Zero and Infinity

Deep underground in the Antarctica Continent, Finlis had been creating an underground system of tunnels that would allow him to travel anywhere around the world within mere moments. With his insane physical prowess, allowing him to travel at the speed of light with just his feet, he was able to go anywhere he had a slight interest in.

Along the way, Finlis ended up back to where he was first summoned; The Oceanic Kingdom. From there, he was able to meet up once again with Netsu and Nova. While he was in the Oceanic Kingdom, Finlis found that there were three others just like him. People summoned from the previous years that all had one goal: To take down Sky Asterio.

Bruno, a trifling man of similar build to Finlis, crossed his arms at the sight of him, smiling while Nova began to introduce the other people to Finlis.

Maestro, the most important looking one, was a lot skinnier but still looked as if he had merit to his name. He held a violin in his hand, rather than having big muscles.

Seano, a man clad in tons of weaponry, like blades, guns, and hammers, stood silent while watching Finlis walk confidently over to Nova.

"Who are these people? Targets? Food?" Finlis asked. He licked his teeth while peering directly at Bruno. He seemed most satisfying to torture to Finlis, but he would've rather not fought in such a small room, especially with Nova in it.

[We need to stay peaceful]

Ghost whispered to Finlis. He nodded, allowing the A.I. to control his behavior, he placed his thumbs in his belt loops and looked forward to Nova next.

"These will be your partners. It's been brought to my attention that you have located Faith and Sky in the same area. This could be an effective time to strike," Nova told him, snapping her fingers and pointing at Bruno.

"He has something to show you. Something to give you the upper-hand against Sky," Nova explained.

Finlis begrudgingly looked over at Bruno as he walked forward. Bruno had a red toga on, brimmed with gold threads on the edges, along with pants that had the same style, just tighter against his muscular body.

"It seems I get to teach the prized Vega something... you know about Strands, don't you?" Bruno said. At the time, Finlis was confused, but as he continued, he caught on very fast.

"There are two types of Strands, Asterio Strands, in which you can create and attack, and Essence Strands, where you can dismantle and defend. If you don't have Asterio Strands, you should have Essence, but you have none. That being said, you are capable of something much better than either," Bruno said to Finlis.

"Yeah, I highly doubt that. If that were the case, people without Strands four hundred years ago would've stood a chance against the Asterios," Finlis said. He was getting aggravated at the very impression that Zenith placed upon him.

"How about if I told you that they missed something? The existence of Survival Evolved as a game introduced us to the true definition of zero. What it means to have nothing. You see, the number might be a lot closer to one than infinity, but they mean the same thing. Infinity is zero, and zero is infinity, are you catching on?" Bruno said. While Finlis was no longer aggravated, he still couldn't understand.

"The idea of 'nothing' is absolute, a perfect rendition of the lack of presence. There's no energy, no matter, nothing. When you implant matter or energy into such a thing, it becomes, one," Bruno said, holding his finger up, "Do you know what happens when you keep matter or energy out of it? It stays as zero. It can reach infinity."

"Now you're finally talking with gusto I understand. It's the same reason I can propel myself so well in a Strand-Infused World, right? It's because I have no Strands. Are you telling me that I've been using that idea this entire time?" Finlis asked Bruno. This time, Nova took the lead in the conversation.

"You have no Strands in your body. You allow them to seep into your skin when you are injured from the outside world, but otherwise, you produce none within yourself. If you were able to collect both Asterio and Essence Strands within yourself from an outside source, you would have a power that Sky does not have," Nova explained.

When Arkians on Earth stand around, they constantly absorb Essence Strands into their bodies from the environment. However, when Asterios stand around, they churn those Strands into Asterio Strands, capable of attacking, while Essence is capable of defending. Nova explained to Finlis that the idea of possessing both at once, Asterio and Essence Strands, would mix them up like broth, creating a new type of Strand that weaponizes the idea of Zero and Nothingness.

"Then, I circulate those Strands within my body to maintain a balance, and from that comes a new power? What does it do? I hate trivial things," Finlis admitted.

"Energy cannot be created, right? That's not an unknown fact. However, if you dive into Nothing to reach for energy, you might just get something. You see, the Dimension-Grade attacks, that Eirikr can use, they're derived from Infinity. Reaching off into another plan, the infinite planes, to gather more and more Strands. You take them. You take them and put them within yourself and permanently eradicate them from the Earth," Nova explained to Finlis. He loved the idea, demanding that he get it from Bruno right at that moment.

"We can't give it to you, we can only explain how to attain such a status. You need Asterio Strands and Essence Strands. The latter is easy, but the former? Well, that's a lot harder. That being said, you'll need our help. We're going to get those Asterio Strands right now," Bruno told Finlis. He smiled, nodding while stretching his arms out.

"Great, I'll get to see Faithy again," Finlis smiled.