[ToM] The Final Battle

Simply allowing Gao to abduct himself was the last thing Yoshiro felt comfortable with. Unfortunately the curse was acting up as is spread further and further across the young man's body. The dark markings were starting to encroach upon his neck and down his arm and torso. Pain and visions assaulted Yoshiro's mind which left him briefly stunned and unable to forcibly reject his father's escort.

Gao was carrying them in the direction of a nearby forest at the edge of the Luo Plains and didn't slow down as he crashed into the foliage and disappeared into the treeline. The former emperor came to a stop and tossed Yoshiro's half conscious body forward gently. Yoshiro would have just collapsed, but his back hit a tree and his legs barely managed to catch himself from falling as he leaned against the trunk and struggled to open his eyes.

"Explain...yourself..."

It was less of a question and more of a demand, but Gao didn't seem bothered by it. His head was turned back in the direction of the battlefield, as if he were scared they had been followed. There was something very different about the way Gao had been acting ever since the battle began, but it had become even stranger once that magician had appeared. The unease Yoshiro felt was twofold. His father which held the image of an evil demon was appearing more and more human as the day went on.

"..."

The father said nothing in response. His lips tightened and he turned back to his son. There was only an apologetic look in his eyes. Seeing this served only to anger Yoshiro more which excited the voices in his mind. The black rukh running rampant within amplified those negative emotions. Yoshiro pushed himself off the tree to stand on his own and summoned his strength to hold up his blade. "Answer me!" His shout caused his magoi to surge and his djinn aura spread out covering the area with frost.

An icy chill washed over the former emepror but Gao suppressed his own aura and stood there unyielding in the face of Yoshiro's threat. After all, in his state he could barely stand. The show of force was little more than a paper tiger. Gao took a deep breath and then sighed before looking his son in the eyes.

"A long time ago, when my father was still emperor, I saw the barbarity of the skirmishing on our western border first hand as a soldier. The raids never ended and our people suffered constantly at the hands of tribal groups. The cause for the fighting was simple. Our people were growing and in order to keep everyone fed there was no choice but to expand. By the time I became emperor, I had already cursed fate for its uncompromising push towards conflict.

As long as people foolishly see themselves as being part of separate groups, their own needs for survival inevitably end up at odds. It is destined that things eventually lead to bloodshed. I hated that cruel fate and so I sought to overcome it using strength. Using military might, I conquered the plainsfolk and pushed their tribes west of the Jade Dragon Mountains in order to secure a safe realm for the people of Kou."

Yoshiro listened but quickly became frustrated as it was not the answer to his own question. He didn't know why Gao suddenly started talking about the past. If Gao was looking for sympathy or acknowledgement that his actions had been justified, he was talking to the wrong person. Yoshiro fundamentally opposed the ideology that separate groups were bound to conflict and he believed that there must have been other answers to their problems aside from expansion. Thankfully, Gao finally got to the point of his monologue.

"After crushing the tribes, my focus turned to grooming an heir. It was years later that the first dungeons appeared and the world began to move as various powers sought to obtain the power of a dungeon for themselves. That's when 'that man' appeared before me. He called himself The Contractor and offered me a deal. Seeing through my ambitions, he offered to support Kou's conquest of the world. In exchange, I would have to do something for him someday.

At first I was skeptical. I gave him a bastard son I had sired before taking the throne and told him that I would consider the deal if he could support that child in capturing a foreign kingdom in my name. An impossible goal, or so I thought. Though my son, Zhi, died in the attempt...they successfully captured Remano and established a puppet king to act as our proxy. It was an impressive enough feat that I agreed to The Contractor's conditions."

Regret. It weighed heavily in Gao's voice as he recounted the truth behind when and why he had begun working with the strange magician.

"But that was a mistake. That man sees our country as nothing but a play thing. A game piece on a board far larger than you or I can see. Instead of me using him, I have been the one to be taken advantage of. I should not have sought a shortcut out of eagerness to see my dream completed in my life time. The result was that very dream shattering into pieces. It's too late for me to undo everything. All I can do now is secure Kou's future."

A scoff sounded from a Yoshiro whom was still rejecting his father's words wholeheartedly. His anger was only stoked further by how the story made it seem as though Gao had put the country into danger to satisfy his own ruthless ambitions. The scoff had been Yoshiro's own form of laughter as he felt a perverse joy to learn that Gao had been played after a long career of cruelty and dirty tricks. Blinded by his own hatred which had been magnified by the curse Yoshiro began to lose himself.

"Ha, the great Conqueror turns out to just be the pawn of a foreigner. If your men were to hear of this it would probably crush their image of you, no wonder you ran away from the battle just to tell me this. At first, I thought you wanted to beg for forgiveness. But I will never forgive you! This is your just desserts as far as I'm concer-"

The young man raised is voice and almost sounded hysterical as he shouted. A very grim picture was being painted for the fate of their nation, but Yoshiro was consumed by darkness and so he expressed glee towards his father's regrets. He was so wrapped up in it he didn't even notice as his father stepped in close until the man's arms wrapped around him.

Father and son. For the fist time in each other's lives, they shared a hug. Gao had taken the initiative to embrace Yoshiro which cut off the young emperor's words as surprise and emotion filled his face. The hug was firm and despite the extreme temperatures their respective djinn equips gave off, there was an oddly tame warmth that filled the frozen chill of Yoshiro's body. "Wha...?" Tears started to roll off Yoshiro's eyes as could not understand the swell of feelings and emotions that were in turmoil within his heart.

"Little Yoshi, I'm sorry father wasn't there. I won't ask you to forgive me. But don't mistakenly target your hatred for me towards our people. The only things you should hate are fate and that man for making fools of us all."

The words were simple, but they were ones Yoshiro had secretly wanted from his father. A sincere apology. "...That's not fair....after all this...you can't say something like that..." Yoshiro's eyes blurred from the unwanted tears as he slowly started to give in to his feelings and his arms inched upwards. He actually wrapped them around his father without consciously realizing it and hugged Gao back. The young man was just a boy again in this moment, crying for the first time in what seemed like his entire adult life.

"I hated fate, but I never stopped loving our country. This isn't how I wanted to pass it on, but the future of Kou will be in your hands. Good bye, my son."

Yoshiro was still in the middle of his emotional dam breaking, so he almost didn't catch the finality with which Gao spoke. But it was impossible for Yoshiro to not notice that his father had given his blessings for Yoshiro to rule. Looking up in confusion, Yoshiro was not prepared for what happened next. Violet light shone behind him and the feeling of cold steel suddenly plunged into his back. "Fa...ther...?" Yoshiro felt his eyes grow heavy. Gao stepped back and let his son go allowing Yoshiro to fall first to his knees and then face first into the dirt before finally falling into a deep sleep.  Gao looked at the dagger sticking out of his son's back with a complicated gaze. He turn turned and left, flying out of the forest and back towards the battlefield.

The blazing ball of magma had begun to cool at this point and its glow was beginning to dim. By the time Gao had returned to the scene, bits of hardened earth were falling away gradually. Gao stopped in the air a few meters away and looked at the orb holding determination and focus in his eyes.

"All done with your little chat? Good. Now order your men to stop their suicidal charges. They do me no good if they're dead."

The Contractor's voice sounded from within the lava barrier as larger chunks of it broke off and fell away revealing the magician. He was floating inside his borg as if he were laying on a couch enjoying a nap. The Contractor's attitude made Gao grit his teeth a bit as it punctuated just how meaningless such efforts to stop him were. There was no doubt in the former emperor's mind that The Contractor could have easily broken out of that spell, but chose not to.

"Enough. Since you already know I had no intention of fulfilling my side of the contract, you no longer have a reason to support me or involve yourself in this civil war. Leave now, or I'll be forced to make you leave."

Gao words caused a playful smile to dance across the Contractor's face as his borg vanished along with the last bits of molten earth and he assumed a standing pose with his hands behind his back. "Oh? Does that mean you've actually approved of that boy? My, my, so very surprising! Looks like I was right to try and make a contract with him...In fact, I still might. How will you make me leave if I intend to wait here for him?" A teasing tone carried in his voice.

Gao brandished his dark metal vessel and shouted, "With the very power you gave me yourself!" He then flew towards The Contractor like a streak of fire through the air. The two crossed and light flashed. The Contractor held his staff like it was a blade that just completed a slash and was humming pleasantly to himself as he twirled it back into a more normal posture. Gao was with his back to the magician, his face twisted in pain as he held back a mouthful of blood.

All at once, the bladebow was broken and a large slice across Gao's chest opened up. "Tsk, tsk. Did you really think I would give you power that exceeded my own? Come now, surely you knew better than to believe that. Why lie to yourself?" The Contractor turned around and waved his cane. Both Gao and the shard of his dark metal vessel were about to fall to the ground, but with the Contractor's motion gravity magic wrapped them up and held them in midair.

"You might not have intentions of completing our contract, but that doesn't mean I've given up on seeing it fulfilled. At this point, your intent no longer matters. You WILL win this battle. Be it as a man or otherwise~"

Absolute glee and anticipation filled The Contractor's eyes as he flicked his finger up and then down. The broken piece of the dark metal vessel followed those movements and then pierced Gao's chest biting deeply into his heart. The contractor then pointed his finger to the sky and let out a chuckle. "Hehehe~ It's time to bring this little show to its final act." All of the black rukh across the battlefield then began to surge towards him. Swarms of black butterflies moved together to form a swirling vortex of animosity and curses.

The vortex centered around Gao and his screams could be heard from within momentarily before becoming weak and distant only to be replaced by something else. A loud and booming heartbeat along with an inhuman voice.
"Hat...red...Des...troy..."

---

In the aftermath of Tenma's act of friendly fire, none of his men had been killed. In fact, none of the enemy were dead yet either. But everyone caught up in it was heavily injured and unable to fight further. Many didn't even know what had happened to them but they were all wallowing in pain. Those that had seen what happened were filled with regret. Especially those who were holding the front line. They had endured with all their might to follow Tenma's words and by extension, Emperor Yoshiro's words. They did not kill their foes.

But it seemed as though such orders were only given so they could lure the enemy in. Now that the lines were broken, their own general had so ruthlessly attacked friend and foe alike. Some were filled with resentment and anger so they ignored previous orders and decided to take their hatred out on the wounded enemy soldiers. Yoshiro's men began to shout curses as they turned their weapons on the downed enemies and began to engage in open slaughter. Gao's men that had yet to push through the gap in Tenma's shield wall charged in to meet them and a chaotic melee began. All the while, black rukh was generated by their negativity and it began to spread across the left wing army.

