Fate

I knew exactly why Selphine had been enjoying the thrill of the fight so much, because I was now feeling the exact same way.

We once again started exchanging blows, yet every time I got hit, the pain felt good. It was like I was instantly addicted to it.

Of course, that didn’t mean that I let myself get hit on purpose, of course. But the fear, the idea to “not get hit at any costs” was gone. My only focus now was on victory, on taking down my enemy.

“You’re a worthy adversary.” Arthur acknowledged as we each took a step back for a quick breather at the same time, ending the deadlock.

“Why the fuck are you talking like some 80 year old samurai, dumbass?” I retorted before engaging once again into battle with him.

The rest of the fight played out basically the same way. The longer it extended, the more exhausted each of us got, to the point, where my entire body was sore, I was injured and bleeding everywhere. I couldn’t even raise my hands to defend myself from his punches, because doing that would be more painful than simply taking the hits.

Arthur didn’t look like he was in much better condition either: Half his face was completely bloody, no doubt interfering with his eyesight. I noticed his knees wobbling, it was probably taking all he had just to barely remain standing, just like me.

We’d spent so much time beating the hell out of each other, I honestly couldn’t tell how long the fight had lasted. Seconds? Minutes? Hours? During that time period, we’d truly emptied our minds, emptied our entire existence, and boiled it down to one simple goal which we wouldn’t back down until fulfilled.

Now, neither of us could walk, we knew if we attempted to, we’d simply collapse to the ground. Arthur slowly raised his hand and connected it to my face, clearly in an attempt to punch, but it barely scraped my cheek before falling back down.

I tried to do the same, but just like his, I did no damage at all.

“This….isn’t over…”Arthur struggled to get these words out due to just how heavily he was breathing.

He grabbed two fingers on his left hand with his right one, and instantly shattered them. It had been made easier due to how much damage they’d taken over the course, of the fight, but it still couldn’t have been easy, the pain must have been unimaginable.

Arthur ripped those two fingers straight out of his hand, causing blood to flow everywhere. He put those fingers inside his mouth, chewed on them and then swallowed them. I looked on in disgusted shock as he then started muttering an oddly familiar incantation, which I didn’t realize at first.

The moment the realization hit me, I tried to leap towards Arthur to stop what he was doing, but my body refused to answer: It had taken too much punishment, and any more could potentially prove to be fatal for me. However, I no longer had a choice, since if I allowed Arthur to go through with what he was attempting right now, I would most likely die anyway.

I’d underestimated him. This man was so skilled that he could recreate the ritual while completely out of energy and without using a symbol, like Louise had used during that night, at the time. This was probably the most impressive feat of magic I’d seen in The Void, and only reinforced how good he was.

“Frawa, Lady of Darkness!” He called out, his voice almost a faint whisper. “Grant my prayers, as I have summoned you to aid me!”

I willed my body-well, technically Louise’s body, forward. Everything screamed at me to stop, but I had to override it, I had to ignore the natural survival instincts built into this body, because if I didn’t, then I would die for real. I no longer had any other choice.

But it was too late. A dark shadowy circle suddenly emanated from the floor around Arthur. A pure, black figure, wearing an all black tophat and black wings alongside her dark suit, emerged from this circle, completely enshrouded in darkness. It was quite literally, a shadow taking a human-like form, something incomprehensible had appeared right in front of my eyes.

Frawa stood taller than any person I’d ever seen, and her figure looked unstable, like it could collapse and disappear at any moment. This was probably a partial summon due to the extreme amount of exhaustion Arthur under. Despite that, her presence still managed to make me shiver. I could tell she was no slouch, no not only that.

This fight was over. Even if I had been completely healthy, even if Arthur was on my side, even if I had to my disposal any weapon of my choosing, I knew it was impossible to win against her.

Nothing ever prepared me for the amount of pressure Frawa’s mere form put me under. It was like the weight of the world suddenly fell onto my shoulders.

My knees buckled, and I fell to the floor. Frawa smiled, standing beside Arthur, yet silent.

“Kill him.” Arthur said. “Kill the soul inside this body, but leave the body intact.”

I couldn’t resist. It was all over. It seems that this was where my story ended…I stood still and waited my fate, knowing there was nothing left to do. At least I’d given my all.

The shadowy figure approached and towered over me. I didn’t close my eyes, but looked staright up at her.

Her hand, which was definitely more of a claw, if anything, was as big as my head. She stretched it out towards me, and I waited for its touch-which never came.

I was pulled away by someone, who carried me to the opposite side of the room.

“What the hell are you doing, idiot?” Emmett berated me. “It ain’t over til it’s over!”

“How…” I muttered in total disbelief.

“You’re Jack, right?” he asked, but then didn’t give me an opportunity to respond. “To be completely honest with you right now, I’m really confused, but all I know is we gotta beat that big shadow monster, right?”

“It’s impossible…we can’t win.”

Emmett completely ignored my words, dismissing their very existence. He stood up and walked towards Frawa, towards the lump of darkness that had been mere moments away from erasing my existence.

“Kill him too, Frawa.” Arthur said. “You can destroy the body too, if that is what you desire-hhnnngh!!!”

My head felt like it was about to explode. I forcibly closed my eyes, and when I opened them, I felt myself back in a body I’d gotten used to.

No! Shit!

Fuck you, Arthur!

I was back in Arthur’s body. The temporary soul switch had ran out.

However, Frawa didn’t stop. Arthur’s instructions were for her to erase my soul. She turned her head from Emmett to me, knowing exactly what had just happened.

It’s useless! Just give up! You’re done for anyway, so why make it hard for yourself!

I looked over to see Louise-no, Maria, awaken in a battered body. I probably should have thought of the consequences a bit more before recklessly brutalizing the form she’d been in for the past few years.

Me, Emmett, Maria. The three of us, back together, one last time, we would fight with everything we had against this monster that Arthur had summoned.

I dragged myself up to my feet, and smiled again.