[Final Chapter] Epic Of A Hero

I had done it. That move was all of my strength. It had delivered divine retribution towards all of the world, cracking the barrier that held the two nations together. Sure, perhaps most of the current humanity might have died, but it was a necessary sacrifice — the ones that managed to stay alive would undoubtedly stand back up again and prosper in the near future.

One such example was already there. Gone was his crimson armor, Arja’s new form was a bright, shining mix of gold and red, with the former being the dominant force. The air around him twisted, indicating immense heat. Once I had gotten my hands on Indra’s power, I could see things in color once more, but if I were to activate my infrared vision back on, all I would have been able to see was a single red color.

He no longer had a dragon head that he wore around his hand. This time, the dragon had turned into a curved broadblade — its bladed part being rigged with small, sharp edges like a saw, while the dragon itself showed in the burning red emblem running across its back. The wings on his back had fully grown, and were shining the same golden hue as his main body.

But all of that was just for show. The more important thing was already clear as day.

Even standing here, I could feel his burning desire. The weight of everyone behind him. His duty to be the beacon for the world. The final representative. The ultimate proof of humanity’s potential.

And I, once again, bore the role of arbiter. The once weak and powerless Renji, the one who stared at the lines of life and death with a smile, had finally grown enough to become the ultimate judge. Whether humanity was always meant to be something greater, or were we always meant to cower before absolute strength, the answer to that question lay entirely in my hand.

I couldn’t help but form a smile. After all, I’d come this far. It wasn’t something to be considered right or wrong; it was purely my own desire, my own volition that pushed me upon this road.

No matter the outcome, I would be satisfied. But I knew that the man standing before me would give me something beyond even my wildest expectations.

I was the villain of this story. Naturally, I was supposed to be the one to make the first move.

I split my bow into twin swords, and conjured Indra’s lightning towards my feet. Thunder crackled, and I dashed all the way around Arja in a flash of a second, appearing right in his blind spot.

But this time, the man had come prepared.

I knew that he wasn’t able to see me. And yet, his body reacted perfectly — the moment my sword was about to strike his neck, Arja had turned his body around and made an upper slash to block my blade completely. Numbed by the move, I retracted one of my arms, but unlike him, I had another sword. My left arm swung forth as well, aiming for his shoulder. But his sword was a beat faster again, and with another slash, he repelled another one of my strikes.

Arja didn’t say anything, even after a successful parry. He was completely focused. I needed to return the favor.

I leapt backward, trying to gain distance once more. If swords weren’t effective, then I could always trust the water arrows.

Combining my swords into one, I fired an arrow. It wasn’t my best, but it was enough to test the waters on his current capabilities.

Without a word, Arja swung his sword. In just one strike, he had cut my arrow in half, split right through its length as well to leave a perfect display of fireworks-like water explosion.

“Talk about fierce,” I commented. “How about this?”

I ripped another set of arrows out of thin air. This time, I sent them in a flurry — they were individually weak, but their persistence and constant annoyance were key. The goal was to tire out Arja, leaning on another case of battle of attrition.

However, the man before me had changed beyond recognition.

Arja didn’t even move a step. Instead, his wings fluttered, combining themselves into a golden cape. But it was no ordinary golden cape — the bizarre light that it emitted, combined with the way it flickered in the air were more than enough of a signal.

It was a cape made of pure flame. The heat that it emitted was enough to even vaporize my weaker water arrows before they could even touch him, let alone pierce him. Arja had already devised a perfect counter to my strategy with just a look.

“Then I guess I need to amp up the power.”

I conjured another arrow again, but this time, it wasn’t merely water. Transferred within it was a surge of Indra’s lightning, making it an electric-charged arrow — amping up both its piercing capabilities as well as its range of effect.

But I knew that it wasn’t enough. And so, I had another step in mind.

Channeling lightning into my feet, I took thunderous steps circling around Arja. With each step I made, I released another charged arrow. My speed increased with each move, both on my feet and when I fired. Soon enough, it was as if the world was moving at a stand-still for me, and surrounding Arja was already more than a thousand electric-charged arrows of the same caliber.

He couldn’t react to them. The arrows rained down like rain and thunder, making the whole area flash a buzzing white. The sound of pouring water on metal was like the charge of an entire army. Once the explosions came through and the steam cleared, Arja was on his knees, planting his sword on the ground as a cane to catch his breath. His cape was in tatters, the flame already almost dying out.

But he yet lived. The man before me refused to back down.

Drawing his sword back up, Arja let out a scream that shook even the heavens:

“Renjiiiiiii!”

“Finally getting my name right, huh? I’m honored.”

Even if he had learned all kinds of techniques and battle strategies, Arja had discarded all of them. The way he charged at me was completely primal, raw and ran on emotions alone. The flame on his cape, once snuffed out, was now flickering signs of life again.

“Arjaaaaaa!”

I split my bow into blades and charged right back at him. It was no time for cunning strategies or advantages of the battlefield. It was the time for us both to lay bare our desire, to clash at one another, blade to blade. A pure contest of strength and willpower.