The forces under Hei Lu's command had been given orders to strike deep into Yoshiro's lines. Officially their target was the head of the new general, Tenma. But this was not the true purpose behind Gao's orders. Hei Lu stood before Tenma still smiling. "My lord has made a choice. When two colonies of ants go to war, the survivors of the losing side do not obediently serve the new queen just because they've lost. For the future of Kou, this can not be allowed to happen." The old general made soft eyes as he vaguely implied the intentions behind the secret truth of Gao's plan.

"Go on. Finish your job. Strike me do-"

Tired of war and eager to reach his own final destination, Hei Lu urged Tenma to finish him off. But at that moment, the black rukh had reached a density so high that even non-magicians could see it with their naked eye. Not only that, but the waves of darkness were suddenly flying off towards the center army. Or more accurately, the sky above the center army. There, a great black vortex was forming making it impossible to see Gao or The Contractor.

"Where is the True Emperor!? Where is Yoshiro!?"

Worry and unease covered Hei Lu's face as he looked towards the distant growing mass of evil.

[Notes: The fighting is still going on. It's up to you to stop it, encourage it, or move to the center battlefield.]

---

The amount of death that had accumulated on the right wing was higher than anywhere else. The building black rukh was only exacerbated by Gao's officers threatening death for those who retreated. The soldiers were left with the impossible decision to be mowed down by the Meridians or flee and die to their own leadership. As for the officers themselves, only a few were dedicated to keeping their men in line at this point. Most of them had pushed to attack Merrze.

The glory of slaying an enemy general aside, they had been given direct orders to give their lives kill her. It didn't matter how futile their attempts to even get close to Merrze were. Overwhelming numbers of soldiers descended on her once she personally set foot into the conflagration of the battle. There were none among them with the power to stop the King Vessel, but they desperately hacked at her plants and trudged through the mud in an attempt to get closer. Merrze's own attempts to find a singular commander to meet in battle were in vain as the forces here had been decentralized. But as the officers were throwing themselves at her anyways the Gao army leadership and chain of command was still being quickly dismantled.

All the death and despair had built up more black rukh than anywhere else in the battle. It had long since become densely packed enough that even normal people could see the black butterflies with their own eyes. Now those ominous creatures were being sucked towards the center army where they swarmed to create a black vortex. But the bloodlust and fighting was too far gone and the fighting didn't stop on account of the unnatural phenomenon.

[Notes: The enemy officers are coming to you. Fighting is still continuing. You can choose to clean things up here or begin moving towards the center army.]

---

The Argentum group would manage to fight their way out of being encircled, but it was hardly time to celebrate. Aside from Cyrus and his sister only a few of the men that had been with them survived. Seeing they had made it back, Dong Zhu finsihed disarming an opponent and broke off to make his way over to them.

"Pull a stunt like that again and you won't be so lucky next time. Get the hell out of here, you've no place on this battlefield! I-...oh no..."

Dong Zhu was preparing to chastise them further, but developments in the duel above them stole his attention. The arrival of The Contractor had gone unnoticed but once Gao took Yoshiro away and all that was left was a floating ball of magma, Dong Zhu realized that his emperor was no longer anywhere to be seen. He had focused on his duties keeping their position and helping Cyrus' group escape certain doom.

"Where is the emperor!?"

The general shouted and the question led many to look up and also see that Gao and Yoshiro were missing. Much of the fighting took a pause as people began to realize something was off. It was then that Gao returned and even more soldiers in the center army stopped fighting to look up and see what was going on. Where did Gao go to now be returning from and what was inside that sphere of magma? Curious for the answers to these questions, the center armies watched as they witnessed the sphere fall away to reveal an unknown magician.

Shock then swept through the soldiers as they witnessed Gao suffer a swift and effortless defeat at the hands of the stranger. The black rukh from across the battlefield was then summoned up to swallow Gao's body along with that magician until all they could see in the sky was a swirling eye of darkness and evil in the air. It wrapped around Gao like some sort of corrupted womb and soon that unearthly voice would reach the ears of everyone present. Dread began to clasp tightly around the hearts of the soldiers. Even those on Gao's side could not bring themselves to think that the enemy leader was truly defeated and victory was theirs when such a foreboding phenomenon was occurring.

[Notes: Fighting has mostly stopped, everyone in the center army can hear the inhuman voice and heartbeat coming from inside the vortex.]

“What is happening…” Tenma thought to himself, he was there, standing in the middle of the war but it was as if he was not himself. But he didn’t feel anything taking over his body, there was no sign of pain or even fading consciousness… But those attacks? Was it really his doing…?  No...It was not his doing… he was planning to send some melee attacks with his Katana… He felt this dizziness creeping into his head and he could hear his own breathing, what was really happening… He was confused and when he blinked, he realized he was within himself, floating on the dark water and only his eyes were visible. The swordsman let out a surprised gasp before he brought himself to float towards the surface as he almost drowned.

“Why am I here…” He muttered to himself, he always refused to be here...and now he ended up here, without resistance. “Now is not a good time for you to arrive… was it you? Those attacks?” The man glared as he growled towards nothing although something slowly appeared and standing on the surface of the dark water.

With a chuckle, the person who looks just like Tenma himself spoke, “Now now Caine… It's not like you for being mad about this.” The look alike kneeled, looked down at Tenma. “I just thought we could spice things up a bit. After all, we have been restraining ourselves a lot this time just to follow that puny emperor’s desire. It's your chance to have a killing spree,  they will be helpless once you slash them like a helpless sack of meat.” His laugh echoed inside the area, but Tenma’s expression didn't change. “How did you do that…?”

Slowly a dark butterfly flew towards them before resting on the other persona’s shoulder, he noticed but he let the butterfly be with a smile. “Let's just say the excitement took me over...and all of those restraining that you did in front of her made you weak…”

The black butterfly readied itself to fly again,  but before it was able to fly away, it was trapped within a grasp and instantly got crushed as Tenma put force on his grasp. “Disappear… now. I'm capable to do this alone.” And at that moment, the dark water changed into bloody water and Tenma would only scoop the water with his hand before looking at the persona. “This is how it should have been.” The persona looked annoyed, didn't think Tenma would still be this strong to make him disappear as he started to crumble, “We will see…” The persona laughed before cracking into pieces.

With a sigh, Tenma blinked again and he would look at his palms before making a fist to check if he finally took back the control. He was back there and as he saw from the within, it became chaotic… Hei Lu’s words sounded strange but Tenma had something more important to do. Although the scene where the swarm of black rukh flying towards the center of the battlefield caught his attention,  he noticed it was where both Yoshiro and Gao were fighting.  He couldn't believe his eyes though,  it looked like the butterfly from before… and it came from those soldiers…  

“I've heard enough nonsense out of you… If you truly care about your emperor and this country,  tell your men to stop fighting right at this moment… Dying is not the option to end the war.” Tenma said coldly before running towards his men. Without uttering words, he stepped between fighting soldering and disarmed them from their weapons before going to the others who were fighting.  He would looked towards each of his men, right on their eyes, giving them a silent understanding as he tried to stop them and calmed them down. The soldiers would be able to notice how painful Tenma felt at the moment, as something that he was supposed to control caused all of this, messing all the plans he had made. The soldiers would be able to see how hard he tried to stop them from fighting each other, he even went as far as immobilizing some soldiers who didn't want to listen. He wished he had healing items to heal the injured ones though as he checked the soldiers who got caught within his friendly fire, some soldiers would be hesitant to help because they were unsure of what to do but would be surprised that Tenma would grab some wounded soldiers towards the safe place by himself.

“After I make sure the situation is cleared here… I'll head up to the center…” He thought to himself as he did his job in the left wing as quick as he can. He would also wonder about Hei Lu’s words...could it be that Gao had another thing planned in this war…? Why did his most trusted general came to him only to beg to be killed… Also that nightmarish black swarms...it made him feel uneasy...

One by one the commanders through themselves in the tight grip of the death of the vines. The tearing and crunching of flesh would scrap through the air, breaking past some of the screams even.

She waltzed forward, trying to keep those away from her as she could. Up in the sky, black birds flooded, filling up the air faster than the sunlight. The dark rukh was building from the resentment, from the death and disdain that she was helping bring. The warmth from a slight embarrassment touched her cheek. She was winning but she was here to set a good example, to do good, not just slaughter.

Clad in red and green the king candidate would press forward with increasing speeds towards the center, so much as not to be a blur. Her words would pick up, her speech coming out like a flurry of wind as she tried to get others to follow.

"Can you not feel it in the air, how the pressure and the hate build in a battle which is supposed to end. We've all seen the cruelty this war brings. If you want glory fine, if you want your home fine, if you wish for stability I stand with you, but now we kill for the sake of this battle but look, look her towards the center, towards the generals. It's clear to see, we fight and but heads, but we have a common enemy. Come at me if you wish, those who wish to die for glory may charge me in hope to win for their nation, but those who wish to fight and win for each other, for life, for our identities and families, follow me into this charge, the war must end. "

It was unlikely that her words would reach the teeming masses but she had to try. It as intense from head to toe as anxiety, fear, and excitement were held behind her wall, the green lady was looking to rally some, any, she knew many of them were tired, her people follow, maybe more would. Whatever they chose there were bigger fish to fry.

Cyrus was prepared to be chastised by his commanding officer for his sister’s stupidity and bloodlust. As he tuned out Dong Zhu’s curses and yells, he had to double take at the increasing darkness and fear in the air. In the distance, he saw it. A mass of black rukh so big that even he could see it. He clenched his jaw “So this is what all this fighting has gotten us,” Cyrus turned to Ariana “Soon there won’t be anything left to protect”
Ariana began welling up she wondered what would happen to her husband, her two children just beginning to understand the world. This was going to be her moment to do something or run away. She chose to fight on. Even if it meant dying, at least her children would have the bright future they deserve. She rode off into the fray yet again, but this time Cyrus would notice the resolve in her eyes. It wasn’t anger anymore it was compassion to try to not only save the people she cared about but as many people in Kou she could. Cyrus, emboldened by her strength, decided to ride with her if not to fight then to save the people he needed to.

The vortex of black rukh weighed heavy above the center of the battlefield. Below were signs of the metal vessel user clashes that had taken place not long ago. Fragments of dry ice and still smoldering rock were littered across a layer of frost and ash. Surrounding the circular area of cold and heat was a sea of soldiers. They had mostly stopped fighting and were now looking up at the source of the horrible voice emitted from the cocoon of black rukh.

"Ooouuu..."

A low and rumbling groan sounded and the dense cloud of darkness began to disperse. A monstrous figure emerged and stood there in mid air, great black wings unfurled. The wings protruding from the black demon were like blades and glowed red hot as if they were only a few degrees from turning molten. The black rukh didn't fade away as is scattered away from the creature, it simply spread out once more. The curses made manifest swept across the battlefield filling soldiers with feelings of dread and resentment.

"Is that...the True Emperor?"

