Mea maxima culpa?

[3kul]

((I finally got around to reading all of this!

Fantastic work Chronos, I've really enjoyed it so far (though I don't quite understand all of the latin )

I look forward to reading the rest, keep it up ))

[Chronos]

((Thanks, 3kul! You've just reminded me that I have to finish typing the rest of it .))

[Chronos]

How could an intangible spirit possibly be killed? Ensichrys was looking around at everyone, who were in turn staring dumbly at Cindi. No one knew what to do next, with the exception of the Guivre and Alloexustio, who were locked in mortal combat.

Then something bad happened. Cindi realized how invincible he was at this point. He smiled inwardly and released Mortracta, to the lonely flower's great relief. Cindi turned to the EC and smiled a wide, flaming white smile at them, then blasted torrents of flames out of both arms.

Grunts were mowed down in two diagonal lines. Cindi reveled in his success. It was this pause that proved to be his undoing. Ensichrys looked at Net, then at Cindi. Narrowing his eyes meaningfully, he turned to Net again.

"Net, give me that copycat blade, quick!" Net, slightly befuddled, tossed it to Ensichrys, who launched himself at Cindi. The flame demon fired a catastrophic blast at Ensichrys. The whole of the EC flinched in fear. Ensichrys was toast!

The ex-knight saw the flames coming, but slashed with the copycat blade while still in mid-flight. Cindi's fire blast appeared to be absorbed into the blade, which became a shapely chaotic conflagration. Ensichrys now thrust the blade in front of him. Cindi's white flaming eyes jerked open as he realized what was about to happen- what had already happened.

Ensichrys hit him with tremendous force and speared the blade right through Cindi's chest. The demon wailed in pain as he completely lost his shape. There was a spherical rush of flame, then there was nothing. Cindi had been- in every sense of the word- immolated.

Ensichrys was lying prone on the floor, his feathers singed badly. He struggled upright.

"I've never seen one do that," Net said from behind.

"It's this place," Ensichrys said scratchily. "Technology and magic works much differently here, depending on who uses it."

"Indeed," came the Owl's voice. "I did not think it was possible, but I am even more attractive here than I am in Blackstar!"

Hissing and grunting got everyone back on topic as the duel of Chaos and serpent raged on. The Guivre slammed Alloexustio into the floor repeatedly. He finished the combo by throwing the Admiral of Chaos into the wall. He hung in the air for a split second, then landed hard on the floor. Alloexustio staggered upright as the entire Evil Council (or what was left) closed in on him.

"You think you have won? Ensichrys, do you really think you have beaten me? On the contrary my friend! You just destroyed the last of the Chaos in the Nexus. Only one remains," Alloexustio said, pointing to himself. "Me! That makes me not only Admiral, but LORD of Chaos! You complete fool!"

"There seems," Ensichrys commented in a dry manner, almost casually, "to be a flaw in your bluff, Admiral. In case you've forgotten, I am the last being of Order as well. Theoretically, that makes me the Lord of Order in the Nexus. But I do not have the ultimate lordly powers of order, do I? There are others here," here, Ensichrys gestured toward the EC behind him, "that harbor Order in their souls, just as they harbor Chaos. We have no more power than usual. We are not Lords by default, simply by title."

Alloexustio seemed fit to kill himself at that moment. He had just been completely humiliated. He looked up strangely when he heard stifled snickering from the back. The curious creature now burst into laughter.

"I'm s-sorry!" Addman choked out in between guffaws, "But you just got completely owned! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Alloexustio was very angry.

[Chronos]

"Curse you, blue one!" Alloexustio screamed and used his magnetic abilities to rip the plasma gun from Addman's arms and slam it into the ground. The gun reacted to the magnetism and the resultant plasma stream arced right back to Alloexustio's hand.

A loud crack and a blue flash sent Alloexustio sprawling into the air. He landed hard and cursed loudly. As he lay spread-eagled on the floor, he thought quickly.

"You will not leave this place alive!" From within his chest, he pulled a small chunk of quartz.

