The Games We Play - Chapter 228: Retort

Chapter 228: Retort

DISCLAIMER: This story is NOT MINE IN ANY WAY. That honor has gone to the beautiful bastard Ryuugi. This has been pulled from his Spacebattles publishment at threads/rwby-the-gamer-the-games-we-play-disk-five.341621/. Anyway on with the show…err read.

Retort

Within the cut off space of my Sanctuary, heat had no place to escape to. Cut off by the very space around us, any attempts to leave were promptly turned back and so it simply built upon itself, steadily pushing the temperatures higher and higher with each passing moment until the specifics hardly seemed to matter. The normal properties of matter began to break down at that point, adding to the inferno around us with tumultuous shifts and changes. And Gilgamesh, exposed to the heart of the star behind it all?

He began to disappear. As I exposed it to the heat of Lucifer’s core, the ancient Grimm’s flesh simply seemed to vanish as solids were converted directly into gases and then into plasmas, joining the rest of my burning world as it was raised to even higher states. He dissolved in layers, flesh stripped away to reveal steadily denser layers, Malkuth’s touch altering how the physics of his body should have worked—but here, even that had its limits. Lucifer’s power was tremendous under any circumstances, but in this case especially, it was something else, turning my little section of space into a rolling, burning hell.

This was the true point of my barriers, in a way—they allowed for this, making an already fearsome skill into something terrifying. Sanctuary trapped both my opponent and the heat within a confined space, while Cathedral ensured I had the power to feed the flames, fanning them higher and higher with every moment. Asylum struck at Gilgamesh, slowing him and weakening his defenses, leaving him open to take everything I could dish out, while Tabernacle and Et in Arcadia Ego allowed me to define the battlefield. It was a combination that I’d come up with specifically for dealing with opponents like Gilgamesh—the most powerful Grimm, who were bound to have all kinds of awful tricks. With this, it was possible I could even catch the Riders at a disadvantage, cutting my allies off from any risk of infection while leaving the Rider her to burn with me. From time to time, I even thought that it might be enough to kill Cinder.

But I hadn’t tested it, until now—in a way, that was another purpose to this fight. Gilgamesh would give me a rough idea of what to expect from his siblings, how much resistance I would need to overcome. So far, I’d like to far I’d been holding my own in this fight, giving as good as I got and then some, but I felt wise to be cautious. For all my tricks, it was possible I’d only have one shot against things like Famine and Death and if I missed it…

Well. Let’s hope it didn’t come to that.

As such, I didn’t let up on Gilgamesh, even though I seemed to have the advantage. I watched as each layer of his skin was burnt away, the ones closest to the surface vanishing all at once to leave him with an emaciated, skeletal appearance. Then the layers grew steadily more and more durable, allowing them to last a few moments before burning away, a seared gap appearing in the center of his chest each time to reveal the beginnings of the next layer. After perhaps a second, all that was left were the lowest layers, composed of impossibly strong materials and looking almost mechanical.

Gilgamesh, only barely even a skeleton now, opened his jaws as if to speak, faceless mask—and face—long since gone. No sound came out, of course, seeing as the atmosphere within my Sanctuary had already transitioned into something beyond air and there wasn’t enough left of him to really talk anymore besides. Honestly, I was surprised that it was even capable of motion, seeing as I’d erased anything resembling a musculature, but that was the Grimm for you. I watched as Gilgamesh shook once before lifting the remnants of a hand, reaching out slowly to grab me by the throat.

I could have dodged it easily, but I didn’t bother—as the source of Lucifer, I was the hottest thing inside this barrier. As his fingers closed upon my skin, I barely felt the pressure as they immediately began to melt and evaporate. I willed myself to hover a step closer, moving as if to walk into Gilgamesh, and watched as much the same happened, the skeleton releasing a sudden series of pops and cracks as fissures began to race across it as it was superheated in an instant. There was a sudden sound like a muffled explosion and the skeleton finally shattered, pieces breaking off and falling only a short distance before evaporating in turn.

Someone else—an outside observe who could somehow observe events occurring inside of a star—might have thought that the edge of things.

But I knew better, in part because I could observe events occurring inside of a star and I saw what remained. All that was left of Gilgamesh now was a tiny point—a hole in space, small enough to fit on the head of a needle. A portal, like those I’d seen in other Grimm, but at once smaller and more focused. Black matter seemed to pour from it in clouds that dissolved as quickly as they appeared, my power erasing the new flesh as it tried to emerge, keeping it from consolidating into the shape of anything in particular.

