Meta could not see the blast coming at her, and was thus launched straight into the air by the geyser Hydro had shot at her. She stood up on the geyser, sword in hand, as she soared into the air. Shit. Meta thought. Too high. She continued to soar upwards as sheathed her sword and clasped her hands together. When she reached the maximum height of the geyser and felt it was going to drop back down again, she unleashed her power and created a barrier below herself, extending it below her feet into a disk-like shape. Nearly invisible it was, although it could be seen due to the light being fractured by it, like a prism. Meta looked downwards from her heightened position, looking for Hydro's dark shadow in the water. She spotted it, although it was only slightly darker than the water itself. She smirked, and put her hands together to form a triangle with her thumbs and index and middle fingers. Lightning began to crackle along her fingers and hands and the triangle filled itself with light, buzzing and crackling, like static gone mad and millionfold. Her lips seemed to form words, yet they were so soft they went unheard, and then from her hands, an enormous lightning bolt, brighter than even the sun, blinding herself nearly and those near, shot downwards and struck the water, electrocuting the sea, and making it light up brightly, the light being fractured by the water, and the ocean light up as it sparked and crackled and water evaporated from it's surface.

Bingo. Meta knew as Hydro rose up from the water. She twisted her body, and the prismatic barrier she stood on twisted also, disformed itself and warped as Hydro's massive jaws started to close in on each other around her. She was soon met by darkness as they closed, and then an icy cold feeling overcame Meta...

Even as Re-Tuul struck the ground, the two prongs of Shadowbringer impaled into it, the hexagonal orange field sprang up around him. There was a sharp ringing sound as the two Impalas slammed hard against the barrier, bouncing off, and the demon ripped his weapon free and beheaded one of them. Spinning the weapon around his hand, the barrier fell and Re-Tuul's mouth opened wide, issuing a powerful wave of violet flame that sped across the air at Draco's retreating form.

Turning toward the pedestal, the Omega Core jostling with activity, Matt reached out with both hands and touched the pedestal, without any sort of fanfare.

Moments passed.

Hugo glanced back and forth. He had expected all hell to break loose, with their luck. But nothing happened...so far. "...is it doing anything?"

"Well...no." Matt felt the energy hum through his arms toward the pedestal, but otherwise nothing was really happening. Was he doing it right? He glanced up toward the crystals. No visible reaction. Hmmm. Then what were the crystals for...?

Glacing about the room, Helena peered up at the giant hole in the ceiling, expecting something to fall from the sky. Maybe they were making too much out of this. Perhaps they should just backtrack and-

Her keen vision caught a flash of something in the prismatic sky, and she opened her mouth to gasp.

A tremendous beam of energy shot down through the hole in the temple's roof, smashing into the floor, engulfing all the crystals-and Matt-within.

"Matt!" Helena shouted.

"Oh, FUCK!" Matt snapped. "I knew this shit was booby trapped!" He tried pulling his hands away, but they were stuck. "Oh, hell. OH, HELL."

R.D. frowned when no visible reaction was produced at Matt's touch. Had something gone wrong? Was Matt wrong about the Infinite Chamber being the last place they had to go? He sighed, lowering his weapons and his guard, leaning back on one foot, still keeping an eye on things in case something finally did happen.

The amnesiac teen gasped and shielded his eyes as the beam struck, nearly being blinded by the light it produced. Unconsciously he was forced back. Within, Lumiya began to gather energy on its own, as if it were anticipating this. R.D. was only too glad for the charge. Seizing the Fifth Cipher energy, light broke into R.D.'s mind and the pupils of his eyes contracted as the irises dilated. "Matt!" he shouted, trying to run forward towards the beam. He was looking upwards, seeking the source of the beam to destroy it.

Like a forcefield, the beam repelled R.D., with such strength that it threw him across the room toward the archway.

"What the FUCK is goin' on?!" Hugo shouted, eyes wide.

"I don't KNOW!" Matt struggled to remove his hands from the pedestal, but they wouldn't budge. Damn it! He wasn't just gonna stand still while this was happening! "Get outta here!"

"What about you, Matt?!" Helena shouted.

The energy within the beam began to increase rapidly. "Get out, get out, GET OUT!" He would've waved for them to go if he could, but all he could do was screech hoarsely. "GET OUT!"

Helena could only stare at the destructive force illuminating her face with blue light. She couldn't leave him alone! There was no way! Not after what he had done for her-

"Come ON!" Hugo shouted at the girl, over the roaring winds. "Let's GO!"

She bit her lip. No...

Helena forced herself to turn and run.

R.D. cried out as he felt his body smash against the archway, the air knocked out of his lungs by the impact. He fell hard on the ground, but quickly staggered back up onto his feet, picking up his discarded Phase Blades.

Like Helena, he did not want to run. However, he was able to see that if they stayed, they, the bystanders, would get killed. He himself might survive, but Hugo and Helena did not have a superweapon locked away to buffer them. He backed up a step as the winds increased, shielding himself with his arm.

