Break Yourself (Shatterpoint Paradox Part 8)

Year 1025, 12th of November

Time: 10 P.M.

The night had finally reached the point where the final battle of this civil war would come to an end. Out of the one million troops that marched on the capital of the Ulrick Empire, Sigma City, only three remained. One was let go by the mercy of Genesis Draven while the last two stood in the midst of the battlefield just a few hundred or so feet away from the entrance to the city. Sheele, the lavender-headed assassin that wielded a giant scissor weapon, stood next to the leader of Phantom Siege—Raiden Ikazuchi-Arashi. The two had the obstruction of facing Bulat and Raizo Arashi along with the 10,000 knights that stood a ways behind them before reaching their goal. However, the probability of them moving forward was all but lost.

"I refuse to give up even if it means my imminent demise," spoke Raiden in a determined tone as he brought his teigu, Gungnir, out. His son, the crown prince, could only shake his head slowly with a dismal expression on his face having to be burdened with the idea of having to battle his own parent to the death. Bulat stepped forward with the Neuntote ready to duke it out. Looking over at the boy he was sworn to protect, it was like he was communicating his request to fight on the child's behalf.

Before Raizo could say anything, the armored male charged forward but the woman on the other side was ready as she blocked the man's oncoming assault with the mighty sheers. The spear and the weapon known as Extase clashed bringing sparks in the air. It was then that the duo exchanged a few blows as the sound of steel radiated in the air. Pushing each other back, they were ready to advance once more.

"Stand down!" the order rang out from both sides as Raiden and Raizo stepped forward in front of them. The former king patted Sheele on the shoulder gently before uttering these words to her.

"That's enough; it is my duty to finish this fight on the behalf of our cause. You don't have to burden yourself with bloodshed. At this point, it's either I settle this myself or I have to bear the thought of losing my last comrade right before my eyes."

"But sir, it's my job to do this," Sheele pleaded but Raiden merely shook his head back and forth.

"No, I have to do this myself. All you need do is bear witness to my final stand. Would you do that for me?"

"As you wish, sir. May you find fortune in your battle."

Nodding in deference to that statement, Raiden walked forward before taking his stance ready to battle. Raizo then walked forward carrying his edict, Kusanagi, in hand. This was going to be his last battle as much as he hated the thought of fighting any more than he had already done; however, this was an unavoidable conflict. It hurt him deeper than he had previously anticipated. Even with the events of his past, the distance between them had never closed. Regardless of whatever happened between his true father and this man, Raizo grew up only acknowledging Raiden as one of his parents. Even with the lack of affection a parent should show a child or the lack of a bond shared through that familial relationship, the boy still called him father. It pained him to watch the man being executed right before his eyes in the past and it even haunted him in his sleep but now he was forced to do the unthinkable. From watching his death to now being the one that may wind up being the cause of it, Raizo was being forced to accept the fact that Raiden was not going to be in his life.

"Bulat, this is something only I can do," the youth spoke in a solemn tone. He tried not to show it but right now, it was like his heart was weighing heavily on his blade. From being forced to endure the idea of mass murder that reflected his old self to now being an executioner for a family member, Raizo could only feel himself slipping that much more. I just want to end it all right now.

"Your Highness, this is something you should not have to bear," pleaded the armored male but his words only fell on deaf ears.

"I thank you for your concern but this is the reality I must be forced to face…even if I really don't want to at all," he responded.

"I…-sighs- As you command, Your Majesty," Bulat yielded standing back away from the duo. Sheele backed away from the pair as well as they stood on opposite sides of the barricades nearby watching as the father and son sought to end this war with their personal bout.

The two red-eyed individuals stared each other down as the wind silently picked up blowing over their brows. Both took respective stances waiting for the other to take the first move. Silence covered the area as the iron smell of blood and the crude smell of death permeated the area from the slaughter before. However, there was nothing that could distract these men. A battle between father and son, master and apprentice, leader and successor, this was the fated moment that would ultimately decide everything. As their eyes remained locked, time continued to pass reaching the 15-minute mark. Suddenly, the two kicked off the ground charging directly at each other beginning the duel.

Immediately, steel clashing against steel resonated in the air as the holy spear that was Gungnir and the legendary blade being Kusanagi struck against one another. Raiden went in with a direct thrust forward that Raizo swept to his left side. To counter this from the boy getting close, the former king pivoted his foot to bring the butt of his weapon around to get the child to back off. However, Raizo was immensely flexible contorting his body in a well curved 60-degree angle to let the blow sweep past. As it cleared, the boy flipped over his father landing on the ground before rushing in once again.

What followed suit was a series of attacks and combos that the two men exchanged as the sparks from their exchange illuminated the dark. The two matched each other perfectly as they were seemingly in sync with one another. The intensity of their battle was on full display for all onlookers as they were putting everything on the line in this fight. Raiden demonstrated the commitment towards his ideals with each powerful thrust from his holy spear not showing any sort of emotion or hesitance towards his opponent. Raizo responded in kind by displaying his desire to see its conflict to a swift end despite not wanting to engage in combat anymore. It was a battle to the bitter end but Raiden, who demonstrated more heart, began to take advantage.

