Adventure of Astral Part 43: Depths

Astral flicked his blade upward as he charged at the statues. He watched them as their breath left their mouth, freezing the very air it touched. Astral slid around their breath as he took out their kneecaps. Using it to fling himself up into the air and above them. He extended his left arm as he crushed his fingers into a fist. Shattering the statues with kinetic pressure. He swirled in the air as he looked at the Jewels over near the stables, their wounds were healed as they watched Astral descend.

'Why are you not here?' Astral flicked his left wrist forward as invisible blades of light struck out at the four of them. They took the attack as the wounds were lightened by their defenses softening the blow. Astral rested Murasama, dropping his guard as the four of them stood up and looked at the monster before them. They all halted for the moment as Topaz took two steps back.

"Overclock maximus!" Topaz shouted as Astral stood still, he waited to see how many spells they could muster at one time. The first fireball ripped past Astral's eyes as he stood still. The spell boosted their casting speed and their spells abilities. Astral hopped backwards as they were getting fully desperate. Astral raised his blade as a glass ball surrounded him.

Water crashed into it as he saw Sapphire hurling tidal waves with the amount of water she was using. Ruby's response was to slowly start boiling the air around Astral. Making it highly uncomfortable to be in a defensive stance. Diamond filled the air with a static charge. Astral was doing the calculations inside of his head about the most effective way to counter. He had no answers, looking to the clouds as it sensed to his insides. There was one answer. Parting the clouds with such a strong attack, not just any. But a parry attack that would break the sky.

'I need you, now more than ever, where did you go?" Astral's thoughts became verbal as the Crown Jewels were caught off guard. He may have been crazy before, this sadly is something else. Astral shattered his glass barrier as he sent the shards outwards at all of them. He felt trapped by all three of the elements as he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He twisted his head after the tap to see that there was no one there. He leaped backwards, punching the ground and creating a natural barrier for a moment while he could recalibrate his mind.

'I've always been with you. This time I just won't be on your side forever.' The voice returned to his mind, echoing as he flipped over the cover and above the four of the Crown Jewels. They watched him hover in air as he looked to the sky. 'I will always be yours, much like you have always been mine.' A beam of light shot down from above the clouds. Cutting the sky as Astral flicked his wrist with Muramasa. Parting the attack in half as it blew away the clouds.

Astral landed in front of the four as Beacon fell into the ground in front of him. He looked at the staff and wondered. "So you have returned." Astral pointed Muramasa at the four of them as he lightly shook his sword. "Why do you fight? You want this kingdom for yourselves because you can't usurp your throne. But attack me for a meaningless fight and battle." Astral held firm as he smiled.

"You want revenge. And with this sudden turn of events it's almost like you don't fear death, but welcome its warm embrace." Astral cracked his neck as the blue sky showed all of them the sunlight, its warm beams allowing for them to all glow. "Bask in this moment as for there will not be many more for you to have." He stood still as he spread out his arms into the sunlight.

He had no reaction as the four of them slowly began to charge up their attacks while they looked at him. Not moving and awaiting a response. "Because you give us our best practice, no other can match us and our barriers. We have taken notes from the God we believe in. Stories of his student extend past the reach of time." Ruby spoke as Astral shrugged.

"We can fight you forever, or have you forgotten about your own spell?" Diamond snarled. "That curse to make us live and live again. Its sickening that you don't even acknowledge its existence." Astral shrugged as he gave a puzzled look. "He has forgotten so much."

Both Topaz and Sapphire looked at their sisters in confusion. "We have been brought along with you two because you asked for us. We know very little." Topaz interjected as Sapphire sighed.

"She knows not about that massive battle. The one where I was helping in the back line before that magical attack destroyed me." Sapphire rested her head lower as Astral shook his head. His mind filled with empty screams of everyone he knew in the past. They looked at their charged combination attack as they sent it at Astral.

A white arm extended from him as it grabbed Beacon and hoisted it up into the center of the attack's mass. Turning it into a ball of doves as they started to fly away. "I have a very foggy memory of what happened in my past. It has been more instinct based for what I have to do."

"You can claim a mental fog, but you don't act like you have changed a bit." Ruby snarked back as Astral charged right in front of her.

"YOU DON'T HAVE FEELINGS FOR A PERSON YOU HAVE ALL BUT FORGOTTEN ABOUT! Someone who I loved and cared for, without the memory of why I fell for them. All I have is their name, with several other names. Everything became a blur and a haze, no matter how much I free myself from the fog it still isn't solved. WHY CAN IT NOT BE SOLVED? I HAVE SUFFERED ENOUGH. My kids that I didn't know I have had twice over. All that I remember at this point was the massive empire I once led, the massive army I fielded into an unwinnable battle, and the darkness that has followed."