two figures faced each other in the ruined square.
sephiss stood calm holding Damons Penalty, robes unwrinkled, the white glow of philo energy bleeding faintly from his skin. centuries of logic and cruelty lived behind his pale eyes. across from him, braxill graxior of the bear tribe tightened his fists. his green-lit veins pulsed beneath the dirt.
"How did you get your Abi to 10K" sephiss asked.
"I've been training, using my imagination every day."
Sephiss repeated, almost amused. "you've caused quite the trouble here."
"i'm here to protect my friends, you and all of your thugs hurt them."
In the distance, Gravixor and Lanni, standing just outside the simulation. Soldiers and scattered civilians watched from alleys; the drones zoomed in.
"friends," sephiss said softly. "such a childish word. when you live long enough, you learn friendship is a weakness. acquaintances, collaborators, that's what remains. humans are born to betray."
"I don't care what you're saying," braxill snapped. "you and your old-man friends murdered people. just because they were zoners. why?"
"They were rebels. without the system, society decays, just like life on the surface before us. the zeta will make sure that disease never returns. art, liberation, emotion, these are infections. we purge them so the strong may rise."
Braxill frowned. "so you just don't wanna share."
sephiss smiled faintly. "that's one way to sum it up."
the wind shifted. braxill took a breath and whispered, "Imagine, Jagxon Radiohead."
A blue dragon warrior tore through the air beside him, armor humming, sword glowing with green electricity.
Sephiss only watched. he bent, picked up a single leaf from the ground.
"How can a dead leaf be the legendary excalibur?"
The leaf ignited in his hand, Everypart of his hand and the leaf morphed into smoke reshaping untill he held a radiant sword.
He swung once; the street screamed. glass rained down in a storm of wind and light.
Braxill "Imagine, Burajiru's Grizzly Axe."
Gravixor whispered, "what weapon is that Sephiss has?"
Lanni's voice trembled. "the excalibur. the blade of the legendary King Arthur."
Jagxon charged, sword crackling. the clash sent shockwaves through the air. Green fire abi and white philo collided, each strike shaking the city.
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"interesting creation," sephiss said. "I'm curious how a child could craft such a thing divine creature."
His aura flared. One stroke split the dragon down the middle before it it could even blink. It dissolved into mist.
braxill didn't hesitate. he lunged, moving like a bear, raw muscle and instinct.
Braxill "This is my power, imagination."
His flaming axe tore through the haze. sparks flashed each time their weapons met.
Sephiss's counter came sharp and practiced. he grabbed braxill's cape, flung it over his face, and kicked him back. "too predictable."
Braxill ripped the cape away just as excalibur gleamed again. the blow hit like a meteor. the explosion flattened half the street.
Gravixor screamed his name. lanni could only stare.
Then, through the dust, braxill rose. his body glimmered with a spotted shell, the armor of a ladybug.
Sephiss tilted his head. "clever. you imagined armor just strong enough to take excalibur's hit."
The armor flickered and vanished. braxill's chest heaved. green light burned in his eyes.
"Red rex."
Sephiss "So he can even imagine the Magma T-Rex. Who is this child and how long has he been on this isalnd.
The ground split open. magma spewed upward, and from it came the roar of a volcano given form. a tyrant lizard of fire and ash burst free, towering over rooftops, dripping molten breath.
"How can the ground not resist?" sephiss murmured.
A wall of stone erupted in front of him, blocking the magma blast.
"Damon," he whispered, "Grant me speed."
Black runes flashed along his wrist. his body blurred; he vanished and reappeared atop the wall.
"Damon's penalty lets me replay past philo constructs. The down side is I lose a page in my Philo Book" he said. "temporary power source, but efficient. forty-two pages left."
Braxill's hands formed the shape of a gun. "imagine, lincoln's rifle."
The weapon formed instantly, heavy and sleek. he fired twice. green abi rounds cut the air; one grazed sephiss's temple, the other tore his sleeve.
Sephiss brushed the blood away. "That design... the bounty hunter jooney slug used the same power, no doubt he is the boy at the battle stadium, that means the girl is here too."
Red rex lunged for the kill.
"How can he be so close, yet so far?"
Reality folded. red rex bit only empty air.
Braxill fired again, point-blank. the bullet struck sephiss's forehead and fell uselessly to the ground but quickly stood up.
"What's up with this guy is he invincible?"
Sephiss smiled. "I remember. Your creations mirror those of an artist who lived long before your time."
Braxill froze. "What do you know about art, your just an evil old man?"
"i know everything, i am the knowing. There was once a visionary named zillion," sephiss said quietly. "One of humanity's greatest before the skies rose. I met him when I was a boy. He was already four hundred years old then, wearing a pink cape much like yours. He summoned beasts like your Red rex and that Dragon. A man of joy, and madness."
Braxill lowered his weapon slightly. "I've read about him... in the library of wonders."
"Then you know his legend. but few remember his true name because much of the old world was lost on the surafce." Sephiss's eyes narrowed. "Zillion is amongst the top 5 greatest visionaries to walk the earth, his true name was Fiction Bear."
Braxill "Fiction Bear?"
The name hung in the air like thunder.
Behind the rubble, Lanni's eyes widened. "Fiction bear..."
gravixor whispered, "Never heard of him."
"Of course you haven't," Sephiss said, glancing their way.
His gaze returned to braxill. "I always wanted to test Fiction Bear's philosophy, to see if his god joy could stand against my philo the true Meta of the world. now, through you, I will."
He lifted excalibur. light rippled along its edge, blinding and pure.
"Show me your vision, braxill."
The wind stilled. braxill steadied his breathing, gripping his axe until the handle groaned. his imagination sparked, tiny green flares flickering around his hands.
The drones zoomed in on his face, capturing the moment the young artist squared himself against an immortal philosopher.
"My vision?" he whispered. "then i'll show you what joy looks like."
The screen went white.
To be continued...