Raizo was letting himself get distracted by the feelings of despair and regret that was growing inside of his heart. It was like the weight of the entire world was on shoulders and in a sense, it was. Everything that happened in this world and everything that was to come was born of his own deeds. When he sought to change the past, he had hoped that things would be better but honestly it wound up being worse. In the other world line, the lives that he took were essentially outweighed by the lives he saved when he had help dealing with the God's Tear and the Pandora Conflict. Yes he was taken to his utmost limit knocking at death's door on both occasions but in the end, he came through and he wasn't alone.

´´But I threw it all away…``

All of that effort was thrown to the dust when he let the words of a deluded old man take him to a point of utmost distress. That word echoed in his mind even now—Puppet. Am I really nothing more than a puppet? Am I truly destined to dance on the strings of someone's agenda? This is what drove him to changing time in the first place…or reality as it were but what he got was not what he bargained for. Did he ever save anyone in this world? He just ended 150,000 lives in one go in order to protect the very ambitions that he once fought against.

´´I truly am a hypocrite aren't I?``

Just as he was lost in these thoughts, the feeling of his skin being split open registered in his mind as he felt wounds being inflicted all across his arms and across his torso region. While he had been lost in his thoughts for the briefest of moments, his father had gained a considerable edge and was just cutting him up right now. Stepping back away for a second, he took the moment to catch his breath but the pain began to sting at his mind.

"Shit…" he huffed in frustration as he tried to shake off the feeling of the pain in order to focus on the battle at hand. Raiden took a defensive stance focused on the boy waiting to see what the boy would do next. He wasn't even trying to break words at this point as the black-haired man had become engrossed in the heat of this battle.

"I really miss my speed about now," Raizo whispered to himself feeling how sluggish he had become since the shift in his power. However, what the boy didn't understand was that he was wasn't as sharp due to his emotional status. A heavy heart weighs a steady blade and feeling how he was feeling right now was affecting him more than he'd like to admit.

"Come on boy, has becoming a crown prince dulled your training as a Blood Wolf?!" Raiden taunted.

´´Crown Prince? It's not like I asked for this crown of thorns.`` Raizo said in his thoughts as he sighed wiping the dirt off of his face. He took a deep breath and adjusted his grip on Kusanagi. Suddenly, he felt a strangely warm sensation flow into the blade. It was then that calm, frost blue aura began to emit from it then a crackling wave of electricity enveloped it. Raising an eyebrow in confusion, a phrase came to his mind as he spoke out.

"First form Kusanagi: Susanoo."

The electricity coiled tightly around the weapon as the youth took his stance once more bracing for his attack. Feeling the familiarity of using electricity gave him a small semblance of peace which staved off the negative thoughts for the moment. As such, he charged in head on his blade drawn. It was in that moment that Raizo took the advantage as the ripples of the electricity from his blade occasionally transferred from his blade to the body of Gungnir. When that occurred, Raiden showed signs of being stunned from the shocking effects which allowed Raizo to land in a few blows cutting apart the man's clothing and drawing blood in the chest region.

"Gah!" Raiden hollered out in pain. He tried not to let it get to him and counter as best he could but that effort would be swatted away as Raizo brought his blade down on his father. When that happened, a surge of electrical energy was discharged repulsing the spear user quite a bit slowing his movements due to the offsetting of responses between the brain and the nervous system. Taking advantage of this, Raizo held the electrically charged blade high in the air.

"Torrent," he spoke as the pools of blood that had filled the ground in the distance began to rise up in the air. In the Susanoo state of the Kusanagi blade, Raizo not only had lightning manipulation but he could also influence water alongside all forms of liquid. The blood that had seeped into the ground from the brutal killing was used as water in this case turning into spikes and needles. Seeing the crimson be used in this manner disgusted the boy in a way in the back of his mind because of the origin of the fluid. The innocent blood he spilled now being used as a weapon, he couldn't do it. As a result of this, the red liquids rained back down on the ground they had come from.

"I refuse to make the blood I shed into a weapon," he sighed chastising himself. That moment of hesitation and unwillingness gave Raiden a chance to charge the aura around Gungnir.

"Embrace," he spoke softly letting the golden aura slowly wrap around him. As it did so, his wounds began to slowly heal and his nerves began to stabilize.

"Shift to second form: Amaterasu," Raizo chanted as the blue aura turned to a swirl of red and orange colors. Suddenly Kusanagi began to generate a lot of heat reminiscent of the flames that often envelop Adena. As the blade now burned with light, the two men locked eyes once again before they charged at each other for the second collision of steel.

