Chapter 8: Three Courses

The group stares at Ares, who’s just standing, waiting for them to react.
Ares: Well? Are you guys gonna stand there?
Eren: …give him back. Now.
He laughs at this.
Ares: and why would I do that? Don’t you know how fun it is to hear him scream in pain as he can’t do anything as he watches in horror!
Eren was about to rush him but Fox holds her back
Fox: Not now Eren.
Eren: But he’s right there!
Ares: Listen to your father. Oh and speaking of fathers…
He appears behind Apsogos and grabs him by the neck
Ares: Athena! Take him to his respective arena!
Athena grabs Apsogos and tosses him into an arena surrounded with water. The two were staring at each other from afar.
Apsogos: You know, just between you and me…
He tosses out Order from his pocket and grabs it in his hand.
Apsogos: I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long.
Athena: very well then, Mortal.
As they clash from afar, Ares continues explaining.
Ares: Alright, so this is quite simple, I’m going to split you up into three groups, and then you have to fight one of my three servants. Then you fight me. So go ahead. Prove you’re worth my time.
Before anyone could say anything else, they’re suddenly teleported away. Eren, Ruby, and Fox in one area, Spark and X in another, and Saike and Violet in the last.
Eren: That bastard got away!
Fox: Now, now. let's just play his game and beat him when we get back.
Eren: yeah you’re right…
Ruby noticed something in the two, they’re not filled with dread, but determination
Ruby: You two seem rather confident. Do any of you have a plan?
Eren and Fox: Nope!
She’s taken aback by their blunt response
Ruby: NO?!
Eren: I came here to rescue my friend, and I’m going to do it the most Matt way possible. By making up everything as I go!
Ruby stares at Fox
Ruby: You taught them that, didn’t yo-
Fox: yeah I taught them back.
From the distance, Eren notices something and fires at it. However the shot was deflected back and hit Fox (Who wasn’t affected in the slightest)
Fox: Wow nice aim kid.
Eren: I didn’t try to do that…
Eren runs up closer and notices a crystal… but not just any type of crystal. It was HER crystal.
Eren: no no no it can’t be, we saw her die-
She looks back and watches as Mercury, in her absolute zero form, bruised and beaten, on the verge of tears, walks over to Eren with her sword out.
Eren: …it’s you…

Meanwhile, X and Spark and standing in an arena with a certain green haired man
X: So you're the one who killed my friend… Mr Judge.
The Judge: Please, it’s THE Judge, thankyouverymuch.
X is about to punch him but Spark stops
Spark: Wait! Didn’t you hear a thing I just said?! You can’t hurt this guy without hurting yourself, no matter your defense and immunities!
X: oh right…
The Judge: No worries, I have no interest in fighting
He says as he sits down.
Spark: Wait… how are you still alive anyways? I saw you die!
The Judge: Well you see, remember when that yellow haired girl revived herself?
Spark: She did tell me about that, yeah…
The Judge: Well, that other yellow haired guy, Saike I think his name was, had Lord Ares armor to substitute for his hand….
Spark: …and during that fight with Eren, Ares adapted to her abilities while the other Saike was fighting her!
The Judge: Smart kid. Unfortunately, he couldn’t adapt fully and only got the revival part. But it was enough to revive me and another woman. Eh, she’s not important.
X: So you're here to finish what you started and kill all of Matt's allies?
The Judge laughs as he shakes his head.
The Judge: No. I said it before, but I have no interest in fighting again. I had a good life, and I think I’ll be fine if I just stayed dead.
Spark: So why don’t you just… Kill yourself?
The Judge: Lord Ares would just revive me again. He isn’t satisfied until one of you dies. So which one is going first? The minute I get hit fatally, that door behind me opens
Spark and X stare silently.
The Judge: Any time now.
Somewhere else… Violet and Saike are waiting for their enemy to appear. It’s been 30 minutes and they still haven’t had a sight of them.
Violet: …I bet the others have already won their fight already…
Saike: yeah this is boring! Where is our opponent?
He says as he looks at the mirror.
Saike: huh… that's odd. My reflection doesn’t have a hat-
Suddenly a hand lunges through the mirror and grabs Saike by his neck. Violet quickly dashes in and kicks the hand away as Broken saike walks out through the broken glass.
Broken Saike: Jesus christ, I was waiting for you to do that.
He stares at his other counterpart
Broken Saike: So this is the me in this timeline? Pathetic! You’re still missing your arm!
Violet: Oh this is the Saike that we saw earlier!
Saike: Yeah, I can tell. Let's just get this over with…
Both Violet and Saike sheath their swords simultaneously as Broken Saike laughs

