Subversion

More for Rikku and Paine than Lenne, Andrew eventually released her and Yuna to proceed with Alexander's Trial. His first opponent, similar to the Second Knight, had a sleek, feminine form, but instead of silver, magenta-trimmed armor, the Eighth Knight was garbed in a crimson breastplate, a matching skirt, a hazy purple mantle, and sporting a pointy-eared helmet with two plumes of golden hair resembling pigtails. As for their weapon, it was a silver and gold trident longer than they were tall, the central spear tip exceeding 4m in length, while the remaining segments had razor-sharp edges, making it equally effective for slicing and stabbing.

Without hesitation, the Eighth Knight charged toward Andrew, its speed far greater than any of the preceding Knights. However, while it managed to stab through the location of Andrew's head, covering more than 30m in a split second, the latter maintained a relaxed smile as he turned his head to the side and began weaving between the Knight's follow-up attacks. A few came fairly close to landing, but Andrew was quicker even without using Haste, allowing him to slap or push aside the trident while focusing on his footwork.

After asking Beatrix what he could do to improve, Andrew was advised to stop depending so much on his Skills, Abilities, and equipment unless he 'needed' them. There was nothing inherently wrong with taking advantage of his many blessings, but if he depended on them to supplement his lack of skill, it would become increasingly difficult to push beyond his limits. To that end, she recommended that unless he had no choice but to utilize his Skills and Abilities, he should take advantage of his innate kinesthesia and extreme perception to observe his opponents, exploit flaws in their attack patterns, and improve his footwork.

Seemingly realizing they were being toyed with, the Eighth Knight swept their trident in a wide arc before leaping back, sliding across the ground with their feet and left hand scraping against the stone floor in a pouncing posture. Then, as the eyes within its visor shifted from purple to crimson, blue, green, and white light flashing across the surface of its body, it zig-zagged forward at extreme speeds.

'Was that the Assault Skill...?' Andrew wondered, recognizing the lights as the effects of Haste, Shell, and Protect being trigged. The change in the Knight's eyes also indicated it had entered the Berserk state, so he leaped over it, flipping through the air as he equipped a pair of elegant gauntlets resembling wings, one white, one black, with large crystals infused in the backs of the hands. They were a gift from Etro, who felt guilty about not being able to bolster his strength directly. Instead, she gave him a pair of living gauntlets that grew stronger as they consumed the essence of their prey.

Spinning around in a blur, the Eighth Knight swung their trident in a wide arc, scraping across the surface of Andrew's gauntlets and sending him hurtling through the air upside down. He managed to right himself without issue, but the Eighth Knight was on top of him like a greedy noble after an orphan's last Gil, attempting to skewer him with a thrust that transcended the speed several times over, producing a thunderous clap as it impacted Andrew's guard and forced him into magical wall circling the area, sending a visible pulse through its surface.

Though Yuna shouted something, Andrew didn't hear her as he adopted a vicious grin and tightened his grasp on the trident's blades, having caught the outer points with his hands while the central point stopped a mere six centimeters short of piercing his neck. He had Auto-Life equipped, just as a precaution, but knowing the crimson-armored bastard had attempted to kill him caused something within Andrew to 'snap.'

Kicking the Eighth Knight in the chest, sending it crashing into the wall on the opposite wall of the arena with a visible footprint in its armor, Andrew spun around his newly acquired trident and threw it with all his might. The Eighth Knight tried to raise its arms in a defensive, cross-armed pose, but it only got halfway through the motion before the trident pierced its body, nailing it to the barrier and causing the entire thing to crack like glass.

Not yet content, Andrew, sporting crimson eyes and prominent pink hair, appeared before the Eighth Knight faster than a blink, clutching the sides of its helmet hard enough that his fingers sank into the metal. Then, with a decisive tug, he ripped the helmet and the shadowy visage beneath in two, killing it instantly.

Though he resisted the urge to spit on the Eighth Knight's corpse, Andrew internally growled, 'Fucking piece of shit...' within his mind. He felt he was a lot stronger and faster than the crimson-armored Knight, so its earnest attempt to kill him had, for lack of a better descriptive, offended Andrew greatly. He considered himself a fairly easygoing person, but the notion that some random statue thought it could kill him, destroying everything he had built up over the past couple of months, pissed him off to the point he wished he could bring the Eighth Knight back just to kill it again...

"Andrew...!" shouted Yuna, having appeared next to him with a concerned look on her face.

Regaining his senses, Andrew turned to face Yuna and responded with a curt, "What's up...?" as the pink hue faded from his hair and tail. A feeling of fatigue washed over him like a wave, but he managed to stay upright as he adopted a teasing smile and asked, "Did I worry you~?"

Leaving Andrew at a slight loss and feeling guilty, Yuna responded with an affirming, "Yes, you did," before adopting an angry pout and asking, "What happened to you? What was that pink light...?"

"Pink light...?" parroted Andrew, a certain realization appearing in his mind. However, as he had died dozens of times within the training sim, he didn't think he had awakened Trance over something so...inconsequential.