A myriad of warm colors radiated the area as the warming light barraged each other. This time there was more pressure added onto their attacks as the impact between their attacks echoed out like loud claps of thunder. Fire versus Holy, a battle of auras at the moment between a former king and a crown prince; they fiercely attacked one another without delay. Raizo landed a few strokes on his father burning the tattered cloak and making significant indentations into the man's armor. Raiden returned but tearing away at the youth's haori as well as puncturing the boy's armor in some locations.

Suddenly martial arts were also incorporated as Raizo struck his father in the face with his left fist. Raiden reciprocated by delivering a kick to the boy's side. If steel wasn't going to reach then surely the might of their fists and kicks would. Raiden went from thrusting repeatedly with the spear to swinging it like a bat into Raizo's mid-section. The boy went flying back into one of the steel barricades that were meant to slow the advance of the former army. Upon impact, a giant cloud of dust formed obscuring the view of the child for the briefest of moments. Raiden slowly advanced as the aura around the man gradually began to grow.

"Come now, I know a hit such as that wouldn't bring down my son…or should I say the bastard son of the God Hunter?" Raiden spat in disgust recalling how Hestia committed adultery before their marriage was actually consummated.

It was then that a wave of fire came flying towards the man in the form of a miniature solar flare instantly dispelling the dust cloud. Raiden took a large side step to the left as the flame cascaded over the field incinerating the bodies of the dead that was in its path. The disillusioned prince stepped forward with a fit of frustration on his face. He was torn between anger, doubt, confusion and irritation as it began to show. Holding the handle of his weapon tightly in his hand, the boy cried out.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

To be judged over his lineage at this point in time was not something that he needed to hear right now. The fact that this man had dared to do so was an insult in more ways than one especially considering how the boy felt about him.

"You have some nerve to judge me because of the deeds of my mother. You think I wanted this? I didn't even know until just recently! My whole life I regarded you as my father despite all the years you placed distance between us. You disdained me from the day I was able to take a conscious and think for myself! All that I've done growing up was something to make you proud! Sacrificing my humanity—what little bit I was able to experience—and becoming a ruthless killer, becoming a prodigy among all assassins was all for you just so you could acknowledge me for who I was!" he ranted.

His heart beat heavily in his chest feeling like the air was escaping his lungs. His emotional instability was reaching its limit and he was slowly beginning to unravel as a result. Those who watched had no idea what was going on but didn't bother to do anything about it since this fight was beyond their comprehension.

"You're the one who walked out on me. If you would have actually focused on the idea of being a parent as opposed to being some idealistic asshole then maybe our family would still be together. But no, you let it all fall apart. This war could have easily been averted if you had half the fucking spine you try to boast now and stand up to your wife. You let yourself become her pawn then you wanted to cry sheep when it came to the decisions she made. The blood on your hands is as much as if not more than what I have on me!"

Raiden was rendered speechless upon hearing the words of the boy. He began rummaging through everything that was going on and began to wonder various cases of "what if" but it was too late now. The cards were dealt and now there was no choice but to play the hand given. As for Raizo, he almost felt like he was blaming his father for everything that he did in his life but that wasn't the case. The boy just let out his feelings in regards to a past that stayed with him for too long. The decisions he made were his to own and he regretted a lot of them. He hated his weakness but right now, that weakness was all he had because at that moment…his disdain for that weakness was what drove him to fight.

"Maybe things could have been different if I was a better husband or a better father but the things of the past cannot be changed and we are far beyond the point of reconciliation. Too many have died for the sake of this moment. Even if I am crawling to her, I will make your mother hear me by delivering this spear to her heart."

"I honestly don't care anymore. I'm so tired of fighting that I just can't physically find myself wanting to do anymore but giving up now won't do me any good. I have to see this through to the end…even if it means my demise."

"I see…then I shall set you free from this world by ending your suffering. Perhaps killing you would be the greatest mercy I could ever bestow as a failed parent."

"Death is something I'm open to at this point but dying in a reality that's not my own is just something I can't accept. There's a place calling back to me…I'm just waiting on the sign for it to happen."

"You really are a peculiar child, Raizo. Very well, let us see what fate has in store for us. Will I be your death or does fate has something else in store for you? It matters not, but just so you know I am going to use everything I have," Raiden stated.

It was then that the golden aura around Raiden began to burn even brighter than before forming an artificial armor composed of light. The former leader of the Blood Wolves had taken the former of a gilded knight of sorts due to this radiance. His red hues had slowly changed a bit filling with an ivory green as a result. As Raizo witnessed the spectacle, he didn't know that Gungnir could do this to its user especially after facing Aquilo in the old world line. Was this man able to draw on the holy object's power differently than the Silver Fox? It had to be the case. Perhaps it was a matter of heart that determined the power within. The boy couldn't say for certain.