A soldier asked aloud, his tone unsure. Gao had undoubtedly been using magic of heat and strength. The figure matched in magical themes but in every other regard it was unrecognizable to the men. The only thing any of them knew for sure was that the dark being gave off an air of danger like nothing they'd ever faced before. Some began to unconsciously back up a few steps as fear gripped their hearts.

Spoiler:

The Contractor was nowhere to be seen, but his presence had not vanished entirely. His cackle softy touched the ears of the transformed Gao as the magician spoke from an unseen vantage point. "Hehehe~ What a magnificent form. The base materials really do matter...this is the best specimen I've made yet! Now go on, destroy your enemies and claim your empire!" The invisibility spell The Contractor wore did nothing to hide the naked glee in his voice.

The black djinn turned its head to the left and stared for a moment before suddenly swiping its arm to the side. Its left wing also lashed out in that direction colliding against The Contractor's borg with a deafening boom. The magician was shocked and launched into a spiraling descent towards the ground. He landed with a crash spending mud and rainwater everywhere.

"Grrraaaaaaaaaoooooo!"

After swatting The Contractor into the ground, the black djinn let out a soul piercing roar. The emotion behind it could be defined with a single word. Rage. A boundless and unending rage that consumed all reason or thought and drove men to madness. Filled with this drive, the demonic figure looked down towards crater where The Contractor had landed and rushed towards it.

The aura of heat had become even more intense and as Gao landed in the clearing all of the remaining frost melted and then turned to steam as the dry ice sublimated. His arrival made everyone at the edges of the crowd closest start backing away in a desperate attempt to free themselves from the wave of hot air that spread out in all directions.

The black djinn ignored them for the time being though. With another roar it raised its fists into the air before smashing them down onto The Contractor. Molten sparks erupted from the djinn's fists with each strike as it smashed down again and again. The golden light of a borg appeared at first but after a few strikes cracks began to form on the barrier. The splintered out into a spiderweb of danger. Just when it seemed that one last blow would shatter the defenses, the djinn raised its fist again and then stopped.

Looking down into the crater, it could be seen that there was no longer anything there. Just caved in earth and billowing steam as the wet ground was being baked by Gao's very presence. This gave the djinn pause and it simply stood there, silent, staring down into the hole in the ground.

An optimistic fool from Gao's forces suddenly shouted, "The True Emperor must have won! Long live Gao Yuan Zu! Long live the True Emperor!" His assumptions were that the unknown figure seemingly crushed into oblivion had been Yoshiro and that Gao had just defeated him by drawing on some unknown power. Since there were more men without a vantage point than others, his cheers were soon echoed as a misunderstanding spread. Alas, all the cheering caught the djinn's attention.

Slowly turning its head, the dark djinn glared at the cheering soldiers. Pure animosity and hatred gleamed in the monster's eyes. The first man to start shouting stopped and gulped down a mouthful of fear as he felt the murderous gaze and sensed that something was amiss. "De....stroy...." Steam poured out of the djinn's mouth as it struggled to produce words. One moment it was standing there staring at them and in the next the djinn shot towards Gao's forces like a bat out of hell.

The large wings and vicious claws swept back and forth. Death and dismemberment followed their every movement. Bodies and parts of them were sent into the air as scattered messes of gore and viscera. However, there was little blood as the intense heat of the djinn's body cauterized every injury it caused. A terrible slaughter had commenced and Gao's soldiers weren't the only ones at threat as the djinn turned around and attacked rest of the soldiers that had been surrounding the clearing to watch without discrimination of which force they had belonged to.


Far from the death and destruction, Yoshiro was still face down in the mud. Drops of rain snuck through the forest canopy here and there but their cool touch did nothing to wake the slumbering emperor. The dagger in his back was glowing with a purple light and its blade seemed to be made of the same magic which spread across Yoshiro's back like vines growing from a plant. The horrible burns that covered him were slowly but surely being healed by the purple light as life magic flowed into his flesh to promote the regeneration of cells.

Unfortunately, the look on Yoshiro's face was a pained one as his eyes were closed tightly and his brows furrowed into an arch. While his body was being repaired on the outsid, inside his soul there was a battle waging. Yoshiro stood there as his younger self. Watching in solitude as he watched his father sit atop a distant throne in a void of darkness. Yoshiro walked and walked, but he couldn't seem to get any closer. Worse yet, his siblings appeared along side him but they would always advance whereas he could not.

Eventually the siblings in front of him took a turn however. One by one, they started to collapse. Blood poured from their orifices as they fell over and became a staircase of bodies. Using this staircase, Yoshiro could finally get closer to his father. But even when he got just out of arms reach, Gao didn't look up or seem to notice him. The former emperor instead pointed behind Yoshiro.

The boy turned around to see what his father pointed to. Behind him was not just a staircase built on the corpses of his own siblings, but below it was a sea of corpses. The entire foundation of the space seemed to be made from the dead of Kou that had been racked up during the war. Each body told the tale of a miserable death. Shriveled up husks who died of starvation were mixed in with mangled soldiers trampled by enemies and allies alike. Horror filled Yoshiro as he felt an overwhelming sense that this was all his fault.

Turning back to his father for support or guidance, Yoshiro found that the man had gotten up and was walking away. "Wait!" Yoshiro tried to call out for him, reaching outward toward that large back. But it was pointless. Gao kept walking and vanished into the darkness. All that was left was Yoshiro and an empty throne. Yoshiro felt something break inside of him and he sat down. Not on the throne, but in front of it. The youth buried his face in his knees and sobbed softly. Alone in the encroaching darkness.

[DM Notes: Everyone is able to see the dark djinn by this point, its taller than an imuchakk with massive wings so it'd be hard to miss even at a distance amidst a crowd. For the sake of combat, its heat aura isn't instant death but don't just ignore it either.]

---

Hei Lu shot Tenma a stubborn look and grit his teeth. The old soldier didn't appreciate the way Tenma worded his statement. Could he claim to hold more care for his own emperor when death was too high a price for his taste. Hei Lu saw things differently and felt that it was the highest honor to die in service to one's master. But he didn't need to be convinced by Tenma's words. The situation had changed and the reason why this was no longer time to fight showed itself clearly in the distance as the black vortex seemed to reach its critical point.

The general was willing to throw his life away and respected his emperor's wishes to also meet his end. But this was not the righteous conclusion they'd sacrificed so much for. Until Hei Lu could confirm that Gao and Yoshiro were alive somewhere in that black maelstrom Hei Lu could no longer afford to blindly pursue his mission. But even so he was filled with hopelessness. The black rukh were a factor, but his own understanding of war told him that Tenma's request was difficult if not impossible. The soldiers were already fighting in a manner that had broken down into a melee. A few commands wasn't going to stop this war.

Just as Hei Lu was feeling at a loss, he turned to find Tenma's heroic figure in sight. The one-eyed man wasn't running around shouting for men to stop. He was personally stepping between the combatants and putting their fighting to an end with his own personal strength. Hei Lu was stunned briefly but ultimately smiled and laughed softly to himself. "Kokoko...you really are a fool..." The words sounded like an insult at face value, but in truth they were filled with admiration. Never before had he seen such an act on the battlefield.

As Tenma moved on from fight to fight, one of the Gao soldiers he'd disarmed was not content to just lay down his hatred. The one-eyed general's words did not reach him, only the urging whispers of the black rukh touched his ears. The man picked up the spear that had been knocked from his hands and looked wild as he hefted it to stab Tenma from behind.

Blood spattered and fell to the muddy ground. The spear was stuck in place as though it had been trapped in an iron vice. But it did not stick into Tenma's body. Instead, a burned hand was grasping the shaft just past the spear tip. Hei Lu stood looming over the soldier with his signature smile. "Enough. Our true battle is not here." Hei Lu looked to Tenma and nodded letting him know that he was agreeing to the man's suggestion that they broker a truce for now. He then went on to shout commands to his men to halt the fighting and copied Tenma's act of personally stopping the ones who didn't listen.

[DM Notes: You may proceed to the center army in your reply. Assume that both armies stop fighting and Hei Lu is joining you in leading them towards the center. By the time you get there your "time" will be caught up to where the main battle posts are.]

---

As the leadership of Gao's forces assaulted the living fortress that was Merrze, more and more of the structure keeping the peasant soldiers in line started to fall away. The did not have their emperor nearby or a heroic general like Hei Lu to lead them and fill their hearts with fighting spirit. There was only the whip and promise of a swifter death should they turn and run. But as the hyper loyal soldiers leading them abandoned the role of management in exchange for an attempt on the djinn user's life, many of the peasant fighters began to feel hopeless.

The black rukh was certainly one cause, but another was the way the forces of Merida suffered almost no losses despite grinding away at their own army with relative ease. How could they possibly fight against such an army? Thus, when Merrze shouted out a call for an end to the conflict, there were many among them who wanted to comply. Alas, few had the courage to actually do so. There were still officers towards the rear who would fulfill the promise to end their lives should it come to that.

There were some who threw down their weapons and ran towards the Meridians shouting surrender hoping the enemy would be able to protect them from their own allies. But for the most part, fighting continued.

[DM Notes: You may push towards the center next turn(nothing has the power to stop you lol) but if you want the fighting to stop and for both armies to follow willingly, you will need to snipe the officers at the back of Gao's forces. If you choose to bee line it for the center then when you arrive your "time" will be caught up to the main posts time.]

---

Though the Argentums resumed fighting, they would not find many opponents fighting back for long. The developments in the sky above had taken everyone's attention. There was no shortage of awe and shock as no one among them had ever seen such a phenomenon before. None of them knew what the black vortex meant, but they all felt some primal instinct that told them it was not good.

Boom

The Contractor landed not far away only to be pursued by the transformed Gao. Cyrus would be able to feel the dark djinn aura wash over him as rain turned to steam and filled the battlefield with a thick humid fog full of heat. The heat only seemed to grow in intensity at the instant of impact while Gao slammed at the ground violently.

There was little respite before the black djinn charged into Gao's forces and then turned its attention to Yoshiro's men. Thankfully, Cyrus and his group were not targeted just yet. Dong Zhu rode up front and raised his sword as it shone with the golden light of a magic circle. A frosty air began to swirl around it and with a swipe of the blade that air became a wall of dry ice snowfall which lingered in the air instead of dropping to the ground. The frost wall blocked the oppressive aura of heat bounding off of the djinn and gave relief to Cryus and the other soldiers nearby regardless of which army they were from.

Nobody was more relieved than Dong Zhu, however. Looking at the sword in his hand, the man smiled brightly and his one good eye filled with hope. That sword was his household vessel and the fact that it still held power meant that Yoshiro was still alive somewhere with his vessel in tact. "Don't lose hope! Emperor Yoshiro still lives! Hold out and don't lose your lives here! Today is not the last day of Kou's future, but the first!" He then boldly charged forwards flanked by a magician and anothers swordsman who were his trusted aides.

