Arc 49 - Darkness

At the edge of the universe:

Nazar is floating in front of an angel, who is being held by shackles.

The universe around the angel is slowly started to crumble. The matter, energies, light, sound everything is starting to disappear into this void. And the void is trying to envelop our universe.

“Can Reality Restoration help?”

The angel was in too much pain to even think about an answer.

After a little while, he mustered some strength to answer.

“May...be...”

As he said that, the angel lost consciousness.

(Reality Restoration. Maximum level.)

Reality Restoration. A power that allows the user to restore the reality that has been altered.

As he added the power, a massive energy ball was created in front of Nazar.

After a little while, the energy ball was big enough to envelop an entire bus in it.

Nazar increased its output and as he did that, it blew up.

As the energy ball exploded, the reality was fixed and the universe was no longer crumbling.

However… it was only for a split second.

It did not help at all.

Nazar’s hand lit up with green energy. He then went closer and punched the angel, which restored his health. It was not just health, his wings reappeared too.

“Ah? Wh-what?”

Nazar placed his hand behind the angel’s back.

“I don’t care what happened or how it happened… just fix this.”

“I… I cannot.”

He then tossed the angel away. However, the angel started to float after a few seconds… but he did not show any hostility towards Nazar.

“I am a low-class ange--”

“I don’t give a fuck. I just need to fix this shit.”

As Nazar said that, he went off, leaving the angel at the edge of the universe.

Moon of planet Xiem:

Reaper, Norse God, Iket, Luan, and many other soldiers were using everything they could against the demon. However, they were not doing anything. They were merely prolonging the inevitable.

“Where is Nazar?” Eddie said as he dodged a hellfire attack of Bur’goth.

Reaper flew between Bur’goth’s legs and then started to fly high. Once he was high enough, he punched Bur’goth in the jaw, which threw off his balance.

“I don’t know. I don’t sense him anywhere in this solar system.”

“He went to the edge of the universe,” Luan said as she created multiple magical circles around Bur’goth.

The magical circles lit up and then blew up like bombs.

However, it did not affect the fiery demon.

“E-edge of the universe?” Eddie said as started to focus all of his thunder towards Bur’goth.

“We have to buy him time,” Iket said as shot energy beams towards Bur’goth while floating above his soldiers.

As the divine ruler, he gets many different abilities, such as strength, speed, flight, energy emission, telepathy, telekinesis, mind control, override (can take control of any citizen of Vanaha Empire. He can also manipulate their thought process and their emotions, too.), Nigh-Omnipresence, teleportation, force field generation, enhanced senses, DNA manipulation, matter manipulation, energy manipulation, retrocognition, enhanced combat, and more.

“Master is returning.”

Solace could now speak like a normal human being. However, she was emotionless and expressionless. Furthermore, her body was made of nanotech.

“Huh? Why? And who is that?” Eddie said as he created wind to try and use it with his lightning.

Iket sighed.

“That is Nazar’s AI.”

“And why does she sound like a cute anime girl.”

“I don’t know...” He paused. “Anyway, did he finish what he was supposed to?”

“I don’t know,” Solace replied.

More magical circles appeared around Bur’goth.

He laughed as he saw the circles. He thought that it was another explosion related magic circle.

However, he was wrong. It was a teleportation spell.

As soon as the magic was activated, Bur’goth was stuck in a constant loop. He was being teleported from one place to another and it was happening too fast.

Even then, Bur’goth did not stop laughing.

Within seconds of its activation, he teleported into the moon and didn't teleport out.

“As a demon, it hurts my pride to say this, but I also know and use angelic magic. So, I can intercept your spells pretty easily.”

“Spell negation…?” Luan muttered. “Shouldn’t work on normal magic, right?”

“I am ready.”

“Ready for what, Solace?”

Iket landed on the ground.

“Please clear the way.”

As she said that, they were confused.

“Please move away from where you are.”

They all looked confused.

Within a minute, the demon stood alone in the battlefield.

He laughed.

“I wonder what you are planning now.”

Solace appeared in the battlefield. She was wearing a black maid uniform with a little white in here and there and it was as short as a miniskirt. She had red hair and blue eyes. She had a massive cleavage that showed most of her enormous breasts.

“Oh?” Bur’goth’s laughter was replaced by confusion.

Eddie was very far away, but he could still see her.

“...?” He looked confused. “What the hell, Nazar? I never expected this from you.”

As Solace walked closer towards Bur’goth, her right hand’s skin got ripped in half vertically. The skin vanished and a weapon could be seen.

She pointed the weapon that looked like a just the barrel of a handgun.

“...?” Bur’goth looked even more confused.

The weapon released something. It flew slower than the speed of sound.

It reached its target and it hit him. It did not hurt Bur’goth at all. To be honest, it would have not hurt even a normal human because the ‘bullet’ looked like it was made of paper.

Bur’goth laughed in confusion.

The others watched in confusion too.

THUD!!

Nazar landed next to Solace.

As he landed next to her, he looked at her up and down.

He then folded one of his arms and raised the other to his jaw.

“Mm-hmm....you look perfect.” Nazar said as he nodded.

“Thank you, Master,” Solace said as he hand was recreated.

“...?” Bur’goth looked at them in confusion.

Bur’goth and the others were looking at Nazar and Solace in confusion to notice something that was happening at the battlefield.

The small ‘bullet’ that Solace had shot was starting to expand.

Eddie landed next to Nazar and started shouting at him.

