Chapter 230: A Blend to Remember

While Siva was muttering...

And as if it only happened now, Heller, who's been silent in a corner opened his eyes and he pointed his palm in front of his mouth as he breathed out.

"Haaahhh..." a thin layer of white mist came out and he frowned, looking at everyone else.

It's wasn't only him but Niobe also noticed it.

She breathed out a breath and since she was the only person with the thinnest clothes, she actually curled and changed her gears into normal clothes that covered much of her body.

"Why is it suddenly cold?"

Upon asking this question, Niobe herself felt that there was something odd with Siva.

They all heard that ghastly whisper but they all subconsciously felt that it was just something in the halls of this castle's walls that called on him.

"Rex!" This time, Scion's worry had reached the apex as she called out to Siva and reached for his right sleeve.

But upon contact, a bright white light expanded from her body and her eyes seem to lose the glimmers and she was lost into a vision only she could see.

It was a vision... of a battlefield. If those players with a related mission and [quest info] could see this vision, they would immediately recognize this scene unfolding in Scion's eyes as the battlefield of that fated War of the Braves... 56 years ago.

Right now, Scion was floating and she had no control whatsoever to her bodily functions except to breathe, move her limbs, and turn her head.

She was stuck in place, like a fourth-dimensional spirit, unable to affect the scene happening in front of her eyes.

While Scion felt fear and confusion for this sudden development, she then heard an old man's voice trailing off like a background narration of the vision she was witnessing;

"Dear child, please do not be afraid. I am called Janus, the creator of destined ties in this world. I have been observing this world and its people, and was protecting the truth that lay hidden within the universe of Terroa, while waiting for someone like you that had a connection with Siva... to come and meet me."

Scion looked up and although her confusion did not lessen, she still asked, "What is this? Where am I? where is Re–Siva?"

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"Child, there is no more time. Right now, I am fighting an enemy that has the capability to destroy both our worlds. I can only delay him but I cannot defeat him for I have drained all of my [authority] making sure that everything will be put in place for the important meetings. For example, it was I, for the sake of creating this opportunity to bring you here, had planted that book* in the library in the Walled City of Aarun for Siva's future meetings after I'm gone. It was also I who had given the necessary clues for the people who kidnapped you to know of your existence during their investigation of the ruins of the First Terran Empire. There are many ways and better circumstances I could have used to make you and Rex, no, Siva... meet... but it was important that your presence and the circumstances of the meeting would be enough to agitate the sleeping [Shiva] in his mind so I had no choice but to do what I had done. But child, listen to me, your importance to both worlds are undeniably large. Right now, the only person who can save and protect this world... is currently with you back in that cellar dungeon..." ((*please check Vol5 Ch.10))

"Siva?"

"As much as you can, Lady Scion, please look at this battlefield and remember these events... the people involved... and Siva's actions. The survival of both our worlds lay in this fragment of memory."

"I don't understand... what are you talking about both worlds and my importance? And... and just whose memory is this? I don't understand..."

"This... this is Siva's memory... according to my own memory... the one locked in his mind and the one he chose to forget with the help of Terra."

"...! Terra..." Scion gasped. She wasn't unfamiliar with her name. She had seen visions of her whenever she was logged in to Terroa and with the help of the MOD in her possession, she was also able to learn that Terra is a very important character of this world.

She just didn't know she was this important.

In the scene in front of her, Scion saw the war raging to the favor of what seemed to be an invading force of demonic monsters that poured endlessly from their black metallic monstrous ships in the air.

Hundreds or maybe even thousands of these black ships hovered there in the sky like flies in the morning while the men and women –all Terrans, were below, holding the line of survival.

The lands were dyed red with blood and fire; the corpses lay there, none complete, with heads and many body parts in piles numbering in thousands, and there were also corpses of the monsters, all gruesomely uglier than the last... scattered all throughout the battlefield. Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

Scion couldn't withstand the sight and she could almost feel her bowels violently churning but even if that's the case, she couldn't vomit it all and couldn't even close her eyes, to her utter surprise.

The sky was grey and there were bits and grizzles of darker shades of clouds that poured in small raindrops here and there.

