The Strong, The Weak, The In Between

One of the men stepped forward inside of the cube. ‘He’s short. Shorter than me,’ Dante thought. He revealed himself. A kid younger than him stepped in front of Kento.

Underneath his helmet, he showed his pink hair, then unveiled his face. Red eyes and red horns sticking out of his hair. “My name is Iki Ritus, Leader of The Association. I ask that you don’t do what you’re about to do, Kento.”

Kento: “Iki Ritus? What happened to the other guy? What was his name? Agh…I’m drawing a blank. You are the new leader of The Association? A young boy like you? Don’t think you stand atop with others at your age. I know plenty of people who would kick your ass kid.”

Iki stood there and repeated what he had said, “Don’t do this Kento.”

Dante looked at the kid’s sword. A bright yellow sword glowed, but not like what Dante had normally seen. It was like waves of heat were coming off the sword. Tiny white swords decorated it ingrained in the main sword all going in different directions. The handle looked like its own separate sword as well.

Kento: “Wow. What a harsh introduction. Whatever. You have to act the part of the leader, so I understand. Let me guess. You guys know about this boy’s power, so this isn’t the first time this has happened? Did he tramp on your little whittle pride? Aww, poor baby.”

The young boy yet again repeated his statement. “Don’t do this Kento.”

Kento: “Don’t do this, don’t do that. Shut up! Listen kid, you may be the leader of The Association, but I do what I want to do. I’ll kill you first and then all your buddies here. I don’t follow you or The Association anymore. Bring me an opponent on par with the Titan War and I will gladly join again.”

The boy sighed, “I understand. I do not wish to fight. I do ask that you do your business inside of the prison realm though. It will ensure the safety of everyone here.”

“Prison realm? You call this a prison realm?” Kento pointed his sword into the air. “Fool's Gold.” The white cube shattered into pieces and he spoke again. “Don’t worry commissioner. I got it. Even though we aren’t going to need it.”

One of the swords emerged from his back. All 5 were yellow with black smiley faces, which turned to a black color with red frowns. A gigantic black circle formed around everyone. Red frowny faces encompassed the entire circle. They all began to laugh, but Kento put his finger to his mouth to shush them and they went back to frowning.

Kento: “This is a prison realm, Leader of The Association. However, I know you’re not showing your true strength…Next time you all want to make empty threats, maybe consider who you’re dealing with. There are a lot of people stronger than me in this world. Actually…No there isn’t. I’m the best. Since you're the leader, that means you can bring me Michiaki, right? Do that and I’ll join right away!”

He continued towards Dante, knowing that Iki wouldn’t say a word, and looked back over his shoulder at Iki. “Oh, and if any of you touch the boy in the process, I’ll kill every single one of you without hesitation. That includes you too, Astro. I don’t care if he is about to chop your heads off. You’re not to touch him.”

Astro: “Wait! What are you going to do? What does that mean? You said you wouldn’t hurt him!”

He walked as close to Dante as he could, disregarding Astro completely, and pointed his main sword at Dante’s chest. ‘What do I do? Chop who’s head off? I’m going to? What?’

Kento: “Relax. I won’t kill you. There is a strong barrier on your heart. I’m sure you didn’t know this though. I’ll take it off though for you.”

A black glossy chaplet lit up with smoke encompassing the whole orb. “Release!” The smoke transferred to Dante’s body and then back to the orb. Everyone stood still. Nothing had happened. ‘What did he do to me?’

Dante: “Wh-What did you do?”

Kento: “Dante. See, there is something that you possess that nobody else in this world possesses. World. That’s a funny word isn’t it. Why would someone come up with that word unless multiple worlds existed. Unless…do they? Am I right, Dante? You’re from a different world, correct?”

Dante’s eyes lit up as bright as the sun. ‘This man… He can help me get back! He knows!’ he thought, intrigued like never before.