The fight had been carrying on for quite a while. Judging by the look of the moon, the time had to be something after 11 P.M. The luminous object was nearly at a noon position so that was the fairest of estimations. As such, Raizo couldn't help but be astonished at the length of time that passed. He never paid any attention to the duration of his past battles but he couldn't help but feel like this was one of his longest fights ever…well when it comes to a regular human being. Fighting against beings that defied all natural human laws whose strength rivaled gods by definition of the common man made him secretly weigh combat differently. He wondered just how powerful his father had become right now and if there was anything that he had up his arsenal to use to counter this.

Before Raizo could mentally prepare himself, Raiden was in his face within the blink of an eye. Wide-eyed, the boy felt the breath disappear from his lungs in that small moment because his father delivered a swift blow right to his mid-section taking the wind out of the youth. When he hunched over, Raizo inadvertently let go of his blade which soon disappeared into its storage. The former king followed up with a series of hits with his spear swinging it like a bat once again beating in Raizo's armor before sending him flying high into the air by at least 100 feet. Before the young adult entered free fall, the golden shadow blinked up to that location before dropping a kick and thrusting the boy into the ground.

On impact, a massive crater formed and Raizo was laid out inside coughing up blood. He felt like his ribs broke and one of his lungs deflate thus cutting his intake of oxygen. In the matter of a single moment in time, his father managed to overpower him almost completely. Is this my limit? If I was myself from before, I'd call myself out for being so pathetic…though I already feel more pathetic than ever.

"Get up boy; I know this isn't the limit to your potential. Your power surely has more than summoning fancy blades I'm sure," Raiden mocked before slamming his weapon into his son's body once more with enough force to level multiple city blocks. The youth coughed up even more blood than before as he took that beating again and again.

´´If it is not my fate to die here…then let me settle this once and for all. Even if it means killing the man I considered my father, allow me to be the one who ends this.``

It was then that he felt something awaken inside him. His heartbeat echoed so loudly that it rang in his ears completely blocking out everything around him. A platinum aura began to envelop the vessel of the male immediately. Seeing this strange phenomena occur, Raiden immediately backed off wanting to see what would happen next. The ground began to shake considerably around them causing even Bulat and Sheele to grab onto nearest object while the knights at the gate started panicking as a result.

"What the…" Raiden was about to ask before being cut off. A pillar of light rose up from the body of the beaten prince as Raizo slowly began to stand up. His body's injuries were disappearing and the cracking of bones being set back into place began to ring out. A mysterious blade suddenly appeared. It was a large claymore class blade that was at least six feet in length. The hilt had a unique shape like a blossoming flame or something with golden adornments. This blade was another one of Raizo's edicts that possessed a unique affinity for holy powers as well as healing effects: Galatine. However, this wasn't all.

After Galatine's appearance came the familiar edicts of Kusanagi, Tizona y Colada, Fragarach, Caladbolg, and the ultimate defense claymore, Durandal. That was six different edicts but even more kept coming. A sword whose blade matched the aura with a gold and black hilt came next. It was a katana class weapon that appeared like Kusanagi but had to be about as long as the Galatine—Edict: Masamune. After that appeared, a weapon known for demon-slaying and negating curses within Raizo's arsenal emerged being a short sword that appeared gray and dull; it had a gold guard and a brown hilt known as Hrunting. A new buster class blade arrived next. It had a bluish-gray blade and was massive in size having a seven foot length and about a foot and a half for width. The Gram Edict was known for being the ultimate armor-breaking sword. Lastly, an evil-looking sword came out that was black and red. It was a standard long sword class weapon whose appearance alone would make someone quake in anxiety. This was Arondight, the blade opposite to Galatine that was a raw attacking style weapon. With all 10 Edicts drawn, Raizo shouted out loudly.

"Conqueror's Crusade!"

Upon finishing his sentence, all of those weapons orbited around his body and his heterochromia hair had shifted from its iconic black and white to a complete silver attribute. In addition, the boy's red eyes shifted to a demonic look that burned a sinister yellow shade with draconic style pupils. Raizo was channeling the powers of all 10 edicts at the same time without a single one's special ability cancelling the other out. As he stood upright eying his estranged father, the youth felt his pain boil into anger.

"It's a sad day when you're a deadbeat parent trying to be relevant. Regardless of the shame that I feel and the sorrow over the things I've done, I refuse to let my life end by the hands of a man with no sense of duty or honor. Maybe I'm a hypocrite for saying that but all I can do now is finish this battle then figure out a way to make things right."

With his new form, the youth stood upright as the edicts surrounded him giving him all their powers at once to give him the strength needed to end this battle. Raiden took a deep breath as the golden armor cloak around him burned with more intensity. He took a stance with the holy relic and prepared himself mentally for what would be the final clash with his son. This was the deciding hour as both men prepared to lay out their convictions for this last fight.

