I once again sat alone in darkness, unconscious.
I lost the battle to Vex, didn't I?
I looked down at my hands but couldn't see them. Swirling around me were the thoughts and worries that plagued my mind. The largest, most prominent one was a single name.
Soho.
I hope she's doing well.
A manifestation of one of my worries suddenly pierced me.
Urk—!
I looked down at my wound. Anxious thoughts bled from my body.
"If I die, who will protect Soho?" The worry had spelt.
My heart began to race, fearing the idea, the thought.
Am I dead right now?
I finally came to the full realization that I was in my own subconscious. My brain should have still been functioning.
Seris must have saved me, surely…?
I hoped. I truly hoped. Because all I wanted now was to see Soho again.
Soho.
I wanted to lay in her arms and rest. I was so, so tired.
"Don't worry," she had mouthed to me before I departed for Chrono.
But how couldn't I? You're all that I have left… If you leave my life too, I really wouldn't know what to do…
"Klyson."
I jolted all of a sudden. The unusual peace in my mind was interrupted.
"Klyson."
The darkness was lifting, like a sun rising above the horizon. When I looked down, I could now see my hands unlike before. There was a peculiar green glow emanating beneath it.
"Klyson."
—!!
I looked up, surprised to see that I'd woken back up to reality. My face felt swollen, my body battered. It hurt to breathe. But standing ahead of me was none other than the Sloth himself. Surrounding us, as expected, was Seris' green domain. I frantically panned around, looking for Soho. Then, I saw her.
"Soho!"
She was sitting on her knees, staring at the ground. Her hair was drooped over her face just like before I'd left.
Snap!
My attention was stolen towards Ian's direction, who'd just snapped his finger.
"Klyson."
"Ian." I nearly held my breath.
"You're finally awake." He looked at a watch on his wrist. "6 hours. That other Fractless really did a number on you."
I could see past Seris' domain that the sun was beginning to set. A new worry ensued.
"How long was I gone? How many days are left until Wrath comes?"
Ian squinted his eyes and smirked. "Three days."
"Three?" I furrowed my eyebrows. "Wasn't I gone for at least a day?"
Ian too looked at the sunset now. "That sun is the same one that rose the day you left for Chrono."
"What…?"
He looked back at me. "It's still the same day."
I was struck with confusion. It had felt like at least a day or two had passed in the time that I was with Chrono. Ian walked over to me, putting a hand on my shoulder.
"43 minutes and 57 seconds." He smiled. "That was how much time passed between Seris transporting you down there, and back up here."
I scrunched my face. "What? How? I was there for so long…?"
Then it finally hit me.
Chronostasis.
"Seris said it had been barely five minutes since you were taken into Chrono's base before it erupted, killing nearly all their members. And, I heard you even managed to nullify their leader's Fractal in that time, too."
I stared at the floor blankly.
Was Chrono's entire base time-skewed by Chronostasis that whole time…? What felt like hours in there was just minutes in reality…?
I was genuinely shocked. Ian interrupted my thoughts.
"I assume that the influence of another Fractal must have made for that. But it doesn't retract from the fact that you've already gained a fluency for the Null in such a short period of time. You exceeded my expectations, Klyson. I am truly impressed." He began to circle around me, slowly. "Now, we're ahead of schedule. I originally estimated that it would take you at least two days to acclimate to the Null, yet here we are not even a day in. We have lots to work with."
Even after dealing with an entire organization like Chrono and Delfina's Chronostasis, I still couldn't help but feel unprepared for what was coming.
"Is there really, though? Is three days really enough to prepare for the Sin of Wrath?"
Ian scoffed at me. "No."
"Oh… How reassuring."
"Three days isn't enough, nor is ten days. A month isn't enough, not even a year is enough." He leaned close towards me. "No amount of time is enough to prepare for the kind of calamity the Sin of Wrath brings."
"Then what's the point of all of this…?"
"There's a point to everything, Klyson. Haven't you learned that by now?" His back faced me. "I always put a point to something."
I was catching on. "Then tell me, Ian, what was the true point to using the Null on Chrono?"
He turned around and smiled. "I already told you. To log their Fractals."
What does he mean 'log'?