"Don't you fucking die, Matt!" he screamed over the winds, then turned and, channeling wind energy of his own, shot through the arch and into the hall. As he did, he managed to scoop up Hugo in one arm, and slip his arm around Helena's waist, taking both of them down the hall at his own speeds. They had to leave, and fast. Providing they survived this ordeal, Helena could slap him later if she so wished.

Edited by RisingDragon on September 4, 2007 at 18:23:13.

Helena didn't have time to get offended by R.D., if at all. Even as she was being dragged away, she let herself be dragged, peering back at the Infinite Chamber.

"God DAMMIT, I KNEW something would happen!" Hugo swore, flailing his pickaxe in anger. "We couldn't get ONE FUCKING BREAK! This CRAP had to happen!" He pointed back at the Infinite Chamber. "I'd better not find some intergalatic demon in there, because I'm gonna be PISSED OFF!"

A shockwave of power erupted from down the hall, washing over them as R.D. flew. It severed his hold on the Fifth Cipher energy, and he lost control of his flight. Using what strength he could, he spun them around, and he felt his body slam hard into doors of the temple hard, rocketing them out into the foyer. He bounced hard on the steps and eventually hit the crystal ground hard. Losing his grip on both Hugo and Helena, who only moved a short ways while he was thrown back, his body bounced on the impact and rolled slightly as he hit again.

Grunting in pain and annoyance, he pushed himself up off of the floor, gripping his shoulder. Green eyes stared up at the temple, which seemed to be blazing with the strange light from every orifice. His eyes narrowed. "I'm going back for Matt," he said, letting go of his arm and clenching his hands tightly.

A blue aura of light shone around R.D., and particles of energy and matter swarmed in onto his skin, creating the Dragon King Armor. When the armor covered his frame, it suddenly shone brightly around his arms, legs, and chest. The armor around his shoulders grew thicker, more pronounced as it turned a violet color, while dark cobalt plate surrounded the upper part of his forearms, with two long gold pieces atop them. More violet armor appeared along the outer sides of his thigh armor and the boots, with golden, wing-like extensions appeared on the ankles, angled upwards slightly. Four glowing ruby spheres were embedded in his back in a rhombus-shaped formation. The shield on his left arm expanded in size and grew more sleek, the outer edges of it turning violet in color.

With the new armor in place, R.D. crouched and light flared from his back. The visor of his helmet closed off into a dark, T-shaped visor, and as the thrusters in his boots and cuirass began to ignite. "Don't follow me."

Edited by RisingDragon on September 6, 2007 at 23:13:12.

Helena pushed herself up quickly. "R.D., no! I don't want you to get captured, too!"

The temple floor quaked underneath Helena and Hugo, light leaking from the ajar temple doors. "Dammit, COME ON!" Hugo shouted at Helena, running toward the stairs. Midrun, Helena scooped him up and descended, just as streams of light poured from the temple walls.

As soon as Helena's foot touched the base beyond the stairs, the temple of the Eternal Sanctuary exploded, in a mass of brilliant light.

The upgraded scanners in the Dragon King Armor notified him of what was about to happen, and with a growl, R.D. pushed off of the crystal ground and shot forward, forcing his armored body between Hugo and Helena, between them and the temple. As his armored feet touched down on the temple steps only moments before his friends could, R.D. thrust his shield out in front of him, causing the four corners of the shield split outwards and radiate an energy barrier. Looking back, he shouted at his friends, "Get back!"

It was too late, however. As Helena's foot touched the ground, the entire temple was decimated in a blinding flash of light. The three of them were thrown back violently by the blast, the stairway shattering into thousands of pieces. Barely able to see, R.D. was able to hear and feel as he and Helena hit the crystal ground hard once more, and the wielder of Lumiya fought to keep from blacking out.

Edited by RisingDragon on September 6, 2007 at 23:14:19.

Re-Tuul screeched as the first impala shot past, its horn slashing through one of his eyes on the left side of his face. In a bright flash of orange light, the demon disappeared, reappearing high in the sky. Flinging arms and wings out wide, Re-Tuul's bellow shook the land and the devastated heavens. Thousands of rays of unholy power tore through the air at his enemies, lancing out from the ocular designs of his wings. His remaining eyes flashed repeatedly, and powerful explosions rent the air around the resurrected monsters.

"Unh..."

Her right side hurting from impact, Helena pushed herself up, batting the hair out of her face. Her eyes immediately turned to what remained of the temple, toward the beam of tremendous light that surged to the sky.

Her eyes widened. No...

"Damn it!" Shielding his eyes with his pickaxe, Hugo attempted to move foward in the raging winds, managing to take only one step. Come on! MOVE! He had to find Matt...to make sure he was alive!

The beam grew in size and light, growing until it eclipsed the whole of the Eternal Sanctuary, and, for a brief moment, all they could see was white, all they could hear was the whistle of the angry winds.

Both things stopped almost as immediately as they began.

The beam had disappeared. Hovering in its place was what appeared to be a giant crystal ball, almost half the size of the temple, with golden, angelic wings attached stiffly to its structure. Streams of golden light slowly swarmed about it, as if it was the sun in its own universe.

The metallic plates clinking against each other as he moved, R.D. staggered to his feet, pushing himself up with his shield. He squinted and shielded his eyes with a hand as he stared up at the crystal orb in the prismatic skies above.