In a massive burst of speed that surpassed all common human perception, the two individuals began to fight as the blinking of gold and silver light was seen overtaking the sight of all those who watched. Sparks of light filled the air as the ringing of steel that sounded like the chirping of birds began radiating the atmosphere as 10 blades sought to break past a single spear. They appeared to be evenly matched to the witnesses below but in reality, there was an overwhelming difference in power between the two.

Raizo had no needed of physically using his hands to grab onto his armaments. The edicts responded to his will assailing his target with systematic yet random rushes of slicing and sweeping actions. The buster class weapons sought to shield Raizo's blind spots, the claymore class weapons gave the youth his reach to keep the spear user at bay then the katana and short sword class weapons went in when the boy got close to the man's person. Raiden could hardly keep up as trying to get past Gram alone threatened to break the Longinus weapon in two. It was then that he felt some of the attacks breaching through his holy defenses and his pseudo armor breaking apart.

"Dammit…" he muttered trying to get fair enough away from the boy by landing on the ground though Raizo soon followed suit. As the pair landed on opposite sides within that crater, Raiden saw Gram, Masamune and Arondight retreating back to their master. Those must be the weapons that are breaking through my defenses right now.

Raiden would be correct in that regard as the three blades were naturally countering his procs. Gram was capable of breaking any armor granted by natural or supernatural conventions. It was said to be the blade that defeated Fafnir in a single blow in olden times. The scales of Fafnir were said to surpass even the durability of the great danger beast, Tyrant, who contributed to the creation of Incursio. As for Masamune, the blade's ability was able to bypass durability by channeling energy concentrated in its slashes to cut through space and time and bypass the concepts of cause and effect through sheer discipline. This allowed the edict to get through the armored areas that Gram had not broken yet wounding Raiden in several areas at once. With Arondight, the blade of darkness was eating away at the holy energy that the former king tried to command.

Conqueror's Crusade effortlessly combining these abilities together would be the undoing of the man who aspired to rebel against the kingdom. If this fight dragged on any longer then he would not even have enough power to break through the gate let alone rush to the palace to confront his ex-wife once and for all. He didn't want to have to use that but perhaps it was the only way. If only he just kept the Black Death with him, this war would have easily been decided but could he truly live with the idea of someone else killing his son? It was rather ironic. He distanced himself from Raizo because of the fact that by blood the boy wasn't his son yet he still acknowledged him as his own without consciously thinking about it.

"You truly are beyond anything I've seen. Maybe someone of your potential was never meant to be my child. Yet for some reason despite all of my resentment, I can't help but feel proud of you," the gilded leader spoke breathing raggedly from the battle they have been engaged in.

"Even if you aren't my blood related father, you still taught me much of what I know as an assassin. It's just tragic that you wait until now to acknowledge me for what I am. Am I truly that much of a monster to you?" asked the bewildered prince as his blades rotated around him.

"I don't know…I just never envisioned you to be in this position."

"Yet here we are fighting to the death…it's too late to discuss what could have been."

"I agree. It's time to end this battle then under the light of the moon."

Raiden charged himself gathering as much power as he could draw as revealed by the brilliance of the golden aura surrounding his body. All of the power he channeled began to pour inside Gungnir as a spiral of green and gold built up within the weapon. The man sought to go far beyond the move he used to end Budou so many years ago. He planned to put everything he had into this attack even at the cost of his own life. As the power continued to well up within him, Raiden slowly began to rise up into the air preparing to unleash this attack to end everything.

Watching, no…watching would be an insult to the heart the man had put into this battle. A better word would be feeling. Feeling the power of his father's determination, Raizo bore witness to the climactic move that would culminate the passion of the former king. Though he should theoretically be doing something to stop this from happening, Raizo wanted to see just how far this man was willing to go to unleash his passion for what he believed in. In a sense, this was the boy's way of honoring the man by acknowledging the dedication he displayed for his beliefs. At least his father stuck by what he held true to himself, for Raizo…he didn't know what to believe in anymore.

"O Holy Longinus, unchain me," Raiden chanted taking aim with the mighty teigu in his hand. He arched his body in such a way that would constitute a powerful throw that would transcend the ability of any spear user that came before. The aura burned with such divine radiance that the only word that could be used to describe it is "beautiful".

"SOUL HUNTER!" the rebel leader shouted at the top of his lungs. With that, he threw the weapon with all his might down on his disillusioned child. The weapon burst towards its intended target with speed that surpassed light holding enough power to destroy the entire planet. It seemed like everything from the crown prince to the entirety of the empire at the boy's back would be erased once and for all with this move. As Raizo saw what could be his death descend upon him, the time seemed to slow down in his mind.

So this is what you've consigned yourself to father? It's sad that it took something like this for me to understand the kind of man that you are. Even in this hell that I made for myself, I never got the chance to see life from your eyes. Though I hold resentment towards you for denying me a parental figure for so long, I can at least see what you had in mind for our future. You wanted change for the Blood Wolves, an end to the darkness that bound us for so long. We were just too scared to step into the light.