[DM Notes: Dong Zhu will engage the black djinn starting next round. You can choose to support him, focus on trying to save the wounded, or simply observe. Regardless of what you chose, now is your time to shine. Also, you are officially caught up to the "time" the main plot posts are at.]

The one eyed man expected some soldiers to revolt after being knocked by taking back their own weapon to stab Tenma so they could at least poured out some hatred. He wouldnt mind receiving some stabs, he deserved it, his inability to lost focus for a second was resulting a chaos. However, he didnt expect that Hei Lu, the man who Tenma didnt think would do this kind of thing, would stop one of the soldier’s attempt to stab the swordsman with his own hand. There was another level of respect that Tenma felt towards the general when Hei Lu spoke about the true battle and nodded as a sign that he agreed for a truce at the moment. He even went to personally stop the soldiers who didn't want to stop fighting as well, making Tenma only sigh and carved a smile on his lips.

As the two armies had stopped fighting, Tenma could assure that it was safe enough to leave them and go to the center. “Let's go, General.” He said to Hei Lu, asking him to join so they could see what was happening to the emperors. The moment he arrived, a gigantic creature was standing there with massive wings attached on its back and it was attacking its surroundings without mercy. “Do you know anything about that creature?” He would ask Hei Lu as he prepared his Katana. Tenma could feel the intense heat coming from the creature, and he could only curse under his breath, “...i hate this kind of heat…”

As Merrze acted and moved towards the swarm of dark birds she could catch the cries of cruel men as they forced each person to fight on. Many heard the call to give up their arms but in an army like Gao, there were those meant to keep you in line, of course, any good army had that. In this instance it was a cruel command, the fanalis struggled but she knew others were there. It was a difficult choice, it was her responsibility to act but she's the one who called forth towards these people so was it also not her duty as well.

With a breath, her green image raced through the squirming, worm-like armies which struggled amongst the fleeing masses of them and those who struggled to stay in the fight amongst the ravenous dogs of the cause. Merrze had changed her direction choosing to go towards the remaining enemy generals or commanders within Gao's army.

"Let the wicked be returned by my hand!" It was a bit of theatrics as her brazen voice commanded across the field. It was the opening call for the ending assault in which had descended upon those in which she hunted. Vines from her and the magic of Buer spread forth through the earth, spreading like weeds, thick fences of thons and grasping arms of ivy sprung forth from the battlefield. The wildflowers of retribution would crawl, reaching over bodies and gashing flesh. Those that were targeted would be brought into the earth as their grief and anguish settled with the daises.

Once business was taken care of she would walk over the soft grass as she left the new mildew strewn battlefield. It was time to progress towards the vortex of the dark energy. It was intimidating honestly, magic always was with how it bent and shaped the world. If that's how it worked at least she was sure it was scary. Scary or not she had always stood up to challenges, she existed to be the resistance, a guiding hope. it was time to move forward.

As Cyrus rode through the throngs of warriors, he would find none fighting. Rather they were in awe of something so terrible that they could no longer fight. He could feel the heat and negativity slowly coming his way he braced for an attack of a magical variety but he did not expect what came out from behind the opposing forces a giant black monster had made its way to the battlefield he froze and his sister did the same. The heat was so intense he wasn’t able to think straight he took out his wind scythe in order to counteract some of the heat. That’s when Dong Zhu came his household vessel aloft as a whirl of cool air danced around them it was obvious that the general was going to fight yelling words of encouragement to rally the men still fighting. Cyrus wasn’t swayed by these words he only stared in disbelief at the situation he found himself in. He looked over at his sister who was ready to fight with Dong Zhu. For them it was a fight for survival for him, it was a fight for honour but it wasn’t something that he wanted, He wanted to make sure that as many people were able to get out safely from the tyranny of the monster, before them. He would help out the injured to clear the battlefield for the epic fight to come.

The ground shifted as dirt displaced and suddenly a head popped out of the earth. Far from the fighting, The Contractor emerged from the ground with a frown on his face. After spitting out a mouthful of dirt he wriggled about until his arms freed themselves of the ground to pull the rest of himself out. Far from the fighting, the magician dusted himself off as he complained aloud.

"What a pitiable waste. If I knew he would turn feral like that, I wouldn't have removed my blessings. Hmph, unacceptable. This wont do at all."

Once The Contractor tidied himself up he looked in the direction of the battle one last time before shaking his head and turning away. His golden eyes scanned the horizon until he was able to spot a concentration of black rukh hanging over a forest. Pearly whites flashed a grin and The Contractor began humming to himself complacently as he headed in that direction.

Eventually, the strange man entered the forest and came upon the sleeping Yoshiro. By this point, slightly more than half of the young emperor's body had turned dark in color as the spreading of the curse was almost complete. The Contractor pursed his lips as he saw this and rubbed his chin. "This is all wrong, all wrong, all wrong. You are supposed to be the other side of the scale. There is no balance this way." The magician shook his head repeatedly before twirling the cane that acted as his staff and tapping it to Yoshiro's back.

The dagger that had been slowly healing the burns was knocked aside, but an even more potent healing magic surged in its wake coming from The Contractor's staff. The wound were swiftly healed in just a few seconds which prompted The Contractor to pull his staff away. A small fragment of Yoshiros rukh was pulled away with it. There was still white rukh among it, albeit surrounded by the tiny black birds.

The Contractor waved his hand and shooed away the black rukh surrounding Yoshiro's rukh. He then raised his staff to the air and wrapped the rukh in magic. A golden light shot up into the sky where it split into several tiny streaks of light that spread out into different directions. "I don't like working with you, but this time I'll have to make an exception..." The Contractor said looking at the departing golden light, he then looked down to the sleeping Yoshiro and knelt by his side. "You've yet a different role to play. Now is not the time to be sleeping..."

---

Seemingly sensing the household vessel of Dong Zhu, the black djinn stopped slaughtering helpless soldiers and turned to face the cold wielding swordsman. "Gaaaah..." More steam billowed forth from the monster's maw as it stood there and glared with two gleaming red eyes of hatred. The djinn could tell that the magic radiating from the household vessel was antithetical to its own and registered it as the only real threat to its own power.

A black claw lashed out to meet the charging Dong Zhu and a powerful boom sounded once they clashed. The household vessel cut into the black djinn's palm, but the difference in raw physical might between them sent Dong Zhu stumbling backwards. The black djinn moved to strike at the general while he was off balance but the magician and warrior that had joined Dong Zhu quickly acted to keep the djinn at bay long enough for him to regain his footing. The magician waved her wand and shards of ice began to form and launch themselves at the djinn while the warrior leaped into the air wrapping his sword in magoi manipulation.

Magical assaults landed on the black djinn cleanly, but they did little other than hinder and annoy the monster. The shards of ice shattered against his skin and quickly melted as its wings swept outward to bat away the warrior before his magoi infused slash could reach a vital point forcing the magoi to be wasted on the wing instead. But it all bought Dong Zhu enough time to recover from being staggered so he could push back inside the djinn's range of attack.

Cyrus would find that he and his sister had little room to join in on the attack during that first exchange, but now that Dong Zhu's aides were putting additional pressure on the djinn there would be more openings should they possess the bravery to act.

Hei Lu stood alongside Tenma with a grim look on his burn covered face. "I think...that is the True Emperor..." The general admitted his guess to Tenma wishing that he was wrong. But Hei Lu knew that Gao's metal vessel possessed lava magic. Though the demon-like entity did not resemble Gao, the powers it wielded and their connection to Gao could not be ignored. "...but something isn't right. Gao wouldn't act like this." His disbelief and doubt clear through his tone.

Suddenly, numerous beams of golden light streaked across the sky and then descended. Fragments of rukh appeared before those who had personally met Yoshiro and formed some sort of bond with him. The golden light encasing the rukh would linger only for a second before shooting off into the sky once again. But in the short instant they were there, a powerful urging voice would speak to those with ties to Yoshiro referring to him in the way they are most familiar.

"Remind your emperor/friend/ally of his worth. He needs your support..."

[DM Notes: Please be specific where and how you or any npcs with you are attacking the djinn. If you have a moment/memory or thoughts to send to Yoshiro, put them into the golden light by touching it.]

---

The army rallied to Gao's cause was already breaking and its offensive capabilities crippled. Yet even so, the officer sent there by the "True Emperor" stubbornly held the lines and demanded the impossible from the peasant soldiers under their command. They commanded those able to push towards the djinn user to somehow defeat her, but the opposite was occurring before their very eyes. Instead of their soldiers making their way towards Merrze, the Meridia queen forged her own path towards them.

It was over before the officers could mount any sort of defense or preparations. The speed and power wielded by a djinn user was simply too advanced for mere soldiers to compete with. In a flash the officers were subdued or killed and the battlefield became sealed in by the emerging barriers of bramble and thorns.

Without the officers forcing them to fight to the death, many were finally able to lay down their arms in peace. There were some who kept fighting if only because they were facing Meridians who were fighting back, but once Merrze's forces backed off and there was a moment to breath, the conflict quickly slowed to a halt. Especially as more and more people were able to spare a glance towards the center army where awe and dread inspiring sights demanded their attention.

Suddenly, numerous beams of golden light streaked across the sky and then descended. Fragments of rukh appeared before those who had personally met Yoshiro and formed some sort of bond with him. The golden light encasing the rukh would linger only for a second before shooting off into the sky once again. But in the short instant they were there, a powerful urging voice would speak to those with ties to Yoshiro referring to him in the way they are most familiar.

"Remind your emperor/friend/ally of his worth. He needs your support..."

[DM Notes: You may now proceed to the center with both armies in tow. If ou have a moment/memory or thoughts to send to Yoshiro, put them into the golden light by touching it.]

“That is Gao Yuan Zu?” Tenma eyes widened as he heard Hei Lu's opinion, he wondered what kind of power that Gao had to be able to transform into something like this. He took a moment as he unseathed his Katana before he looked around the battlefield.  The one eyed man noticed that he hadn't seen Yoshiro anywhere in the battlefield and he frowned, feeling a bit worry about his whereabouts. He should look for him… but right now stopping this beast was more important.

Suddenly there was a golden light appearing and Tenma could hear a voice, "Remind your emperor/friend/ally of his worth. He needs your support..." The swordsman tilted his head as he touched the golden light and a smile appeared on his face as he was thinking about something. It was the memory of him dueling the Emperor himself, something that Tenma admitted as a very amusing moment with Yoshiro. To be able to clash steels towards each other was something and he was happy that the emperor didnt hold back as well. A respected leader, someone worth to be followed upon by thousands of his men. And as sudden as the golden light appeared, it suddenly flew to the sky again, possibly bringing Tenma's memory and thoughts about the emperor.