He could see the confusion on my face. He responded to it. "The essence of every Fractal you've erased so far is etched into that Null of yours."
"You don't make things any easier to understand."
"Every Fractal emits a wavelength range that's recorded at birth. It's part of every citizen's identity. You worked for A.X.A., you should know that—"
"I do know that. What I don't understand is this whole logging thing you keep bringing up." I stood up to level with him. "You make it sound like I'm keeping track of every wavelength from every Fractal I've nullified."
"Bingo." Ian laughed. "You just answered your own question."
"What…?"
"Every time you've nullified a Fractal, you've essentially logged the wavelength range of that Fractal into your Null. Some Fractals emit short wavelengths, some emit longer wavelengths. Since you've nullified numerous already, you've covered a wide range of wavelengths."
"And what's the point of these wavelengths?"
Ian pointed up, far into the sky. "Up there."
"Huh?"
"Overlord. You know all about it."
Overlord was A.X.A.'s satellite used to oversee everything in Melysia. It were as if someone had built the highest-quality camera in the world and placed it in the sky just to watch the country. It could visually observe everything from a top-down view, which is what we used in the Tenfold as commanders while controlling Angel Unit Infantries. Using the Hive Mind allowed us to tap-into the Overlord's sight. Even now, if we weren't hidden in the clouds using Seris' domain, the Overlord would be able to see us.
But why is he mentioning the Overlord now?
"It isn't just to see us all, right Klyson? Overlord is a third-eye, if anything." He smirked at me. "It doesn't just see us. It detects our Fractal wavelengths too."
I know that. It's what's allowed A.X.A. to keep track of all of the Fractals in the country. It's the reason why Seris became so sought-after by them—because her Fractal and its wavelength was never registered at birth and hence, Overlord couldn't detect her Fractal.
But where is Ian going with all this?
"Do you see where I'm going with all of this?"
I shook my head.
"Your Null has a constantly-expanding list of Fractal wavelengths it's erased. Overlord is constantly detecting Fractals from a list of known wavelengths. What do you get when you combine the utilities of those two?"
I shook my head again. Not out of confusion this time, though. It was out of disbelief.
"You get the deliverance of MONA's mission. The conclusion to Her story. We bring the nullification and erasure of all Fractals in Melysia, an undoing of Her children's sins."
"That's absolutely absurd," I said. "How would you even get that to work? How would you connect the Null to Overlord? The Null is inside me."
"How else have you connected to Overlord before, Klyson? Think."
The realization shot me in the head.
"The Hive Minds…"
"Yes, Klyson. And by the point you've returned to that utility once more, you'll have logged the complete Fractal wavelength spectrum."
"I won't need to shed blood to use the Null by that point?"
Ian shook his head. "As long as you've already nullified a Fractal of a particular wavelength range, your Null could then erase any Fractal pertaining to that wavelength range. You would no longer require contact with their blood."
I stared at my hands and arms, lathered in the blood of my victims from Chrono.
"So sending me to Chrono with the Null was to gather a range of Fractal wavelengths, which I would eventually use on all of Melysia with Overlord?"
"Yes, and without shedding innocent blood either. Aren't you glad?"
Innocent?
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Your biggest worry was having to shed the blood of innocents all over again, like you did with the HP Fractal executions. Your mission with the Null at least involved only Chrono members."
I recalled a glimpse of what I saw in there, in Chrono's underground hideout. The rooms full of members, all stuck in Time Prison for who knew how long before their minds would break and eventually concede to Delfina's control. They were all clearly changed against their will.
They were innocent.
It was only Delfina and her husband who weren't. They'd orchestrated everything with their delusions, and used their Fractals to commit to those goals.
Innocent…
These thoughts reminded me all too well of something similar. Something I had already seen before, witnessed, and fallen victim to directly.
Ian… His proxies, his controlling Fractal… The apartment…
Soho.
The idea spiked my mind. The fact that Soho was just an innocent girl who'd decided to follow her brother figure, Enzo, as they escaped the orphanage, only to end up in a place where her mind would be taken over and her morals rewritten.
The story just keeps rewriting itself in different places by different people. But they're all wicked the same!
"What is it, Klyson?"