Snapping back to real time, Raizo brought forth Durandal in front of him. As the spear made its impact, the blade withstood the might of the planetary busting potential of Soul Hunter. All of its power was absorbed into the blade and kept for a moment. The result impact then canceled itself and a massive wind blew out over the area. Dust engulfed the area but Raizo was still standing with his aura around him along with his 10 edicts. As he stood, Raiden still had his golden aura though it was faint.

"Edict of Absolution," the boy spoke in a sigh knowing that he could only respond to the glorious attack he received by delivering something of equal prowess. The world around the two men shifted to a void that was only filled with the images of the 10 edicts. A myriad of colors spiraled about this area as it felt like they were on an entirely different planet. The sounds of hammers striking against steel echoed out like blacksmiths were forging all kinds of weaponry in an unseen workshop.

"Allow me to deliver you the same kindness that you showed to me by unleashing everything I have in this final move," Raizo spoke. His 10 edicts then surrounded the pair as if waiting to make a move. Raiden being disoriented from using Soul Hunter could do nothing about it but welcome what would come next. In that following instant, Raizo charged forward.

"Revolution of One," he uttered taking hold of Kusanagi first. He rushed at his father and hit him once with his before grabbing Hrunting. With that in hand, he attacked his father again the repeated the pattern with the next edict, Fragarach. He hit Raiden again and again with each of his edicts to follow suit: Masamune, Tizona y Colada, Caladbolg, Galatine, Gram, Arondight, and lastly, Durandal. Each blade was hitting his father fatally but aside from the destructive force being unleashed on his enemy, it also felt like the boy was attacking his own heart. The blows only escalated this pain one after the other. When he struck with that buster blade, the energy capable of destroyed the Earth was concentrated and unleashed on Raiden's being all at once. That amazing prowess also seemed to annihilate what was left of the prince's own heart. When that occurred, the Edict of Absolution dimension shattered and the battle was decided.

"Ah…so…this…is it…" Raiden coughed before collapsing on the ground as blood seeped from his body and his aura faded away.

"I'm…sorry…Raizo…" he uttered. The boy took a knee beside the man grasping his hand firmly as the sting of tears welled up in the boy's eyes. This wasn't how he wanted things to go but such was the cruel reality of fate. Before the former king took his final breath, Raizo leaned down to communicate his last words to the dying man.

"It's okay…you've earned a long rest. I forgive you and thank you for everything you instilled in me. I'm sorry I wasn't the son you hoped for but I shall carry your convictions in my heart for the rest of my days."

Raiden smiled at his son before closing his eyes. He managed enough strength to clench the youth's hand tightly. Then, he took one last breath before his grip loosened and his eyes never opened again. Taking a moment to catch his breath and not breakdown right there, Raizo folded the arms of the fallen warrior in to honor him and he laid Gungnir beside him. The male lowered his head to take a moment to pay his respects.

"Though you leave your vessel behind, your soul shall live on. May the light guide you on your ascension and find peace in the next life…"

Taking a bow, the prince floated in the air still wearing the guise of the Conqueror's Crusade. He drifted over toward Bulat's location that had seized Sheele at the conclusion of the battle. At this point, the moon reached its apex as the clock struck midnight. Before words could be exchanged, something unexplainable occurred which caused the white, luminous orb in the darkened skies above to shatter like glass. What followed next was a strong earthquake that began to tear the earth's surface asunder.

"What the hell is going on?!" Bulat shouted out. It was then that the city began to crumble as the cries of the millions that were in the populace rang out. Everything had begun to crumble around them from the tops of the ramparts to the very foundation of the gates themselves. It was like life had suddenly decided to voice its opinion over the amount of death that had spread over the hours.

"If everything is crumbling…that means the palace is…Mom!" Raizo shouted out taking off into the air leaving Bulat, Sheele and everyone else behind. He took off at the fastest speed available to him in his Conqueror's Crusade crossing the entirety of the kingdom to the inner palace chambers in mere seconds. He had no idea if Adena was okay but right given the fact that she had retained her powers from the old world line, he was sure that she should be okay in her own right. Right now, he had to find out where his mother was.

"Dammit," he cursed as bits of the castle began to crumble even on the inside collapsing areas around him. Getting frustrated, he used his blades to cut apart any obstructions as fast as he could in hopes of finding his mother. He already lost one parent today; he couldn't bear the thought of losing another. As he searched endlessly, he couldn't find anyone at all. Suddenly, he stumbled upon the armory where all of the teigu had been stored and that's where he discovered his mother dancing around like a mad woman absent of all regulatory thought.

"They finally did it, hahaha, they really are doing that! Oh how cruel you are for stripping me of my destiny!!!" she rambled incoherently. The Grimoire of Eternity had been open at that moment shining with an insidious black and gold light.