“Soldiers from both sides! Take the wounded to the medic tent, help your brothers ans sisters. Those of you who still can fight, let's fight together!” Tenma would shout in the middle of the crowds, hoping the wounded could be treated as soon as possible. He also thought it was a selfish order to make them fighting this beast as he wasn't sure if he can beat this beast as well, but it was worth to try and Tenma will order the other to retreat if things getting more dangerous than this. He took a deep breath and focused on his magoi as he prepared himself before rushing towards transformed Gao, bringing his katana towards his left leg.

Magoi/Stamina: 225/350

Skill Used:

Through the fading cacophonous symphony the world would ring it's way back in for the fanalis. Soon the cries of war whispered into tears as some were relieved to stop the fight for a second. It felt grasping, tightening, shifting focus there was a bigger threat for them to focus on. There was no moment to breathe was there. Merrze would turn her blood-drenched self towards the black mass. Her hands reaching to touch the light as she would begin to reach towards the golden light.

She was sick of the killing. This war had brought hauntings, encounters and too much blood since the start of her journey and the first invasion. How the tides of this war were actually woven and controlled like cloth, being shaped into someone's design it seemed. She had pleasant thoughts many of which were because of Yoshiro. He was a respectable man despite the turbulence he experienced at the beginning of his reign. She knew he could be trusted, he helped many of those who chose to align with Merrze now.

She would speak out to her people, commanding them, her voice a powerful battlecry for them, and a plea all at once. "People, those who are sick of this fighting, please remember what good there is to return to, why you fight, the man, the woman, whatever drove you to stick to this cause, please I ask you give what you can so that evil does not spread."

While she cried out to her people she herself would head towards the center of the black mass, she intended to fight out what was going on there.

The black djinn's rampage incited confusion and fear to spread throughout both armies. The fighting between themselves came to an end, but a new fight for survival had begun. The terror Gao's twisted form wrought upon them caused a number of soldiers to lose their will to fight back or even flee. Were it not for the bravery of Dong Zhu and the arrival of new reliable figures, the situation might have been completely unsalvagable.

Seeing Yoshiro's closest adviser and ally, Dong Zhu, charge forth wielding the power of the emperor was enough to fill the hearts of his men with hope. It was obvious from Dong Zhu's immediate struggle that the monster was far stronger than the combined might of the general and his aides. But even so, they were standing up to the creature and holding its attention.

The situation was further improved with Tenma and Hei Lu arriving with their forces. There was nobody even thinking of giving out orders in the midst of the nightmare until Tenma's words woke several fearful men out of their stupor. They were thankful to have an excuse to flee the scene and hurried to help those injured during the previous fighting make their way off the battlefield. Hei Lu's presence alongside him was noticed by Gao's forces and they too began to feel as though the death was not yet guaranteed in the face of this calamity.

Dong Zhu grit his teeth and braced himself as the djinn swept down at him with its claws once again. His household vessel glowed and a shield of dry ice formed in front of his sword. Alas, the barrier was shattered instantly and Dong Zhu had to give his everything to hold his ground as the red hot claws pressed downwards slowly. The warrior accompanying the general was still getting up from being knocked away by the djinn's wing. The magician was firing her ice shards but they remained useless against the dark djinn.

A sadistic grin played on the demon's face as it took its time pressing down to crush the puny human that had challenged its might. Dong Zhu was unable to prevent himself from being forced to one knee as he leaned his neck back to avoid the sharp burning claw grinding against his blade. Tenma's arrival was just in time as the magoi infused slash cut through the black djinn's leg. The grin turned sour as the djinns balance shifted to one side giving Dong Zhu the chance to push against the claw and break away from its oppressive force. The man's sword cut into its hand as he pulled away severing one of its fingers.

The dark djinn cried out in pain as its severed finger and leg began to dissolve into black smoke. It lashed out at Tenma for injuring it, but Hei Lu appeared behind him and intercepted the swipe with a mighty blow from his glaive.  The monster fell over and roared as it thrashed its remaining limbs about. This gave Dong Zhu a chance to move to Tenma's right side, "Let's cover each other's blind spots. Working together we may beat this thing..." he said in a hoarse voice as blood seeped out of one side of his mouth. Despite having received internal injuries, Dong Zhu was still full of fighting spirit. Hei Lu on the otherhand was frowning and couldn't take his eyes off the djinn, "I wouldn't speak so soon."

As if in response to the anguished cry of the djinn, streams of black rukh soared down from the black vortex still lingering above. Just as Dong Zhu was musing about their chances of victory, the rukh swarmed the djinn's leg and claw before scattering to reveal the injuries fully restored. Hatred formed on the creatures face as its flight activated and it rose from the ground renewed.  There was a shift in tone with the monster as if it had been playing up till this point. But now a terrible murderous intent spilled out from it in all directions.

Hovering just a few inches off the ground, the Djinn opened its palms and formed a magic circle in each hand. "Not good, we need to stop it!" Dong Zhu shouted before rushing forwards as the magic circle on his household vessel shined.

[DM Notes: Oh no! What's the djinn up to? Dong Zhu will do his best to stop it, but he'll need your help! Merrze will be free to jump in.]

---

The golden lights shot back into the sky and flew together back towards Yoshiro, but the ones from the battlefield were only the first to return. More and more of them which had spread across the country began to return. The streaks of rukh were like shooting stars as they gathered together one by one. The white rukh nearby became excited and began to congregate as another vortex began to form. A spiraling sea of golden birds appeared in the sky not far from the vortex of darkness.  The light was small in comparison, but it was slowly growing.

On the ground below, the contractor was looking up at the sky with wide eyes filled with awe. "Oi, oi, oi! This isn't just one or two  people close to him. What are you up to...Ugo!?" He pointed his staff to the sky and shouted incredulously. As if to reply to him, the vortex of golden light shifted and then began to pour down from above like a waterfall that engulfed both the magician and Yoshiro. A sea of light swallowed them up and formed a large egg-like shape in the middle of the forest.

"The rest...is up to you."


Yoshiro didn't know how long he had been here, but it felt like it had been years. Even so, his child-like form didn't age a day. Trapped forever in past anguish, all sense of time seemed meaningless. In fact, Yoshiro was cursing all of his senses. Every time he looked up from his knees to take in the sea of corpses he wanted to claw out his eyes. The stench of it assaulted him daily along with endless wails  and curses from those who scorned his rule. But the worst of it was absolutely the way his skin crawled against the stagnant air, feeling as though even the space around him itself was unfamiliar and hostile.

At last, a golden light pierced the hellscape and came to appear before the young boy. Yoshiro looked at the light with dead, empty, and heavy eyes. He barely even saw the light after being numbed by the dark reality he'd been experiencing. But the light was patient. It fluttered there in font of him like a tiny golden bird. Waiting. In time, Yoshiro realized it wasn't just his imagination, but something else. He reached out to grasp the golden light in his hand but was soon blinded by a wash of light and color.

When Yoshiro's eyes adjusted, he was face to face with one of his subjects inside a white void. The man was smiling as he held Yoshiro's hand and pointed towards a group of golden lights within the void. One by one the lights began to take shape into the figures of the people Yoshiro had helped both during his rise to power as well as during his time as emperor. Though his reign had brought hunger and suffering, it also granted freedom to many and gave others hope for an end to war.

As Yoshiro was led by the hand to meet each of these lights one by one, his child-like form adjusted to his actual age. Though he was once again a man, his eyes swelled with tears as he said nothing. He was too busy doubting himself. But for each though he had refuting the good these people saw in him, another would step forward and reach out to touch his hand. Each time they did, Yoshiro was see a fragment of their lives from their own perspectives and he saw first hand how his efforts had brought happiness and joy or hope for the future to their lives.

Time slipped by. It felt just as long as the nightmare, perhaps even longer. Yoshiro didn't know when his feet started moving on their own, but he was walking forward of his own will now. Along the way he had encountered so many people who's lives he had touched. Most of them, he didn't know personally, but there were plenty he remembered meeting. The darkness of the curse became a distant past and a clear path towards fate was laid out before him.

One final light floated by, but this time it did not take form. Instead, only a soft and familiar voice rung in Yoshiro's ears. He stopped and held his breath. "Ari, is that you? Where are you?" Yoshiro looked around to try and see where the light had gone, but it had disappeared. Everything turned white and he felt himself become light as air.

Yoshiro opened his eyes. "Ugh...what happened?" He said to himself as he picked himself up. The pain in his back was gone, but a dull ache in his head had replaced it. Much better by comparison, but Yoshiro groaned nevertheless. "You were dying, but I saved you." Suddenly the contractor chimed in, he was seated in mid air on a non-existent chair  not far away. Yoshiro hurried to his feet and raised his weapon cautiously. "Somehow...I doubt that..." Yoshiro said, still holding his head to sooth its pain.

Smiling to himself, the contractor rolled his eyes. "Fiiiine, it wasn't all me. There were a lot of...unexpected helpers. I knew that you were acquainted with another Magi, but I never guessed it would work out so well in your favor." The man revealed little with his cryptic words and Yoshiro only had more questions as the throbbing in his skull started to die down and he could think more clearly. "What do you mean? How do you know Ari? And where is my father?" Yoshiro asked, not even consciously aware of how naturally he referred to Gao as his father.

The Contractor shook his finger side to side and sucked his teeth, "Tsk, tsk, tsk, do you really have time to be asking me questions? Well, I guess I could humor you. I, too, am a Magi you see. But that's all you get to know! As for dear old dad...well, he's going through something of a mid-life crisis, bwahahaha!" The contractor casually gestured over his shoulder with his thumb towards the battlefield before laughing hysterically at his own joke.

Yoshiro looked past the magi and donned his djinn equip before rising out of the trees to see distant signs of chaos underneath the black vortex. "I better not be too late." Yoshiro said to himself before flying towards the battle. As he flew, his mind drifted to the dream and he tried to make sense of it all on his own as the strength man calling himself a magi seemed less than reliable.

Watching the young emperor depart, The Contractor sighed and shook his head whilst giving a shrug. "Must the pawns of solomon always be so straightforward and blinded? I suppose this entire project was one big failure, I even had to rely on that big blue wimp!" There was a bit of anger in the tone behind the smile as the man lamented having to rely on the keeper of the sacred palace.  "Oh well, with this he should owe me a favor...I may as well enjoy the rest of the show while I consider how best to collect~" The Contractor then tapped the air with his cane and warped space to create a doorway. The magi stepped through and disappeared.