I need to get out of here with Soho. We've been under control for too long.
"You're pondering to yourself again. That mind of yours is loud."
I need to do something before it's too late. Before it's too late for the both of us.
"Stand."
The ominous command struck a chord. I looked back up at Ian, confused.
But I'm already standing…?
"Not you," Ian shook his head. "Her."
I turned around to find Soho rising to her feet. Her head was still lowered and her hair drooped over her face. I couldn't help but wonder why.
Ian spoke up again. "After sweeping Chrono, you've nearly logged the entirety of the Fractal wavelength spectrum. There is only a tiny wavelength range that remains."
My heart felt like it had stopped beating as Ian said these next words.
"Soho's Fractal perfectly covers that remaining wavelength range."
My chest tightened. "No… You're not saying…?"
"I am saying." He was stern. "You're to wipe Soho's Fractal and complete the entire wavelength spectrum, Klyson. This is necessary."
"Necessary?" I turned around. "How?!"
"Not only do you require the entire wavelength spectrum to wipe all of the Fractals in Melysia, but it too is required for Wrath."
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"The Sin of Wrath has a one of a kind Fractal. It is so overbearing that it emits a wavelength range as large as the entire spectrum itself. This means that you need the entire spectrum logged already in order to nullify their Fractal. That is unless, you're willing to come within blood-shedding distance of the most dangerous living thing on this planet."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I'd erased dozens of Fractals with the Null by now, and killed even more with HP Fractals. Now, karma had finally come full circle and forced me to do it to one of my own. But I couldn't concede.
"Just send me back down to the ground! I'll find someone else that covers the same wavelength range that we need! It doesn't need to be Soho!"
"We have three days Klyson."
"Three days is enough time! I got rid of Chrono in less than a day! Didn't you say we're ahead of schedule!?"
"You found Chrono quickly because they were looking for you too. The same can't be said for a random Melysian civilian with the exact wavelength range that we need."
"I'll do it in a day! Just send me back out there!"
"The entire country is on lockdown, Klyson. Everyone is hiding because of you. What makes you think you can find what we need so easily?"
"What makes you doubt me?!"
"I don't. That's the thing. It's the fact that we're running on pinched time, and we already have what we need right here, right in front of us. Why waste more time to go further out of our way?"
"Because it's Soho! She's one of our own!"
"She's a pawn, Klyson. A proxy. A follower. She'll do whatever I need her to do, just as she's done all of these years."
I was shivering with rage. "I only inherited the Null to guarantee her safety. You can't do this!"
"I'm not asking you to kill her, Klyson. You just need to erase her Fractal. That's it."
"But that's her Fractal!"
"And so was everyone else's that you've already erased. How much different is this case from the rest? Just because she's special to you, it doesn't discriminate her from the equal treatment you've instilled on everyone else."
My mind was spiraling. I couldn't bear taking away Soho's Fractal. All this time that I've known her, worked with her, and shared moments with her, I could tell just how much her own Fractal meant to her. She correlated her own usefulness with her Fractal, and defined herself with it. It was a part of her, just as much as a hand or a foot was. Taking it away from her would disable a part of her. I wouldn't choose to ever do that to her.
"The sooner you do this, the more time we have to get to a Hive Mind and connect the Null to Overlord. If we can accomplish those steps before Wrath is released on the third day, we win this war against A.X.A. We win against Michael."
"Is this all you care about, Ian? Using those at your disposal just to meet an end? How much more until it's enough for you?"
"Until the reemergence of Wrath is impossible, a second-coming of the Filtering is avoided, and MONA is satisfied. Only then will it be enough." Ian sighed. "You don't understand what more is at stake here than just that proxy's Fractal, Klyson. You haven't seen what I've seen."
I couldn't bear it. I grappled with my mind.
"I was there from the start. I lived through the Filtering, and one was more than enough. I watched the world change with Fractals. I've seen everything you couldn't possibly fathom. What makes you think that you could make the proper choice here?"
I understood that. I recognized that what was happening was bigger than just my emotions and ideals. But it seemed like it had always been that way. No matter where I was, there was always something bigger going on than what mattered to me personally. And as a result, I always had to cast everything aside to make way for and fulfill the responsibilities established by others. No matter how people made me feel, it was never about me.
