MVR - Round 2

R15

BOOM

"Mommy! Daddy!" I screamed, as I ran into my mother's arms.

"It's going to be okay, Johnny. Mommy wants you to run from this house. Don't look back. Everything is going to be okay!"

I watched as the sky became swarmed with... metal things, as people were slaughtered left and right.

Dad ran up to me and grabbed my shoulders.

"Son, starting today, you need to go and survive on your own. Listen to that voice in your head. He will guide you. Our great Paladin of War will always be there for you. And so will we. But you need to live. You must!"

I snapped awake, as the lights from the curtains of the run down shack shone in my eyes.

"Gah. Blasted sunlight. Ugh." I muttered, as I shifted off of the couch, making my way to the desk, where I picked up my gun, performing usual maintenance and cleaning.

"You're awake." A woman's voice called out to me. I turned around.

"Yeah. How was your morning, Corey?"

Corey smiled weakly, as she made her way to the living room. She was still in crutches.

"Seeing you grow up everyday is enough to make me happy, John."

Corey noticed the weapon in my hands, and pursed her lips.

"I still don't approve of you playing around with firearms. A 15 year old boy shouldn't be owning a gun."

"That's not up to you to decide." I said, as I strapped the handgun to my belt.

"It's big bro's decision. And he would have wanted me to master it."

Corey sighed, as she poured some coffee into a cup.

"That's the problem. I don't want you to end up like Sparty." Her bottom lip quavered.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to trigger it, Corey."

It has been eight years, since Ben had rescued me from those crazy fools. We had been on the run since then, running from them. And running from Mogul. The entire world had become a wasteland, and in the ten years since the Iron Council invaded our world, mankind did nothing to fight back.

Because there was nothing we could do.

I left the living room and chugged some coffee, as I looked at myself in the mirror.

Corey told me guys turn super hot once they became 24-25 years old. I guess in my case, another ten years?

"Hey, Decen." I muttered, staring at myself. Ever since Ben had rescued me and fought off the entire Iron Council Specialist force on his own, buying time for the rest of us to escape, I had made it a mission to grow strong for his sake. I got myself a razor and began trimming my hair to look like his. A buzz cut. But even so, my face, remained unchanged. Still a kid. Still naive. Still weak.

I grimaced.

"It's about to be the 96th month since you stopped contacting me. What's going on, man. I'd really appreciate it if you even showed up to say hi once in a while."

I gripped the sink, as I left the bathroom. This was stupid. I made my way to the med room, to visit my brother.

"Sup, Big Bro." I said, as I sat in front of Ben, who remained catatonic. His face emotionless, as I could still see the servos and components from his body trying their best to come together, but his brain was still missing a huge portion from when Turbo set off an explosive on his face.

My vision flashed to that memory, as I clutched my head.

Go! Get outta here, John!

"No! Ben I can't leave you! Please!" I pleaded, sobbing and trying to grab Ben's leg before Corey ran up to me and scooped me up.

I watched as Ben turned around to try to fight off Turbo, but it was too late, as the more superior cyborg smashed my brother in the side of the face, deforming his metallic endoskeleton and stuffing the charge in the gap. I watched as Ben's eyes widened, realizing what was going to happen. The explosion, tearing and ripping away at both his flesh and his components.

Ben's look of desperation to get me back.

That was what ultimately made me determined to get stronger.

My vision flashed back to reality, at Ben's empty eyes, as he stared at the dusty floorboards. Slumped on the ground. Half of his body missing.

I needed to find more components. If it meant repairing Ben, I'd have to keep killing and hunting those damn Angels one by one. I glanced at the pile of electronics next to us. Pieces of the angels that Corey helped me slay. Even if we had all the tech in the world, was it enough?

I didn't know jack shit about tech. Only Corey knew, and her knowledge of electronics was still limited. After all, undergraduate engineering was as far as her degree took her.

I clenched my fist.

"If only I was smarter. Dammit." I grumbled.

I took out my gun. It was a modified SPARTAN battle pistol, with multiple firing options. Ben's classic and iconic firearm before he ended up like this. I didn't have his power to fuel it, so since then, I'd been using energy cells from fallen Iron Council angels, converting it into a usable form of energy supply. Something like that. Really, it was Corey who made the conversion device for me.

She surely was amazing.

Guess I could sorta see how Ben fell in love with her.

The old version of me woulda found that sort of thing gross. Back when the two of them kissed and made love, I would always close my eyes and to make sure I didn't hear the sounds of "adult playtime". But now, even just hearing the two of them flirt, would make me a little bit happier.

I missed those days of just the three of us and the other Ben.

I went up to Ben and kissed him on the forehead.

"Gotta head out. Gonna go on another hunt. I'll be back for you Ben."

I followed Corey out as she drove on Ben's motorcycle. I held on tight to make sure she didn't fling me off the bike as we raced to a potential Council camp.

"You know the drill. I go in, and cause the distraction. You pick them off at a distance. No doing anything reckless." Corey shouted.

"Yeah." I replied.

I wished she would stop treating me like a little kid. I was after all, stronger than her. I was a Remnant of Decen. She was just an ordinary human being. But Ben would have wanted me to listen to her.

We approached the camp, as Corey got off the bike, planting explosives in the proximity of the camp and lit a flare.

"Hey, Iron Bastards!" She shouted.

The Angels turned to her direction.

"Dispatch Orion and Enya to her position. Most likely a diversion. The rest of us will stay-"

"You're half right, idiots." I said, as I took the moment of their battle planning to shoot them all down with my gun.

Orion and Enya fell flat on their faces, bullet holes in their face as the other Iron Council members turned to me.

"Kill him." The leader said.

It is only when a warrior is backed in a corner, do their true colours show.

That saying, first told to me by Decen himself, then by Ben.

Maybe ten years ago, I would have cowered, and ran to Corey in fear.

But that was ten years ago. The Jonathan Ko now is a different breed.

"Soul Link: Paladin Decen 8%"

My hand extended, as red and black glowing shards replaced the skin. I slammed the ground, creating a Spike Clad shield to block their energy blasts.

I ripped off pieces of the Clad and fed them into the device Corey made, and converted the pieces into bullets as I took aim.

"Get wrecked, BITCHES." I said, as I set my gun to full auto mode, spraying and peppering the Angels with the clad bullets.

The squad stumbled back.

"Foolish. Do you think such human technology can stand in the face of-"

I smirked, and closed my fist. The bullets expanding into massive starbursts of spikes, impaling and killing the Angels as their corpses littered the ground.

One of the members, the Leader, I'm guessing managed to survive, but barely, as he tried to crawl away. But I put my boot on the top of his head.

"You ain't getting away." I said, coldly, as I reloaded my gun, and set it to Charged Shot mode. There was no surviving a Charged Shot point blank.

"Wait. We can... negotiate. Please spare me. Please." The leader pleaded, as I aimed the barrel to his head.

A maniacal smile showed up on my face.

"I love it when they beg. Revenge is the best feeling ever." I said, as I began to squeeze the trigger, when suddenly, Corey ran in front of me.

"John. That's enough."

I paused, looking at Corey.

"What do you mean that's enough? I'm going to kill him, just like I did with the others. We need the parts to save Ben."

"That look on your face. Killing is never a good thing. But what's worse is when you enjoy it. Give me the gun. I'm finishing him off."

I clenched my fist, as I glared at the leader, who began hyperventilating in terror and sobbing. Heaving.

"Before you die. Know this. A member of ASCENSION, who went by the codename, SPART205, fell victim to your people. This man, was my older brother, and is the only family I have left. I watched as you Iron Council bastards tore away at him. And now he's comatose. I'll also let you in on another fact. I am Jonathan Ko, the Fifteenth Remnant of Decen.

"I am the Remnant of War. I don't take lightly to those who disrespect my loved ones. Know that your kind picked a fight with a Paladin's Remnant. I'm coming for all of you."

The leader looked at me in terror as I smiled, pulling the trigger. The angel's head burst into green fluid and tech as I killed the last of the squad.

Corey and I spent the next ten minutes picking up as much tech components as we can, and loading them into the bag on the motorcycle.

"John." Corey said.

Great. Here it comes.

Corey got up and closed the trunk to the bike compartment.

"I know whatever I say won't influence how you live your life. But finding joy in other's suffering is never a good thing. It'll turn you into the very monsters you hate."

I crossed my arms.

"You're not my mother. I don't need to hear that from you."

Corey tensed up as she gripped the handlebars of the motorcycle.

"I... I know." She muttered, as we drove back to the shack.

I watched Corey kneel down in front of Ben and began to inspecting his components, and made modifications to the tech we had in the pile. She occasionally cursed and sighed. Clearly, the frustration was getting to her. But she tried to remain calm.

"John, fetch me the pliers."

I handed Corey the pliers as she tried to pry off the cover to a component.

"Need some help?" I asked. Corey handed me the part as I ripped it off with my bare hands.

Corey smiled.

"Are all Remnants showoffs?"

"You can say it's a Decen thing." I responded, leaning back and taking the sunset.

Corey paused.

"God, you look so much like Ben. From back then."