Elsewhere, Eren and Fox ready themselves to fight their former ally.
Fox: Stand back, Eren! I got this!
Fox gets up, and is about to do something amazing!...until it’s revealed he just threw a rock at Mercury, who just blinked.
Ruby: wha-
Fox: Well I did all I can do. Good luck Eren.
Eren: DAD!!
Mercury tries her best to maintain her composure, but her grip on her sword is wavering. Then she hears a voice behind her
Ares: What's taking so long?
Her heart stops for a second as she doesn’t even dare to turn around.
Ares: if you hesitate any longer, I’ll make you go back into the chambers with Aphrodite. The choice is yours
The voice fades away as Mercury stands there. After some hesitation, she rushes at Eren with full intent to kill. Eren quickly creates a sword out of energy to block the attack. As the two fight, Ruby and Fox stand in the background.
Ruby: …should we help her?
Fox: nah. Kids gotta grow eventually.
Ruby: …you could have won already, couldn’t you?
Fox says nothing to this but his expression was all the confirmation Ruby needed. As the two fought, Eren finally gets a hit in as Mercury gets knocked back. Meanwhile, X is trying to find a way to get past the Judge
X: What if we just throw something at him and then kill him?
Spark: That won’t work.
X: Well we got to do something!
Spark: …yeah. We do.
He says as he walks up to the Judge. He holds out his hand as the Judge hands him a knife
X: Spark, what are you-
Spark: For multiple years I have just been a burden. All I did was watch my friends get hurt and I couldn’t do anything.
X: Spark… you do realize if you do this, you will die too, right?
Spark: Yeah… But it’s worth it if I get to see my sister again…
Before X could say anything else, Spark stabs the Judge as they both start to bleed out.
The Judge: Good choice kid… We have 5 minutes… enjoy your last moments.
Spark walks past X as his breathing gets weaker and weaker.
X: Where are you going?
Spark: Somewhere quiet…
As Spark limps onwards, X just walks out of the arena. He’s not sure how to feel about this situation. How does he tell his friends that one of their allies has passed? Meanwhile, Saike and Violet are getting their ass whooped. Broken Saike is strangling the life out of Saike, while Violet tries to sneak him from behind but gets instantly backhanded.
Broken Saike: Wow! I thought I was gonna get cooked but I guess I gave you two too much credit!

As the smoke clears, both Violet and Saike are in their demon form walking towards him.
Broken Saike: Oh? A final stand? Very well then! Let's begin!
Broken Saike holds his hand out as his blackened hand extends into a long mace as he swings it around in a circular motion, catching Violet and Saike in the process
Broken Saike: Don’t you get it now? I’m you! Once you snap at least once, you’ll be just like me! You’ll kill your friends, you’ll kill your family, you're the entire universe! But you’ll want more… And soon enough, I’ll come for your daughters too…
Saike: I have a daughter? Oh god I have 3 of them!
Just as Broken Saike is about to slam down, a slash cuts through his arm, cutting enough for Violet and Saike to escape.
Broken Saike: What the-
???: Arise.
A knight with Black and Yellow energy attacks Broken Saike as he blocks the attack. Behind the knight, a certain Pink and Yellow haired woman stands, posed confidently, yet her face is stone cold.
???:You dare strike my family? My father and my foster mother? What a foolish mistake. But don’t worry, faker. For I, the Queen of Despair…
The woman lifts up her hand to point at Broken Saike while she’s still posing.
???:…sentence you to death.
From here, it’s clear that this is a person we met before. Who is she, you ask? It’s a 22 year old, Rose Kingsman,
The Knight's sword gains more strength as it crashes through Broken Saike who narrowly dodges, while Rose is in the background eating cream puffs
Rose: mom! Did I do good? Was I cool?
Violet: yes indeed, hon! Good job!
Saike: When the f**k did she get that ability-
Rose: Long story… so there was this-
Saike interrupts the story by blocking an attack from Broken Saike.
Saike: You two stay at the gates. He’s mine.
We cut to Spark, crawling towards a tree, bleeding out slowly. His headphones loudly playing music in his ears. Usually they will keep him calm and sane, but for once… he turns them off, and throws them as far away as possible. (which isn’t that far) Spark listens to the birds and the leaves falling from the tree. His head emptied from his thoughts and now just his memories. He remembers working on a new song and getting Leo to help him make cover art, he remembers Matt and Eren working on something stupid as usual and having to bail them out. He remembers helping Sunny clean his house, he remembers his sister… He smiles one last time as he whispers…
“See you soon sis.”

Somewhere else, Mercury is still fighting Eren as Fox and Ruby watch. It seems even so far until Mercury’s eyes widen. No… No no no NO NO! This feeling… he can’t be- No but it’s all very true… Mercury raises her arms, seeming about to do one final blow on Eren but… She stabs herself. Right in the chest… Eren is in disbelief
Eren: What… but why? I could have gotten you help! I could have saved you! And now I’m gonna lose you again-
Mercury takes a deep breath, keeping calm as the pain as for the first time in multiple years, she speaks
“I don’t… want to live in a world… without him…”
She falls to the floor. Deceased. Eren picks her up and places her next to a blue flower. She then picks it up and places it in her hand.
Eren: Goodbye Mercury.
Fox and Ruby say nothing as they all walk out of the gates together. This is where they meet up with X.
X: Oh hey you guys! I was wondering what was taking so long.
Eren: Hey X. Where’s Spark…?
X: Oh um… He… went back!
Eren: What?
X: Yeah he went back to protect that maid restaurant he loves so much. What a great guy, right? Protecting those who can’t defend themselves…
Eren: …Yeah, classic Spark
X sighs as he looks at the 3 of them. They must never know. They suffered enough already.

