things a little bit differently, aren’t I? I came here to kill you, and I guess I really have no choice after all!”

“Do you really think you have the ability to kill me, Kunai?” sneers Arai, toying with his Blue Marine staff.

“Of course!” responds Kunai, darting forward to Arai’s right. Kunai swings his sword in a flash, but Arai teleports out of the way with even faster speed.

Kunai pivots to face Arai again, rushing at him with reckless abandon. Arai teleports right behind Kunai again, but this time is caught off guard as a clone rushes straight at him in the opposite direction from Kunai.

The clone strikes Arai across the chest, landing a decisive blow across the mage. Blood rushes down from the cut as Kunai’s clone vanishes into thin air. Kunai turns, glaring at Arai with pitiless black eyes. Arai merely stares back, unfazed by the wound across his chest.

“Do you understand now, Arai?!” Kunai shouts, his hand tightening around the hilt of his sword. “I’ve grown a lot stronger since that time you took the three Phonemes away from me long ago. I became powerful in order to defeat you, Arai! Do you still want to fight?!”

A condescending smile flickers across Arai’s face. He averts his eyes towards the ground, before erupting into a chorus of manic laughter. “Hahahahaha! Are you joking, Kunai? You still believe you have obtained the power to defeat me? Do not make me laugh, Kunai! You may have defeated some of my Fatalists, but my power far surpasses the might of all of them combined!”

“Oh?” Kunai laughs himself, his dark eyes glittering with prideful arrogance. “If I’m not mistaken, I was the one who landed the first blow! Do you want me to cut you again to help my point sink in? I can and I will defeat you, Arai!”

Arai laughs again, though this time it is only a small sniffle. “I only let you cut me, Kunai. I have no interest in this fight. There are more pressing things I must attend to first.”

With that, Arai quickly turns around and begins walking away. Kunai growls, drawing his sword angrily. “What? Are you just going to walk away, Arai? Come back here!” he shouts. “SOUL COMBUSTION!”

The powerful discharge exits Kunai’s sword and hurtles straight at Arai, who teleports out of the way with a burst of blue light. In the next second, Kunai has to raise Myou to block Arai’s attack, as the latter rams a crackling spear of electricity into him from point-blank range.

The sparks fly relentlessly free from Arai’s hands, as he and Kunai gaze into each other’s eyes from up close. Kunai stares at his own reflection in Arai’s bright yellow eyes, his face rigid and a frown on his face.

“Very well,” Arai hisses in the softest and deadliest of voices. “There is no more time for discussion. Here I come, Kunai.”
—END EIGHTY-NINE—
The final showdown between Kunai and Arai begins!