"Wasn't the Ben from back then like 20 something?"

"22. Yeah. But he had a childish face. Hard to distinguish."

"You miss him a lot." I said.

"What gave it away?" Corey let loose a weak laugh.

"We'll get him back up and running soon. Then he can give you that thing you wanted so badly."

Corey's cheeks flushed.

"John! Such things are extremely inappropriate."

"Come on. Literally it's just the two of us here. And I've seen enough shit to get an excuse. Besides...

"Ain't nothing wrong with wanting a baby. I mean. I don't mind being an uncle."

Corey sighed as she set down the screwdriver. "The last thing I want is my children to see someone like you as an uncle figure."

"Is that a roast?" I joked.

Corey scooted closer to me.

"You're still young, so you don't fully understand it. But Ben and I can't have kids. I don't want my kids to grow up knowing they won't ever see their father again."

"My dad got himself killed and that was how I was born."

"Well, you're different, John."

"I like to use the word special."

I left Corey alone with Ben as I went to my room, putting my gear on the desk and sitting on the mattress.

Another day another batch.

I wanted to feel like I was making a difference but I couldn't tell if what I was doing was working. I could only hope.

Ah shit. I forgot to say goodnight to Corey. That was one of the things Ben wanted me to do.

I got up from the bed and went downstairs, knocking on the door.

"Yo." I said.

No response.

"Hey Corey? You in there?"

My heart began to race. Come on. This wasn't happening now. I opened the door.

"Corey, I'm coming in-"

I paused, my eyes full of terror, at what I was seeing.

Ben and Corey, both being carried by a familiar towering orc. A horribly scarred face, and red demonic eyes.

"What... the hell..." I whimpered, as I took a step back. My body trembling as the Prime Aspect regarded me.

AH. THE FIFTEENTH. WONDERFUL. LET US HAVE A HEARTFELT DISCUSSION. LOCATING THE PALADIN'S TWO TIME DISPLACED REMNANTS WAS NO EASY TASK.

R15

I put my hand on my gun, but I suddenly realized. I had no gun.

Mogul smiled at me sinisterly, as I fell on flat on my ass. I wasn't able to move or do anything. Blood leaked from the corner of Corey's face, as Ben was still catatonic. Mogul sat down in front of me.

FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND, THE SECOND'S PAST SELF WAS ELIMINATED.

I clenched my fists.

Yes. The past self of Benjamin Fong. Corey's Ben, was dead.

I remembered.

It was Ben or me. And Ben made the choice to jump into the reservoir to activate the kill switch and disable the higher functions of the Iron Council Specialists. That was how the older version of Ben managed to fight on par with them, albeit for a brief time.

"Wha... what do you want." I said.

IT WAS MY PREROGATIVE, TO HUNT DOWN THE REMNANTS ONE BY ONE. BUT NOW, I AM CURIOUS. TO SEE IF ALL FIFTEEN OF DECEN'S SPAWN CAN MATCH MY POWER TOGETHER. IN ONE BODY. ONE MIND. ONE FORCE.

"Are you going to spare us then?" I asked.

Mogul regarded Ben, who passively flopped around in his enormous hand.

THAT WILL BE UP TO YOU TO DECIDE, FIFTEENTH.

The house began to rumble, as the roof ripped off, revealing several Iron Council members hovering from the sky.

"No way..."

I stared at the soldiers.

"You and Mogul..."

CORRECT. THE IRON COUNCIL SERVES ME. AS IT ALWAYS HAS BEEN. PROVE YOUR WORTH. IF YOU SURVIVE THIS, YOU DESERVE VENGEANCE FOR YOUR PROGENITOR.

Mogul got up, as the angels surrounded me.

The Prime Aspect dropped Ben like a sack of potatoes, but held on to Corey.

THE LOVER OF THE SECOND WILL BE IN MY POSSESSION. COME FOR HER WHEN YOU HAVE PROVEN YOURSELF. BOTH OF YOU.

A portal formed before Mogul as he stepped through. I finally got the backbone to get to my feet.

"Wait! Give Corey back!"

I ran forward, but an angel materialized in front of me and knocked me through a wall. My back exploded in pain, but I managed to grab the gun on the desk and take aim, firing blasts of energy at the angel.

"Dammit!" I growled, as I ran behind cover.

"Soul Link Paladin Dec-"

My incantation was interrupted as a massive appendage ripped through the wall, nearly cutting me in half. I ran out of the way, but was intercepted by another Iron Angel.

I had to get out of here.

I ran up the steps and tried to blockage myself as I searched for an opening.

Usually, running away is a sign of defeat. But in your case, you need to be smarter with the way you fight. Because you lack combat prowess. Find a way to turn a fight in your favour. Using wits.

If only Ben's teachings covered being outnumbered. I couldn't find a single opening. There was no way to turn this fight in my favour when I'm faced with a bunch of bastards who could outnumber and outgun me. I didn't even have time to summon my soul link.

Corey.

With Ben in this state, I was the only thing keeping Corey safe, and I let her be taken away by Mogul.

"Dammit, if only..."

I dodged another swipe from an Angel as I retaliated, firing the columns and supports to the house, collapsing the ceiling in on one of the opponents. But it was useless. The Angel brought his arm up and blasted everything away with a black electrical wave. I fell back.

"If only..."

I ran to the side and smashed through a window, pursued by the horde of Angels after me.

"If only I was stronger."

I leapt over the van that Ben had used to try to transport his past self and I out of the Iron Council Specialist Stronghold that day. I fell backwards as one of the Angels picked up the car with one hand.

I took aim.

Nanotech is my power. Marksmanship was always a skill I had. If you feel that the shot you need to take cannot be missed, you need to think less of it. The pressure will make you lose focus.

I readied my firearm.

Take a deep breath.

I took aim, breathing in and out deeply.

Count to three.

I cleared my mind, counting in my head as I aimed the barrel to the gas tank.

And squeeze that trigger, John.

I fired, as the bolt of energy ignited the fuel in the car, causing a massive explosion.

I scurried out of the way, breathing heavily, when suddenly, the Angels emerged from the flames, unharmed.

Figures.

I ran fired another round at a nearby support beam, distracting them as I ran to Ben. I had to escape somehow. If I could get him on the bike I might be able to get out of here.

I tried to lift Ben, but he was too heavy.

"Damn. Come on, body. Don't fail your boy now." I growled as I tried everything I could to make him budge. The Angels had already figured out my distraction and was making their way to me.

"Ben, you gotta work with me here!"

It was too late. We were surrounded.

My heart began to race as I held out my gun.

"Get back! Stay back!" I shouted, knowing full well my threats held no weight. I was boned.

Prove my worth. That was Mogul's words.

And here I was being unable to hold off these guys from killing both me and my brother. Corey was out there somewhere. I was all that was left of our little squad, and when they needed me the most...

I was utterly useless.

"I gotta do the soul link. There's no choice." I muttered, as I held out my hand, my silver eyes glowing from my reflection.

"Soul..."

The Angels began to close in with frightening speed.

"Link..."

I closed my eyes. This was the end. I couldn't finish the incantation in time.

SLICE

I slowly opened my eyes. Was I dead? No. That sound... it wasn't from my body.

I looked up as I stood face to face with a taller guy. He had long white hair, and a scary looking mask. Kind of like Jason Voorhees from the movie Friday the 13th. But this guy looked dangerous. Much more dangerous. He looked like he could fight.

A black trench coat rippled in the wind as the guy turned to me.

"Remnant 15? Is that hunk of metal supposed to be my elder brother."

My eyes went wide.

"You're a... you're a..."

The Remnant regarded the remaining Angels, and I watched as a flaming projection dissipated. It looked just like a bladed tendril.

Decen's Tendrils.

"Kanade. Tend to our brothers."

"Yes, Fury."

The one called Kanade ran up to us. He had long flowing white hair which reached his shoulders and an innocent face. But it was a face that was undoubtedly one that had seen war. Just like I had.

"You're Remnant 15, right?" Kanade asked, as he put his hand on my chest. I felt my body revitalize.

"Ben." I gasped.

"I'm sorry?"

"Ben, my brother. He needs your healing more than I do."

Kanade looked at Ben and frowned. "I cannot heal him. His body is more machine than Remnant. We will need someone with technological expertise."

I watched as the one called Fury stood before the Angels, his hands in his pockets, but his one glowing orange eye penetrating and piercing.

"Good work bullying my youngest brother. Do you feel proud? Now you are dealing with the third eldest. Let us see if you can put up that same bravado, Mogul slaves."

Fury raised his hand, as five tendrils flew out of his body and chased after the Angels, who tried to evade, but the sheer speed of the slashes cut into them in quick succession.

Fury lowered his body and began to glow black and orange.

"Meaningless. All meaningless. There's no point killing a puppet devoid of soul." Fury said, as he shot towards them, hand held back, until he brought his foot backwards and launched a powerful flaming strike.

Angelbreaker Smash

Angel Breaker alright. Because the moment he sent that strike, he created a massive black and orange explosion that instantly disintegrated the squad that I had so much trouble dealing with.