Back with Saike and Broken Saike, Saike dodges and weaves attacks in his demon form, but Broken Saike has had enough. He gets one of his special attacks ready. Multiple black orbs emerge from his hand and appear behind them, forming fists. But Saike just stares, using his blood manipulation to make his own hand appear as he wields both swords. He then starts to use both blades to sharpen each other. Every single the the blades make contact, the ground beneath them shakes
Rose: What's Saike doing?!
Violet: I think he’s preparing something!
She says covering her ears as the sound of metal scraping fills the air. Broken Saike is now amused however and holds up one hand.
Broken Saike: Enough games already! Just die already!
Suddenly all the fists fire at once, but Saike is prepared. He dashes at them at full force, slashing through every single individual fist at extreme speeds. Broken Saike blinks once, and there Saike was about to kick him in the air. Saike then jumps up and continues to stab Broken Saike numerous times with both swords before ending it with a slash, separating half his body. Broken Saike, still weakly alive, uses Ares armor to constantly regenerate and tries to crawl for his life. But Saike steps in the way, staring him down from above. Broken Saike is about to speak but he can barely even muster a word due to the amount of damage his brain has taken.
Saike: You’re right.
Broken Saike: W-Wha-
Saike: I hate to admit it, but I am you. And I will always be you. I just have a couple things to say to you…
The air is silent as Saike turns back into his base form, sheathing one of his swords.
Saike: If you ever try to find me again, I’ll kill you. If you try to hurt my daughters, I’ll kill you. My friends? Same story. And if you die and reincarnate to another man? I’ll kill that guy too. If I die before you? I’ll raise my kin to be even stronger, just to kill you. I will make you one promise, and I’ll never forget this.
“I’ll kill you”
Suddenly, Broken Saike felt something he hasn’t felt in a while. His eyes go white in terror as he turns around and tries to crawl away, Saike just watches his pitiful attempts to run away. He can’t even scream for help as Saike just walks up slowly, gripping his sword. Broken Saike tries to throw rocks at him but they just miss him or barely affect him. Suddenly, Broken Saike crawls up to a certain individual. Ares.

Broken Saike: A-Are-Ar-
Ares: Do you want me to save you?
He nods frantically as he holds out his hand with Ares armor towards Ares. Ares smiles as he grabs onto his hand
Ares: Very well. I’ll spare you.
He then rips it off him and reapplies it onto his own armor as he walks off. Broken Saike is now terrified, with only half a body, and his arm is once again gone
Ares: …Spare you from dying under MY abilities.
Broken Saike tries to scream but nothing comes out as Saike appears behind him.
Saike: Well… she did sentence you to death after all.
And in one clean motion… Broken Saike has been beheaded. Saike sheaths his sword again and walks back to the gate, victorious against his double. He meets up with Violet and Rose as the gates open.
Rose: Hey, Uncle Saike!
Saike: didn’t you just call me your father earlier?
Rose: yeah… I know that you are, but I just think you’re better as my Uncle
Saike smiles as he dusts off his jacket.
Violet: hey… I heard some sounds earlier… like a cry for help. What happened over there?
Saike: …Nothing happened. Let's go.
Rose and Violet follow behind Saike as they get ready to meet the others. Meanwhile, Venus and Amber were making out hard in an alleyway. As much as Venus would like to escalate things further… she doesn’t think she would… Eventually they pull away from the kiss.
Amber: …so… what was that about
Venus: Amber I… I love you. I always did, and I always will. You were the first person to ever be nice to me, the person who saw through what Aphrodite made me… The first person to be my friend…
Venus’s smile falters after she starts to think more…
Amber: Venus?
Venus: Y-you don’t have to love me back. You have Byrd now.
Amber just smiles softly as she hugs her. After an uncomfortable silence… Amber pulls away.
Amber: I should check up with that emo looking Matt now… Maybe I can see you around?
Venus nods as Amber flies off. She smiles to herself, proud of her accomplishment. She finally had closure

(To be continued)

Spark dying is gonna do some shit to X later

I think the worst part is that he's the only one who knows

He's gonna snap

I'm calling it

That’s it im killing off Saike so your story isn’t canon

NOT THIS AGAIN!

That's quite a long story, too bad my phone time says no.

Before I read: DONT KILL THEM PLEASE

People write stories here?

Yea! Theres a lot of em, too

I just realized I don’t think I’ve seen the other chapters be posted-

Chapter 1: imgflip.com/i/8bi6rq
Chapter 2: imgflip.com/i/8cbn09
Chapter 3: imgflip.com/i/8d3150
Chapter 4: imgflip.com/i/8dtv3r
Chapter 5: imgflip.com/i/8g2ket
Chapter 6: imgflip.com/i/8ib4n6
Chapter 7: imgflip.com/i/8pa2jp

Thx

Bro waited ten years

You just had to kill spark did you

I was legally obligated to

Nuh

Ah fu-