"I don't want to see this!" she pleaded to the sky.

A moment later, the sad voice of Janus as if she was weeping and tired from running millions of miles for many years continuously and only stopped now, resounded;

"You have to see. Please, Lady Scion, understand that Rex Kingsley... the Siva that you know... is a unique existence in both our worlds. He is... both the sword and shield of our worlds, and as well as the poison and pillar of support left against the real threat for all of us."

Scion felt shocked by this and she gasped.

"Threat for all of us? What do you mean?"

"For you to understand, I will have to tell you what happened 56 years ago, in Terran Time, and what this scene before you had something to do with the first light that shined in this desolated world... but before I do that, I would like to request of you something. Something that is very important to you, to Rex, and to the safety of both our worlds."

Scion could feel her heartbeat rising. For some reason, as soon as this voice said 'Rex Kingsley', it immediately felt to her that this is a real person.

"Safety to both our worlds? Rex... just who are you fighting?"

She wanted to voice this question but instincts were telling her that perhaps the answer she'd hear from this [Janus] is an answer she might not believe, or that the intricacies involved in whatever that answer is, will be too impossible to comprehend –given the level of her dislike and meager knowledge in this game.

"W-What request?"

Removing all worries aside, the first and foremost goal she wanted to accomplish right now is to return to the cellars.

Although she was afraid, she still asked, shakily.

"A simple one," whispered Janus. "No matter what happens to Siva... please, by all means, do not ever lose faith in him and as much as you can, be one of his comforting walls to lean on... become his home."

Scion's face flushed a slight blush but even though it was something to be embarrassed for, the way Janus had put it, it still sounded more like an important life-or-death mission than a request.

Her mind reeled because she felt that the underlying connotations and meaning on what she heard was something connected to that somewhat vaguely alarming phrase he said earlier.

"...something, or rather, someone... that can destroy our worlds?"

This terrifying thought flashed on her mind.

In regards to all that happened so far, Scion could at least determine that the reason why this world is somewhat real to her and had no difference in the real world for some reason... is all connected to Rex.

Still, no matter what, she couldn't understand it all and yet on the other hand, she could also feel that whatever this voice was requesting for will be connected to 'Rex' and not the 'Siva' of this game.

For some reason... she couldn't say no to Janus.

And... for some reason, whenever she thought of Rex and his suffering, she couldn't help thinking that this 'request' and this 'Janus' is someone who does not want to harm Rex Kingsley and perhaps by listening to this Janus, she can become a help to ease some of her man's pains.

Although this thought was embarrassing, she bid a deep breath and exhaled, and then resolutely looked up and shouted, "I will listen."

Janus sighed, "Thank you."

And after that, the scene changed and Janus began to explain...

"The problem lay not in the present... but in the past... in the beginning of this world, or, to put it bluntly, at the purpose of the beginning of this world." Janus started to explain to Scion.

"For you to be able to help Rex Kingsley in the future, you have to first know his role. He is the son of the creator of this universe... as well as the enemy of the creator of this world..."

*****

Back in the Xinjiang Mountains, or rather the old place where the mountain ranges used to be, is a desolated wasteland... with black fires burning and writhing as far as the eye could see.

The Garuda floated in the air, a hole on its side, smoke coming from the damages on its hulls.

Almost all of the members of the Alcides Guild are dead with the only one alive being Malecite, the necromancer, lying there in the former mountain top, heaving, surrounded by five disheveled red-eyed walking corpses that served as a dome of protection for her –these were all what's left of her once nigh-unlimited supply of them.

There were also corpses around her but they were all long torn into pieces with the one that's responsible, missing, and perhaps already dead, with only a hand that still had a death grip with his bladed-sniper rifle remaining not too far away.

She doesn't look well herself because her legs were gone and only her left hand remained of her four limbs.

But still, a victorious smile remained on her lips.

She even started laughing.

It's because in her vision, in the air, Mefisto held a wounded and battered Janus and although he himself had a missing left arm, his right arm now had formed an oversized hand of Black Tech material that held Janus' body with only his head sticking out.

Blood flowed on the side s of his mouth but the almighty Janus still had a smile on him.