"Mother, what's going on? It's too dangerous to be here," he spoke trying to get close. The rumbling of the earth grew even more severe as the ground was almost too unstable to stand on. A beam of light reflected through a nearby window which drew the boy's attention. As he did so, he looked out to see something that could only be described as true destruction. Fires and chaos had spread throughout the city and burning pieces of the moon had begun to fall from space onto the kingdom but that wasn't even the worst of it. The lands as far as he could see were literally deteriorating as everything was being consumed slowly but surely.

"Wait…you don't mean that…"

Coming to the realization of what was going on; it wasn't just the land being wiped out but literally all of reality itself. If that was the case then it meant that this world could no longer exist and that something happened that posed a threat to all of creation. I have to get out of here…I have to go back and correct this mistake.

Raizo turned around and saw the urn that contained Indra's Judgment. He knew what he had to do now. He felt like he should just stay here and let death take him but he felt a moral responsibility to stop himself from creating this problem. This lie of a reality had to end meaning he would have to go back to when he changed everything and stop himself for causing this to happen. Forsaking his thoughts about his mother, he dashed over and grabbed the urn drinking down the contents all at once not caring about what would happen to his body. As soon as it settled in his belly, the familiar feeling of the lightning god that dwelled inside came back to him filling him with the power that he felt empty without.

"It's been a long time hasn't it old friend?" Raizo stated not really expecting an answer. He turned his gaze towards his mother for the final time as the erosion of the world now began to eat away at the castle. Farewell.

"Heart of the Storm!!!" he cried out overriding his Conqueror's Crusade state as the purple aura of the form he yelled out came over him. With his eyes now the primrose color identifiable with his mother, he instantly took off at speeds massively faster than light going forth out of the castle. Although he felt intense sorrow over the fact that so many were dying and that he would have to leave behind some familiar faces, all them would not have had to die in the first place if not for his deeds. He unleashed his speed with as much power as he possibly could to outpace the erasure of the false reality around him then slipped into the streams of time.

Year 1025, 7th of November

Time: Around 8 P.M.

Raizo was powered up in his 'Heart' state about to take off into the past to right what he believed was the cause of all the problems in the world he lived in. He had written his last words and was resolved in his decision but what he didn't consider was what would come next. As the heartbroken Stormbringer took off to build up speed in order to begin his journey, a tear in the space had opened up as something akin to a bolt of lightning came through. To the boy's surprise, this lightning came directly at him but as opposed to being absorbed, he was instantly derailed off his speed course and sent flying across the ground.

Caught off-guard, the youth drew the blade of Vajra ready to fight as he saw the blur of purple light came to a halt right above him. He didn't know who this person was but they would not live long enough to obstruct him from what he felt like was absolutely necessary to do. In the midst of his mental preparation, the mysterious specter began to shed its light revealing its face to the boy. Much to Raizo's surprise, the visage he saw was not an enemy per se rather, it was himself.

"Wh…who the hell are you and why do you look like me?!" the confused boy yelled at the figure in front of him.

"Well…I'm you. I'm the version of you that exists after you're about to do what we both know you're going to do. Basically, I'm the one born of our mental breaking point, our Shatterpoint," the new presence explained.

"So you're from the future…or the future past?"

"Yeah it's confusing so for redundancy sake Raizo, just call me Raizen."

Letting down his guard, Raizo stood up slowly to hear what this version of himself that insisted on being addressed as 'Raizen' had to say. To show his lack of hostility, Raizen powered down from the Heart of the Storm mode revealing the same heterochromia hair style and red eyes. Raizo did the same.

"So…why are you here?" the youth asked.

"Simply put: to stop you from changing the past. What happens as a result is something that you won't like and well…it honestly does more harm than good."

"And I'm supposed to believe you?"

"Well I honestly wouldn't expect that of myself so the best way to explain is to simply show you," Raizen said reaching out for Raizo. He placed his hand over the pained child's head and began to apply a form of shock therapy.

"I honestly have no clue if this is going to work but given our unique complexes of developing nigh unexplainable abilities, maybe this will work," the former crown prince stated as he began to try something. As the electricity flowed into Raizo's mind, so did the memories of Raizen thus allowing the Stormbringer to see everything that occurred in Shatterpoint. From the facts that were recorded in the Imperial Records all the way to actually being placed in a position of royalty. Every single waking moment that Raizen had witnessed upon going back in time and executing Aquilo was being shared with his counterpart essentially giving Raizo the experience of Shatterpoint without going through with the deed that caused it.

Along with these memories, Raizo began to feel the very same guilt that Raizen carried as well as the pain from the reality of what occurred. It was indescribable to say the least but if this really happens then everything that he fought against he would cause and inadvertently become a part of it himself.

´´This…this can't be…``

"Do you see now?" Raizen asked as he let go of Raizo's mind. Tears had streamed down the face of the broken prince as he didn't want to see that pain reciprocated again. Little did he know that the 'transference' that occurred already began to tear an even bigger hole inside Raizo's heart.

