Chapter Ninety-Nine: Ambition

Inside Morino's house…

Kia stared at her TV in horror, watching as her sons faced off against each other. Morino burst into the door, sweat on his face.

"Kia! Did you see the—-?"

He noticed the TV was on. "Oh."

Kia began sobbing. "What's happening? What have they done to my children?"

Morino wrapped an arm around her. "Don't cry, dear. Himeka's there to take care of them."

"Why do you put so much trust in those animals?" Kia asked. "They do nothing but evil, and they've endangered my sons—YOUR grandchildren, time and time again!"

"That's true," Morino noted. "But one thing about them is that when there's something they want, they'll stop at nothing to get it."

He looked at the TV, which showed a bright flash of lightning erupting into the sky. "But this…this is something else. You stay here, me and Fujii will try to trace the broadcast."

"O…okay…" Kia said. "Please stay safe."

"Heh," Morino chuckled. "I always do."

He headed out the door, just as screaming could be heard from the TV, right before it turned off abruptly.

Meanwhile, inside Raijin Arena…

The crowd began screaming and taking cover as Ionix rose into the sky, lightning shooting off his body like a raging thunderstorm.

On the ground, soldiers began covering their eyes as the light coming from Ionix shone brighter and brighter. The remaining Zharians all bowed their heads, including Mar and Eliza.

"What's he doing?" Kanai asked.

"No clue!" Himeka replied.

"Can't see…!" Kazue exclaimed.

Marachii looked up at Ionix, smiling. "You did it, Master…"

When Ionix opened his mouth, his voice boomed all across the arena.

"The power I've long searched for has finally awakened…by the force of my thunder, you shall all be EXTIGUISHED!"

Giant balls of electricity formed in both of his hands, and when they disappeared, a pair of electric whips took their places, which Ionix admired.

"A weapon…at last."

Everyone ducked for cover as Ionix swung one of the whips at the ground, causing electric currents to spread in every direction.

Akari jumped in front of Hikari, Dachii, and Aoki, surrounding them with her forcefield.

"This just got ten times worse!" Akari stated. "Whatever he's doing with his power, it's something I've never even heard of!"

"The Ultimate Technique…" Aoki murmured.

"What?"

"He's using an ancient technique! But to think he actually has the strength to pull it off…"

Platforms began rising from the ground and started floating in the air, and Marachii hopped on one of them. Once he did, Ionix dropped next to him.

"You now serve at my side," Ionix announced. "And thus, I will share my power with you, as my Master did for me. Hold out your hand."

Marachii did so, and Ionix grabbed his hand, sending electricity coursing through Marachii's body.

"I…I feel it! The power!"

Marachii's technology began to start glowing yellow, and he immediately pointed his cannon at Akari's forcefield.

"Yes…" Ionix said. "Destroy your old allies, and pry your brother from their cold, DEAD hands!"

Marachii fired the shot, making Akari's forcefield shake. He narrowed his eyes before firing six more shots.

"This shield won't hold!" Akari yelled out. "We need to do something fast, or we'll all be wiped out!"

"Just pathetic," Aoki remarked, trying to exit the forcefield. "Let me out, NOW."

"Fine. Go and get yourself killed."

As soon as Akari let down her forcefield, Marachii used his tendrils to grab all four of them, tightening his grip.

"What a nice catch."

And then he used the lightning within to shock them all.

"Marachii…" Dachii groaned. "Stop this…"

Marachii just laughed in response. Himeka noticed them in the air from below, and she tried to throw a boomerang at Marachii, but Ionix used one of his whips and sent it barreling right back at her.

"Yes…I can see what it feels like to be an ELITE! Finally, I've been recognized by the Gods!"

He lifted a hand high into the sky. "And now, THUNDER!"

BOOM.

The entire arena shook as powerful lightning bursts shot out from Ionix's hand, hitting all over the place and causing massive damage.

Himeka grabbed her boomerang and called out to Kanai.

