by Aaron Oster
Doragon’s red eyes flicked to him, and a small frown touched his lips.
“You are a Martial Artist at the beginning of the Red stage, yet you are unfamiliar with Soulcore. Is that true?”
“I also have no idea what that is,” Aika said, leaping to Roy’s defense. “And we were trained by a Sovereign who never mentioned it.”
Doragon grimaced and rubbed at his temples, closing his eyes for a moment and breathing deeply.
“Forgive me. I seem to have forgotten the ignorance of those living on this continent. Do you know of the five principle energy types?”
“You mean, like the energies we use in our techniques?” Roy asked.
Doragon nodded.
“We only know of four here,” he said. “Essence, Qi, Chakra, and Reiki.”
“Well, at least I don’t need to start from the beginning,” Doragon said, relaxing a bit. “Soulcore is the fifth and final form of energy. It requires you to be at Perfect Black-Belt to begin to comprehend and prepare properly, and only at Core Black-Belt will one be able to utilize it.”
“Core Black-Belt?” Aika asked, her anger well and truly forgotten.
“The stage of advancement after Perfect Black,” Doragon said.
Roy had known that there was likely a stage after Black, though for there to be two was news to him.
“So, my mother is at Core Black-Belt?” Roy asked.
“Yes,” Doragon replied. “A true Eternal, just like I am, though I was always the stronger one.”
“Wait, just how strong are you?” Roy asked. “Because the version of you we fought was in the mid-Golds at best.”
Doragon winced, clutching his head again and leaning over the table. Roy wondered if he’d asked the wrong question, but after a moment, the man straightened, letting out a slow breath.
“To understand anything about me or your mother, I will need to tell you of our past. Her Soulcore stone is still settling in, despite the passage of time since I’ve absorbed it. Judging by how I can feel someone else trying to take over, I am suffering from a Fragmented Soul. It is an illness, rare, but not unheard of, in those who have reached certain heights.
“A true Eternal must constantly grow while continuing on their Paths to Ascension. Those who do not can only endure for so long before their minds can no longer take the strain of immortality. That is when the Fragmented Soul begins to form. Simply put, it is a rift in one’s Core that melds fantasy and reality.
“If one is powerful enough, they can Fragment into hundreds of different people, all with different personalities, Paths, and memories. Of course, none will ever be as strong as the original, but that’s not to say that they won’t be powerful or have motives that are unknown to the original mind.”
“What you’re saying is that someone used your body to kill my father, and you have no idea why?” Aika said, her voice tense.
“I’m afraid so,” Doragon replied.
“How is it that you’re the one in control now?” Roy asked. “How did my mother’s Soulcore heal you?”
“It didn’t,” Doragon said flatly. “It only gave me some time as myself. The only real cure for a Fragmented Soul is a true advancement. This must be accomplished while the original mind is in control of the body.”
“How long do you have?” Roy asked. “I mean before someone else takes over?”
“Weeks. Months. Maybe even a year. It all depends on how much I exert myself. While Hoshi has stabilized me, her own power has all but bled away. She is as weak and helpless as I am. Sure, I can exert the full might of my advancement, and in about an hour, I wouldn’t be myself.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but what you’re saying is that no matter what happens, your mind will be taken over again,” Aika said. “That also means that the monster who killed my father might come back.”
“That may very well happen,” Doragon said with a shrug. “On the other hand, it might not. Right now, I’ve restrained myself and do not plan on exerting more than the minimum amount of energy needed. I can assume by the presence of the Ancient Cavern Beast tearing through the Windblight that my sister sent you to me for a solution.”
“Um, yes,” Roy said, shocked at how much Doragon knew despite the fact that he literally remembered nothing over the last fifteen or so years, at the very least.
“You said you were going to tell us about your past,” Aika said. “Like why you came here in the first place, and why you tried to kill Roy. Why don’t you start with that before you start explaining how we can beat an unbeatable Beast?”
