Arthur remained kneeling on the lonely shoreline, the rhythmic sound of waves breaking against the sand becoming the only sound in the world. Before him lay seven motionless bodies arranged carefully side by side. Their clothes were still soaked from the sea, droplets of water rolling silently from their hair and disappearing into the wet sand beneath them.
Lisa's small hand rested peacefully against her chest while Finn's face still carried the faint determination he had worn even during his final moments of resistance. Kai's body lay at the very end, the massive hole through his chest making the brutality of what had happened painfully obvious.
Arthur's gaze slowly swept across each familiar face as countless memories resurfaced in his mind. He clenched his fists until blood once again flowed from his palms before forcing himself to calm down. Rage would accomplish nothing now, and vengeance could wait.
If there remained even the slightest possibility of bringing them back, then that possibility had to become his only priority. His breathing gradually steadied as his thoughts became orderly once more. 'Think... There has to be a way.' One possibility after another flashed through his mind before being discarded almost immediately.
Conventional healing was meaningless against death. Even his regeneration couldn't restore life once the soul had departed. Then suddenly his eyes lit up and his heartbeat quickened as an ability surfaced within his memory 'Animakinesis'.
His eyes slowly widened. "That's right..." he whispered. "Souls..." Immediately the despair clouding his thoughts receded slightly. Animakinesis wasn't an ability he had ever seriously explored because until now he had never possessed a reason to manipulate souls.
Yet its very existence meant one thing, souls were tangible entities. If souls could be manipulated... Perhaps they could also be returned and the description of this ability clearly mentioned the possibility of resurrection.
Without wasting another second, he immediately moved into action. Before worrying about the souls themselves, he first needed bodies capable of sustaining life once again. Although he had yet to obtain Biokinesis, healing someone significantly weaker than himself was no difficult task anymore.
He slowly extended both hands as brilliant Aether spread across the seven corpses like countless streams of light. The first thing he focused upon wasn't regeneration itself but the lingering divine intent remaining inside every wound.
Judas wasn't merely stronger than them, every attack he delivered carried traces of his divine authority capable of continuously preventing ordinary healing. Arthur carefully concentrated, using his Aether to isolate that foreign intent before gradually erasing it from each wound.
The process required extraordinary precision. Had he simply flooded their bodies with overwhelming energy, he might have damaged the already fragile corpses further. A few minutes passed before the final remnants of divine intent finally dissolved into nothingness.
Arthur quietly exhaled before beginning the true healing process. His attention first settled upon Lisa. Through his spiritual perception, every muscle fiber, blood vessel, nerve and broken cell became visible with perfect clarity. The wound through her chest had completely destroyed her heart.
He gently manipulated Aether throughout the damaged tissue as fresh myocardial fibers slowly began weaving themselves together. Tiny blood vessels branched outward before larger arteries gradually formed around them. Chambers reconstructed themselves layer by layer until a completely healthy heart once again rested inside her chest.
He repeated the same procedure for every one of them. One by one, shattered hearts slowly became whole once more. Sweat gradually accumulated upon his forehead despite the process itself consuming relatively little energy. What exhausted him wasn't power but the fear of making a mistake.
A single mistake while reconstructing such vital organs could render resurrection impossible even if the soul eventually returned. Once every heart had been restored, he shifted his attention toward another equally important issue, blood.
Every one of them had bled to death, and empty blood vessels still stretched throughout their bodies like dried rivers. He gently infused Aether into their bone marrow, stimulating it back into activity despite death having halted every biological function. New blood cells slowly began forming. Bone marrow released fresh crimson streams into newly reconstructed vessels while oxygen carrying cells rapidly multiplied.
Veins gradually filled once more as color slowly returned to their previously pale complexions, their skin regained a faint warmth. Fingertips that had already begun turning white gradually recovered healthy coloration. Apart from their complete lack of breathing, they almost looked asleep.
Arthur finally leaned back slightly, studying each of them carefully. Physically... they had recovered almost completely. If someone examined them now without understanding what had transpired, they would likely conclude that they were merely unconscious. Yet Arthur knew the most important part remained missing. Bodies alone meant nothing without the souls that gave them life.
Closing his eyes, he slowly activated Animakinesis for only the second time since obtaining the ability. A golden crown appeared above his head and his vision changed instantly. The sea, sky, Avalon and even the physical bodies before him gradually faded into translucent outlines while seven threads appeared throughout his vision connecting to the seven bodies and extending towards the sky.
Arthur remained perfectly still as his new perception adjusted itself. His eyes slowly followed the seven threads into the sky. High above the clouds floated seven soft white spheres radiating gentle light. Each orb pulsed faintly, yet their brilliance visibly weakened with every passing second as though they were slowly dissolving.