Dante: “Y-You know! I need to get back to my family. Yes! I’m from a different wor…”

Black tentacles shot out of his body and his eyes turned black with white swords yet again. However, this time a clock appeared above Dante and moved the hour hand to the number 1. Astro looked at the mess before him, worried, knowing that Kento would go against his word.

Kento jumped back and rejoiced. “This! This is art! This is purity! Now, bring it on, Dante!” The 4 men in the back with The Association began to chant and another magic circle right below Dante’s feet appeared. However this time it lit up a blue flame and entrapped Dante’s tentacles in blue fiery chains.

Kento screamed out, “Fools Gold!” as the chains broke and he screamed out towards them. One of the men’s arms came right off in a flash. Nobody had seen what had happened because of the large creature in front of them, yet everyone knew that Kento had done this. Now angered, he stuck his sword in the ground and the circle dispersed. “Endless Pit.” The ground now shook and a giant hole formed as everyone began to fall. Dante’s tentacles began to attack everyone besides the celestial dragon that remained on his shoulder sound asleep. Astro yelled out, “Kento! What is this? Stop this before the boy gets killed!”

“Relax. Just don’t get yourself killed, you fool.” Kento fended off the tentacles easily with the 9 swords behind him, not even having to equip his main sword, as he talked to Iki and his men falling in the pit.

“Ohhh leader? How are you and your men doing?” he asked cockily.

Kento looked at them as they all fell down the pit. Iki and his men sat on a rock that was falling with them. A layer of yellow light encompassed each of their bodies as tentacles attacked them and immediately were deflected. Iki stared Kento down. “You have 2 more minutes until I end this.”

Kento looked aggravated at that comment, but intrigued. “Transferrable mana, huh? And you healed his arm already?” He smirked. “So you are stronger than you let off. I guess the Leader of The Association is bound to be strong. Oh my, wait a second. I know the other leader’s name now and what happened to him. If I recall correctly, the last leader was killed in the Titan War by someone helping the Great Swordsmen. How silly! I was there fighting and I forgot. Hmm…Now, what was his name? Oh, wait, I know now. His name was Arata Sanji: The Rebellious Saint. He killed Masaru, the leader, as a sacrifice. Oh, and the young boy that was saved instead was named…Hmm…Let me think. Oh, that’s right. It was…Iki Ritsu.”

Kento looked at him with cockiness and smiled.

Iki smiled intensely now with boosted adrenaline. He laughed. “After we’re done here. I’ll kill you first. I don’t care about the rules anymore. Especially not for a man like you.”

Kento kept smiling. “Hit a nerve, did I?”

He looked back at Dante. The clock above his head had now shifted to 5 with the hour hand. “1 more minute boys.” He looked over at Astro. “You might want to suit up for this or you might die.” Astro scoffed not knowing what to do. “Death Bringer: Grim Reaper, Goddess of Night: Nyx’s Black Whip. Converge. Clairvoyance. Death Manipulation. Enhanced Condition. Necromancy. Telekinesis. Stamina. Immortality.”

The minute hand rapidly circled around the clock and the hour hand hit 6 o’clock. The tentacles converted back into Dante’s body. Nobody moved an inch, but awaited what was about to happen as they continued to fall. Dante’s body looked completely normal again with his eyes shut. He inhaled slowly and exhaled with the same breath.

Dante’s blue mana now became a dark shade mixed with black and expanded throughout the pit even erasing Iki’s barrier on his men, but Iki’s barrier still remained on himself.

The ground elevated from below and brought them all back to the surface. Kento looked surprised. “Some blood is about to spill, boys.” He laughed underneath his breath. A black crown formed on top of Dante’s head. Dante’s arms and legs now became covered in the same substance as the black tentacles. His eyes now glowed white. His arms reached into the eyes and pulled out 2 glowing white swords. His body slowly became covered in darkness.

