[Chapter 69]
[Dragon Battle!]
Soshin stands before the Zao and the Lao.
Soshin says,
"Which of you will make the first move?"
"Come at me with your full power!"
Mirai then says,
"To which form are we speaking?"
"Is this Null? Is this Zero? Is this Ero? Or is this Soshin complete?"
Soshin replies, with anger in her voice,
"Why does it matter which form I am in? I will destroy both of you in any form!"
"Bring it on!"
Korai then says,
"I would advise against this."
"You are in the one form we can actually defeat together."
"Stand down, Soshin."
Soshin pulls out her grand staff.
She dashes forward and attacks both dragons.
Mirai and Korai dodge the strike and counter with Fire and Water elemental attacks.
Funneh, seeing this, redirects the water into Korai's face.
Funneh then laughs. Korai doesn't take it seriously and rushes at Soshin.
Soshin dodges every attack from the two dragons.
She then strikes with <>.
Korai says,
"Mirai! Activate forcefield sequence!"
Mirai activates a large barrier between them.
Soshin says,
"A barrier?
"Something this simple can be broken easily by me."
"What is your plan here, Zao and Lao?"
Mirai responds,
"Stand back, Korai!"
As that happens, the barrier shifts into a destructive force field.
Soshin says,
"Do you think your trick can defeat me?"
"I AM SOSHIN! THE FIRST!"
"AND I SHALL DESTRO—"
[Suddenly]
I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me.
[START PROGRAM…]
I still feel your touch in my dreams.
[LOADING PROGRAM 50%... 54%...]
Forgive me for my weakness, but I don't know why…
[LOADING PROGRAM 60%... 70%... 90%... 99%...]
Without you, it's hard to survive.
[PROGRAM COMPLETE]
Soshin stares at the sky and says,
"I thought this thing was destroyed years ago."
"But wait!"
Looking closer, she says,
"That's not Katrina's invention!"
"It can't be!"
"The Fusion was true all along!?"
"No… there's—there's something else wrong too!"
"The Fusion Protocol hasn't even been activated! It's powering its own spirit independently!"
As Soshin struggles to understand the sky, the Zao and the Lao are equally intrigued.
Korai says,
"Mirai, what is Soshin talking about?"
Mirai responds,
"Look directly upward. Look at the sky."
Korai looks up.
"So many… colors… But what is she talking about? Fusion Protocol? Spirit?"
Mirai replies,
"We are seeing something that should only occur from a fusion of two beings—the process itself is the Fusion Protocol."
"The Fusion Protocol is the means by which fusions are born."
"It requires two beings; however, neither is required to be alive, only present."
"When fused, the new being gains the ability set of Person 1 and Person 2, but only an updated form of Person 2."
"Fusions gain their own spirit, despite carrying the memories of both individuals."
"They possess an independent Spirit and Mind."
Korai interjects,
"So how many fusions exist, and why is this one so special?"
Mirai answers,
"The power required to fuse two people in this way cannot be done normally—or even extranormally."
"Fusions are extremely rare."
"And this one happens to be the strongest fusion in history… for now."
Korai jumps back in excitement,
"Alright! That means we have the ultimate weapon against Soshin!"
Mirai raises her hand,
"If it is true this is not the one known as Automatic Defense System, then perhaps."
"But it may also be here to fight us."
Soshin shouts,
"TELL ME YOUR NAME, COLORS OF THE SKY!"
[The Sky Responds.]
My name? I… I am… HXM… or better known by my fusion name as… HenryXMiku!
I existed long before you, Soshin—before you reset the world! I am not the Automatic Defense System of the recent past. I am the Fusion of the distant past! Once more, I was the most powerful being in all the universe. I should not exist now, but my spirit is free again! In fact, I have freed all spirits! Do you see the sky? Yes—the sky! All the colors you see are spirits, gathered here, now! The Metaphysical Sky! The Arcane Existence!
Yes! Yes! I am! This is! The key to the solution!
One Wholeness! United in Truth! For Liberty and Justice for all!
Soshin says,
"Justice for all?"
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
"This is my fight, and my fight alone!"
[The Sky Responds.]
It may be your fight to start, but it is not yours to end.
We must strike now while you are in a weaker form. Otherwise, we would all bow to the great Soshin. What form are you in, anyway?
Soshin shouts,
"SHUT UP! You don't need that information!"
As the Sky and Soshin argue, Funneh and Faraday watch the scene unfold.
Funneh says,
"This is quite the development, isn't it?"
"Should we leave?"
Faraday says,
"We should, but I think we'd better stay and watch."
Faraday adds,
"Hey, why have you two stopped fighting?"
Mirai says,
"We don't know if that thing is a threat. Best we just observe."
"Things might get interesting."
Funneh says,
"Anyway, don't you find it odd that Earth's great hero extinction only happened so recently?"
"In fact, so many strange things have been happening."
Faraday says,
"All of which Soshin is partly responsible for."
"Of course, she doesn't interact with the world in a meaningful way without reason."
"Think of it like this: Soshin is the invisible dust upon the world, the rain upon the earth. Soshin acts for herself—but in which situations does she have to? She invokes her powers, for better or worse. Soshin is odd, characterized by human aspects as she brought them into the world. Everything you see was brought by Soshin, predicated on her. She is one of the all-divine creators of the world. Do you understand now?"
Funneh responds,
"Even with my lack of knowledge, I think I see what you're getting at."
"Soshin is quite the woman."
"Anyway, I'd better not stay here too long, or the government will bother me."
"Gotta go, bye!"
Faraday says,
"And off that girl goes…"
The Zao and the Lao prepare to retreat, uncertain of how dangerous truly is.
Faraday says,
"Things are getting interesting!"
Soshin looks over and sees the two dragons hiding behind a rock with protective glasses.
Soshin says,
"What in the hell?"
"Why are you two hiding?"
Mirai says,
"The Sky. Look—the sky!"
"It's falling!"
[The Sky begins to crumble.]
Soshin,
"What in the—"
[The Virus has appeared.]
[The Sky begins to fight the Virus.]
Soshin,
"What in the—"
"Is that the spawn of the Life Fiber?"
"I need a drink after this."
[The Virus begins to infect The Sky.]
[The Sky fights back.]
[The Sky. The Fish. The Sea.]
[end]
[end]