He immediately recognized what he was looking at. "...Souls." A wave of relief washed through him so powerfully that his shoulders almost sagged. They were still here, they hadn't yet entered the cycle of reincarnation. It was only the second time in his life he had ever perceived souls directly.
The first had been during his own transmigration when his consciousness drifted between life and death before awakening inside another world. At the time, he had been too confused to understand what he had witnessed, now everything became clear. Since they died just a few minutes ago their souls didn't have time to enter the cycle of reincarnation and were still lingering in the world.
"Thank God..." he whispered almost unconsciously. "I'm not too late."
His ability helped him locate their souls and anchor them to their bodies, but like every power nothing comes free. To resurrect someone using this ability he had to sacrifice his lifeforce, it was the Law of Equivalent Exchange.
If someone still possessed another hundred years they were destined to live, then resurrecting them required sacrificing one hundred years from the user's own lifespan. Under ordinary circumstances, such a price would deter almost anyone. Resurrecting six Sage Rank experts and one Grandmaster whose natural lifespans extended for thousands of years would consume an unimaginable quantity of life force.
Yet Arthur merely nodded once before dismissing the concern. His special Soul Origin constantly regenerated his vitality. Lifespan itself had long since become little more than another recoverable resource. If sacrificing thousands of years worth of lifeforce could return them... then he wouldn't hesitate for even a moment.
"Let's begin..." he murmured quietly. Extending both hands toward the seven fading soul orbs, he carefully established connections with each one through Animakinesis. Gentle spiritual force surrounded every soul, anchoring them temporarily against the growing pull of reincarnation.
Then, one by one, he slowly guided them downward. The seven white spheres descended gracefully through the sky until they hovered directly above their respective bodies. Arthur's concentration reached unprecedented levels. This was completely unexplored territory even for him. Every movement had to remain flawless, a single careless mistake might permanently damage a soul itself, something not even his regeneration could ever repair.
Slowly... almost imperceptibly... he began sacrificing his own lifespan. An invisible force flowed from deep within his existence before transforming into pure life essence that nourished the seven waiting souls. Instantly Arthur's face became noticeably paler, before again becoming brighter as his Soul Origin regenerated the consumed vitality faster than it disappeared.
Even so, the brief sensation of life itself leaving his body remained profoundly unsettling. Thousands upon thousands of years quietly vanished, only to be restored seconds later by the endless vitality contained within his Soul Origin. He ignored the discomfort completely as he was used to it by now, maintaining absolute focus upon the delicate process unfolding before him.
Gradually the seven souls responded. Their fading brilliance stabilized before each one slowly descended into its corresponding body. Arthur felt hope ignite inside his chest as the final soul disappeared beneath the skin.
"Come on..." he whispered. "Just one more step..." Yet the moment he attempted the final stage... everything stopped. His expression froze, the souls had entered the bodies... but they refused to bind.
They drifted inside their bodies like loose flames trapped within empty vessels, refusing to reconnect with flesh, blood and spirit. Arthur immediately tried another method, carefully manipulating Animakinesis to weave the souls back into every cell of their bodies, but nothing happened.
Sweat began pouring down his face. He even sacrificed additional lifespan hoping greater energy might complete the missing step but still nothing happened. The souls remained detached. Worse... he could feel the invisible force pulling upon them growing steadily stronger. The pull from the Cycle of Reincarnation hadn't stopped, he had merely delayed it.
His breathing became increasingly ragged as each of his attempts failed. His fingers trembled despite his extraordinary self-control. Minutes rapidly passed as the pressure acting upon the seven souls continued increasing. Even maintaining their presence inside the bodies became increasingly difficult.
Arthur gritted his teeth so hard that blood slowly trickled from the corner of his mouth. "No..." he muttered. "Not like this..." He poured even more concentration into Animakinesis, desperately searching for the missing piece. Yet the truth gradually became unavoidable, his understanding simply wasn't sufficient.
Animakinesis itself wasn't incomplete; he was. At his current level, he might successfully resurrect an ordinary mortal who possessed a Mortal Soul, as it possessed little resistance and its existence remained relatively simple. But these seven... they were powerful mages and martial artists. Their souls had undergone evolution throughout the years and had evolved into Awakened Souls.
Rebinding such powerful souls to their bodies required a mastery over Animakinesis far beyond anything he currently possessed. Arthur slowly lowered his trembling hands, unwillingly accepting the conclusion despite wanting to continue. His chest tightened painfully as the invisible pull upon the souls intensified further.
Within only a few more minutes, the Cycle of Reincarnation would reclaim them regardless of how much lifespan he sacrificed. His eyes slowly closed before reopening with renewed determination. "...I won't give up on you guys," he whispered quietly while looking at the seven peaceful faces before him.
***
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