"As much as you are feeling lost right now, going back to change things won't make it any better. In fact, this air of quiet right now is probably the best thing for this world. You saw what happened as a result of our mother ruling. There's too much pain and suffering. Right now there is only the twilight of change sweeping across the land. There is no point in going back to alter the past. The world that is born of that result is much worse than the present we have currently not only for the people but for us in the long run."

"So…you're saying that I should…"

"Leave things as they are. Even though you feel like a puppet, you'll only wind up feeling much worse if you go through with it. So please for both of our sakes, don't create Shatterpoint."

It was a tough thing to ask the boy who felt like nothing more than human waste right now to not change the past. But after seeing all of what happened in that alternate reality, what choice did he have? Sorrow began to overcome him slowly but surely as a result. He took a deep breath and nodded.

"I understand…I will leave the past as is."

"That's good..." Raizen said as his body began to fade into light gradually. Since Raizo wasn't going back to the past then that means his existence would fade away. He didn't know what consequences resulted in the erasure of that world line but as long as the creation of Shatterpoint in itself could be averted, then at least that was a small victory.

"From one Stormbringer to another, try to live your life with no regrets…" Raizen uttered before disappearing altogether.

Now left alone, Raizo's mind went blank trying to process all that had occurred. The memories that he saw still had some lingering effects in his mind mainly due to Raiden's involvement. He killed his own father…that was something he never would have anticipated by going back in time. The pain in his heart grew once more, so much so that it seized the very breath in his lungs.

´´It hurts…it hurts so much. Why? Why am I so weak? To do something so stupid, to go against everything I fought for…I just keep proving my enemies right time and time again.``

Feeling himself about to explode, Raizo engaged his Heart of the Storm state once more and took off reaching the mountain where he fought Leviathan standing atop the peak overlooking the land. As he did so, the cold air seemed to pass right over him…no, it passed through him like he was an empty shell. So many different emotions twisted inside him like a storm: anger, sorrow, sadness, frustration, disgust, pain, even hatred. They all tore him up inside just like how the battles between Team AKARA and the Scarlet Cerberus ruined the empire. It was all too much. As a result of this, Raizo simply did the one thing he could do without doing something immensely stupid—he screamed.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs unleashing all of his emotions at hand in the form of his power. His purple aura sprouted to the heavens above as the starry sky turned into a black spiral of storm clouds. Thunder and lightning rippled over the mountain soon spreading as far as the eye could see. A massive storm began to rage as rain began to fall across the area. However, it didn't just affect the Nightmare Forest area but it gradually spread worldwide.

Blizzards assailed the cold, winter lands of Neveir; sandstorms stirred throughout the dry landscape of Alexandria; hurricanes and monsoons assaulted the lands of Mercury; and the oceans experienced whirlpools and massive tsunamis while volcanoes erupted in remote locations unknown to most maps. All around the world various weather events and unexplainable nigh apocalyptic behavior occurred simultaneously as if the planet was coming to an end. This chaos that could be best described as global Armageddon had been caused due to the sheer emotional distraught that broke the boy down to his core. However, these events didn't stop here.

A ripple pulsed from the earth being sent throughout the cosmos. The sun unleashed solar flares, comets were thrown off course, meteor showers barraged distant planets, dying stars went supernova, black holes expanded, and numerous other celestial events happened. Everything that was hit by this lone ripple which traversed the universe at this point experienced some sort of weird effect. As Raizo's cry echoed beyond space and time, his family that composed the rest of Team AKARA would hear it as well as his true father and the other Primordials that rested in Elysium. Within that time frame, all of creation felt the pain of the Stormbringer.

´´I have no one else to blame but myself. How can I apologize for this? How can I find my way back to who I was before this darkness conquered my soul? I…I…don't know what else to do. I can't help but hate myself right now. I don't deserve to live if all I do is throw what's been given to me away. I truly am my own worst enemy.``

Those tears that he unleashed at that point fell nonstop. He couldn't help but cry because it was the least self-destructive thing he could do to unleash that pain. There comes a point in our lives as human beings where we have a moment where we wish to change the past. Having regrets is just a part of living life. The mistakes we make help shape who we are even if we don't like the things we've done. You can't change the past no matter how much you try. You can spend your life regretting the things you've done or you can take what you've learned in order to move on. Yes, the pain is going to be there and yes it will hurt for a time but there is a certain unexplainable beauty about these bleak times.

It's always darkest before dawn and it's always in the darkest of nights that the light each of us has inside will shine brightest. All it takes is one small spark to start to ignite an inextinguishable fire inside us. We all have the power to overcome any obstacle thrown our way but if we keep ourselves contained in the past then how can we move into the greatness that is just waiting for us in the future?

This negativity was only something that would keep the boy down for a limited amount of time. He may not see it now but the light that was destined for him would eclipse every single thing he disdained about himself. It was only a matter of time before it would show itself.