"So... so strong..." I stammered.

Fury calmly turned to us, walking from the mass chaos he had created.

"For a Remnant, you are weak." Fury said, as he slowly removed his mask, revealing a face similar to Ben and I.

I gnashed my teeth.

You don't have to tell me I'm weak, Fury.

"But."

I looked up in surprise.

"But?"

Fury put his hand on my head as a rush went through my body. Similar to when Ben used to do it.

"You're still young. You have the potential."

"You..."

Kanade propped Ben up as a tendril wrapped around him, lifting him into the air.

Kanade narrowed his eyes.

"They're not dead. As far as I know, these guys are reanimated with the Corruption. As long as Mogul is alive, so are they. We need to retreat."

Fury held out a hand, generating a massive floating fiery hammer in the air where the Angels stood.

Vulcan's Hammer

The hammer smashed into the ground, sending the Angels into the abyss.

"This should buy us some time. We're getting out of here."

Fury and Kanade walked off with Ben in their grasps, when I quickly ran forward and grabbed Fury's coat.

"Wait."

Fury turned around, his fiery eyes, ironically, emitting the coldest expression I had ever seen.

"Do not touch me."

"S- Sorry." I yelped, letting go.

"But... there was a woman, that Mogul took. She's currently hostage. We need to save her. She means a lot to Ben-"

"No. We're returning you two to the rest of us. To the rest of our brothers. This is the safest option."

"We can't just leave Corey along with that freak!" I shouted.

Fury raised an eyebrow.

"And do you think if we went like this, we can defeat Mogul and save our elder brother's bride to be? Happily ever after? You've been here long enough, to know what the Prime Aspect of Sin is capable of. Fighting him as we are now, with only three and a half Remnants, is basically suicide. Considering you can't even do anything."

My heart hurt.

Kanade sighed.

"We need to regroup. As we are now, we're in no shape to rescue this Corey girl. Please, just calm down."

My fists shook.

"You two don't get shit! You have no idea what it's like to have a loved one pulled from you guys!"

Fury clenched his teeth.

"Hm. Ignorant and temperamental. He is a Remnant of father all right."

Kanade walked up to me.

"What are you doing. Get your hands off of me. I'll kill you." I growled.

Kanade put a hand on my forehead.

"No. You need to calm down."

A rush suddenly flowed through my body. A different kind, as Kanade's face doubled. Then tripled. Then quadrupled as I watched a word slip from his lips.

"Sleep."

R15

An explosion.

Before that day Ben ripped his way through thousands of Iron Council Angels, explosions always triggered that memory of Mom and Dad telling me to run. When the Council came to this planet from the skies, killing everybody.

But since then, hearing explosions was different.

It didn't remind me of the pain of losing my adopted parents.

It reminded me of the pain of Ben.

"John! Ben!" Corey shouted after me, as Ben held out two grenades in each hand, throwing them outwards and generating massive blasts of frost, slowing down the guards.

Ben reached into his pockets and took out two Desert Eagles, transforming them into the SPARTAN battle pistols, picking off each enemy left and right while Corey ran up to me and tried to wrestle with the controls.

I was freed as Corey ordered me to stay by her side while she worked to free Ben.

"Corey? Is that you?" Ben asked, groggily, while the future Ben. My Ben, continued fighting off the enemies.

"ASCENSION soldier in floor size with the proxies." One of the guards spoke into the coms, before a bullet penetrated through his face with deadly accuracy.

Ben dodged a slashed from a guard, spinning in the air and firing his two guns in quick succession, dispatching the remaining guards.

Corey helped Ben to his feet as he limped beside me.

"We're getting out of here. Sparty?"

Sparty, or our Ben, regarded me as he approached with one of his guns in his hand.

"Ben?" I asked.

Sparty knelt down in front of me and put the gun in my hands.

Remember our lessons. Defend yourself. This is what this weapon is for. Use it wisely.

"I will."

Corey and I followed Sparty as he drew his assault rifle, powering it up with SPARTAN technology and firing cyan energy bursts at any enemy that came our way while Ben shifted on Corey's shoulder, limping with his leg injury.

"Can you stand?" Corey asked.

Ben grimaced. "Yeah."

Another squad of Council members intercepted us as we entered a large room. Corey pulled Ben and I behind cover as a rocket caught Sparty square in the chest, sending him flying into a metal beam, bending and crushing it. But Ben simply got back up, and aimed his assault rifle with one arm, spraying and catching every enemy square in their weak points through their armour.

"SPART205 has infiltrated the generator room. I repeat. SPART205 has reached the generator. Deploy the specialists."

I saw Sparty grimace as he turned to Corey with a grim expression.

Corey nodded.

"We can't get out of here. The only way is through them. Ben and John, keep your distance, make sure you're well hidden while Sparty and I fight our way through."

Sparty tossed a shotgun to Corey as he drew his Desert Eagle with his other gun hand. His irises began to glow cyan as a targeting reticule began rotating within his eye.

Keep your distance, John. Don't engage the enemy. You're our ranged support.

"Well. If it isn't dearest Mom and Dad." A woman's voice said coyly, as I watched a curvy figure enter the room.

"It's Arachnid." I whimpered. Julia Jensen. She tortured the present Ben and me relentlessly. Every day, while we were held captive, we had a rotating cycle of tortures come in and beat us up. But of all of the specialists, Julia was the scariest.

And it wasn't just that. She had a twisted reason too.

I remembered that day she told me her true identity. Her surname.

She was the future daughter of Ben and Corey. But apparently, Ben never came back to help Corey raise their daughter. She ended up stealing the time warp tech that Ben had left behind to travel back in time. And join the Iron Council to mess with her dad. Who was with ASCENSION.

Ben took aim, the rifle's laser pointer square at his future daughter's forehead.

"Ugh. Cold as ever. You ruin all the fun, dad."

Sparty's eyes were fixed and emotionless, but Corey's was different.

"Julia, please. It doesn't matter what the reason is. Please, let us go. You can't just kill your own father!"

"Oh, you don't get it. It was after all, you who wished the worst on your baby daddy. You're only saying that because you haven't given into despair yet. But when you do, you will thank me for disposing of this useless excuse of a father."

Suddenly, a clap appeared from the hallway, as more and more specialists entered. With them, was Turbo.

"Damn. Sparty. Still kickin? I guess I'll just have to beat the shit out of you all over again."

Sparty grimaced, as he put distance between us.

There was no way he could fight them all at once. After he got his ass kicked by Turbo. He couldn't fight all eight of the specialists at once.

"No. Stop Ben. STOP!" I screamed as I woke up, my hands flailing while Kanade restrained me.

"Hey. Calm down kid."

I stopped flailing as I sat up. Kanade gave me a cup of warm water as I realized we were inside a small cave along the side of a mountain. A fire was crackling as Fury tended to it.

"Where's Ben?" I asked. Kanade pointed at our elder brother who was propped up against the stone wall.

I readjusted myself on the cold floor.

"How long was I out?"

"Can you handle the answer?"

I paused myself, keeping myself from retaliating.

"Yes. Yes I can."

"Three weeks."

My heart dropped.

"Three..."

Fury turned to us.

"Yes. Sammy still hasn't arrived to pick us up. Don't know if that idiot got himself in trouble again. But I doubt even Mogul can catch his elusive ass."

"Sammy?"

Kanade smiled.

"The fourth eldest. He's an astral projection user. It was all thanks to him that we were able to locate you two. Being time displaced and everything. I never thought the Power of the Paladins could reach that far in the spacetime continuum."

"You guys seem to have been rounding up pretty well. Are Ben and I the last ones?"

Kanade shook his head.

"No. We're still missing Remnants 7, 8, 10 through 14."

"So seven Remnants?"

Fury knelt down in front of me.

"Seven. And Arman."

Kanade's face looked pained.

"I shouldn't have chastised him all those years ago. Only Sammy can visit him and he can't even stay long-"

"It wasn't your fault. Arman made the choice to leave us to 'grow stronger'. After everything he said, that Messiah complex he put himself up with. Went ahead and threw it all away. Don't ever feel responsible for that hypocrite's actions."

Fury glanced at Ben, who had slumped over.

"I heard our big brother over there was quite a soldier himself."

"Yeah. He was a member of ASCENSION. Cybernetic army responsible for fighting off the Iron Council."

"Hm. Looks to me he still has a bunch of power he hadn't tapped into. Because he wouldn't be in this state in the first place."

"What did you just say?!" I growled, as I rushed towards Fury, but Kanade held me back.

Fury sighed.

"I'm saying, if he used his full potential, he would have ended the Iron Council. Singlehandedly. I guess there was something holding him back. There's no ill will in what I said, it's just fact."

Fury opened his hand, and a burst of black flame appeared.

"Each one of us possesses the power of the Paladin of War. As Remnants, we are significantly stronger than the average warrior. Arman Wan, the Firstborn, the eldest of all of us, was capable of taking down three Greek Titans at once while he was still learning his powers. Then, proceeded to defeat the Paladin of Light with his Phoenix Form."

My mouth hung open.

