[298] Master of Consciousness (2)
Zion cocked his head, struck by a sense of déjà vu.
"Wasn't his name… Vincent?"
Arius walked across the carpet as he explained. "Most of him is a projection. The super-ego is heavily influenced by the father. Normally it would be strong enough to suppress the Egoists."
Ignite greeted them with a pampered smile.
"So—you say you have a cure for me?"
Arius, taken aback, couldn't answer for a moment. An oppressive aura pressed down like a wild beast looming at close range.
'Ridiculous. This is the super-ego even in a weakened state?'
Normally, a super-ego would be paralyzed when death is imminent. But Ignite still radiated vigor and presence.
'Can't help but be impressed.'
Even Arius, who had explored countless minds, had never seen a super-ego this powerful.
Someone with a steellike critical consciousness never lets their guard down. The rumors that Shirone could become top-tier were based on that very trait.
Zion snorted. "Putting on airs even while dying? Typical, unlucky bastard."
Arius thought Zion's super-ego must be very fragile.
"There's no medicine that will cure me. This world is already sick. So—what brings you to me? I'll let the first lie slide, but from now on you must tell the truth."
Because the super-ego rules reason, a clumsy lie wouldn't fool it. Arius spoke plainly.
"We have to kill Shirone."
The soldiers arrayed around them glared at Arius in unison. Under Ignite's control, they did not manifest as Egoists.
"Why should I do that?"
Ignite leaned back in his chair and lifted a massive axe with one hand.
The instant he gripped the weapon, the air grew heavy as reinforced steel and squeezed at the two men's chests.
Zion, terrified, drew Armand. Activating Diamond Armament, his sword split and wrapped around him like armor. At the same time Ignite's men raised their polearms.
Arius let out a reproachful sigh. But he needed Zion's help to achieve his goal, so he abandoned the planned strategy and joined the show of force.
"Hold him for a moment. It'll be quick."
"How do you plan to do it?"
Arius walked toward Ignite. The bluish light of the mental spell Confuse gathered in his palm.
"…I'll have to go in for mental restructuring."
* * *
"Cough! Cough!"
Shirone's party coughed as they stumbled out through the Stage 7 exit. The stench from the landfill had been burned into their minds; it still seemed to linger.
But things weren't any better here. Shirone's group stood frozen at the doorway, dazed.
Corpses with burst-open skulls lay strewn across the square. People were falling from rooftops like rain.
Elsewhere, citizens had erupted into brawls and were pummeling each other as if to kill. Even if it wasn't real, Shirone had never seen such a brutal sight.
Armin watched the scene with a grave expression.
If the behavior of the projections had escalated that far, it meant Xenogear's restraint was tightening faster than expected.
Shirone, watching his world collapse with sorrowful eyes, suddenly scowled. He mischievously grabbed Amy's hair and gave it a yank.
"Ow!"
Amy spun around, bewildered.
"What's wrong?"
"Don't block my view. I can't see."
Amy pouted.
Shirone treated others kindly as if nothing had changed, so he couldn't understand why Amy alone acted this way toward him. He felt like socking her, but he'd steeled himself before meeting the manifestation, so he swallowed his temper.
"Alright, sorry, whatever."
When Amy shrugged and turned away, Shirone grew more confused.
She was a good person and on his side. So why did he feel bad?
"Why did you come to save me?"
Amy flinched at the question from behind. She didn't turn, lost in thought for a moment, then answered shortly.
"Because you're my friend."
Shirone pulled a memory of reality from that remark. It was a terrifying memory, like a nightmare.
The world had been turned upside down and his body felt as if it were burning. On the opposite wall he saw Amy bound like a cocoon. He couldn't guess the exact circumstances, but the image filled him with extreme disgust.
"But you… you couldn't save me."
Amy bowed her head sadly.
Was that it? Was Shirone disgusted with his own weakness for failing to act?
"Shirone, that—"
As Amy turned to explain, an Egoist sprang up in front of her. She took a hurried step back; Arius and Reina also widened the distance.
Projections with burst-open heads began to transform one by one into Egoists and closed in on Shirone like a wall.
Reina glanced at Armin. "What's happening here?"
"Get away!"
Amy grabbed Reina's waist and launched herself toward the Stage 7 exit. Reina turned and saw a rain of arrows filling the sky.
Armin used Flicker to escape the shooting range.
Egoists swarmed toward Shirone. Seeing that, Amy slammed the door shut.
Thud! Thud!
Dozens of arrows struck the door; the hand on the handle went numb.
When the arrow storm subsided, Amy opened the door to check on Shirone. The Egoist that had coalesced into a spherical form was pierced with an unnerving number of arrows.
"Shirone! Are you okay?"
The Egoists separated and ebbed away like a receding tide, revealing Shirone standing in exactly the same posture as before. Even more Egoists approached in sullen stances and guarded him.
Amy let out a relieved breath and turned toward where Shirone was looking.
A host of troops was surging forward. Archers split to the sides while heavy cavalry pushed to the front.
"What the hell is that army?"
"They're Antitheses. Egoists rationalize the self; Antitheses criticize it. The stronger the super-ego, the more moral the Antithesis will be. If Shirone's Antithesis is moral, it'll be very strong. Don't let your guard down."
