Suddenly his wishes to conquer the citadel and leave seemed impossible. His mind spun trying to take in how something like that could even exist under the laws of physics. It should have been impossible and yet there it stood on the horizon like a profane rebellion to the natural order. A subtle change occurred in Gwin's world. Everything grew startlingly clear and dreadful. He looked around dazed at the city below, the castle in the distance, the tyrant inhabiting it, the cyclopean tower on the horizon, and the inconceivably large crater that the city stood on the edge of. His situation was finally sinking in.
'I'm never getting out of here am I?'
Fighting a fallen terror might as well have been the same thing as fighting an earthquake or a tornado. How does one beat a force of nature? Despair flooded his empty stomach making him feel sick. He staggered to the ground for a moment to catch his breath and calm down. He had a divine aspect after all, if there was anyone who could get out of here it was him right?
His attempts at staying positive were hollow. He wished to just simply melt into the stone and disappear.
'Mom, Dad, Verene, Yura…I'm so sorry, I'm not making it home to you guys..'
A strange croaking sound escaped his mouth as he choked back a sob. He didn't bother extending his senses in case something was lurking nearby but despite that a smell caught his attention. He made out the faint scent of…humans? A breeze carried the familiar scent over the wall from the outside of the city in the direction of the vast crater. Before he could react and investigate the scent a hand shot over the edge and grasped the edge of the wall before a young man much shorter than himself around his age hoisted himself over the edge. Gwin looked at him dazedly not truly believing what he was seeing was real. The young man had pale white skin even paler than his despite his attribute [Bestial Vitality] making him look like a vampire after spending that much time under ground. His hair was black with a hint of luster to it and his eyes were like two onyx gems. He wore a set of thick black leather armor inlaid with black silk and held an austere silver tachi in his hand. For a moment Gwin believed he was the grim reaper here for his hollow and despairing soul. However the grim reaper wasn't alone as the grating sound of something scraping resounded from the wall he had just climbed up from. Another hand shot up as an all too familiar figure arose followed by a pretty girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. It was changing star. She was wearing sleek silver armor with seven stars embellished onto it. Under her armor was a skin tight black under armour that hugged her lithe frame. She held a golden rope in one hand with the other end of the rope being tied to the girl with blonde hair. The blonde haired girl was beautiful. Her features were smooth and her blue eyes were radiant however Gwin couldn't help but notice a strange dissonance in them.
Still standing there from the shock of this unexpected arrival and dealing from the aftermath of Vlad's sonar attacks he failed to put on a proper look. He must have looked quite feral since changing star and the small pale man instantly readied their blades in his direction. There were a few meters between them as changing star finally spoke.
"Are you… are you a human?"
Gwin clicked his tongue to her question and moved his hands.
{Am I so ugly that you can't tell?}
As soon as his hands began moving they flinched however the blonde girl remained oblivious instead addressing her companions.
"Nephis? Sunny? Is something happening?"
The boy named Sunny answered her quickly.
"There is a thing in front of us and I'm not sure whether it's a man or monster."
He said his voice inlaid with wariness and paranoia. What had these people seen to make them so wary and horrified?
'Oh wait..'
He just realized he had never dismissed the wings of the black locust and [Dark Wing]. To them he must seem like some type of nightmare creature posing as a human. To fix this he simply dismissed his cloak and wings. The rain of sparks filled the air and their expression visibly softened; however their underlying wariness never faded. Changing star spoke once again.
"It's not that you are ugly."
'Wait she knows sign language? Well I guess she is a legacy after all.'
Her voice was aloof and taciturn filling Gwin with an unknown emotion that he struggled to push down.
{Then is it because I'm dirty?}
He responded wishing to mess with their high strung group a little more. It was clear to Gwin that they did not yet know the bitter truth judging from the faint traces of hope he saw in their eyes. Before Changing Star answered, her shorter companion, Sunny, asked a question.
"Are you an awakened? Can you lead us to the citadel so we can leave this place?"
His voice was wary and tinged with anticipation, making Gwin's heart ache for him a little. These three must have been sent here at the same time as he was and yet they had spent the entirety of it so far trapped in that hellish labyrinth.