It was a good thing that his attack was working, means he can still try to fight the creature with his own power and skills. But it seems after receiving some sharp attacks from both Tenma and Dong Zhu, the dark djinn was feeling a bit mad and decided to attack the one eyed man. Things would turn bad if Hei Lu didn't step in and intercepted the attack with his glaive, “Thank you, General.” Tenma would say to Hei Lu, didn't expect he would save Tenma's back twice. He needed to return the favour soon though, he didn't like to owe someone.

The swordsman agreed to do what Dong Zhu suggested, although judging from what the Djinn was doing at the moment, Hei Lu's warning made more sense. Especially when he could feel the murderous intent coming from that Djinn. When it opened its palm and magic circle appeared, Tenma would quickly give command to his surroundings, fearing for their safety. “Everyone run! Get away as fast as you can and brace for incoming attack!” Before running towards the Djinn with his shield intact, protecting him although he knew it wouldn't be enough. He would use his advanced speed to get behind the arm of the djinn that had the magic circle appearing before he tried to [b]cut it off[\b] with his Magoi infused Katana.

Merrze would see the violence play out before her, she was surprised to see the amazing resilience of the black beast that her allies were fighting. It didn't even require a second thought. The King Candidate would fly herself at the black djinn at full speed. She had only a little of magoi running through her body, she could probably cast a few more spells, or maybe even one big one. She was going to have to make sure her attack counted.

As the green figure ripped through the air she would prepare her attack. The vines would extend forth, the fly traps encircling and stretching out. The green limbs would grasp, trying to bite, pull and tear away at the dark flesh of the beast. She would have them circle from all around as if to try and distract the beast. Following up she press her own body towards the beast, attemping to user own limbs to help break and beat this monster hopefully.

The main goal would to be incapcitate or interupt his spell. If that didn't work there would always be her plan B.

The soldiers could feel the advent of destruction coming from the magic circles in the djinn's palms. Few among them needed to be told twice to flee once Tenma gave the order, but Dong Zhu and Hei Lu repeated similar words to their own men. Each of the generals could tell that what was coming next would not be as simple as swipes slashes of a claw or wing. They made the right choice to waken the bystanders from their stupor and send them away. It was far from an organized retreat, but not so chaotic as to lead to trampling. Cautiously and fearfully, but unable to tear their eyes away from the fighting, both Gao and Yoshiro's forces started to back away.

As the open space where they were fighting the djinn grew in size due to the retreating troops, Dong Zhu unleashed a spell from his household vessel that formed a large blade of dry ice around his sword. His attack cleaved into the djinn's chest but it just glared at him as surging black rukh swarmed down to immediately start healing the wound. The same happened as Tenma arrived behind the djinn and severed its arm. The black birds of cursed fate formed a squirming thread that caught the arm before it even hit the floor and pulled it back into place.

Merrze's arrival would come before the army that was following behind her. Alas, the power of her djinn was ill suited to counter the lava magic of the dark djinn. The vines and fly traps that erupted into life around the demon found no trouble in surrounding him. But as the plants snared and bit down they would either smolder or outright burst into flames. Without a protective magoi coating the plants were simply unable to withstand the intense heat produced by the black djinn.

Buried in burning plants and shrouded in black rukh repairing its injuries, the monster looked to the sky and produced a soul quivering laughter. The magic circles lit up and separated. One moved to the ground and the other rose into the air. The magic circle at the djinn's feet carved out a circular piece of earth which crumbled away. A 10m diameter pillar of lava burst forth and erupted upwards engulfing the djinn momentarily and forcing everyone to keep some distance. The circle in the sky received that rising lava flow and caused it to spread ourwards in all directions.

Molten earth thrashed in the air covered in steam as the rainfall became partially blocked by the small sea of fire. The writhing lava began to take shape forming a vast number of arrows which pointed down towards the armies below. The soldiers had not fully retreated and the sheer size of the vast array of arrows was simply too large in scale to defend against entirely. There was no time left to stop it. The sky appeared to let out a hiss of pain as rainwater sizzled away into gaseous clouds just before the djinn pointed its finger downwards and willed the arrows into action.

Blazing lava arrows rained down in volleys scattering shots all over the battlefield. The area closest to the djinn where Dong Zhu, Tenma, Merrze, and Hei Lu were all at was actually the safest place. Only a few of the arrows targeted them. Instead, the rest were aimed for the retreating forces. It didn't matter if they belonged to Gao, Yoshiro, or even the newly arriving Meridians. The djinn's attack discriminated only between that which was alive and that which was dead.

The black djinn was revealed only once the flow of lava stopped surging from the ground into the air and the rain of arrows finally stopped. It had a twisted grin full of sharp teeth and even the third eye on its forehead was giving off a look of perverse glee. The djinn swept its gaze across the death it had caused and the leaders who were fighting it and then it clasped both palms together. Another magic circle formed, this time it was even bigger than the first two combined and appeared behind the djinn. There was a name for the terrible spell it was about to summon...Extreme Magic.

[DM Notes: Yoshiro will arrive next turn. Don't feel bad about failing to stop the djinn's magic, it was impossible to prevent the spells, I just wanted to hype the attempt to prevent it. Anyways, do your best to protect yourselves from the lava arrows, try to protect others if you can and wish to. If there was any sort of attack or final gambit you want to do, do it now as combat will be wrapping up in the following round of posting.]

Cyrus was silent throughout most of the battle in awe of the spectacle that was before him. He felt powerless against the dark djinn that was before him. Everyone was fighting but him. He tried to help some people but he was in awe of the people fighting what felt like an impossible battle to win. Still he would try to do something he was the one with the magic weapon in the family. He would try to launch a super charged blast of wind magic from this double-sided scythe to try to dispel the heat from the djinn’s molten magic. He may not be on the front lines fighting the djinn, but he would be damned if he saw anyone get hurt because of his inaction. These people had someone to live for too. He wouldn’t charge the djinn rather he would stand back and help out as much as he could from the side-lines protecting as many soldiers as he could.

OOC
(sorry for not posing I've been travelling for easter and I only just got a chance to do so hence the short post)

“This is not good…” Tenma thought to himself as he saw the Djinn's severed arm got instantly attached back again because of those black butterflies. He didn't know what was happening and he was not sure how to beat the creature as well if cutting its limbs didn't work. Even the power of Djinn that Merrze had wasn't enough to stop the creature as the vines that was unleashed got burn into ashes because of the intense heat emitting from the dark Djinn.

Not only that, in just a few seconds, the situation became worse as the creature managed to unleashed some attacks towards everything. It didn't recognize its own friends or foes, everyone was just the same to the creature, a target to be attacked. Tenma would use his shield to protect himself from the arrow while making sure that Dong Zhu, who was coughing blood and looked wounded was protected by using both of his shield and katana.

Then suddenly, the arrows stopped and the Djinn was creating a larger magic circle with a sinister grin carved on its face. “This is going to be messy…” Tenma murmured to himself, somehow knowing that the Djinn will unleash even much stronger attack towards all of them and the swordsman wasn't sure how he could survive that.

The King Candidate would feel the frustration at her failed attempts to damage the beast. Its magic was something that burned and crushed the life from her plants. It reminded her of Eligos, she wasn't afraid to get burned by this Dark Djinn. VInes would raise from the grounds forming walls to be burned and block the flames for her troops, for anyone's troops honestly. The calm rage burned, radiating from her eyes, rising up from her throat to the front of her mouth. Something needed to be done, even if it was useless.

She was by no means powerful enough to stop the creature on her own. There was only one way she was going to be able to damage or slow it down. She had attempted the spell once before, she knew using it would possibly put her out of commission. With a heavy breath, the King Candidate would fly in the air, making sure she had a clear line of sight to the creature.

Her hands lifted as she began to take hold of an imaginary bow. It was possible it wasn't even going to cast. Her back tightened with a chest swollen with a breath, holding the moment in. With a slow exhale she kept her posture straight. With her remaining magoi she would speak out, her voice ringing as she reached within, calling forth the magic from Buer.  

"Thou who gives birth to life, and grants me the power of kings. Return those before me to the earth to be reborn!" Vines would begin to form, flowering into a bow of verdant green with wispy vines and wildflowers of tulips and honeysuckles.  It latched on, rooting onto her arm as she would begin to draw back a magical arrow. The magical circle of her extreme magic would begin to form. There was no earth to return this beast too, however, Merrze hoped the expanding mass of plants would hold off or clash with whatever it was trying to use.

Blood dripped down her face, draining from her eyes while she bit down grinding her teeth, Merrze was uncertain if she should fire. It was going to drain her, she wasn't practiced and this creature seemed confident in killing them. The magic bowstring was tugging her hand to let go but she held firm she couldn't fire until she was certain, until it was exactly right.

"I already know I can't kill him with this but I have the spell started, put up whatever defense you can, throw out whatever attacks you may have hidden."

She knew her troops were running towards a slaughter, she was their leader, their protector. The lioness stood with a brave face. She would fire at the queue of the others. The only reason for this final attempt of an attack was to halt it, to slow it. This wasn't really an attack, after all, it was a hope to create one last defense.

Notes: I'm just attempting to hit him with the magical arrow when Yoshiro is near there or arriving in order to make an opening by blocking some of the extreme magic with my own. Based on inexperienced use I would think it'll take out Merrze and but her near unconscious. If you think she can fire and the arrow hit it in time then the per the spell it would expand into a 100m plant mass of vines, I know it won't do damage but like I said my attempt is to interupt and possibly create a defense.

A silvery streak of light soared towards the battlefield followed by a spiraling flock of white rukh. Yoshiro was barely even aware of the storm of fate at his back, but he could feel its warmth and power filling him. His djinn equip had expended a lot of power over all this time, but his magoi felt as though he were in peak condition. Yoshiro felt like he could defeat a mountain in his current state.

Seeing the battlefield up ahead caused a deep frown to bloom onto the young emperor's face. He was just in time to witness the dark djinn's attack from a distance. It was impossible to miss the thick tower of magma as it rose into the sky and spread outwards into a sea of lava arrows. "No!" Yoshiro shouted as he rushed forwards but he was simply too far away to do more than watch as fiery earth was let loose onto the army below.

---

Soldiers retreated in every direction but the spell was simply too vast. They wouldn't escape in time. Hei Lu watched helplessly as he fell to his knees. Though he hadn't been fighting the demonized Gao for long, things already seemed beyond bleak. Seemingly accepting his death, he simply looked up to the sea of fire in the sky laughing wryly to himself. "Though it was my duty to die here, I never thought it would be by your hand...my emperor."

It was then that Merrze had activated her extreme magic just in time. The arrow of woven vines was surprisingly durable and sharp as it whistled in the air. The dark djinn was, however, unimpressed and used one of its wings to try and bat away the annoyance. However, the arrow exceeded its expectations and pierced into the black wing before wriggling to life.