"He beat... Icarus?"

Fury's serious expression told me he wasn't joking.

"Each one of us fighter types is capable of many things. Kanade himself, is capable of defeating an entire legion of enemies simply by putting them into an endless trance. Well, that is, after he abandoned who he was-"

"Deacon." Kanade muttered, holding out his hand.

"Sorry." Fury replied. "But what I mean, is we all have untapped potential. Maybe with you two here with the rest of us, you guys can grow. Then, once you've evolved as warriors, you can go back and rescue Corey."

Fury got up and began to tend to Ben, wiping him off with a cloth.

"That dumbass protege of mine better know how to fix this." He grumbled.

"He has a protege?" I asked Kanade.

"Yes. Thomas King. The Floating Man, the fifth eldest."

"I have a lot of catching up to do then."

Kanade managed a small smile, as his shirt shifted, revealing a cross necklace.

Kanade caught me staring and quickly put the pendant back into his shirt.

"Hey uh. I've been meaning to ask. Are you religious by any chance?"

Kanade pursed his lips.

"Once."

"Why? What happened?"

Kanade gave me a split second annoyed look. But his expression resumed to normal.

"I get you are in your teenage years, but you need to learn to be more mindful of others."

"Sorry. I have a bit of a mouth."

Kanade leaned back against the rock.

"I used to be an avid follower of the Lord. I guess I still believe. But... over time, I just struggle to keep up that faith. At least to the same intensity that I used to. Back then I believed I could live my life without harming a single soul. That pacifism was the way forward. But the older I got, and the worse things became because I could have stopped it if I didn't just sit in the sidelines and watched. It hurt. And the pain just kept getting worse until...

"One day, one of our brothers, Lucius Cassidy, ended up taking a near fatal hit for me. Because I wanted to talk things out with one of Mogul's acolytes. Believing I could use the power of love to get through him. I watched as Lucius nearly lost his life, his body almost entirely disintegrated. Then I realized... I was useless the way I was. I needed to change. I needed to change because I was weak and couldn't bear the pain of seeing my family get torn apart from my choices."

Kanade gripped his necklace.

"I sullied my hands. From the day I was created to avenge our progenitor, I was already dirty. There's no such thing as claiming to be pure if you got your hands involved with another person's death. Even if you weren't the one directly dealing the fatal blow. I took part in it. I am a sinner. Just like the rest of the people I fight with."

Kanade suddenly perked up.

"Acolyte."

"Huh?" I asked, but Kanade put his hand on my mouth.

"Mmf!"

"Quiet." Kanade hissed, as he peeked out of the cave.

"I sense it. Corruption at higher intensities. This level of power is beyond the normal Iron Council Angels he has deployed."

I peeked from within the cave as well, and saw it. Some hooded figure emitting dark mist from his robe. Something about him made me want to curl up into a ball and die.

"Should we wake Fury?" I whispered. "He should be able to take an acolyte, right?"

Kanade looked at me.

"Deacon needs his rest. As you are now, you are no match for the acolyte. I will fight him."

"Can you though? I mean isn't your whole schtick putting people to sleep or something? What if that thing doesn't sleep?"

Kanade leapt from the rock and landed on the ground, running to the figure as I tried to reach out to him.

"Dude!" I yelped. I quickly grabbed my handgun and ran off after him.

By the time I caught up to my older brother, he had already engaged in confrontation.

"Identify yourself, acolyte." Kanade said.

The acolyte glanced at the Remnant.

"The Sixth. Ah... Yes. The one who was pure. The one who rejected his nature of violence."

Kanade gritted his teeth as he took a step forward.

"I wouldn't act all high and mighty." He warned, as he held out his hand. Something like energy particles began to exit the acolyte's body as it entered Kanade, as the acolyte fell to his knees.

"What..."

"Is that all Mogul has on me? A pacifist? Perhaps this was true, eight years ago. But unfortunately, that information is terribly outdated. For one thing, my abilities is not just mere healing."

More energy began to stream into the Remnant as he took more and more steps to the acolyte, who struggled to even get to his feet.

"Healing. Energy replenishment. These are all just byproducts from what I am truly capable of. I am able to give life and energy to others. But it was only until I embraced my nature, did I discover the other half, the true nature of my powers."

What did Fury say? That each Remnant was significantly stronger than the average warrior?

Kanade was capable of putting an entire army to sleep.

Those were his words.

And now, I was beginning to see why.

"I can give these things, and I can take them away. For trying to hunt me and my brothers, I will be taking away your energy. You are defenseless and powerless, acolyte." Kanade said, as he closed his fist, his body glowing white.

Kanade brought his foot back, and leapt forward with blinding speed. So the energy he had taken from the acolyte was being used to fuel his own physical abilities.

"This is over!" Kanade shouted, and slammed his fist down, but not before the acolyte evasively zipped out of the way.

"Reckless and foolish, just like your progenitor." The acolyte cackled, throwing several knives which embedded themselves into my brother's chest. Kanade grunted as he stumbled back.

"Kanade!" I shouted, but Kanade held out his hand, gesturing me to stop.

"Don't get involved, John."

"Like hell I'm letting this creep hurt another brother of mine!" I said, as I took aim and fired at the acolyte, who simply took this moment of chaos to close the distance.

My eyes widened as his talons went super close to my face, but not before Kanade dove in and shoved me out of the way, causing the acolyte to slice the grass.

"Two Remnants for Lord Mogul" The acolyte hissed as he spun around, but Kanade managed to regain his footing and blocked his strike, beginning a hand to hand exchange.

"Know your place." Kanade said, as he went low and struck the acolyte in the midsection, then went high and kicked him across the face with astonishing force, sending him into a boulder.

"Heh." The acolyte said, as he struggled to his feet.

"I like you. Kanade Asaoka. Show me the fruits of your eight year transformation!"

Kanade turned to me, his eyes glowing white as I felt the strength in me leave my body.

I fell to my knees, reduced to a mere spectator.

"When Deacon fails to become the one to dispose of you, I must take his place. To protect our brothers."

The Acolyte blasted forward with black electricity, the Corruption, but Kanade took a step back and blocked his strike.

The Acolyte continued laying down pressure, but it was like nothing was fazing Kanade, who calmly blocked and dodged. Evasive and clean. His style was different from Fury's. Even though Fury's style was calm, it was like he was suppressing immense power. Like he was hiding the beast.

But Kanade's style was just that. Just calm. Tranquil.

What was Kanade like in the past? Judging from how he described it, he was a pacifist. Whatever had caused him to turn into something like this must have been major.

Lucius, huh?

"Come, retaliate! What are you waiting for, Remnant!" The Acolyte jeered, as Kanade spun around and leapt into the air, bouncing off the tree trunks in the forest as the Acolyte followed him. A white streak of light bouncing into the night sky trailed by a black electrical comet.

Kanade closed his eyes, seemingly in prayer, as he brought his hands together.

"Forgive me, for what I am about to do." He muttered, as his eyes went wide, releasing a powerful strike with the palm of his hand. White gusts of energy and wind blasted from his palm and shattered the Acolyte. I could feel his bones break as the Acolyte screeched pain, smashing into the ground.

Kanade flew inwards, as his eyes were wide, extremely focused and concentrated.

"By the Paladin Code of Acadia, you have been eliminated. Contract Complete, Acolyte of Mogul."

The Acolyte's eyes widened as Kanade slammed into him, releasing a massive bright light as I instinctively covered myself, keeping myself from being blinded.

By the time I had recovered, Kanade had regained his position. I walked to his side, and saw the smoking body of the Acolyte, alongside a burning crater in the ground.

"H- How...?"

Kanade smiled and patted me on the head, much to my annoyance.

"It looks like we might need to find a way back without Sammy's help."

R3

"Benjamin Fong and Jonathan Ko." Lucius said, as he handed me their photos.

"Remnant 2 and Remnant 15. Took a while, but Sammy finally pinpointed their location. Try to get them and extract back here, top priority. If Sammy can't breach you four back, try to hold out as long as you can."

I inspected the file for Remnant 2.

"A ranged soldier, huh."

"Yeah. Unparalleled marksmanship. Possibly surpassing Meena's."

I paused. "That's a really bold claim."

"Not possibly. He definitely surpasses mine." Meena said, as she crossed her arms, her ponytail following her movements as she inspected Ben's file.

"Judging from the way this kid is built, and his accomplishments. It's humanly impossible to be able to shoot down twelve targets at that distance with a single Desert Eagle. In that short of a timeframe, that level of reflexes can't be achieved even by me."

I paled.

"And if he refuses to comply? Fighting something like that as a mid-close range fighter puts me at a severe disadvantage."

"He doesn't have any say." Merrow said, as she leaned across the table.

"What do you mean?"

Merrow flipped through the pages in Sammy's report.

"Says here that he's in a critical and unresponsive state. I guess he was put in that condition while he was still learning his powers. He's not the one to watch out for. It's your youngest brother. Jonathan Ko. The kiddo is still young and extremely confrontational. Not to mention he still believes Ben is the only family he has, he is understandably very protective."