“You are correct, of course,” Doragon said. “Forgive me if I stray from the topic of conversation. As I said, my mind is still settling in and will likely be doing so for at least another week. Now, as I was saying,” he continued.
“We come from a land across the sea, nearly halfway around the world. I won’t get into any great detail about it, but the continent is called Garasu. My sister and I were born some twelve-hundred years ago to parents in a Beast clan. Garasu isn’t exactly a peaceful land, so those who are born are forced to grow quickly or else they will become food for those who are stronger. We spent centuries at war, constantly battling for supremacy and power.
“In the beginning, we were all for it. But slowly, over time, my sister stopped craving war as the rest of us did. Once she reached Perfect Black-Belt, she almost never wanted to fight, and when she reached Core Black, she finally fled to a new land.
“As her brother, it was my responsibility to go after her, to bring her back home and defend our territory. But when I arrived here, it was to find that things had taken a downturn since the last time I’d seen her. She’d found some human, fallen in love, and had a child. She then sacrificed a massive portion of her own power to remove the Core of said child who was apparently growing far faster than anyone had seen before.”
He paused here, turning to fix his eyes on Roy.
“I was enraged at this discovery, but I thought that if I only got rid of you, Hoshi’s power would return. She would then see reason and come back home with me. But the savages living in these lands killed her weakened body, forcing her Eternal Soul into these cursed lands. Then, instead of killing you, they abducted you instead.
“The only signs I had that my sister was still alive was the curse placed on that idiot clan head, who was consigned to a life alone.
“I had already been on the edge of a Fragmented Soul at that point. I hadn’t had a true advancement in nearly a century and the stress on my mind after losing my sister was too great. I knew I didn’t have the strength to restore her on my own, and so, my Fragmentation began. The last thing I can remember is seeing a bowl-shaped depression in the ground as I flew.
“Then I woke up to find you resting right next to me. Hoshi’s son, carrying with him the power of the removed Core, and all grown up. I was unsure of what to do, but the power of an Ancient Beast is hard to miss, and seeing as I could sense the power of my sister’s Soulcore, I decided not to kill you.”
“How generous of you,” Aika said, cutting him off. “Here’s my question. Why don’t you just go kill the Ancient Beast? You claim to be more powerful than any Martial Artist on our continent, so it should be easy.”
“I likely can kill the Beast,” Doragon admitted. “But as I explained earlier, I simply do not have the time. Destroying a creature as powerful as Furea would take days, and I’d have an hour at most if I tried exerting my full strength.”
“Does that mean that Furea is a Core Black-Belt?” Roy asked, feeling his heart skip a beat.
As far as he knew, the strongest Martial Artists on Safaia were the Scions, though not a single one of them was above Base Black-Belt. If this Beast was two full advancement stages stronger, then they didn’t stand a chance.
Doragon opened his mouth to answer, then paused, his brows furrowing for a moment.
“What is it?” Roy asked.
Doragon was silent for several moments longer before opening his eyes
and looking relieved.
“I think we may just have found our solution to fighting the Beast,” he said, finally cracking the barest hint of a smile.
28
Mizumi Tokei was, by far, the youngest of the gathered Sovereigns. It didn’t help that her body had stopped developing at around the age of twelve, leaving her to perpetually appear as a prepubescent child. It was a common enough occurrence in the Mizumi clan that she’d never really minded it. One in every three children ended up with this odd genetic trait, which meant that there were many in her clan who appeared just as she did.
When she’d reached the lofty heights of Gray-Belt and taken over as the head of her clan, the other Sovereigns in the Seven Great Clans had treated her as little more than a child. Over the last fifty years, she’d earned the grudging respect of at least a few of them, since she’d climbed from 1st to 3rd Dan in that short span of time.
She was still the weakest of the Sovereigns, but her potential alone put her far ahead of all who’d doubted her. Of her critics, there had been no one greater than Sora Ame. The brash woman took every opportunity to belittle her, both for her age and stature. It didn’t help matters when Tokei continued to attract the attention of men while Ame was continuously scorned, despite her immense power.