The explosion of vines and gnarled roots that ensued completely engulfed the dark djinn and began to spread out in all directions. Endless growth and life poured forth forming a thick canopy of vines that was inter-tangled and woven tightly together. The djinn as the center of it all didn't even have to move to break free as a blazing fire soon turned the nearby vines to ash, but the lava arrows that rained down throughout the battlefield failed to penetrate. Molten rock smoldered and lit fires on the surface of the bed of vines but it was too viscous to seep through them quickly and their thickness was enough to insulate the soldiers below.

Countless lives were saved, but the djinn still remained standing as it prepared its own extreme magic. The djinn shook free from the ashes of the vines and ascended into the air as his magic circle also rose. More magma was drawn from the earth as it started to coalesce into the form of a humanoid. As more flowed into the figure it became bloated and swollen around the belly.

Meanwhile, the retreat continued beneath the vine canopy. Soldiers continued to flee in all directions save for the few brave souls still close to the djinn. Dong Zhu patted Tenma on the shoulder and nodded to him in thanks for coming to his aide before it was clear that Merrze's magic could protect them. Hei Lu wasn't faring quite so well though, he looked almost depressed that he wasn't killed just then. His emperor was gone and never coming back. All that was left was the monster others slandered him to be. It was far too cruel an outcome for Hei Lu to accept.

"Don't give up!"

The despair of Hei Lu didn't escape Dong Zhu's notice. He shouted for his adversary general to stand up and turned to Tenma asking for assistance in bringing the large man to his feet. "This isn't over till we're dead, get up. Tenma, do you think you can take this guy away from here? He can atone for his sins later, but there have been enough dead for one day. I'll stay behind and think of something to deal with that..."  Dong Zhu said with a voice that lacked confidence as he faced down the fire engulfing the dark djinn. Unbeknownst to him, his emperor had arrived above the vine canopy.

---

Yoshiro had seen the spreading vines emerge at the last second and relief filled him heart as he hurried onward. Finally, he arrived just in time to help catch Merrze from falling out of the sky and lowered her to the topside of the canopy slowly before magoi exhaustion took her ability to fly. "Thank you, with this I can let loose without worry about the safety of my people. I'll take it from here." He smiled as he gave Merrze a calm and unrushed gesture of gratitude. He then turned his attention to the djinn and the obese blob-like monstrosity behind him.

The black djinn's extreme magic was still slowly taking shape and growing larger. It soon became clear that the humanoid figure didn't have a head, nor would it likely grow one as its stomach appeared to have a gigantic monstrous mouth on it along with two sockets where flaming eyes gleamed. Yoshiro could feel the intense heat from where he was standing, but he was filled with assurance as the winds of fate continued to push at his back. He felt as if there were countless hands pushing him forward towards the future.

"You've got to suck up all that magma from below, but everything I need for my extreme magic is right here in the air around us. I'm bringing this to an end, father!"

Yoshiro spoke as he ascended to meet the black djinn and shouted with an intuitive knowing that Gao was inside the demon before him. Yoshiro combined his twin blades and held them vertical in front of him as a magic circle lit into life behind him.

"O' Spirit of Ideals and Righteousness, thou who brings all to order, stop all wickedness and freeze the earth! Extreme Magic: Andro Eternal Absolute Burial!"

Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere condensed and shaped into the form of a great icy serpent formed from dry ice. It completed its formation just a moment before the dark djinn's gluttonous lava monster and pounced before it could act. Just as the great lava beast began to open its mouth, the massive snake coiled around it and constricted the mouth shut. The humanoid thrashed about and the snake writhed as steam and mist spread everywhere. The two great magics battled in the sky with neither clearly superior than the other.

Next to the grand battle of extreme magics, Yoshiro stood in the air face to face with the dark djinn. Upon seeing the young man, the djinn's face twisted into an expression of pain and it began to grasp its head as if a headache were assaulting its mind. Yoshiro watched feeling a tightness in his chest, but his face didn't show it. "Yo...shi...ro..." The dark djinn groaned. "Yes, it's me...but you are no longer my father." There was a deep sadness in Yoshiro's eyes as he said the words and came to the realization all at once.


[DM Notes: I asked Merr if I could treat his extreme magic like it took place before the lava arrows rained down. Sorry if the timing shift threw anyone off or made your last posts efforts less meaningful. I wanted to do it this way to preserve more lives IC after realizing I was about to kill off like...80% of Kou's remaining army. My mistake as I got carried away in pushing the "hopelessness" theme for this phase of the thread.

Also, I know there isn't a whole lot to do or respond to in this post. It's mostly going to be narrative from here on out. Sorry about that, but stick around cause each of you will be getting a personalized post once this last "main plot" beat is settled. We're almost at the very end now, thank you to everyone for participating or reading along!]

The fanalis would calmly let the Emperor of Kou lower her into safety, the rough bed of her own plants tenderly grabbed her body. It felt nice to not be fighting for a moment. Blood seeped from her body, she didn't wanna move. The heat of the djinn was enough she didn't need fire coursing through her veins as well. Yoshiro would be able to hold him off, to finish him off hopefully. This fight took a lot from them all, she was only glad to make it safe for others, so that they could all get away.

Her tired limbs would be quick to leave when the moment called for it. If there was even an air of danger she would try to move to save her people. To try to aid them in retreat, despite the paralyzing grip of fear. There was pushback but she knew her will would win, her body had gone through worse. Even if she was bleeding inside, even if the sound of the world faded.

Her white hair would fall upon her green bed. Now she would rest. It was time to watch how this battle would unfold. Merrze was smart enough to know when she had done enough, well done enough for the moment that is.

Arriving with Yoshiro was the storm of white rukh which crashed into the black vortex like two bodies of water mixing. The two swirling masses had opposite rotations creating super imposed currents of light in the sky. As the white rukh moved across the battlefield the oppressive atmosphere of despair brought on by the black rukh was washed away. The two forces quickly balanced out and settled into a new vortex with concentric rings of black and white rukh spiraling in opposite directions.

Emperor Yoshiro faced down the Black Djinn as their extreme magics had likewise reached a balanced deadlock. The lava creature's molten maw could not bite through or melt the dry ice serpent, but the snake's fangs and chill were likewise useless in suppressing the lava. The mixing cold and hot air caused the weather to shift chaotically and the storm clouds were quickly blown away as the sun finally shined down onto the Luo Plains.

Both combatants were upholding their extreme magics and unable to move, but the dark djinn was clearly distressed and the lava creatures movements were dull as a result. Slowly but surely, the ice serpent was starting to form the beginnings of an ice shell around the lava monster as was the intent of the spell. Alas, the rate was far too slow and Yoshiro knew his magoi was run dry long before sealing the beast.

---

Meanwhile, down below at the outskirts of the vine canopy a figure climbed his way up atop the bed of magical nature. "Here we go, I couldn't see anything down there!" The Contractor said with a tone of complaint despite the smile on his face. He held his hand up to his eyes and scanned the air to lay eyes on the clash of kings. A sick look of glee emerged in his eyes but that expression turned to awe as he cast his gaze upward further and saw the double vortex of black and golden white light.

"Such beauty...Aaah, the balance is superb."

Tears welled up in his eyes as his dramatic grins and smiles melted into a more casual and true smile from the heart. "This experiment wasn't a waste after all. At least I got to see something wondrous. It'd be a shame for everybody else to miss out..." The magi spoke to himself as he tapped his cane onto the bed of vines. A black rot spread from that point that quickly shriveled the vines and then disintegrated them into dust. Like a wave it spread across the canopy dissolving the obstruction so that all could witness the grand event taking place.

Cooled magma fell to the ground here and there but nobody was injured as the soldiers had plenty of time to make some ground while the vines protection had held firm. The soldiers would have continued to flee had the vines not suddenly turned black and then blow away with the wind into fine particles. Human curiosity drove the first to turn his head, he had noticed the rain stopped and the warmth of the sun kissed his neck. That was all it took. The soldier's jaw dropped and he stopped fleeing instead turning to look. When the others noticed it caused a chain reaction and soon all eyes had turned to the center of the battlefield where Yoshiro and the transformed Gao.

Among those most effected by this, Hei Lu was the most profoundly touched. He had been barely co-operating with Tenma and said noting in response to his words at first. It was only when the vines vanished and sunlight washed over the land that Hei Lu looked up from his pit of despair. Upon laying eyes on Yoshiro standing in the sky an expression of shock rose on Hei Lu's face. The young man had an entirely different presence about him now which reminded Hei Lu of Gao decades ago.

The old general stopped leaning on Tenma and stood on his own to face the two djinn clad emperors. "Did that brat finally grow up?...Thank goodness!" Two streams of tears fell down Hei Lu's cheeks as he pumped both fists into the air and cried from the overwhelming joy. After a short moment, he calmed down and made a peaceful smile. "So you accomplished your final mission, my emperor?" After speaking softly to himself he turned to look Tenma in the eyes with a slightly guilty expression.

"I've troubled you, sorry...Will you fulfill a soldiers last wish and cut me down? It was my mission to die on this field today. It was my emperor's mission to make his son into someone capable of truly inheriting the throne. There will be no need for an old blood hound like me in Kou's future."

Hei Lu spoke full of confidence as if Yoshiro's arrival meant that their victory was preordained. White rukh fluttered about him and encouraged the notion making Hei Lu feel even more sure of himself that the black djinn would be defeat, but his own convictions still had the man seeking a sacrifice. Hei Lu stood before Tenma with the emperor's battle in the background as he gave a sincere look with a pleasing gaze. Dong Zhu's words that this man would pay for his sins later would echo in Tenma's mind as white rukh fluttered past him. Would he respect Hei Lu's wishes against Dong Zhu's orders or would he force the dread general to live on?

Dong Zhu had run off in the direction of Merrze, his magician companion had escorted the warrior away after he was injured leaving the general of Yoshiro's forces by himself. He didn't know how they were going to fight the djinn, but he knew that that he needed to regroup with their strongest fighting potential. He was just reaching the Meridia ground forces when the vines disintegrated and he looked up to find Merrze falling. The general was startled but managed to catch her in his arms and save the exhausted fanalis from a harder fall.

The bleeding from all over were clearly magoi exhaustion symptoms causing Dong Zhu to furrow his brow in concern. If Merrze was unable to fight at her full potential any longer, how would they manage to handle what ever came next? "Are you alright, can you stand?" Dong Zhu would ask before trying to set Merrze down to hand her over to her people. He then turned to check on the black djinn and was overjoyed to see the figure clad in white mist. "Yoshiro! Emperor Yoshiro!" His sword raised high into the air and his voice carried across the battlefield on the wind and helped along by golden birds of magoi invisible to the naked goi eye.

At this point, the soldiers had all but forgotten that there were two armies here that had been fighting each other just a short time ago. Seeing someone standing up to the demon filled them with hope and excitement. As Dong Zhu's call of Yoshiro echoed it spread in the hearts of the soldiers. Soon cries for Yoshiro rang out from all over regardless of which side the warriors had entered the battle on.