He couldn't help but hate them.
He hated the look of hope in their eyes. He hated that they survived the countless hardships that they must have endured to get here. He hated how despite all that they didn't have a single wound on their bodies while Gwin was covered in awful burns and had several broken ribs. He looked to changing star before answering with a wry smile.
{That's right I'm an awakened. If you want me to take you to the citadel you'll have to beat me in a fight though}
Changing star watched his hands with her indifferent silver eyes. Her companion named Sunny spoke up urgently.
"What is he saying? Can he take us to the citadel?"
Changing star addressed Gwin.
"I see no point in us fighting and you already appear to be quite injured."
"Tch"
Gwin clicked his tongue annoyedly. He could practically hear the pity in her voice. Her two companions seemed utterly useless as well. It reminded him of how Lena had carried him through the dream realm…was he the same as them?
His temper hit a critical point. He took on the glands and throat of the sun seeker while changing into the scorched aegis. They recoiled at his actions tense and ready for a fight. That's just what he wanted. To put her in her place and prove he was on top. So that nothing and no one could ever look down on him from above ever again. His neck began to glow with heat illuminating it from within as he opened his maw and shot an orb of flames straight towards changing star.
She met his sudden attack with dignified poise evading it while protecting the blind girl at the same time. Gwin was not done however and rushed to meet her with his claws. Her solemn long sword carved through the air connecting with his vambraces and gliding off. Her offensive didn't stop there as her elusive fighting style kept her blade ever moving and enigmatic. Gwin struggled to anticipate her attack. Well he had never been any good at that. Instead he braced for her blade with a frantic smile. The flat side of her blade crashed into his side knocking the air out of him. That had been what Gwin planned for. His features shifted and three bladed red tentacles shot from his arm towards her.
Despite her precarious position and his unnatural attack she deflected them easily however Gwin's onslaught wasn't done. She was still close to him and he used that to rush forward with his mouth that was now the fearsome beak of the remnant feeder. Gwin could feel it. The hesitation in her attacks. He wanted her to take this seriously, to try and kill him before he killed her because if she didn't….that meant he wasn't even strong enough for her to worry about.
She ducked narrowly avoiding his beak closing in on her face before kicking him heavily in the side. It was like kicking a brick wall with all of his defensive enhancements. With his aspect, charm, and armour working in tandem it was equivalent to wearing three armor memories at once. He didn't budge from his place instead he counterattacked by morphing into the perforated hunters features. His claws and tail work in tandem to attack. His shifting had gotten so fast that there was hardly a moment between swapped creatures. His tail functioned like a whip flying straight towards her right side while his claws flew towards her throat and stomach with chilling poise and precision. They became intertwined in a storm of limbs and steel. Gwin deflected her sword with his vambraces and brutally elegant and beastial style while she deflected his pointed blows with flowing and elusive grace. Gwin's strength was greater than hers, he could tell, and yet only a few of his blows barely hit their mark, almost as if she had let them through intentionally. Gwin had to admit he was being overwhelmed and she had not even used her aspect yet. His vision grew hazy for a moment allowing her sword to slip past his guard and connect with his temple with its broad side.
He hunched over and clutched his pounding head in agony as a trickle of blood escaped his ears and nose. He met changing stars through tear filled eyes. Her eyes where just as aloof and indifferent as they were before causing his blood to boil. Her two companions were standing off to the side. Sunny stood in front of the blind girl with a dark look on his face and his tachi poised and ready. He looked ready to kill him to Gwin's relief. At least someone thought of him as a threat. Just before he could continue his attacks changing star called out.
"You are not an awakened are you?"
Gwin smiled bitterly and clenched his teeth. He staggered back towards the city below. He giggled maniacally while clutching his face.
'Was it really that obvious?'
He wondered as he grew closer and closer to the edge recklessly.
'Burn in hell bastards! I can't wait for you to find out how screwed you are! Not even you can escape from this changing star!'
He cursed bitterly internally as he finally backpedaled over the edge. He made out the shocked faces of changing star and her companions as he plummeted to the city below