Ensichrys knew that this was bad. "EVERYONE RUN," he yelled. They paused for a moment, then followed the ex-knight's advice.

Alloexustio hurled the mineral at the fleeing crowd, but Ensichrys stood, for the first time, bravely in front of him. He jumped and kicked the quartz chunk back into Alloexustio, where it promptly exploded with a massive disruption. Alloexustio was lost to view as the explosion soon turned into a vortex-like dimensional portal.


Through the portal, Fort could be seen, appearing to bite his fingernails nervously.

"EVERYONE IN," came some random grunt's voice.

[Chronos]

Ensichrys could hardly believe his eyes. Here in front of him was a wide open door to Blackstar. EC Grunts, officers, and elites alike ran past Ensichrys in desperation, lest the portal close before they could get through.

Ensichrys would normally have joined them, eager to get out of danger, but this time was different. He merely stood there in slack-jawed silence watching everyone shove through. The Nexus was collapsing further around him. No one was left. It seemed as if he had just moments ago discovered that there were other survivors, then lost them immediately. Why had this happened? Was it truly his own fault? Had everything been a result of his own cowardice?

Only two remained in the Nexus now. The Owl was waddling in a strangely undignified manner toward the Portal. Turning his head completely around, he addressed the ex-knight. "Are you coming, or do you wish to stay here?" Ensichrys looked at his comrade.

"I don't think I deserve to come with you. Ever since I arrived at Blackstar, I've done nothing but cause trouble and upset. The Evil Council is better off without me. You have Mortracta and the Guivre. They are all the strength you need. I'm... not necessary," he said with a faltering voice. Ensichrys continued to stare at seemingly nothing, yet seemingly everything around him, like a captain bracing to go down with his ship.

The Owl looked oddly empathetic right now. "Not necessary? Soldier, you are invaluable. The desolate plant is nothing without you. That monstrous serpent will be lost without its guardian. No other soul in the Cave knows how to keep such creatures content. But more than that, you have your own talents to offer. We cannot afford to lose you. Ensichrys, if you stay you will have made our rescue mission a complete waste!"

Ensichrys glanced back at the Owl with a tear-stained face. "Your words mean so very much, Owl. I'm sorry it had to end this way," said Ensichrys who turned and walked away, leaving the Owl rather baffled.


Suddenly, Ensichrys felt very cold and his world was turning dark. A glowing orb of gold flickered into existence before him; a familiar presence emanating from it. The entity felt cold and frightening, yet comforting.

"What... are you?" Ensichrys asked in a small voice.



The glowing orb spoke in a voice that slithered with an echoing roar.
"Ensichrys, Lord of Order, I am Chronos."

[Chronos]

Ensichrys twitched. Chronos?!

"You must be some trick of Chaos. There is no way that you are Chronos. You are dead, I watched that terrible creature kill you a lifetime ago. He pulled the heart right out of your chest, I still have nightmares!" Ensichrys was shaking all over.

The orb almost seemed to smile at him. "Ensichrys, I am indeed Chronos. You can doubtlessly not sense me at all. That is because the chaos and order within me is perfectly balanced. You are correct, I did die," he hissed. The blackness dissolved and Chronos' corpse melted into view in a remote corner of the Nexus- having been removed from the center and hidden from view.

"Do you know why I died, Ensichrys?"

"No, Guardian, I never did understand it."

"Ensichrys, the creature that killed me was an abomination concocted of creatures from every realm- including the young Blackstar Dojo before it was named and claimed by insanity. A normal being of any realm would not be able to harm me physically. My heart was made of a very rare gemstone, Lord of Order. It's properties protected it from the hand of any creature... but not every creature. The Lord of Chaos was a crafty little demon. I know not how he figured it all out.

"But I digress, Ensichrys. The reason I am still here is because I am not merely a god of one realm, as Au'Marui is. I am the god of every realm. I rule time and therefore space, as the two are linked. I merely elected to reside in this realm. Unfortunately, the burdens of having a corporeal form are great, and I created two primal forces because I couldn't hold the forces of Chaos and Order within my body. The Lords of Chaos and Order were born. Eventually, life came to this realm. This was the work of another god. Chaos and Order corrupted these life forms and they evolved into creatures like you and Alloexustio.