"Kanai! Evacuate everyone into the tunnels!"

"But what about you?" she replied.

"I'm going to help my sister and her friends! The more of us there are, the more they'll attack!"

Kanai reluctantly nodded, gathering up the soldiers while motioning toward the exits. "Everyone, we have to fall back! It's too dangerous!"

"We're RUNNING, AGAIN?" Tsugumi asked.

"Do you see that guy?" Kazue shot back. "This fight is out of our league!"

BOOM.

A lightning blast landed next to Tetsuya, who yelped.

"Running seems good! The General's got this!"

As Kanai slowly managed to escort them away from the battle, Mar noticed and pointed them out. "Don't let the fools run away! Slaughter them all!"

The previously enthralled Zharians immediately rounded on Kanai and the others, weapons at the ready.

Marachii looked around the arena, his satisfaction evident.

"Looks like your entire party is about to go down! Let's add you to the LIST!"

Aoki got one arm free and tossed a white card at him, but he used a tendril to deflect it.

"You have 0.2 seconds to let me go," Aoki threatened. "Or else—-"

"Or else WHAT?" Marachii interrupted, trapping them even tighter.

Hikari tried to squirm free, but to no avail. "Marachii, please! It's my fault we're in this, so how about you let me make up for it? Do you take coins, or…?"

Marachii stared at her with an annoyed look before dragging her to face him. "I think I'll start with you."

"Marachii…stop…now….!" Akari commanded.

But he simply sent another shock through all of their bodies.

Dachii's vision became dizzy, and as he reached out for Marachii, another figure appeared before him, looking down at him with a disappointed look.

"…Dad?"

Inside Dachii's mind…

The chaos of the battlefield was replaced with a vast, blue ocean. When Dachii could see, he noticed he was on a large boat, sailing the waves.

"Wait, wasn't I just fighting?"

"You were."

To the side of him was Kuroten Jones, driving the boat with a calm look on his face. As soon as Dachii saw him, his eyes widened.

"Dad, how are you here?"

Kuroten laughed. "Yes, yes. Dead men don't drive boats, I suppose. Guess I never really adhered to established trends."

He cleared his throat. "Where are my manners? Have a seat, son."

He patted the seat next to him, and Dachii blankly stared for a moment before sitting down.

"You remember what I told you last time we were here, right?"

"Yeah, you told me to watch out for the Voltians."

Kuroten rubbed his chin, thinking. "Yes, yes! But today's conversation will be different. Elements…how much do you know about them?"

Dachii shrugged. "Not much beyond the surface."

Kuroten turned the wheel, avoiding a large rock that was sticking out of the water. "That's to be expected. You did only inherit yours recently."

"Dad, how do you know all this stuff? How do you know what a Voltian is? And how do you know of Elemental Powers?"

Kuroten laughed, almost like he had heard a funny joke. "Just intuition, I suppose. Nothing more, nothing less."

The water began to rise higher, and Kuroten turned the wheel to study the boat. "How are your brother, mother, and grandfather doing?"

"Morino and Mom are fine, but Marachii is…a bit lost right now."

Kuroten took in the information, staying quiet for a moment.

"Yes, of course. Tempted by Ionix. That is a troubling situation, indeed."

Then he stopped the boat. "This 'Ionix' folk seems to be a highly driven being. So driven, in fact, that he has become desperate, misguided, even. But desperation comes from ambition, and with ambition comes power."

A silhouette of Ionix appeared in front of them, his body taking on the form of lightning itself.

"His ambition is so strong, that it allows him to bypass all limits of his Element, pushing it to its brink and 'unleashing' its power."

Dachii sighed. "So is there any way to stop him? Or at least just save Marachii?"

A silhouette of a Voltian soldier appeared in front of Ionix, which in turn zapped the soldier to ash.

"That will be hard," Kuroten stated. "Right now, you have multiple strong fighters on the battlefield, along with a General, but even with all of that manpower, now that Ionix has unleashed his power, it will be a daunting task just to slow him down. The power he now wields is close in comparison with those above him."