"Confrontational, huh. I guess we have a guy to smooth out things like that." I looked at Kanade, who regarded me.

"I'll try, Deacon. But don't expect the same theatrical performance I had eight years ago."

"It doesn't matter. You're the only level headed one out of all of us. At the very least, you're the least likely to start a fight."

Meena walked up to me and kissed me, as I ran my hand across her back.

"Hey, you better come back to me. Dickless Deacon."

I smiled.

"Yeah. Better not sleep with anybody else. I'll hunt them down. Every single time."

"That would've made contracts so easy back then."

"Funny girl."

Kanade joined me at the portal that Sammy had made. Sammy eyed me.

"Lucky bastard, landing that bombshell. I wonder if I grew my hair out I'd tap something like that."

"Call Meena that again and I'll kill you."

"Sorry." Sammy said, quickly.

Being a leader of this operation. I never thought I would be one to carry this much responsibility. Not eight years ago. Not even before my time with Kallas. This was all new to me.

"Hey, Deacon." Lucius said, as he put his hand on my shoulder.

"Think of it as a learning opportunity. Maybe after this, you'll start to appreciate the role of being leader a bit more."

My face paled, remembering the time I snapped and tried to kill him and Arman.

"I... uh..."

Lucius laughed. "Don't worry. You've changed. We all have. You've got a family waiting for you now. Come back soon. I'd love to meet our brothers!"

I smiled, as Kanade and I stepped through the portal, entering a new reality.

"Hey. Where are we going?" John asked me.

"Someplace away from here." I replied. "Extraction is delayed."

"Does that mean we can find Corey now?"

"No."

John ran in front of me and held out his hands.

"The hell do you mean no? We have this window of opportunity. We can save Ben's girlfriend."

"You're being hasty, kid. There's no way we can retrieve her with just Kanade and I."

"Kanade kicked that Acolyte's ass! Dude has the power to steal other people's energy and life force! Isn't that enough to beat Mogul?"

"You haven't seen a lot of fights, then."

"I know much more than you think."

"That's something someone who hasn't seen many fights would say."

John's face turned red. "Hey! You trying to pick a fight? Unlike you two, I fully understand how important Corey is to Ben. I'll find her, to hell what you two think."

I clenched my fist as I grabbed the kid's collar and lifted him into the air, eyeing him dangerously.

"You're walking a thin line with me, kid. I told you over and over again. Kanade and I can't beat Mogul on our own. It's like everything I say goes from one ear and comes out the other. Maybe I should just leave you here for dead-"

"Deacon." Kanade cut me off, as I slowly lowered John, who's eyes began to brim with tears.

"Corey..." John muttered.

Kanade knelt in front of John. "Look. We just need to hold out for a bit longer. At least until Sammy figures out how to pinpoint here. We're just moving locations, because it's not safe for you two."

The rest of the journey was silent and awkward.

John tripped and stumbled, as he insisted on dragging the cart carrying Ben along on his own.

I remembered what Merrow told me.

"John's a teenager. And a Remnant of Decen. Decen himself was aggressive enough, so I can only imagine how aggressive a teenage Decen must be. Just try to be nice with him. Okay?"

"How am I supposed to be nice, Merrow. Look at me."

"You were nice before you were Fury. I know there's still that part of you in there. In the end, he's still a little kid who wants his big brother to be well and happy."

"I think you have me confused for Arman-" I stopped myself, as Merrow stared at the ground.

I put my hands on her shoulders.

"Hey. Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Honest."

I brought her in a hug, as she buried her head in my chest.

"Sorry. I'm the oldest here, and yet I'm always crying and losing my cool. Haha."

I stroked her hair.

"It's okay to cry, Merrow. Nothing wrong with that."

I returned to reality, as I glanced at John, who began to slow down more and more.

"Tch. You're going to get some serious back pain when you're older." I said, as I walked next to him.

"Give me that."

John glared at me. "Like hell I'm letting you put your hands on my big brother-"

"He's my big brother too. This is non-negotiable."

John reluctantly let go of the handle as I took it. My hand pulled and I was momentarily stopped.

"Huh. He's heavier than I thought."

John smirked. "Course he is. Dude is 75% machine. Carrying him isn't the easiest thing ever."

I readjusted my stance and pulled a bit harder, and regained the momentum of our pace, as John's mouth hung open. Then returned to its usual scowl.

I looked at John.

Just try to be nice to him.

"Uh." I muttered.

John turned to me.

"This is pretty heavy. I'm surprised you were able to drag him along all this time. Well done."

John's face began to blush as his eyes turned wide.

"I- You- Er. Whatever." He stammered.

We showed up in a motel. It was completely run down.

"Heads up guys. There's a chance that there's people insi-"

John kicked open the door.

"John!" Kanade scolded, as John threw his hands up in the air.

"What! There's no one inside! Why would anybody stay in this dump-"

A gasp appeared from within the desk.

We all gave John an exasperated look.

"Sorry." John muttered.

I peeked inside, as the figure returned into its hiding spot, trembling.

"It's okay. We're not hostile." I said, as I entered the room, and knelt down.

The figure was a little girl, maybe around John's age. She looked absolutely terrified as she yelped and scurried even further into her corner. I took in the situation. Her clothes were in rags. In the corner was a half open can. My time back with Meena in Blackwater gave enough experience for me to know what was going on.

She was sustaining herself by eating the contents of that can. In an attempt to keep it from going bad, she tried to open it part way, and eat very small quantities at a time. This meant she was low on food. I picked up the can as the girl held out her hand, but retracted it quickly upon seeing the rest of us.

"Dog food? Gross!" John said, but was whacked on the top of his head by Kanade.

I went back to the girl.

"Is it okay if we stay here for a while? We won't hurt you. I promise. We are all talented fighters..." I looked at John. "For the most part..."

I sat down on the ground.

"Come on out. We can protect you."

The girl hesitantly crawled out of her hiding spot, as her red hair glowed in the sunset. She looked around 15 to 16 years old, but it was hard to tell from all the soot on her face.

"Kanade?"

"I'm on it." Kanade said, as he sat next to the girl and held out his hand, but the girl quickly flinched.

"Hey. It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you."

The girl softened as Kanade healed her up.

A few hours later, we made camp in the busted motel, as the girl clung onto me.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Stella." Stella murmured.

"That's a pretty name." I remarked, as Stella blushed.

"What is yours?" Stella asked.

"Deacon." I replied.

"It's nice to meet you, Deacon." Stella whispered.

"Did you stay here all by yourself? How are you still alive? How many more of you are there?" John asked, in rapid fire succession. Each question causing Stella to hide behind my back and cling onto me harder and harder.

"John. Lay off with the questions." I ordered.

Stella buried her face in my back.

"I was here with my older brother. But the Angels found us. They toyed with us, and violated me in front of my brother. When my brother tried to save me from them, they killed him in cold blood."

I turned around and put her in an embrace.

"It's okay. You're safe now."

John's eyes went empty. I knew what it felt like. Many of the people I had seen during my Blackwater days went through something just as traumatic. No one deserved this.

That night, everybody went to sleep, and I volunteered to do night watch duty, since Kanade did it last time.

Stella was unable to sleep.

"You should probably sleep too. It's fine. I can keep watch."

"I can't." Stella muttered. "Whenever I close my eyes, I see my brother."

I sighed, as I sat down on the ground next to her.

Stella grabbed my arm again.

"Deacon... do you have anyone special to you?"

"Yeah."

Stella's face looked disappointed. "What's her name?"

"Her name's Meena Kennedy. The toughest woman I had ever had the pleasure of working with. She inspired me to become strong. She scared me at first, then as I grew up I came to respect her, then I fell for her."

"Do you like strong women?"

"You can say that, yeah."

Stella stared at the ground.

"I can never be strong. I'm... defiled... Impure. I'm not even a virgin anymore-"

"What does that matter? Whether you're strong or not depends on the actions you take moving forward. The past serves to strengthen you, not pull you down. You have the potential to be strong, Stella."

Stella looked at me. "Me?"

"Yeah. Why? Do you disagree?"

Stella looked away. "No... I just don't... know if I can do it."

"You can't if you keep moping around like that. I know you've been through a lot, but the first step is often the hardest."

"You seem to know a lot about strength... Deacon Chow." Stella said, as she buried her face into my chest.

"Not really. I just know how to tell if someone needs it. After all..."

My eyes began to glow a deadly orange, as black tendrils burst from my back, the blades aimed directly at Stella.

"Someone who has to rely on deceiving their enemy can never be strong."

Stella grinned sinisterly, as she leapt back and evaded all of the slashes, as she reached into her rags and threw several knives at me. My body superheated, burning them to ash as I got to my feet.

"Kanade."

Kanade snapped into action as he grabbed my tendril and borrowed a portion of my strength, then took Ben and John and ran out of the motel.

John stared at Stella, his eyes in complete disbelief.

"Wha- What is this?"

"I suppose it was foolish of me." Stella's eyes turned black as she began to transform, her body turning wretched and witchlike, as numerous knives appeared in thin air, flying to me as my tendrils flew around, cutting and retaliating.