That was why, as the tusked Sovereign, who clearly followed a base Path of Fire, came flying over to engage with them, Tokei was the first to strike. She didn’t feel the need to prove herself to anyone. Not anymore. But she did have plans, and in order for them to succeed, she needed to make a good showing of herself here.
The Seven Great Clans were gone, and now everyone answered to Herald Duncan, a Scion. He was someone who could outmatch Ame, Ikari, and Pelata all on his own. While she’d initially agreed that Duncan needed to be stopped, she now had a different plan.
Ikari’s long-lost brother had made a miraculous reappearance. She’d never actually met him before since he hadn’t been present for quite some time. But the fact that he was unattached meant that there was an opportunity to snag herself another husband.
She didn’t doubt for a moment that she could. Tokei had more charm than all the other Sovereigns put together, and once she did, she would bend him to her will. Before long, she would get Hermit to turn on Duncan, seizing control of the Clans himself, and seeing as she would control him, the true leader of all of Safaia would be her.
Then, when she reached Scion, she would rid herself of him — she couldn’t have a husband who matched her in power after all — and would then truly rule all of the great powers of Safaia.
Tokei had to resist a shiver of delight as her plans ran through her mind. She was in the middle of a battle and knew Hermit would be watching.
She met the Beast midair, her Reiki coiling around his own and dousing it in an instant. He might have been a few Dans higher than her, but he had been fighting full-out for at least a couple of minutes. A few hits from another Sovereign would definitely help bridge that gap. Plus, the techniques of Martial Artists in the Water Path were quite effective against those of Fire Artists.
The Sovereign twisted, his foot flashing out and trailing blue flames. Tokei’s leg snapped out, deflecting the blow and sending a lance of fire shooting off harmlessly into the air. She grinned, flowing under his next strike and hammering a series of punches into his abdomen. There was an Armorer technique in place, but she wasn’t aiming to crack it just yet.
The Beast grunted as he was driven back, but seeing as his technique absorbed all the force of the strikes, he was able to retaliate. Tokei felt the impact of his knee the moment before it struck and slipped to the side. His knee impacted with all the force of a stuffed doll against a bed, the small woman rolling around it and swinging a backhanded blow into the man’s ribs.
Just like many of the other Sovereigns, Tokei followed a branching Path, one that she’d discovered at Blue-Belt, and refined over the course of her advancement. The enemy Sovereign grunted as the blow slammed into his side, the force of her attack carrying straight through his Armorer technique and into his body.
He wouldn’t notice it and would just think that his technique was fending her off, but before long, he most definitely would begin to know the truth.
The Beast struck at her again, resulting in a series of flashing blue lights. Streaks of fire danced outward as he tried to hit her, but Tokei was well adapted to dodging and slipping past attacks. While several did manage to land, she either managed to roll past them, delivering an attack of her own or absorbed it with her Armorer technique.
The man, seeming to grow aggravated, reached to the surrounding Essence generated by the sun's heat. A pillar of fire, nearly fifty feet in diameter, exploded up from the ground, engulfing Tokei in a whirling blue inferno.
Tokei countered with her own Terrain technique, twisting cool air with her Reiki and spreading her arms wide. The pillar was blown apart with an explosion of steam, leaving Tokei standing in the middle of a whirling blizzard. Freezing snow whipped around her as she finally showed off more than her basic Physical techniques.
She was about to lunge when Itachi Ikari came lancing out of the man’s shadow, striking at his head. Tokei let out an annoyed huff as the Sovereign, taken off-guard, was sent sailing to the ground below.
“I don’t need your help,” Tokei said, glaring at the taller woman.
“Children should stay off the battlefield,” Ikari said with a smirk, then dove after the Beast, who was already on his feet and coming after her.
Tokei pushed down the flare of anger the insult caused, mentally picturing herself bashing the woman’s stupid face in. That calmed her down, allowing her to fix her small smile back on her lips before diving after the woman, intending to take down the Sovereign by herself. They had less than four minutes left, which meant that before long, they’d need to start bringing out their big techniques.