And yet, at the same time, the portal remained, completely untouched by my flames. I focused on it, trying to Observe it, but I didn’t get anything of value as it seemed to count as part of Gilgamesh—so instead, I analyzed it with my other senses, trying to make sense of it. I’d already noticed that it didn’t have any physical mass, largely because it wasn’t material. It was, after all, a portal; an opening in space that connected two different points. It didn’t burn because there was nothing too burn.

More interestingly, however, nothing on this side passed through it to touch the other. I was monitoring the heat and energy building up around me and none of it seemed to be flowing towards the ‘opening’—the portal only went one way.

Whatever else their abilities, I figured this was one of the Legendary Grimm’s trump cards. Malkuth—who sucked dick in bulk when it came to fighting fair to begin with—was that much looser with his restrictions when it came to them. Even if they were hit by something sufficient to completely annihilate their bodies, the portal within them would remain open, feeding in new matter for them to recompose with. They were like the Hydras, in that regard, but without the issue of something destroying their cores. In effect, even if something was strong enough to kill them, it probably wouldn’t. Most people wouldn’t have any way of dealing with their cores, even if they could get to them and notice them, which meant that the Grimm would be free to get back on its feet as soon as it had time to recover. If nothing else, they could simply outlast their foe that way.

The only way to defeat them, then, was to destroy the portal as well.

I took a moment to contemplate that, even though even moment counted. I had a few ideas I thought might work on that front, but I had to consider my options—and the circumstances. This entire situation reminded me of my battle with Conquest, where I’d first learned of the connection the Grimm had to their master and of Malkuth Theory. While I hadn’t had the tools at my disposal then that I did now, the fact remained that when I cornered Conquest and had him seemingly dead to rights, I tried to cut his connection to Malkuth and summoned him instead.

It was possible my actions had simply drawn his attention, but while they probably had, he hadn’t exactly come by to chat with me afterwards. If it was that easy for him to appear in person, I suspected my life would be significantly worse; all it’d take was a few Pandora Shells and I’d be seeing him all the time. Presumably, I’d had to the foresight to instant asshole blockers in my previous life; there was no point to whatever I’d done to try and stop Malkuth unless it, you know, stopped Malkuth.

More likely, it had something to do with what I’d done. I’d severed the link—what I now knew to be a portal—and he’d appeared? Some kind of inbuilt safety, perhaps? Or was it that in trying to destroy the portal, I’d wrenched open a path for him. Honestly, neither option was particularly reassuring and both were depressingly possible. I knew that if I were creating super-monsters with only one weak point, if I couldn’t remove that weakness, I’d try to make sure anyone regretted exploiting it.

Of course, if I didn’t do something, I wouldn’t be able to Gilgamesh—or any of his siblings—which really wasn’t much better.

No, I couldn’t let this stop me or I’d never get anywhere. I needed to kill Gilgamesh and those like him if I was ever to have a shot at Malkuth himself—and if I couldn’t oppose Malkuth for fear of Malkuth, I might as well give up now. Better to assume that something would happen and prepare for it than to do nothing.

The question in that case was simple; whether it was Malkuth or Gilgamesh I’d be facing, it was best to assume this fight wasn’t over—which I kind of already had, frankly. This was too easy; if my enemies could be defeated by a combination of skills I had access to in my previous life, I would have defeated them in my previous life. And if that was the case, how should I welcome them back?

I began sorting through my options, lingering briefly on several before discarding them, keeping them in reserve; I’d need them if this didn’t work. No, best to use a personal touch.

Holding out a hand and gathering what power I could spare, I created Longinus and hurled it straight into the sealed portal.

The space-warping spear met the space-warping portal, a force that could pierce through any defense hurled headlong into something that should have been untouchable, no more than a connection between two distant points—and there was a reaction. I’d known there would be, had seen enough portals working alongside Raven to have a rough feel for the matter now, even if the specifics and mechanics were still beyond me. Even so, this was different than the tests I’d performed with Longinus and Raven’s Semblance, which tended to simply enter one end and promptly terminate both opening.

Instead, as the two powers touched, space began to twist. Longinus seemed to bend while still remaining straight, the area around the portal shimmering oddly too my senses. The heat around it flowed strangely, drawing away from it and pushing forth in turns, but for an instant nothing else happened.

But Longinus continued to glow and even as the space around it continued to shift and warp, it continued along its decided path, shearing through the twisted area and then shattering the effect entirely with a massive crash. Longinus slipped straight through the portal, sliding into the opening in space which consumed it entirely.