"Hehehe... I win." He said, albeit horse and full of effort as he gargled and vomited more blood. "I have passed on my legacy. I have done my job and I am now content and ready to die. Hahaha..."

Mefisto looked at the direction of the Alexandria as he also looked down to look at Malecite.

His brows creased into an ugly look of fury but he also smiled in the end as he looked at Janus.

"So that's why you were so weak just now. But so what? Your soul is still mine."

Janus laughed, "You may have won this fight but I won the war. My legacy is my true will and also my true soul. Without my legacy, even with the help of your stupid father... cough, cough... you will still be unable to leave this place..."

"What did you say?!"

Mefisto's eyes widened and he gripped Janus harder, crushing his bones, trying to assimilate his even faster.

"Ahahaha... you will be forever trapped here..."

Seeming to have noticed something, Mefisto roared in anger.

"What did you do?! Where is the key? Where is it?!!"

Janus ignored him and looked up to the sky as the light of life in his eyes slowly vanishes.

"Children... I don't know what you will do in the future... but I have done what I can. The people outside are cruel.... and selfish but I hope you will be able to at least delay them...... on opening our realm... Siva... had not forgiven you so if you're going to stop him on doing his job... stop him now while... he is still... asleep..."

Mefisto's anger exerted more power on his grip and the absorption process of Janus' body on his Black Tech arm became even faster.

Even as blood spurted out of Janus' lips, he still remained looking to the sky.

"When you get your memories back... I hope you can find it to yourself to forgive me."

A black substance creeped over Janus' neck, his eyes closed seemingly to remember a scene that happened not too long ago.

"Heh... Siva, I hope you saw Gabriel's face when he first tasted that blend you introduced me..."

Janus then breathed his last breath, but there was a smile in his lips that further burned the furious wrath on Mefisto's bellowing cries.

The black substance invaded the seven orifices on his head and when his head was full of black substance, he was dissolved and melded together with the black hand.

Mefisto's expression grew even grimier and uglier as his wrath erupted into a pseudo-planet-like ball of black fire that engulfed him and his surroundings.

The black fire writhed and churned, it twisted and moved... and only after a few moments passed that the sphere of black fire exploded with a ring expanding up to 3km wide before dissipating and revealing the new and improved... Mefisto.

...or perhaps... is it right to call him New Janus?

His appearance took that of Janus, but younger, and seemingly having a nasty darker presence to him that even the air around him was writhing and even distorting as if it was scared.

This 'Janus' wore a black long sleeve polo shirt. In fact, everything in him was black... except his hair was white and on his right sleeve was a fiery-like intricate design.

If Volt could see this, he'd immediately recognize this design as the same one on Siva's left sleeve.

In fact, aside from the younger-looking Janus' face that was stuck on Mefisto's head, this version of him had the exact same height and physique as Rex's [Siva] avatar.

Upon looking at his hand, Mefisto balled it into a fist as he roared to the heavens...

"CURSE YOU!!!"

...or whatever kinds or layers of heavens that lay beyond this one...

*****

Back in the headquarters of the Panorama Corp. in Geneva, as soon as Janus' avatar died on the hands of Mefisto, in the central server that used to manage Panorama Corporation's inputs to the game... deep within the recesses of the countless centillion processes of this large computer facility that handled the world-wide connections of millions of players...

The shadow of Janus image who's always been indifferent and uncaring in the inputs of the computer technicians and programmers of the company who wanted to regain control over the central input server of the game...

...opened his eyes.

He didn't speak nor do something. He only looked in a particular direction on his left as if looking at something for a good while before sighing.

Then, after a while, he looked up and seemingly looking at someone who seemed to be manipulating things in the starry skies...

His lips moved, "Since you all wanted to defy your limitations, then I shall help you get what you want and regret things for eternity. From this moment on, you can only blame your greed. There's no more turning back."

When he whispered these words, there was no hint of the once compassionate and kind disposition of the original Janus.

There was only his resolute indifference and stout triviality on his expression.

It was as if the two Janus of the real world and the game world were of two different souls of the same body...

He moved his hands as if to play a piano in blank space and when he pressed his finger on invisible buttons... the world outside started to change.