On one sword, the alchemy symbol for life and creation appeared. On the other, the alchemy symbol for death and terra appeared. A tentacle reached back and pulled Dante’s other sword from his back as it lit up blue.

Kento stood there unamused. “You don’t seem that powerful. Your mana is less than any of the top 10 Swordsmen. I think I’ll wait till the clock hits 12. Maybe you’ll be a real monster then.”

Kento blinked underneath his blindfold and the moment he opened his eyes, Dante was at his side with both swords headed towards his neck. Kento shifted his head towards Dante. “Oh? You think you're fast?” All 9 of Kento’s swords rushed forward and blocked the 2 glowing swords.

Kento: “Hahaha! How pitiful!”

Astro now joined Iki and his men and watched from the sidelines. ‘No way I can beat that thing, not even with my strengthened power. Dante, were you hiding this all along from me?’

He looked at Iki and said, “Why are you guys just standing here? Help him. I’m supposed to be helping this boy find his friend. This isn’t supposed to happen.”

Iki: “Doesn’t look like he wants help. I have to protect my men anyways.”

Astro scoffed at him as the fight continued with Dante and Kento. The clock now had hit 7. Red shards stuck out of Dante’s chest and back. 3 large portals appeared behind him as 3 all black figures walked out with glowing red eyes and teeth, all holding red tridents and laughing. They rushed towards Kento. One of his swords with smiling faces that he used to make the barrier took to his hand. “Prison Realm, condense! Maximum Level!”

All 5 of the Yellow Smile Chaplets lit up on the sword and turned black with red frowny faces. 5 layers formed around Kento and the frowning faces opened their mouths to consume the 3 figures.

At the moment of their deaths, 3 more of the same figures charged at Kento once again through the portals, this time obliterating the first layer of the barrier and faces.

Kento: “So they adapt and work around mana? Interesting, but this is starting to get annoying…Golden Flash!” A gold light blinded everyone in the area. Kento snuck behind Dante and cut off his right arm. The glowing white sword that lay on the ground now bolted at Kento. Kento ducked as it nicked his forehead and he began to bleed. A black infection-like virus began to spread rapidly in Kento. “Ahh. So even a little cut causes this. I’m stuck in place. I can’t move. Now we’re getting somewhere. If this reaches my mouth, then I can’t activate techniques…Golden Purification.”

The black virus disbanded from Kento, but Dante’s arm also grew back instantly. His nine swords rushed at Dante now from the distance as they circled him and stuck themselves in the ground. “Espalos Cage!”

Blue lasers shot up connecting into the sky out of sight. Dante became stuck inside. The horns from his chest and back stretched outside of the cage’s boundary attacking Kento. He held up one of the floating swords as one of the five green chaplets with small spikes coming out if activated. “Accompany’s Escort!”

The chaplet shot out of the slot of the sword becoming 5 times bigger. It had a jelly consistency, yet was hard as well. Spikes shot out deflecting the horns. Multiple spikes continued following Kento attacking the 3 figures that continued to chase him around. Kento jumped on and along the spikes, running down them until reaching close to his enemy. He leaped in at Dante. “Espalos Cage, Disperse!”

The swords came out of the ground and the light disappeared. Kento went to slice Dante’s tentacles, but Dante jumped back as Kento destroyed the 3 red portals that were creating the black figures instead, which was his true objective. He was having too much fun to bring Dante back at the moment. They disappeared along with the portals as the clock now hit 8 above Dante’s head. He screamed at the top of his lungs into the sky, enraged and infuriated like a true monster. His face began to shape similar to the figures from the portals.

10 black flaming swords came into view along with Dante’s original sword encompassed in a black fire as well. Dante smiled with black teeth now able to speak. He pointed his sword at Kento and chanted in a deep, dark voice, “Martyr king’s resolve.” Icicles appeared combining themselves with the black fiery swords. The icicle flamed swords launched towards Kento. “Fools Gold!” The icicles disappeared and he darted towards Dante once again. “More! More! More! Keep going Dante! I need a stronger opponent!”