Sparks flew in the air. The sound of metal clashing together with the sound of rain harmonized perfectly into a great epic of battle. Neither side wanted to back down, for our goals were the same: win, and the fate of the world was ours to decide.

I had the strength of both Vritra and Indra, as well as the former’s incredible vitality under the rain. But Arja had the advantage of willpower — his heroic desire only grew stronger with each of our clashes. Even now, I had no idea which sides would win.

But I wasn’t the same old Renji that would get beaten to a pulp either. I was more durable. I was stronger in strength. I was more tactically sound. I still had the advantage of flexibility should I choose to use it. This match was mine to win.

With respect to my opponent, I still chose to stay in melee range. But it didn’t mean that I would never use my bow.

As I blocked a strike from Arja, I could see the vulnerable timing. With my lightning movement, I merged my swords once more, and aimed a water arrow straight at his chest. The blast was a success, sending Arja staggering backward, but not enough for him to back down.

But the momentum was all I needed. Once he was pushed back, I had all the time I needed to orchestrate an assault.

A slash to the arm. A bow shot to the shoulder. A slash again to the torso. Another slash on his sword hand. Another shot to his chin. Swords. Bow. Lightning. Water. The more I struck, the more everything clicked together. My movements almost felt automatic — I didn’t even need to think of my next move; my body had already attempted the act before my brain could even issue the order. Arja was taking the full brunt of my attacks with no chance of retaliating. Even with his tougher body, there was little chance that his mind could keep up with the rush.

At least, that was what it would normally be. But I knew that he was different.

“Come on Arja!” With each strike, I shouted. “Stand up! Fight back! Show me the will of humanity!”

“Shut… up!”

Finally, he threw a strike back at me. It was only enough to deflect a water arrow, but the answer I needed finally came — Arja still had that fire in him.

But if this kept going, he was going to lose without ever getting to his best performance. I could see it. He needed another push. This armor wasn’t everything that he had in him.

I wanted more. A clash needed to be fully unleashed. And in order for Arja to fully, truly unlock his capabilities, I needed to be that final push.

It was time for me to escape this meaningless war of attrition.

With a final hit of the arrow towards Arja, I took a leap back. I raised my bow towards the sky, and this time, I called forth everything that I could muster.

Five. Seven. Ten. In the end, thirteen total giant orb of waters formed. I had focused the entire water of the world at my beckoning, so much that the rainclouds that once plagued Drizzle had completely dried out. Each of the orb wasn’t just my size anymore; they were about the size of a small mountain each themselves.

This would be my entire arsenal. My final attack, with everything I had on the line.

“Heed my call, demons of the world! Arise and become one with me, as we plunder everything! Asurashresta!”

As the last words left my mouth, the water orbs — nay, they were more like water moons at this point — split and converged, spinning around one another and formed the biggest, tallest pillar anyone had ever seen. Its width was enough to cover both Drizzle and Drought together, and its height was enough to even pierce the highest skies.

And this time, it no longer was just a serpent. Even the aqua lifeform had evolved — shedding its serpentine skin, it was now a full-fledged water dragon, and not just any dragon. From its neck grew a second head, this one made of pure, crackling lightning.

“It’s over, Arja!”

I shouted, commanding the two-headed dragon to attack. It came crashing down at the tiny human before it, rocking the world to its deepest layer. The ground crumbled into dust, spurting out magma deep within its inner layer onto the surface. Rain fell and immediately vaporized thanks to the immense heat, while thunder soared in the sky and on the ground, electrifying even the smallest speck of dust around.

It was everything that I had. And as such, I fell down on my back, completely exhausted of my powers. My armor didn’t disappear, however — after taking Indra’s powers, I had completely assimilated with both of these sources. If I were to win this fight, I’d be stuck in this form forever.

However, I could hear the sound of footsteps. They were weak. They were trudging. They were fighting for their life with every step that they took. But they were undoubtedly alive.

“Haha… Unbelievable.”

Looking down towards me was none other than Arja. He was bloodied and battered throughout — I could even see pieces of bones protruding out of his body. His armor was basically gone, leaving only his naked top left. Half of his face was charred by lighting, while the remaining half looked like it was crushed in the water pressure.

But there he stood. Alive and breathing. A feat that no mere humans could ever achieve.

Clutching his sword, the man said in his breaths:

“Any… last words…?”

“So, this is the potential of humanity! How exciting! We are truly the pinnacle of evolution! No matter the adversary, if it’s humans, we can come out on top! And to think that I was the one that found the confirmation to this!”

“So… you don’t mind… dying right now… right?”

“Haha…” I let out a laugh. It wasn’t bitter. It wasn’t in frustration. It was pure joy, purely childlike. It was mine, and my own.

“To be the final villain that obstructed humanity, to lead them to an evolution beyond my wildest imagination… It’s the coolest thing ever!”

The scene before me darkened. I could feel my scales retracting back into my body. It seemed that my powers would also disappear if the conditions were right.

In my head, I could hear a vague voice.

“If you’re gonna die anyway, then why not let me have your body from the start? Stupid brother.”

You’d never get it, dumb Sis. Die, and miss out on this glorious scene? Not in my entire life.