A moment later, black fluid burst from both sides of the portal, flying in arcs that reminded me of blood splatters. What had once been closed seemed to have been wrenched open and the walls came tumbling down. More and more of the dark liquid flowed freely from the opening, along with the rising sound that I couldn’t quite describe—a wordless tone I didn’t hear with my ears, but felt, almost like a vibration in my bones—growing louder and louder with each passing second. It was more of the same Grimm matter that the portal had been feeding Gilgamesh to begin with, but if what had come from the portal before was a trickle, than this was a flood, a waterfall of black material.

Most of it vanished even as it came through, same as what had come before, annihilated by the heat of Lucifer’s sun and the hell I’d made of this barrier. But I noticed the moment things began to change, as something continued, remaining as everything around it was obliterated, partially hidden by the rest of the flood.

“That was rude,” A voice said, clearly audible despite the fact that the atmosphere wasn’t particularly conductive to sound at the moment. “What a cold welcome. You’d better have my friendship bracelet if you expect me to forgive you.”

A violent tremble went through the dark matter, causing a shift. Things began to rise from the darkness, taking shape and twisting into something solid as Gilgamesh’s body took shape once more. Despite being exposed to even greater heat than before, this time he didn’t melt, didn’t even burn. No, looking at him with my senses, it was more than that, feeling somehow similar to the portal but different. It was as though the laws of thermodynamics had made an exception for him and chosen to ignore the fact that heat flowed from a hotter location to a colder one. The impossible atmosphere I’d made within my isolated section of space simply refused to touch him.

Even before I heard his words, that was enough to tell me who I was dealing with.

“Malkuth,” I said, certain he’d be able to hear me.

Gilgamesh’s face wasn’t visible—but if it had been, I’m pretty sure Malkuth would have been smiling through it.

“Keter,” He replied, his voice warm, almost gentle. “I figured you’d remember something eventually. Death did his job as best he could, I’m sure, but…well, I knew you’d have something up your sleeves.”

I didn’t answer immediately, choosing instead to draw something from my Inventory, channeling power into it to keep it from vanishing in the heat. Malkuth tilted his borrowed head slightly to the side.

“And what’s that?” He asked.

“Your bracelet,” I said. “Don’t you want it?”

He looked at me, glancing over the power I was gathering, and I could all but feel his smirk.

“Please,” He said. “I’ve been waiting for this.”

I nodded at him once, reared back my hand, and threw it towards him as hard as I could. The bracelet was a simple one, nothing but regular beads around some string, but it literally glowed with my power.

One of the nice things about the Astra techniques was that they could be applied to existing objects, in addition to simply creating projectiles. I didn’t usually use them that way, because it didn’t change the cost and given the choice, I’d just as soon not stand at the epicenter of a Brahmastra. Generally speaking, there wasn’t much point in wasting things by throwing them away, either.

But in this case, I made an exception. In point of fact, I’d been preparing for it.

Sephirotic Synthesis Complete. The skills ‘Magic Missile’ and ‘Thunderbolt’ have been combined successfully. The skill ‘Indrastra’ has been created.

Sephirotic Synthesis Complete. The skills ‘Magic Missile’ and ‘Bind’ have been combined successfully. The skill ‘Varunapasha’ has been created.

Sephirotic Synthesis Complete. The skills ‘Magic Missile’ and ‘Far Slayer’ have been combined successfully. The skill ‘Vayvayastra’ has been created.

Sephirotic Synthesis Complete. The skills ‘Magic Missile’ and ‘Delusory’ have been combined successfully. The skill ‘Twashtarastra’ has been created.

Sephirotic Synthesis Complete. The skills ‘Gungnir,’ ‘Agneyastra,’ and ‘Surya’ have been combined successfully. The skill ‘Suryastra’ has been created.

I layered all of the Astra skills I knew—baring the Brahmastra, which I’d already used today—over the cheap bracelet and in midflight it transformed into a bolt of destruction that cut through the inferno around us as though it wasn’t even there. The power of the Agneyastra and the Suryastra protected it from the surrounding heat, leaving it free to fly for the heart of my foe, who just kept his arms by his sides and accepted the strike.

It hit him with an explosion of thunderous power. The moment the first spear connected, the Indrastra surrounded him in a loose sphere of glowing spears that struck his flesh like lightning. The Varunapasha surrounded him in cords and chains of light, binding him fast. The Vayvayastra shaped his already hostile surroundings into a storm of fire and power that could have created a tornado, had there been anything to differentiate it from its surroundings. The Twashtarastra took effect more subtly, surrounding him in a personal illusion that bound his senses, surrounding him with the images of enemies that would have overlaid his allies, had there been any here. And the two strongest of the Astras I’d used, the Agneyastra and Suryastra, detonated on impact, exploding into such heat and light that for a moment, my Sanctuary had yet another sun, adding fuel to the still growing fire.