---

Yoshiro was beginning to doubt if he could last long enough to defeat the black djinn. But when the shouts from below reached him he felt their feelings flow into him as the white rukh acted as a conduit. Once again his magoi replenished and he roared as he poured even more power into the spell. The speed at which the dry ice encroached onto the lava monster accelerated and gradually the beast became unable to continue thrashing its arms and legs about. The only part of its body not frozen over yet was the maw on its belly which continued to bite down ravenously.


[DM Notes: One last combat post after this. Please dm me on my Zion account or discord if there are any things you guys want tied up or touched on in the wrap up posts that will follow. Some things I plan to address are the immediate aftermath of organizing the survivors into one group, prisoners being released, a personal face to face with Yoshiro, and the return to the capitol to officially end the war. All this will be after the next post and take one or two rounds of posts to complete. That leaves about 3 rounds of posting left. If there is any plot you want me to touch on in that time let me know so we can settle it before the thread ends.]

The one eyed man only nodded to what Dong Zhu said, there was nothing worse than having a man fallen deep into despair in the middle of the war. Perhaps taking the man away from here was a better choice, but Tenma had his other opinion. He was sure that it was not only Hei Lu who was having despair in his heart, but the other soldiers might have it as well especially when there might be no chance of survival… If miracle was true, then Tenma could only hope something suddenly appeared and boost up their will to at least live. If only Yoshiro showed up…

Like a wish came true, the moment when the canopy which was covering what was happening behind it got dissolved, a ray of hope finally appeared. Before Tenma could react, Hei Lu’s words gained Tenma’s attention. The tears on his face showed how sincere he was with his words at the moment and Tenma finally understood what the older general was talking before. Perhaps his impression towards Gao Yuan Zu was wrong all this time, but he was glad that this was happening, not to say he was glad for the war to be happening, but for what it made Yoshiro into what he was at the moment. There was something different about the young emperor now and there was not word that Tenma could use to describe what it was, however, the one eyed man was sure that it was a positive change.

Hei Lu would turned his attention to Tenma this time and he was asking the swordsman to fulfill his wish. The young general frowned upon hearing the request, he thought that it was a cowardice move…and he hated it. What Dong Zhu said about Hei Lu before echoed in Tenma’s mind, but only a sigh escaped his lips. “I’ve fulfilled your wish when I left that burnt mark on you before, consider that you were born again from the fire and atone your sin by ensuring Kou’s future with Emperor Yoshiro for late Emperor.”

The bed of vines would vanish. It's coarse but comforting grip would be quickly missed as the white-haired, clean yet somehow blood smeared Merrze began to plummet. The wind began to cradle. Pushing, annoying her injured body. She was free of her equip, her clothes were clean of dirt and scuff, yet plum wounds in color and size covered her body. It was internal bleeding. Nightmares, quick flashes of pain would flood Merrze as she knew what was going to come when she hit the ground. Fall damage was nothing new, visualizing the pain was easy. A 100 needles stabbed around her bones, racing up hotly through her bones like a blast going up into her body. As if ache itself had formed a heavy blanket with no intent to let free.

Thankfully it was all in her head, the nightmares were just that. Now she was in the arms of the wonderful Dong Zhu.

"Thank you very much."

It was nice to be in his warm boulders, her tall and strong frame soft against his. Her face would flush light as she would hope to get up soon but was in no condition to move.

"Help lower me closer to the grass, I need to get some refreshment."

It was an odd request as she outstretched her right hand. The silver bracelet on her wrist would start to grow. It was unpleasant to her but the fanalis needed to stop anymore ruby red flooding for her organs. Green waved, washing away in a sickly yellow as the grass began to die. Weeds poking through the tossed dirt would vanish as they lost their life force.

It was a decent amount, but the damage had been done so there was no healing her without the proper spells. She definitely wasn't going to spend more trying to heal herself at the moment.

The warrior would try to stand firm, lifting herself to the position from the ground. It was hard, was it just only Merrze or did the world seem to strain to look at. She would be ready to fight if she needed if she really needed to. Passion still raged on even if her body couldn't.

Cyrus was still tending to some of the wounded as he watched the battle unfold around him. There was such amazing power emanating from the people around him not just the djinn he realized that these people were fighting for something and though he wasn’t he needed to do more to help. His sister was already fighting and trying to help Dong Zhu who, in turn was going to help the Emperor Yoshiro, though had turned his attention to a fanalis woman who was fighting in the battle with them. However, he knew that he was out of his element here as he watched the magic of fire and ice battle it out a few yards in front of him. He continued to help more soldiers most of who were now cheering on Yoshiro and though Cyrus didn’t cheer, he hoped and prayed deep down that he would win and the fighting would finally stop, for his sister’s sake and for the sake of this nation.

The black djinns teeth were grinding back and forth as it clutched its head in both hands. It was still looking at Yoshiro with a conflicted look of hatred and recognition. At the demon's core was Gao's desiccated corpse which had already been drained clean of all its magoi. But deep within, the black rukh that belonged to the man still lingered among the abyss-like existence of the djinn. Though its body was not that large, in the world of the rukh its vastness was oppressive. Alone at its center Gao's consciousness was lashing out and clawing wildly.

Gao was not fighting the depravity, but rather what fueled his own depravity was being threatened. Gao renounced fate for the sake of his country, but upon acknowledging Yoshiro as emperor it meant that pointing a sword at him was akin to pointing a sword at all of Kou. Through of twist of madness, the very emotions the black rukh stirred up gave Gao the means to push past his limits and defy the will of illah that had surrounded him like an ocean. This stubborn resistance from its own medium was causing the black djinn's disturbance and threw its ability to control magoi into disarray. Even after its extreme magic was defeated, the djinn continued to clutch his head and glare at Yoshiro. It's expression distorted and twisted, still split between wild fury and acknowledgement.

Yoshiro lowered his twinblade and closed his eyes as he became aware of the white rukh around him for the first time. The roaring cheers could still be heard as he felt guided by the rukh and reached outwards to grasp an invisible object. A torrent of white rukh surged towards that point in mid air producing a blinding golden light that all could see. It was as if a second sun had formed. After a brief moment the light faded and Yoshiro felt his fingers close around a warm smooth surface.

Looking to his hand, Yoshiro smiled softly as he spoke the words that suddenly flowed into his mind. "Shard...of Solomon?" He suddenly felt as though he knew what he should do and looked towards the djinn with determination burning in his eyes. "I'm sending you back to your "father" but first, you must leave mine behind. That corpse belongs to Kou." Yoshiro said softly. None by himself could hear the words before he swept into action. Yoshiro shot towards the black djinn like lightning while clutching the shard of solomon in his hand.

The black djinn strained as it fought to suppress Gao's consciousness. It was unable to do anything but watch as Yoshiro's fist crushed the shard in hand. Rukh danced around Yoshiro's fist in a spiral of light as he drove it into the black djinn's chest. "Sever!" Yoshiro shouted as his fueled the shard with the intention to break the connection between Gao's rukh and the black rukh. The beast let out an anguished howl and then abruptly stopped as its body dissolved into black rukh which fluttered upwards to join the vortex in the sky.

---

A void split down the middle opened up with two figures facing each other. One was as brilliantly bright as his side of the void while the other stood in shadow dimmed and dulled by the darkness. "Father..." Yoshiro spoke from the light side of the void. His voiced was filled with guilt and fear. "It's too late for me." Gao replied calmly and with a smile. His was a voice of acceptance and peace.

"It's too late to save your life, but not too late to save your soul."

Yoshiro's brows furrowed as a bit of frustration rose in him towards his father's attitude. But Gao paid it little mind and merely shook his head. "This grudge of mine towards fate has lasted more than thirty years now. It's not so easily cast off just because my son has become the man I hoped he would be. Besides, I'm not the only one with grudges." He then turned around and looked towards the black void. Groaning faces emerged from the darkness. They were the faces of soldiers that had died during the battle in the midst of depravity. Specifically those of which whom Gao was the target of their hatred for myriad reasons.

"I have a responsibility to uphold. If were to leave them here all alone, then I was never worthy of the title of 'True Emperor'!"

Gao made the declaration loudly and full of pride. He then turned back to face Yoshiro with one last parting smile. "These are our people too. You can't do anything for them, but I can. Go back to the rest of our countrymen and take good care of them." With that he turned around and confidently strolled back into the abyss of darkness to join the groaning goals that reached and clawed for him. "I hope the 'world peace' you imagine is more possible than my own to grasp. Farewell, Yoshiro. True Emperor of Kou."

Yoshiro stepped forward and reached out to stop his father, but the dividing line between the two voids seemed forever out of reach. He was only able to watch the departing back of his father.

---

The void was gone. Yoshiro opened his eyes to hear the cheers of victory and saw that the blackened remains of Gao's body were collapsing into ashes around his fist. Yoshiro clenched his fist tightly as a single tear fell from his eyes. "I never wanted your stupid title..." Though his words were of complaint, he made a bitter smile and rubbed his eyes to clear the tears as Yoshiro put on his victory face for the sake of the soldiers. Yoshiro turned in air to face each of his soldiers  and raised his weapon into the air.

"For Kou!"

The victory cry brought about an even bigger wave of cheers and enthusiasm from the soldiers as the vortex of rukh in the sky slowed and faded. Clear blue skies and a warm sun graced the battlefield as the roaring celebration went on until the men's exhaustion caught up with them and everyone experienced the relief of knowing it was finally all over. The lines between Yoshiro and Gao's forces had already been blurred, but now they could stand unified once again. Though there were still some unwilling to submit in their hearts, they could not show it on the surface as their peers looked up to Yoshiro's heroic figure in the sky. He was already the True Emperor in the hearts of most of the soldiers there.

---

With the fighting over, Dong Zhu took care of handling orders for the dead to be retrieved and the injured tended to. The camp Gao's forces occupied was dismantled and abandoned as all forces gathered around Yoshiro's camp. The sun was going down by the time preparations were complete, but the support personnel in the camps that had not participated in the fighting went all out to prepare huge meal. Though Kou lacked the food reserves for them to host a truly grand banquet, there was no shortage of rice and jerked meat for the soldiers to enjoy.

Music played and soldiers who were once enemies danced together as they celebrated life and the peace that was sure to soon reign. Yoshiro was walking through the celebration with his hands behind his back and a gentle smile on his face. One by one, he made the rounds to greet and speak with the soldiers personally to thank them for their sacrifices and accomplishments.

---

Hei Lu's Response:

[DM Notes: As I said before, one or two rounds of posts left on this event to wrap things up. If you want something specific for the face to face with Yoshiro each of you gets next round, pm me.]