"Attempting to deceive one who has seen two hells. Once in Blackwater. The other with the Halakite. It was never going to work. At least I managed to scar one of the Remnants."

I turned to John, who's face was pale in terror.

"Why... why is she..."

I sighed, as I spun around and slashed at Stella, who materialized across the motel.

"Be grateful, Fury. I have decided to descend into this place myself. The lower acolytes were clearly not enough to deal with you. Perhaps it was necessary to bring an Acolyte on Ksenia's calibre to dispatch you two."

I shot forward, slicing and swinging with my tendrils as Stella evaded quickly and perfectly, breaching my defences and jabbing me in the chest with one of her knives. I choked out blood as Stella used this momentum to fling me into the motel, smashing and destroying the place.

"Deacon!" John shouted, but Kanade held him back.

I struggled to my feet as Stella zipped in, laughing hysterically as she zoomed all around me, landing successive slashes with her hundreds of knives as my body exploded in a ceremony of blood.

"Am I too much for you, Fury of the Halakites? Have you lost the fire you had when you were under Malakai's influence? Where is the ruthlessness. Where is the Wrath of Decen?" Stella taunted as I clenched my teeth, concentrating and keeping myself from passing out from all the blood I was losing.

It was true. She was a bit too fast for me as of now.

I put on my mask.

"Vessel of Diablos, Quarter Skull."

My body superheated as my eye became hollow. I held out my hand, which was now skeletonized, as Stella's knives disintegrated before me.

"Tch. Well, to be expected, from the third eldest." Stella said, as she flew into the air and summoned even more knives.

Empirebreaker Slash

I brought my foot back as my tendrils came together as one, to form a massive blade which slashed the air, delivering a huge inferno which overwhelmed Stella.

Stella flew into the ground as I regained my footing.

"Is she dead?" John asked.

"No." I replied. "Someone who claims to be on Ksenia's level can't possibly be dead. After all, Ksenia managed to defeat Arman's Phoenix Form."

"Yes. Correct. Very. Correct." Stella said, her voice quadrupled, as she began to glow purple, manifested multiple eyes on her face.

"You are worthy. To fight me. Deacon Chow."

I braced myself as Stella blasted forward and landed a devastating blow at me. Even blocking it was not enough. I flew backwards and smashed into numerous motel buildings in the area as Stella laughed, grabbing my throat and hurling me into the air.

"Are you not going to use your full Vessel powers? How insulting. If you don't you're going to die!"

If I used my full transformation, I will use up all my energy. It was true that Kanade could restore my energy, but there was no way Kanade could fight on par with Stella. There was no time to absorb her energy or life force with that level of speed.

I did have a trick up my sleeve, though.

Infernal Legerdemain

The blood that was all over the place from her last knife volley began to levitate, as I held out my hand. Stella turned around.

"What is this-"

The blood clumped together all around her as I closed my fist, causing a massive black and orange explosion.

You... little brat. Stella growled, from within the smoke as her eyes became pure darkness.

I will tear you apart.

Stella and I clashed in the sky, as I attempted to get a read on her fighting pattern, but there was none. She was way too erratic. I guess that was her style.

Stella won the clash, as she managed to cut my face, then my chest, then my back, as I fell from the air, my body exiting my transformation.

"What a pathetic display of your powers, Deacon! How can you claim to be a Remnant? Decen would be most displeased."

I smirked. I loved fighting enemies who had egos. Especially the crazy ones. It meant when they had an opening, it was super obvious.

Meena Kennedy.

The woman that I loved.

Almost everything she had tried to teach me went in one ear and out the other. But there were certain things that stuck. After all, she inspired me. And continued to do so. It was about time my style was influenced by hers.

I reached into my coat pockets and took out two guns. Polished silver. Just like hers. The Organization mercenary standard, made popular by Kennedy herself.

"This is the fruits of my labor. Of those eight years. I hope you're ready, Stella." I said, as my body began to glow.

Angelbreaker Blast - SHARPSHOOTING

I took aim, as the guns began to change shape due to the influence of the Demonfire surrounding it, turning demonic as I readjusted the barrels, firing blasts of flame at Stella, who was taken aback with my new fighting style that she was unable to react in time as the first few blasts sliced her body open.

"Bleh! You-"

Another bolt got her in the leg as Stella screamed in pain.

I flipped in the air as I continued firing while Stella descended, taking damage with every shot until her body smashed into the ground, defeated.

I walked up to Stella and regarded her. Stella's eyes went wide as she screeched into the air.

Kanade ran up to me.

"She's signalling!"

"Tch!" I aimed my gun at her to finish her off, but before I knew it two more Acolytes materialized in front of us.

"John and Ben!" I shouted, as Kanade quickly ran up to the two, but was intercepted by one of the female acolytes, who wielded a bladed chain.

"These two are my prey. I will add you to the list... false follower."

Kanade gritted his teeth as he held out his hands, draining the life force and energy of the wildlife around him, giving him a silvery aura.

I turned around, but immediately had my face smashed into the concrete by a large, towering muscular Acolyte.

"You are my opponent!" The Acolyte glowered over me as I struggled to pry his hand off of my face, which continued to crack the ground.

Stella got to her feet.

"Finish them. The youngest is mi-"

CHOOM

Stella went flying into a bank of water, as John brought his handgun back.

"What do I look like, a damsel in distress? You're gonna have to try a lot harder than that if you want me, missy." John said, as he brought his hand in front of his face.

"Soul Link: Paladin Decen 5%"

John's left arm began cladded with similar spikes as Lucius, as he formed a large blade.

John parkoured across the place, on top of cars and underneath trailers as Stella screeched and pursued him.

"John... Kanade-" I muttered, as The Large Acolyte lifted me from the ground and squeezed.

My vision darkened, as I growled, impaling him with multiple tendrils.

"Nice try, Fury. But I am the perfect counter for your powers."

The Acolyte threw me as I smashed into two motel buildings. The wounds in his chest healing instantly, as the Acolyte closed the distance before I could react.

"Speed. Strength. Reflexes. Regeneration. I surpass you in everything."

The Acolyte punched me in the gut as I spat out blood.

"Ack!" I stumbled back, but not before the Acolyte sent another powerful shot at my chin, launching me in the air as he again, closed the distance and wound up a dangerously powerful kick.

There was no time to dodge!

I held out my elbow to block it as much as I could, but it was not enough, as I felt my elbow bones crack. The Acolyte hurled me into the ground.

The Acolyte walked up to me as he lifted his foot, stomping on my face over and over again as my blood splattered all over the ground.

"Come on, Fury. Do something. Do something. DO SOMETHING."

I slowly lifted my hand, the blood lifting into the air as attaching themselves to the Acolyte's body.

Infernal Legerdemain

The blood ignited, as the explosion sent me flying back. I slammed into the side of a trailer, warping the metal as I landed on the ground.

"Such pathetic firepower." The Acolyte smiled crazily, walking through the Demonfire.

"Ugh." I muttered, as I felt blood leak down the side of my face.

I looked at my hand, which began shaking and trembling.

He severely damaged the nerves in my left arm.

Rendering it practically useless.

This was going to be annoying.

"From what I hear..." The Acolyte said, as he suddenly disappeared.

My eyes widened, as I felt hundreds of shots land all across my body as my mask flew off my face, the pressure of the blood coming from my mouth forcing it off.

"You can't heal very well. That sucks. I never understood the point of feeling no pain. Pain is what makes someone strong. And you don't have it. You'll just keep getting damaged until you pass out."

The Acolyte kneed me in the stomach as nausea rolled all over me. I hit the ground as a kick sent me reeling back.

I regained my posture, as my vision stopped being blurry. I was able to make out his stance and his figure. He was massive. Muscles bulging everywhere like some kind of steroid freak. But unlike those with massive muscles, he moved with frightening speed. His stance showed he knew his martial arts.

He was right.

He outclassed me in every single aspect. And he was somehow immune to my Demonfire because of his healing.

"Are all Remnants this weak? Not strong enough, not durable enough. So you all have to rely on your silly powers? My strength, durability, and regeneration are all innate to me. You got all your shit passed down to you. How pathetic. You don't even deserve to know my name."

I brought up my hands as the Acolyte sent another volley of punches which sent ripples across my body.

"Pathetic. Powerless." The Acolyte taunted me as he began punching me through the dirt. My body sinking deeper and deeper as it began creating a massive crater in the ground.

"Come on. This is boring. Are you really finished already, Remnant?"

I sputtered blood as I lay on the ground. I couldn't move my body. Almost all of my bones felt like they were shattered.

I clenched my teeth.

I'm not weak.

I was never weak.

Not since my torture by Kallas.

And not since the eight years of gruelling training I put myself through.

"RAAAAAH" I roared, as I blew everything back, rising from the crater as a massive storm of Demonfire surrounded me. My skin began to peel away as I assumed my Vessel transformation.

I never said I was finished. I'm going to end this fight. The outcome is mine to decide, Acolyte.

My voice boomed across the area, as the Acolyte smiled crazily, his eyes full of wild excitement.