"No," he breathed, "It can't be!"

The interface activated and began to scan the artifact in the sky. He prayed to whatever god would listen that it wasn't what he thought it was.

Hugo took a step foward.

"...what the hell is that thing?" he asked R.D.

Helena already had an idea. "That's the Omega Core...isn't it?"

Suddenly the giant orb pulsed with light, as if preparing for something. Hugo promptly aimed his weapon at it. "What's it doing now?!"

From out of nowhere, words came, spoken in a thousand strange, different voices.

Come before us, witnesses of the Core.

Helena felt her body freeze as a chill ran up her spine. Was it...was it talking?

Come before us, witnesses of the Core. Come before us and observe our judgment.

"No," R.D. said quietly as the interface completed its scan. This thing... he had no idea what it was, but it was dangerous. Extremely dangerous. "This is... something different."

R.D. half raised a hand to his head when the thing spoke. It seemed to come from everywhere and yet nowhere; from the outside world and the inner recesses of his mind.

Judgment?

His eyes narrowed, and behind the visor, flashed golden. He raised his head up high to stare at the artifact, and he clenched his fists. Whatever happened... well, he promised to Matt he'd see it to the end. They were at the Eternal Sanctuary, and from what it seemed, this would be their final test. Matt was, for the moment, absent. He'd have to take up the mantle now.

He came forward.

===In Quebec===

One of the explosions Re-Tuul ignited scattered Legion's Gouka spheres, eradicating them in an efficient manner. The demon's body curled inward as he prepared to dive, and the flames Houka fired grazed and burned his wings as he shot down at Lee. The crimson spear Shadowbringer spun rapidly before crashing downwards at Lee's weapon, catching it in a powerful struggle.

Riul immersed her brain into a state of deep thought. Something catacalismic was happening, and they needed to do something. Surely the Balance of Light, the Guardian of Light, and a Daughter of Dawn could do something! But what? Then a thought struck her, it could work... well, it was at least mentioning. "A-alasea, couldn't you use the Pillar of Dawn?"

(OOC: sorry for the vagueness =/ )

"Th-that's right!" Alasea exclaimed, eyes lighting up as she looked at Riul. "We could use the Pillars to sever the ties and reverse the process on Lee!"

===In Quebec===

The armored hide of Re-Tuul crumpled when Lee struck, knocking the demon back a ways and dislodging their weapons. However, not to be outdone, Re-Tuul's claw shot forward even as he was sent back, and a beam of sickly light flared out from the palm at Lee. Re-Tuul landed just as he fired, and immediately took to the skies once more.

Alasea shook her head. "My Pillar alone would be enough to sever any kinds of bonds with Donovan. Probably not enough to cure him completely. But if we," she said, meaning the other Daughters, "used all of the Pillars together, it'd be enough. All five of them together can match or even surpass Kuro's power. If they weren't, they wouldn't stand a chance at stopping Ziatoch's."

She looked at Awai directly, not even blinking. "It's still worth a try. He could be stuck in that form forever, for all we know, but he doesn't have to remain a tool of evil."

===In Quebec===

Draco's beam hit Re-Tuul's shoulder and wing joint soundly and exploded, searing more of his flesh. Despite that, Re-Tuul's flight continued unabated, and the pillar of darkness erupted up in front of him, as he had moved out of the way in time.

The Yomi-Chi armor that had been crafted around his arms changed shape and flattened into a strange panel around the demon's bladed hand. He thrust the covered claw out into the shadowy pillar, redirecting the beam towards Houka and the skybound Legion.

Since the beginning of time, we have watched over the Multiverse, the voice spoke as the ground advanced toward the giant orb. Since the beginning of time, we have observed many acts of good and evil.

Despite being made of crystal, the orb wasn't transparent. Something was in the middle of it, but no one could tell what it was. Balance does not exist, it has not existed for a thousand of your years. With this in mind, we set forth a test. With this in mind, we searched the Multiverse, searched for a vessel to wield our power.

Hugo wanted to speak, but held his tongue before the presence of this deity. So that's why Matt got the Omega Core...it was a test. But what kind of test? He didn't want to know.

We bore witness to how our vessel, our keeper, wielded our power, the voice continued. We offered him power that his body could hold, offered him power, and gauged how it was used. We have done this to understand if our presence in affairs was truly neccessary.

Helena had to ask. "...what kind of affairs?" she managed, softly.

As observer of the Multiverse, its fate rests in our hands. As observer of the Multiverse, we have decided, from what he have previously seen, to the use of our power by our vessel, that the Multiverse requires recreation to restore order. As observer of the Multiverse, we have decided that the Multiverse must be created anew.

R.D. continued his steady advanced, neither hurrying nor straggling behind. The visor of his helmet opened up into the normal position, exposing his face and the currently-emotionless emerald eyes. He listened intently to the deity's speech, steeling himself for what was to come. His frown deepened, and his eyes narrowed as he took a step.

"And who..."

Step.

"... the hell..."

Step.

"... do you think you are? What gives you the right to decide what happens to our homes!?"