Spheres of fire formed at the Sovereign’s back as she approached from behind, but Tokei was able to easily avoid them, slipping between the attacks and slamming into the man’s back. She hammered in a series of blows at his spine while the man was occupied with Ikari, then danced away as he whirled to strike at her.
“Why even bother attacking if your blows do nothing?” Ikari taunted as she struck at the man’s face, finally landing a telling blow.
The Beast was blasted into the ground in a fountain of sand, and when he emerged, there was a clear line of blood across his left cheek.
“I’m not the one with a bloody nose,” Tokei said, then streaked down after the man as Ikari felt at the spot where blood had been drawn.
Tokei felt pretty good about herself as the man triggered a Full-area technique. As though it were a signal to everyone else, the air rippled and distorted as all the gathered Sovereigns unleashed their power at once. Freezing wind howled around Tokei as small flakes of snow began whipping about her, tossing her long mane of black hair about her face.
The Beast gestured upward, and pillars of fire began lancing into the air, interspersed with smaller spheres.
Seeing Tokei pause to repel some of the larger attacks with her own, Ikari dove down and was promptly snagged by writhing chains of blue fire, which began dragging her down to the Beast. Tokei laughed to herself as she watched this, her blizzard intensifying as she drove back the powerful flames.
Ikari had given up the advantage of a Full-area technique by trying to close the distance. But at least she was providing enough of a distraction for Tokei to work with while the Beast’s concentration was split.
Tokei was about to drop a wall of freezing snow on the Beast, when a massive woman — at least three times her size — came flying toward her. This woman was clad head to toe in bright yellow armor and clutched two gleaming spears in her hands.
A Sage? Tokei thought, slipping past the woman’s attack and slamming a palm into the center of her chest.
The woman was blasted backward, hurling right through the other battle involving Ame, Pelata, and Nami,
and slammed into an earthen wall raised by the Inu Sovereign to prevent her from accidentally leaving the suppression dome.
Tokei shrugged to herself after a moment, turning her attention back to the battle at hand. Ikari had managed to escape the chains and was now raining spheres of oozing darkness down on the Beast while he continued to throw massive attacks up at her. She stood in the air, watching the patterns of the enemy Sovereign’s attacks while forming her own.
The massive sphere of snow formed above her outstretched palm. Powered by her Full-area technique, it would be many times more potent than her regular Projected technique. She waited for the perfect opportunity then threw it down, catching the Beast right as he moved back to avoid one of Ikari’s attacks.
The snowball burst upon impact, exploding out in a sphere of whirling death as millions of snowflakes ripped at the Beast’s body. This wasn’t some weak attack like the snow turning to blades either. No, this snow was as corrosive as it was deadly. It hissed and steamed as it came into contact with the Beast’s Armorer technique, the man consequently being forced to release his Full-area technique and lean into his Full-body to keep the deadly snow at bay.
It helped that Ikari kept peppering him with attacks, preventing him from trying to run. Tokei, in the meantime, had released her hold on her own Full-area technique, leaning into her Full-body as well. She shot down, landing with an explosion of sand and rocketing toward the man still trapped within the sphere of deadly snow.
There was a roar from within, followed by an explosion of fire, and the man appeared, steam rolling off his body. Tokei watched, as though in slow motion, as the man’s fist clenched, then the area around Ikari turned to fire.
It seemed he was using his power as a Sage in the same way Ikari had. The Windblight was full of Fire Essence, though actually being able to make fire bloom from that, using only his abilities, was quite impressive. Even so, Tokei was at his back while Ikari fought to defend herself.
The man whirled, his face contorted in a snarl, just in time for Tokei’s flashing fists, empowered by her Full-body technique, to slam into him. They impacted with his Armorer technique again, driving him back but not doing any visible damage. The man snarled, extending his hand in a blade and swinging down at her head.