"Good. Very good. Show me the full power of the Demon Lord Diablos. I want it. I want it all! GIVE IT ALL TO ME.... FURY!"

The Acolyte blasted forward as did I.

"One step. Two step. Spin. And backhand!" The Acolyte chanted, dodging my strikes and sending a blow across my face.

"ACK!" I grunted, as my neck snapped back, but I regained my posture, curling inwards and releasing dozens of tendrils as I slammed the ground.

Angelbreaker Hundredfold Slash - Ultra Cataclysm

In a split second, the entire area was covered in glowing orange slashes. But the Acolyte was nowhere to be found.

"Is this all your Vessel Transformation has to offer? Third Eldest?!" The Acolyte taunted me from above, as I stared upward in surprise, catching an axe kick on my collarbone.

I grabbed his leg and began to superheat my body.

Dante's Strangle

The leg began to burn with extremely high temperatures.

"Just a char!" The Acolyte shouted, as he grabbed my face and leapt through another cluster of motel buildings smashing me through each one and hurling me hundreds of feet across the town as I crushed myself into an apartment complex.

I got to my feet, my face murderous, as I held out my hands, forming hundreds of balls of light.

Angelbreaker Blast - Super Gatling

I launched the volley at the Acolyte who dodged them with impossible agility.

"What is that? A pea shooter?" He asked, his face completely disinterested as he grabbed my throat and squeezed.

I choked as I instantly lost my transformation.

"Ugh. I'm probably doing Lord Mogul a disservice by replicating the way he killed your progenitor. But whatever. You're nothing but a disappointment."

The Acolyte let go as I crumpled to the ground.

"Damn... it..." I croaked, as I tried to move my body, but it refused to listen to me.

R6

"Urk!" I grimaced, as the Acolyte's bladed chain severed my right hand.

"Why do you make such faces? That is quite unbecoming for a follower of faith."

This was bad. Fury was completely overwhelmed by that Berserker Acolyte, and I, was overwhelmed by this Acolyte's whips and chains. No amount of healing I could give to myself could offset the damage she was putting on me. Not to mention she knew exactly what to say to get under my skin.

Focus.

When a warrior is backed into a corner, their true colours show.

My true colours is that of a sinner, and a coward. That was all I ever was. No matter how strong I become, how tough I force myself to be, in the end, that is my true nature.

So I can't be backed into a corner.

I needed to be strong for Fury and my brothers.

I leapt back and put my hand on the ground, as my wound regenerated, the severed hand replaced with a glowing white construct as flesh and tissue took shape.

"I will defeat you." I growled, as I absorbed the life energy of the grass around me, forcing it to wither as my body surged with power. I engaged the Acolyte once more, resisting the cuts and slashes of her long ranged weapons as I tried to close the distance.

Unfortunately, the Acolyte knew exactly what I was trying to do, and continued to widen the gap, all the more cutting into me.

A chain managed to evade my hands and latch itself onto my shoulder as I roared in agony. The Acolyte smiled sadistically as she dragged me around and slammed me onto the pavement.

All I saw was the night sky, and the voluptuous figure of the Acolyte herself, peering down at me.

"Aren't you going to cry, Kanade? Like you always have? Cry. Sixth. Cry. Cry Cry Cry! Crybaby!" She jeered, as she continued lashing me, my body exploding in pain.

I gripped a rock and hurled it at her, but the rock was diced in the blink of an eye. It was enough for me to escape and close the distance, as I flew in, to strike.

But the moment I made eye contact with her, I paused.

"Well there, Kanade. I thought you would have put up a better fight. After all, our comrade called us in because we were supposed to be the perfect counters for you. But I didn't expect you to lose this quickly."

Four chains hooked onto each of my limbs.

"AAAARGH!" I yelled, as the Acolyte sent me flying into the air, slamming me onto the ground face first.

"Come now, Kanade." The Acolyte purred, as she sat on top of me and began impaling me over and over again.

"AAAUGH!"

"This is such a disappointing performance. I would have thought meeting me again would bring out your lustful side once more. But you're just nothing but a disgust to me."

I gritted my teeth as I closed my eyes.

I couldn't even say anything back.

"Don't you remember... the last time we encountered, dearest?"

This Acolyte and I had history.

She was the reason I fell from grace. The start of my descent into endless killing. Endless carnage. I had given up on myself that day, and she was the catalyst to it. It wasn't Lucius' injuries that made me choose to stain my hands with blood. That was a half lie told to my little brother to keep his innocence.

It was even before that.

I had tried to use the power of love to bring her to her senses, but in reality, it was her power of lust that brought me out of my senses.

I had fallen since I interacted with this Acolyte.

"You're not even going to address me by name, Kanade?"

Another chain impaled me as I growled in agony, the pain was too much as my eyes began to leak tears.

"He cries! I did it! I must savour it. I want you to SOB, dearest. I want you to beg for me! Beg!"

"Icarus..." I muttered. "I've failed..."

My memory flashed back. To when I was still under the care of Uncle Icarus.

"But Icarus, I don't like to fight."

"In time you will be backed into a corner. You must use what I have taught you."

I had started to cry. I cried a lot.

"Silly child. I see Decen's leaky eyes have been passed down to you."

"Why? Why do I hate to fight? Am I flawed?"

Icarus put a hand on my head. "No. If anything, I envy you. I envy that you are pure and kind. That you do not have a heart of a killer like your father did. If only I too...

"Was as pure as you."

I slammed my fist on the ground.

What have I done?

Tempted by this Acolyte. To fall and give into desire. I betrayed not just the Church. The Faith.

I betrayed Icarus' trust.

And myself.

The blades continued piercing me until I had no more strength left in my body to even yell in pain.

"Finished already? Ugh." The Acolyte lifted me into the air with her chains as she gave me a disappointed look, which turned into a coy smile.

"You didn't last long last time either. But it still felt good. To know that I brought the purest of the Remnants to my bed."

Blood leaked from the sides of my mouth as my eyes listlessly moved onto the distance.

"Tch! I'm right here. Don't ignore me!" The Acolyte slapped my face and forced me to face her.

The Acolyte continued beating on me as I felt defeated. There was no point. This mission was a failure.

Everything was meaningless.

I could convince myself to be kind and a follower of the faith.

But I defiled myself and gave into lust.

I was tempted by her.

And it nearly costed Lucius his life.

One sin, led to a dozen, led to a hundred, led to thousands of sins all stacked upon me. As I helped my brothers kill many to get stronger.

"Sorry." I muttered.

"Huh?" The Acolyte raised an eyebrow. "You apologize? You're a bit late for tha-"

"Not you. I'm sorry to everyone who placed their trust in me. I was never the purest. I've fallen. I could see why Arman would have abandoned himself. For it is in our nature to sin. Because it was Decen's nature to sin."

"Ugh. I didn't sign up for a philosophy lesson." The Acolyte scoffed as she tossed me to the side.

"Icarus..." I muttered, as I slowly began to lose consciousness.

"Do you ever feel bad?"

Icarus turned to me, in surprise. We had finished collecting herbs for the Silver City. Icarus had a large basket full of the herbs slung on one shoulder. His chains were stained from the blood of several intruders who tried to fight the Silver City defences.

"For what?"

"For killing. It is wrong. I was always taught that it is wrong to take the life of another."

Icarus smiled at a younger version of me.

"Yes, I do. Not a single day goes by where I don't regret my actions."

"But why do you keep doing it? Uncle Icarus, it is wrong!"

Icarus sighed as he put a hand on my head.

"Because it is my duty to protect. Perhaps those who died were for a purpose beyond what we understand. But as a Paladin, it is in my service to destroy. As much as it goes beyond my morals. It is in my purpose to do so. And as a Remnant, you may find yourself doing this too."

"I will do everything in my power to stay pure." I said, adamantly.

Icarus laughed.

"Does this humor you? Why does it humor you?" I asked, my face incredulous.

"Because that means you have not fully lived your life. No one is perfect. No man. No winged warrior. No Paladin. And certainly no Remnant." Icarus pointed at my chest.

Icarus continued. "At some point, you will make mistakes. You will question if you were ever pure. And the simple answer is, we as mortals will never ever be pure. But it doesn't mean we can just give up on our mission to seek redemption and the light. After all, that's what it means to be mortal, and a follower in faith."

Icarus looked at me, his eyes glowing green with the Motion Force.

"Will you continue to look after your brothers? Kanade?"

"Huh?" I asked, as my surroundings changed back to reality, but Icarus was still standing there. I turned to my left, to see my body, motionless, while the Acolyte kneeling down laughing hysterically.

I looked to my right, to see Deacon being beaten down relentlessly by the Berserker Acolyte.

"Icarus, is that really you?"

"Your brothers need your help. You have finally seen for yourself, that you cannot possibly remain pure. Sin is just as unavoidable as war. But you must stay strong and soldier past your mistakes and learn from them. You have something to fight for, no?"

"I...."

I looked at my hands, as energy began to pool around them, the body of myself slowly dissolving, then dissolving faster and faster as the Acolyte took notice.

"What the?"

I took a deep breath.