"When you went into hiding, your presence was no longer felt. This turned out to be just enough imbalance for Chaos to strike- which it did. The Lord of Chaos then unleashed its creation onto me and it pulled out my gemstone, killing me, tainting all the realms, and leading to the rise of the god of insanity. That gemstone, Ensichrys, is why you are still here. When the Nexus exploded, by rights you should have been killed by the blast. Why were you not? For the same reason that people called you 'little Chronos'."

Here Ensichrys' eyes snapped wide open. Something was beginning to make sense.

"The same type of gemstone that I used to live can be found in your chest, Ensichrys, albeit tainted by the touch of order. You were created in my image. That is why you were strong enough to survive, even in a separate realm. Here, the stone grants you immortality and near limitless power. In Blackstar, however, it simply allows you to live without a biological heart. There it possesses no extraordinary power, save for the power of life. You will age as slowly as the rocks of the realm- as per the nature of the gemstone, but you are mortal. Should you ever lose your 'heart,' Ensichrys, you will die. Luckily, however, the heart may be re-inserted and revive you. The same applies for me, though I ask that you not revive me. Having a body wasn't all it's cracked up to be and I like it back in the immortal realm where I belong. I'm sorry, Ensichrys, for putting you through all of this, but seeing you here today- with friends, no less- gives me reason to believe that creating this place in the first place was no mistake. You are, perhaps, my most endearing creation."

Ensichrys looked at the beautiful orb of his creator. "Thank you, mighty Chronos. You will always be my god."

Chronos began to dim. "Oh Ensichrys. You really are good at heart. Keep a tight hold on that stone, lest Alloexustio finds out that it exists- yes, he will return, sadly. Keep you friends and mind the owl that directed you to Blackstar. It was the energy of Nox that aimed your ballistic path at Blackstar. Why or how? I do not know. Perhaps he deemed you worthy, perhaps it was a complete accident. All that matters is that you do the best you can for those around you. Goodbye, Lord of Order."


And with that, the god of time was gone. Gone back to his immortal realm. The world came back into focus and it seemed that no time had passed at all. Ensichrys looked back at the Owl, who had not moved. "On second thought, friend," Ensichrys said with a smirk, "I think I will be coming home." Ensichrys walked toward the rift with a smile on his face and a tear in his eye.

"Had a 'heart-to-heart' with your creator, eh?" Came the Owl's voice. There was no use asking the Owl how he knew these things. He somehow just knew.

"Indeed I did. And I won't be leaving again for a long time."

With that, the two birds walked through the rift, which closed behind them. Left behind, was a now truly desolate realm. No life was left, just the smoldering ruin of the Nexus and the faint ticking of some far away clock.

Forever.




Back in the Black Forest, everyone's eyes were fixed on Ensichrys. It was like this for several seconds before Ensichrys nodded.

"Thank you, friends...




well, what are you all looking at me for, do you expect me to do a trick?"

At that, a few laughed. Most did not. It was a classic awkward moment.

Ensichrys was home indeed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




Behind the Cave, behind the forest, behind the lake, behind the tree, behind the tree stump, and behind a rock lay a demon. He woke up with a splitting headache and a bitter taste for revenge. The demon got up and looked around himself.

"Ah, fresh meat," he said, eager to create Chaos in this insane realm.

Alloexustio looked at his reflection in a puddle next to his rock. His face was charred, though not further disfigured.

"Ensichrys... I know you're here. Soon, soon enough, Ensichrys:

you will finally pay!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~






The End.

[TheBlackSoul]

Very nice. Although I must say all those yellow letters make the normal colored letters look pink.

[Chronos]

Hmm, I can kinda see that. When I scroll quickly, they do seem a little pinkish.

[Swix]

I might be a bit late, but excellent work Chronos, I really enjoyed reading this