Or, well, more fire to the existing fire, at least.

The attack didn’t cause any smoke, of course—there was nothing to create some anymore, and it would have been eradicated instantly if there had been. Even if there had been, it wouldn’t have been enough to interfere with my eyes and I was free to see what happened when the blows connected.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t say I was particularly surprised when the answer was ‘pretty much nothing.’ As the attacks connected and either shattered or burst against his armored skin, Malkuth didn’t so much as move until the very end, when an arm snapped up—casually tearing through his restraints in the process—and caught the last of the weapons, snapping it easily.

When the power around it faded, all that was left in his hands was the bracelet, no longer glowing and yet still untouched by the heat.

“What a nice gift,” He said, smiling at me as he slipped it on. “I kind of feel bad now. I said I’d bring the murder, but there doesn’t seem to be anyone here. That barrier of yours again?”

He clicked his tongue several times, shaking his head as he glanced around.

“Well, I’ll find a way to make it up to you, I’m sure,” He said, raising his hand. “Although, I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I shattered this barrier and released what’s inside on the world. The results might be a bit amusing, don’t you think? Oh, hm, but…if we do that, the results wouldn’t be very good for this world, you know? Creating something like this…I feel you might not have thought this through. Or have you just decided that nothing else matters as long as you have a chance to defeat me? If so, that’s fine to.”

I considered him for a moment before answering.

“Things have changed,” I told him. “I’m not the same as I was before—and I’m not stupid. You don’t want the world destroyed, at least not before I get whatever you’re after; if you wanted Mankind completely gone, you could have wiped them off the map a long time ago. Instead, you’ve kept them around for thousands of years, destroying Kingdoms but never the whole. You’ve turned them against each other, kept their number too small to ever really be a threat to you or your forces, but you’ve never fully exterminated them. You need them for something or you wouldn’t have bothered; maybe to allow for my reincarnation, maybe for something else, but something. So don’t bother threatening that you’ll destroy the world.”

He laughed, the sound amused, and nodded his head.

“You’re right, you’re right,” He admitted easily, cheer seeming untouched. “Don’t worry, I was just kidding. Why would I destroy everything, after all? People, planets—they both have so many uses. Well, but I can still kill everyone you know and love, so don’t go getting any ideas, Mr. Man.”

The last part was delivered with a wag of his finger and what I assumed was meant to be a stern expression. The situation was serious enough that I didn’t quite roll my eyes, but it was a near thing.

“I also know that if you could just play body snatcher with your minions any time you wanted, you’d do so,” I continued. “When I open the door, you can come through—but I’m betting it won’t last and that it costs you something. You’re riding around in Gilgamesh’s body right now, but you aren’t free to act.”

“Smart man,” He praised, wiggling his fingers at me. “Yes, unfortunately our reunions seemed doomed to be short-lived.”

“Alas,” I replied. “But I hope you don’t think I’ll just let you do whatever you want.”

“You always were a bit of a control freak,” He said, tone rueful. “‘No Malkuth, you can’t test that inside the biosphere.’ ‘No Malkuth, you can’t mess with the Moon’s orbit.’ ‘Malkuth, you can’t just convert matter into energy wherever you want.’ On and on. You’re not my mom, you know.”

“I feel fairly justified in saying all of those things,” I answered.

“Coming from the guy who just trapped a star in a perfectly insolated space?” He asked. “Not as convincing as you might think.”

“A perfectly insolated and isolated space,” I replied. “The conditions are practically laboratory.”

“Mhm,” He answered, sounding unconvinced. “Not sure that means what you think it means, but okay. I’ve got to ask, though—what you’re doing right now obviously isn’t working and you’re still wasting so much energy on Gevurah’s old trick. Are you buying time for something, Keter?”

“Yes,” I said. “Yes, I am. Want to see something cool?”

“Figures you can’t just trap a sun for its own sake,” Malkuth said with a slight sigh. “You don’t even want to know what will happen when the temperatures get crazy within a confined space? You’re scientific curiosity leaves something to be desired. Unlike you, I’m a real scientist—so fuck yeah I want to see something cool. What do you got?”

Without answering, I lifted a hand, calling to my power again. While it was true that I hadn’t known for sure that Malkuth would show his face, I’d been aware of the possibility and sure that something would happen and that was the other purpose for this cage I’d made. Even if it wasn’t able to touch Malkuth right now, there was a lot of power within this space—power I could use.

Light gathered in my hands as I tapped my power for everything I and my other could spare, draining myself dangerously low to make a shot I hoped would count.

And then I hit him with Lux Aeterna.

Fourteen of them, to be precise.