Proving Andrew wrong, Rikku, having made her way over with Paine in tow, asked, "Was that some kind of advanced Berserk Skill that turns your hair pink? Can I learn it...?"

"It should be an ability native to my world called Trance. Whether or not you can learn it...I'm not entirely sure," replied Andrew. However, as even someone like Beatrix had never roused Trance, he doubted someone from a completely different world would be able to.

"It appeared to make you very angry..." remarked Yuna, still observing Andrew with a look of concern.

Scratching the back of his head for the first time in a while, Andrew responded with an awkward, "Yeah...sorry about that. I'm not entirely sure, but I think I got drawn in by my opponent's tempo and caught off guard. Then, when I realized it was seriously attempting to kill me...my instincts took over. That's the best way I can describe it..."

"Well, I'm just glad you're okay..." said Yuna, taking the initiative to hug Andrew firmly yet tenderly as she set her head against his chest. Under normal circumstances, Andrew would have seized the opportunity to rub her butt. However, because of the strangeness of the situation, he stood stock still until Rikku asked, "What are you waiting for?" before exclaiming, "Hug her back...!"

Doing as he was told, Andrew wrapped his arms around Yuna and simply held her as a peculiar sense of incongruency washed over him. It wasn't the first time he had received someone's care, but ever since he departed his original world and began traveling abroad, it had been him comforting and leading others around. His behavior had become increasingly brazen, and as bizarre as it sounded, he felt he had forgotten how to allow himself to be vulnerable...

'Just what have I been doing...?' Andrew asked himself, strengthening his hold on Yuna's delicate frame while ensuring he didn't hold her too tightly. He had been so 'mindful' with Garnet, but even though Yuna and his other women were equally worthy of such consideration, he treated Claire and Serah as if they barely mattered, confronting several versions of the two sisters without caring whether or not they accepted his terms...

'What is this, some kind of post-Trance awareness...?' wondered Andrew, feeling slightly annoyed. He didn't want to admit it, but his behavior had been less than 'considerate' the past few weeks...maybe even as far back as the moment he linked the world of Final Fantasy X. Back then, to save time and show off what he could do, he basically kidnapped Yuna in front of the people who cared about her most. Then, instead of apologizing, he acted as if he were doing them a favor by becoming Yuna's Guardian and subsequently taking her as his Proxy. He definitely 'had' helped them out, but it was equally true that he had been leveraging his status and position to collect women he was interested in...

"Are you okay...?" asked Yuna, staring up at Andrew with a look of concern as she sensed he wasn't behaving as usual. When she saw how conflicted he appeared, she then surprised him by stating, "You may need to drink an Ether. I don't know the specifics of that state you were in, but if you're feeling depressive thoughts, your magic power could be low."

Blinking several times, Andrew withdrew an Ether from his Item Box and downed the citrusy liquid in a single go. The moment he did, it felt like a chill within his mind had melted away, leaving him feeling markedly more spirited. The realization he had been acting like an asshole persisted, but he no longer felt like a monster.

Seeing Andrew perk up, Yuna adopted a cheery smile and asked, "Feeling better~?" while leaning into him, purposely squishing her breasts against him. She had been doing so previously, but because of his muddleheaded reflection, Andrew had failed to notice.

"Much..." replied Andrew, habitually moving his hands to Yuna's butt and giving it a firm squeeze. As he did, Lenne's figure, which Andrew had been unable to see for the past few minutes, came into view, brows furrowed in a similar expression of concern as Yuna's.

'I guess my ability to see specters is tied to my mental state...' concluded Andrew, feeling moderately guilty as he hadn't even registered that Lenne was missing before she reappeared. Thus, even though it earned him eye rolls from Rikku and Paine, Andrew set aside his apology for later, held the duo close, and kissed them intently...

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After using the full hour allotted for rest, Andrew appeared inside the arena along with Yuna, the latter giving him one last kiss on the cheek before moving to join Rikku and Paine in the stands. Shortly after that, a mage wearing silvery armor, white robes, and a blue cape emerged from the ninth door wielding an ornate crimson staff adorned with metal rings and a tip resembling a large chalice.

Equipping Etro's Gauntlets, their literal name, Andrew got in a ready pose with his hands shaped like upside-down claws at his side. He refused to permit what transpired during the previous match to happen again, so the moment the magical barrier went up, he thrust his hands forward, his eyes blazing like blue flames as he shouted, "Ultima...!"

Hearing Andrew's exclamation, the mage's wispy eyes visible widened as a beam of black light struck it from above, immobilizing it with a powerful, space-warping gravitational field that caused its chest to briefly collapse before a massive explosion erupted throughout the arena, destroying the Ninth Knight, shattering the magic barrier, and causing the final Knight to slide backward, shielding its helmeted face with its right hand.

After taking a moment to chug another Ether, Andrew tossed the emptied crystal vial back into his Item Box, waiting for the final Knight to recover and stare at him before adopting a smile and stating, "Before you ask, no, I do not require a break. Rather..."

Adopting a similar stance as before, his tail flickering behind him, Andrew adopted a toothy, fearless grin as he suggested, "Why don't you and your remaining Knights all come at me together?"

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