"Above him?"

"Runea. Melodar. Sirena. Mysteria. Radiux. Galeth. Vortessia. Ravos. Ohara. And Akuma. This collection of individuals is known as the Elites—-the pinnacle of the Order's strength. With his unleashed potential, Ionix now has power that puts him in their category, even if at the very bottom."

"Ionix did mention something about them before," Dachii realized. "He said that his tier of members pale in comparison."

Kuroten nodded. "Yes, but now that his drive to match them has strengthened, it is a dire situation for all involved. But do not lose hope yet, my son. A way to save your brother, my youngest child, still lies within reach."

"How?"

"You'll need to stoke the flames of your own ambition. You may not be an overly driven individual, son, but in this current moment, you are more focused than I've ever seen you."

Dachii scratched his neck. "Well, that's because of Marachii…"

"Exactly. And thus, now is the perfect time for you to mimic Ionix, and showcase your own power."

Dachii put his head down. "Yeah, there's no chance of THAT. If people like General Fujii, Akari, or Luca haven't even heard of that ability, it's a low chance I'll be the one to break the record."

Kuroten chuckled. "They are Voltians. You are not."

"Huh, what does that have to do with it?"

The scene in front of them changed, showing moments when "Dachii" battled against the dwarves, Nullus and Ossix, and in Umego.

"You're a HUMAN wielding the power of TWO elements, son. That alone is a feat never once recorded in history. And not only that, but you've managed to unlock an Elemental Weapon well before most of your peers."

Dachii pointed at the silhouette of him. "But that's the other Dachii at work, not me!"

"Tell me, whose body is this?"

"Mine?"

"Well, alright then." Kuroten stood up, putting a hand on Dachii's head. "It's time to stop relying on facades and to go out there and be your own man, son."

The scene in front of them then shifted to the outside, where Himeka was struggling to keep up with Ionix, and Akari was attempting to throw Marachii off balance with a few energy blasts, which failed.

"They are in imminent danger as we speak. Now, I couldn't care less what happens to those creatures, but the last thing I need is you or Marachii being harmed. So for this time, and this time only, you'll need to rely on their help. Save your brother by any means. This family has already suffered enough."

The scene disappeared, and the area around Dachii started to crumble. Dachii looked at Kuroten one last time, a tear falling down his face.

"Dad…is it possible…that you and Takashii…are still alive….?"

Kuroten looked up for a moment, pondering the question, before smiling.

"Hmph. If I was, I'm sure I'd have better things to do than ride boats all day. As for Takashii…who can say for sure?"

Then everything crumbled to pieces, and the last glimpse Dachii got of his father was him peacefully waving as he disappeared.

Back in the Arena…

Ionix knocked Himeka back, thunder and lightning raining all across the arena. When Dachii came to, he was still in Marachii's grasp. And down below, Kanai and the rest of Squad S-2 were still being cornered by the Zharian guards.

"Marachii!" Hikari exclaimed. "Please, just listen!"

Marachii slammed them all painfully on the ground, and as they took their time getting up, Dachii's mind began to race.

"I can't…I can't lose any more of my family…."

His body began to heat up, feeling like it was on fire, and Marachii noticed. "What's he doing?"

As Akari, Hikari, and Aoki got to their feet, they noticed an abnormal amount of energy coming from Dachii, who also stood up.

"Marachii, you are COMING home."

Marachii waved him off, pointing his cannon at Dachii. "Fool! Accept your fate, you're leaving here with us!"

He fired a few blasts, but Dachii remained standing.

"Dad…I won't fail your mission, I won't let this family split anymore…I'm TAKING Marachii back!"

The gravity in the air started to feel heavier, and Ionix turned his head to look at Dachii. "This aura, impossible!"

Marachii growled and swung his tendrils at him, but Dachii closed his eyes, letting his father's face fill his mind.

"And now, UNLEASH!"

BOOM.

—-