Amy was startled when she saw the cavalry commander. A middle-aged man with a massive axe on his back—his presence felt extraordinary even at a distance.
"Uncle Vincent?"
Aside from being about one and a half times larger and having scars on his face, he looked so much like Vincent that one could believe Vincent had come in disguise.
"I am the ruler of this city—I, Ignite!"
Ignite's shout echoed across the square. Even the jittery citizens snapped alert at the sound.
Ignite leveled his oversized axe horizontally and pointed at Shirone as he thundered, "Shirone! Everyone suffers because of your selfishness. What do you dream of as a commoner? Your power is not something you earned through your own effort! It must be handed over to others! Now I will end all suffering with your death!"
Amy looked at Arius in bewilderment.
"You mean that criticism belongs to Shirone? That's just the typical logic of a loser."
"That's right. It seems Arius manipulated the super-ego. Humans long for death as much as they long for life. Looks like we've been badly bitten."
"Shirone! Answer me! Are you just? After causing so much suffering, do you still wish to live?"
When humans are exposed to extreme fear or pain, a yearning to die can sprout. Arius had exploited the sickness of Shirone's world to manipulate Ignite easily.
Each time Ignite spoke, Shirone trembled.
To an Ego, the super-ego's words reverberated like scripture to a believer.
"That's right! It's all Shirone's fault this world is like this!"
"Killing Shirone is the only way to restore peace!"
"Kill him! Kill Shirone!"
The projections in the square cheered Ignite and raised the banner of rebellion.
They were all Antitheses, and as their numbers swelled, Shirone's manifestation weakened.
"Prepare yourselves! They're coming this way!"
As Armin shouted, heavy infantry stamped the ground and charged. Archers drew from left and right, and the citizens surged forward as an enraged mob.
"You'd be better off gone!"
A citizen gripped a plank and wound up for a full swing in front of Shirone.
At the same time, an Egoist embraced him and threw him to the ground. The Egoist transformed its entire body into teeth and began to chew; the Antithesis screamed as it was torn apart.
But Ignite's men couldn't be dealt with so easily. With brute strength that overwhelmed the Egoists, they swung their weapons repeatedly.
Egoists struck by Antitheses fell apart with hissing, deflating sounds.
"Kill Shirone! Everyone, charge Shirone!"
Dead projections turned into Egoists and fought to protect Shirone. Meanwhile, every citizen became an Antithesis.
Desire and reason collided in the center of the square.
In this close match, the variable that tipped the scales was Ignite's presence.
He was stronger than any Egoist, and his force far exceeded that of the other Antitheses. Each time he swung his giant axe, Egoists burst into dustlike fragments.
"Shirone! It isn't yours! Let go!"
Watching the fight, Armin couldn't believe it.
'How can this be?'
Reason was winning over desire.
That meant the conviction was incredibly strong—but given the circumstances, it was absurdly strong. Even a soldier willing to die for the country clutches more fiercely to life when his own life is at risk.
'Desire is supposed to be primal. People are literally getting their heads cut off in reality. Is this really the mind of an eighteen-year-old?'
Arius had probably not expected an Antithesis victory either. If Ignite captured Shirone, they wouldn't be able to obtain Ataraxia.
Shirone's conviction went beyond ordinary human belief.
Like the prophets of history, Shirone was someone who could willingly die for his faith.
"We must intervene. Let's join the battle."
Armin cast Flicker and slipped into the battlefield.
For now, saving Shirone was the top priority. If the manifestation fell, they'd never catch up to Arius again.
Amy defended herself with Fire Mist and raised a Fire Wall.
She drove a wall of flame along the boundary between Egoists and Antitheses, splitting the crowd.
Concentrating, she raised the height of the Fire Wall. The heavy infantry howled in agony, unable to shrug off their overheated armor.
Reina climbed onto a roof and picked off the archers. The arrows they'd bought from Nade had penetration several times stronger than in reality; a single shot could pierce two or three people easily.
"Step aside! I'll take him down myself!"
From beyond the Fire Wall came Ignite's voice. He tore through the wall of flames and revealed himself.
Shouldering his massive axe and taking a swing posture, his first target was Amy. Countless Egoists swarmed him, but one axe blow scattered them.
"Amy! Watch out!"
Reina slipped four arrows from the thigh quiver between her fingers.
In an instant she loosed a four-shot volley, each arrow aimed at a different spot: shoulder, wrist, thigh, heart.
Ignite didn't take his eyes off Amy, but he noticed the arrows approaching from the periphery. He gripped his giant axe with both hands and swept it in a spin.
A wind roared with a force no human could imagine.
Klang! Klang! Klang! Klang!
The high-penetration arrows struck the axe blade and didn't bounce off. Their shafts snapped at a right angle, lost all power, and tumbled to the ground.
"Foolish girl!"
Ignite spun his massive axe in dazzling arcs and continued charging. He then swung the blade behind his back right in front of Amy.
As his torso straightened, Amy felt as if a wall had risen before her. She had no time to cancel the Fire Wall and cast another spell.