A blue flash of light rained down from the sky and bolted in between Dante and Kento. Dust flew up in the air. “Wave of Catastrophe,” a voice called out. A blue circle of mana spanned across the area colliding into Kento and Dante’s stomach and knocking them onto the ground. It stopped as it reached Astro and Iki and dispersed any barriers in the area.

The figure reached out a hand towards Kento to help him up, however Kento stood on his own. Astro rushed over to Dante who laid unconscious and back to his original body.

Astro:“Dante! Dante!”

The same hand reached out to help Astro to his feet. “Who are you?” Astro questioned, hesitant of the man that stood before him. “Arata Sanji. Pleasure. Don’t worry about your friend. He will wake soon. If I hadn’t come here, this idiot would’ve ended up killing him. I’ve already helped him once before. Do not be weary.”

‘Arata? I heard his name earlier, but I have no idea who he is,’ he thought.

Kento yelled out, “Shut up! Fight me, Arata! You're stronger than this kid. He was a disappointment to say the least.”

Arata: “Kento! Don’t trigger this boy’s power again. To be honest, I’m not sure you or I could’ve beat him if it went on for another 4 minutes. We don’t know what this is, only just what causes it and to be honest, I don’t even know where that sword is right now. I thought the Alcion clan had taken care of it. Rumors have been going around more than I’d like. The church thinks the Devil is on the loose. I don’t want this boy killed. We can save him. Ren has already agreed to this.”

Kento: Oh my God. Always about saving blah, blah, blah. Just fight me once. I’ll even get on my knees and start begging. Will that satisfy you? Here, I’ll do it right now. Please, please, please. Oh, pretty please. Fight me my dearly beloved Astro…There! Is that good enough?!”

In the distance, Iki’s eyes lit up. ‘T-T-That’s Arata? Arata Sanji? The Rebellious Saint?’ Iki’s bloodlust spilled out from his body. He bolted towards Arata with his sword, glowing a brighter yellow than before. The tiny white swords moved around the surface of the sword, matching the energy of Iki.

Iki: “Arata! I’ll fucking kill you!”

He reached Arata, stabbing him in the chest. The white swords moved from his sword into Arata’s body, immobilizing him. Blood oozed out from Arata’s chest and mouth. Astro showed a concerning look on his face. “Iki! Stop! What have you done?”

Kento laughed out loud. His armor jingled. He couldn’t contain the laughter on his face. “Interrupting our conversation. How rude…Leader. You've shown your true colors. You seek revenge. You’re not fit to rule.” He lifted his blade and placed it on his own shoulder. “Wanting to fight to gain strength and have fun is one thing, but fighting for the wrong reason is another. Even my selfishness knows this. I’m not afraid to admit that.”

Arata began to speak normally as if nothing happened, “If you truly wish revenge on me, come find me.” He gripped Iki’s sword with both hands and pulled it through his body even more, bringing Iki closer to his bloody face.

Arata: “–Find me.”

His body then disappeared into thin air.

Iki: “A…Clone? No! Get back here, Arata! Come back! Fight me! You’ll pay for what you did!”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thousands of miles away on an island through the vast oceans and seas, Arata opened his eyes slowly, focusing heavily. He sat on a tree stump with his elbow on his knee. 10 white pillars surrounded him, each with different color mana pouring into Arata from the top of the pillars. Magic incantations lined the pillars up and down. A black vault sat upon one of the pillars locked with the same incantations. He held 2 chains in both his hands. Each extended 20 feet long with 20 different chaplets in each slot of the chains, totaling 40. Arata looked frustrated. Sea serpents flooded the waters for miles and miles, matching the angered mood of Arata.

“It’s not enough. Too many people try to ruin this world. Tch! I’ll keep my promise to you, brother. If people don’t change, then I won’t let them ruin it anymore. I’ll destroy this world myself…”