"You're right. I am a sinner. But I have not given up. Just because I have sinned, doesn't mean I can give up entirely. I will continue fighting and growing stronger for my family, while also keeping my centre. Thank you, Uncle Icarus."

Icarus crossed his arms and gave me a look of approval.

"Go, Kanade. Evolve. Become great."

My surroundings became clearer, as I fully reformed. The Acolyte shot to her feet.

"Teleportation? What is the meaning of thi-"

I teleported to her location and launched a powerful open handed strike at her midsection.

"My mistakes were mistakes. But I've moved on. Maybe you should too... Shaina."

Shaina yelled as she tried to attack me again with her chains, but I teleported all over, sucking up even more of the life force of my environment.

Release my soul, and absorb my body's essence from another location. Repeatedly.

This was the ability I had first unlocked during my eight years. But I never fully mastered it, until now.

"Impossible!" Shaina screamed, as I instantly closed the distance and bombarded her with strikes.

"You've defiled your hands on me. We made love, against your teachings of the church. You should have given into despair, you should have-"

I cut her off by landing another blow with a devastating kick, sending her into a concrete column.

I teleported to her location as she held out her hands, chains flying in my direction as I caught them all.

"Seems to me, you're still caught up on that day. Still obsessed with it." I said, as I yanked the chains out of her grip.

Shaina yelled in desperation as she tried to charge me, but I held out my hand and blasted her with a wave of life-energy, sending her back as she crumpled to the ground.

"How can you still walk around being a follower of faith, after everything you've done?" Shaina muttered.

"Because I am mortal." I replied as I walked up to her.

"I am a mortal who has sinned. That is the very essence of being a follower of faith. To fall, but continue to strive for greatness. To repent and learn from your mistakes."

Shaina tried to get to her feet but fell back down on her knees.

"So... I suppose I have lost, despite everything." She said, dejectedly.

I held out my hand, as the life energy I had stored up pooled into my hand, glowing bright white.

"Are you going to kill me, Kanade Asaoka?" Shaina asked.

I closed my hand and dissipated the energy.

Shaina stared at me in shock.

"Why? Is it because of-"

"Because I can tell from the tears on your face that you still have regret." I replied.

Shaina furiously wiped her face.

"Was it all that bad. Kanade. Our night together."

"No. But it was hard to tell, when I wasn't myself."

I knelt down and put my hand on her head, as I took away her fighting energy, and revitalized her wounds.

"I've healed you, but taken away your energy to fight."

Shaina sighed.

"If we could do it again, but you were yourself, would you..."

"No. Sorry, but that's not who I am. I have a destiny to walk with my brothers. A life with you would only cause pain on your end."

Shaina looked down, sadly.

"I see."

I got to my feet as I peered at the horizon. John was still being pursued by Stella. I needed to get to him. Fury had tasked me to watch over our younger brother.

I looked back at Shaina.

"You'll find a man who loves you for who you are. Eventually. Unfortunately, I'm not that man."

A small smile crept on her face.

"Then I will live my life anew, to convince you otherwise."

I walked away, as I left Shaina to herself.

"Do your best, but I would suggest you try to conceal yourself, unless you want Mogul finding out one of his stronger Acolytes fell in love with a Remnant."

Shaina's face became flustered. "I am not in love with you!"

"That in itself is contradictory to what you just said." I replied, a smile on my face.

R15

"Ohhhhh Johnny!!!" Stella called after me as I hid behind a car, breathing heavily.

"Not good." I muttered, as I stared at my hand. She had shattered my Soul Link Blade with her knives. Those things were no joke. To top that off, my handgun wasn't doing enough damage to her. Even with Decen's shards.

"Found. You." Stella peeked her head over me as I held out my gun and fired repeatedly. The rounds causing her to reel back, as I bolted.

I had to get out of here. Hiding and kiting was not working on her. And a full frontal attack wasn't going to work either.

Outsmart them.

"Don't run away from me, kiddo." Stella screeched as she leapt in front of me.

Shit!

I pulled out my hunting knife as I intercepted her slice just in time.

"Good knife. Mine are better." Stella said, as dozens of knives manifested in front of me.

"Soul Link: Paladin Decen 4% - Ultimate Sense!"

I brought my knife up as my brain momentarily went in autopilot, deflecting the knives with superhuman speed.

"Not bad." Stella said, as she continued her onslaught. My arm moving so fast that I could barely see it in the flurry of clashes.

"You're not as meek as I thought you were."

Ultimate Sense wasn't going to last forever. I may have had the ability to Soul Link with Decen, but because Decen was so powerful, the Soul Link could only capture a max 10% of his power. Normal Soul Links could summon at least 50% of their creature's ability. But those rules don't apply to the Paladin of War.

I had a bag of tricks of my own, but it would only be accessory, because it was so damn temporary.

"GO!" I shouted, as I forced my arm to deflect its last knife, forcing it to fly to Stella's face. But Stella simply caught it between her fingers, her face unamused.

My left arm collapsed, as the effects of overusing Ultimate Sense finally took its toll on my muscles.

"Is that... all you got." Stella said, her face monotone.

"Shit!" I yelped, as Stella sent a kick at my abdomen, causing me to fly backwards as I crashed into a car window.

"You are weak. How unfortunate." Stella said, as she put her foot on my chest, forcing me through the windshield as I resisted the urge to throw up.

I looked at my gun and took aim, but Stella flicked a finger, as a knife pierced my wrist. I yelled in pain as it felt like a burning rod was going up my bones.

"Ha... ha..." I tried to control my breathing, but the pain was too much.

I was gonna die.

I don't want to die.

I don't wanna...

Mom.

Dad.

Stella's black pupils filled me with terror.

I took deep breaths. If I can't win this fight, stall it. Stall until Deacon or Kanade get to me.

But could they?

Kanade...

He put distance between the Acolytes and I, and I thought we were safe. Until his hand got cut off.

As for Deacon, he was being flung around, completely overwhelmed by that brute.

No. Gotta focus on myself first. Have some faith in my older bros.

"So... I'm guessing all that shit about your brother was a lie, huh." I said.

Stella raised an eyebrow.

"Why do you think that?"

"You're a monster. That's why. All that talk about your bro being killed off. All that talk. I'm not one to say since I don't know much about it, but lying that you've been raped is low as hell. You should be ashamed even if you are a follower to that trash panda Aspect."

Stella straightened her back, as her witchlike form disappeared. Regaining her original teenager form.

"I wasn't lying."

"What? I call bullshit."

"You don't know anything about me. We may be similar age, but we are completely different."

"Well, you were all scaredy cat before. Was that real, huh?"

"No. But my feelings for Deacon... were to some point."

"That's cringe. He's too old for you." I said. A vein popped on Stella's forehead.

"Do you think I chose to be an Acolyte? Do you think we were all born to be this way? I lived my life as an ordinary girl, just like you did. I was human. This world ruined me, and took my brother away. As much as I have let the Corruption transform me, that part of me will never die away."

Stella wiped her eyes as she brought her hand up, more and more knives materializing around her.

"I've seen hell after hell after hell. You don't even know what it's like to suffer, until you get to the point where literally praying to the Prime Aspect of Sin is all you have for liberation. When I became an Acolyte, this was all I had. He was all I had. I knew I could never have my brother back, and I didn't want to live. But I continued to live because my brother would have wanted me to."

Stella let loose the knives as I dove across several cars for cover, but one of them managed to graze my chest.

"So now I live. To deceive. To destroy. To corrupt. But all that matters is I'm alive. All that matters is the one person who loved me the most knows I'm not dead. That's all that matters. Nothing else... everything else is meaningless! So don't you dare... don't you dare..."

Stella continued launching knives at me as I held out my hand.

"Soul Link: Paladin Decen 5% - Quasi Shield!"

A spike cladded shield formed in front of me as I covered myself from the onslaught. But it began to crack as Stella continued throwing knives at me in a frenzy.

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY MY SUFFERING IS A LIE!" Stella screamed.

More knives hit my shield until it shattered, the force knocking me backwards. My gun flew out of my hand as I tried to get to my feet, but collapsed.

"Out of mana. Damn." I wheezed, as Stella walked up to me, her face a murderous rage.

"I hate them all. I hate everything in this world, but you. You, Jonathan Ko, I hate the most. You have your brothers and family with you. You have power and strength that is not Corrupted with Sin. You have all these things, yet you are ungrateful."

My eyes widened.

"What? What do you mean I have all these great things?! My world was torn from me just like yours was. My brothers over there, I didn't even know they existed until last week! The only family I thought I had, is literally comatose and missing half of fucking body! How am I ungrateful?!"

Stella clenched her fists.

"If you truly were grateful, you wouldn't harbour such resentment to your brothers."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You hate being weak. You hate that they don't want to save Corey right away. That's right. Your negative emotions and sin. They feed my master. And by extension, they feed us. I know. I know how much resentment you hold in your heart, Fifteenth. Despite all the good in your life. You took it for granted. This is why..."

Stella held out her hand as a wave of force pinned me against a wall, daggers locking me in place by the clothes.

"This is why I hate you the most."