It was about what I could provide with what I had.
The vessel, my shell and my being, didn't matter as much as what I had inside me that could prove useful to others. First it was Flow State, now it was the Null. But after all of this was over, what of me mattered anymore? If everything but my abilities was always neglected and ignored, what would I be left with once this was all done? Would I just be a nobody all over again?
Ring-ring-ring!
The memory of my phone ringing in a small, little office. A tiny dorm with a window view obstructed by a brick wall. Two years of nothing in those rooms. Two years until I was finally noticed and given a chance.
I don't want things to be like that again.
I wanted to continue to live as someone who existed. Someone who was noticed, and not forgotten.
If it leads to that, what even is the point of all this?
There was no point.
"You're contemplating the point of it all, aren't you?" As if Ian had read my mind. "You always stare at the floor and ponder when your ideals have been driven into a corner."
"So what…?"
"It's no use. You don't have a choice. Have you forgotten that?"
A spark of frustration ignited from within. "What makes you think I can't choose my own path from here?"
"Because your path intersects with hers."
I panicked hearing that. I turned around to face Soho again.
"Keep him still for me." The command blew past me from behind, connecting only with Soho. She looked up at me, not a single glimmer in her eyes.
"Static."
I felt my feet glue to the floor. My heart rate shot up.
No. There's no way this is happening.
I turned my neck over my shoulder as far as I could, screaming at Ian. "What are you doing?! You're controlling her with absolution!?"
"She's always been under my control, Klyson. Just physically this time around." He put a hand on my shoulder, and leaned-in close to my ear.
"You thought you had the upper hand, didn't you? You thought I wouldn't notice?"
Sweat dripped from my forehead. "What…?"
"I can tell when someone's mind is loosening from my control. What made you think I couldn't tell when someone was completely free of my control?"
Shit! He caught on to my immunity!?
I was too stunned to speak.
"I don't need your response. It didn't matter either way. Even if you're somehow immune to my Fractal, she clearly isn't."
My eyes were bulging at this point. My mind was racing. The only ace-in-the-sleeve I could have possibly had against Ian was caught, exposed, and now being used against me.
"What are you planning to do?" I asked.
"I'm going to force you into a corner." Ian was only looking directly at Soho at this point. "And the only way out is by doing what I need you to do."
"What…?"
Ian pulled a vial out of his pocket. It was red. Rather, it was filled with a red liquid. It looked remotely similar to the Sloth Factor Seris had handed me prior. He popped the cap open, then—
—!?
The vial's red liquid contents had just been poured over my head. I jolted from shock as the warm substance began to leak down my head, onto my face. I wiped it off with my hands, but now it lathered my fingers and palms. When I looked at it closely, I realized it resembled and blended in with what had already stained my hands.
Blood.
"What the fuck, Ian?" I looked at him with disgust. But he only looked straight ahead. His eyes were just on Soho.
He spared no attention for me in that moment.
"Kill yourself."
Those two horrible words echoed as they reached Soho. I then watched as she bleakly began to unsheathe her knife.
"Hey… Hey! What the fuck, Ian?! What did you just say!?"
Soho gripped her knife's handle tightly, slowly raising the blade to her neck. From pure instinct, I jolted forwards to put a stop to what was happening. I'd forgotten I was still stuck in place from Static. My body flailed forward but fell short. I tugged against the Fractal but to no avail.
"Soho! Soho, stop! Release Static!!"
I pulled with my legs so hard it felt like my ankles were going to rip. But I couldn't move. She was right in front of me, but I was still too far. I couldn't do anything with Static still active.
"What are you doing, Ian!? What are you telling her to do?! Why are you doing this!?"
"Before you awoke, I withdrew blood from her arm. That's what I've poured all over you." He looked at me, completely unphased, and appallingly on the brink of a grin.
"The conditions are met to use the Null, Klyson. The rest is up to you."
My mind went blank in that moment. My heart had been flushed by such an immense storm of feelings and emotions at the cruelty of this moment that everything about me had instantly shut down. Only a single sentiment could be discerned in this void.
Disbelief.