“What the hell dude? How can you be so calm? And who the hell is she? And why is she is so cute?”

“What…?” Bur’goth was the one who said that.

While he was looking at them in confusion, the ‘bullet’ had expanded into a bubble and had enveloped Bur’goth.

He punched it once, twice, thrice, but it was useless. It kept him in there.

“Don’t try too hard. All your magic is blocked. Including your demonic magic.” Solace said in an emotionless tone. “Of course, your strength is admirable… but my Master here has taken care of it.”

Everyone else looked confused. And so did Bur’goth.

What had Nazar done?

“Wha--”

Bur’goth did not even finish his fist word. He froze in his place.

“While I was coming back, I stopped time completely. You guys are the only ones who can move because I allowed it.”

“You know, time con--”

“There was no choice, Iket. The universe was crumbling from the edges. And we need to fix it before we are all dead.”

“We are not gods.”

“Not yet that is.”

Everyone was dumbfounded. They had no idea what he was even saying anymore.

Nazar lowered his gaze a little.

“I promised my sister that I will never play god anymore.”

Nazar held his palms close to one another.

“And I am not about to break that promise. Ever. It was the first serious promise we ever made.”

And energy ball appeared between his palms. It was too bright to even look at.

“If I cannot play god, then I can make someone else become a god.”

Everyone froze in their place.

The energy ball was as big as a tennis ball now.

“Reaper, will you do it?”

“...?”

Nazar released the energy ball and it floated in front of Reaper.

Iket and the others started to talk between them.

After a little while, Iket spoke to Nazar.

“You do know who he is, right?”

“Yes, I know. But he is our best chance right now.”

“He is a--”

“Criminal? Then what the fuck are you? You are just a bunch of pathetic beings who wage war on one another for no reason. I am the same as you. We have all killed countless people just because we can. This is not the time to say who is guilty and who is not. We all are. We are all responsible for the death and destruction on many planets. So if we even have the smallest chance of saving everyone and everything, then I don’t care who our saviour is.”

Nazar calmed down a little.

“The only reason I am choosing him is because he can come back out of this alive. He was able to recreate himself when he ‘exploded’, but most of you cannot. And if I increase my power, I will never be able to return back to normal.” Nazar took a deep breath. “Do you really want me to have that kind of power forever?”

Iket did not say anything after that.

Nazar took another deep breath and calmed down.

He then looked at Reaper.

“For a split second, you will become something more than us. You will reach a territory beyond that of mortals and angels and demons. You will have to become a god. Just for a split second and fix everything.”

“I cannot… I am not--”

“Do you accept it?”

Reaper looked at the energy ball in front of him and then looked down.

“If you want, you can bring back your son t--”

“No. No matter what you can do, you should never bring the dead back to life. They never return fully. Something will always be missing, no matter how fast you bring them back.”

Reaper’s words might not have meant much to the others, but it did a lot to Nazar. He had resurrected Aria, 625 and others before. Was it really okay for him to do that? And what was changed in them?

“Okay. So, do you accept the offer?”

“....Yes.” Reaper grabbed the energy ball with his right hand. “So, what do I need to do?”

“Once I turn you into a near omnipotent being, you need to go out of this universe. Go outside the universe and place the energy ball in it. It will fix everything. I will provide you will all the coordinates that you need to visit.” Nazar paused. “However, I can only keep you in that form for just a minute.”

“Are you sure it is possible?”

“It’s worth a try.” Nazar looked at Eddie and the others. “By the way, once Reaper gets to work, I will need to focus all of my energies on him. So, I will be vulnerable.”

“Then that--”

“Yes. It means the time will continue to be. And the demon will once more be able to move. So, I need you guys to protect me.”

“Okay.”

“Thanks, Eddie. ”

Nazar then went close to Reaper and place his index finger on Reaper’s forehead. He gave Reaper all the information he needed and where he needed to go.

Then Nazar unleashed all of his power into Reaper and he became too bright to even look at. Some would think that he was about to explode, but it was different. He was no longer mortal. He was no longer in the same category as the people of this universe.

As soon as the Reaper reached the next category of beings, he moved faster than anything else. In an instant, he was outside of the universe.

As he left, the time started to move once more.

“--t?”

Bur’goth looked around in confusion.

“I thought you said you took care of me?”

Nazar dropped on his knees.

Blood came pouring down from his eyes, nose, mouth and his veins popped. Streams of blood were coming out of his body.

Bur’goth laughed.

“Seriously? Are you still trying to do something to me?”

50 seconds.

Nazar dropped to the ground. However, his eyes did not close. His eyes were giving off pure white light.

At that moment, Eddie jumped high and shot all of his lightning towards Bur’goth.

Even though he was inside a bubble, he shot through it.

Solace analysed what he was doing, so she made sure that all the lightning reaches its target and not leave.

“Arghh!!”

For the first time in this battle, Bur’goth flet true pain.

Iket, Luan and the others threw all their energy attacks at the bubble, and Solace made sure that it enters the bubble and not come back out.

40 seconds.

Even though Bur’goth was in pain, he did not stop punching the bubble.

“Don’t try too hard. The shield is similar to the one Kiet used on my Master, not long ago. All attacks from you equal to 0.”

Bur’goth’s eyes widened.

The others kept attacking over and over again.

While this was going on, Reaper had already reached the place outside of the universe. He had also already placed the energy ball in the specified location Nazar had given him.

All he had to do was place the energy ball in the place where the angel was but do it from the outside.

After a few seconds, the universe started to recreate. The place that was crumbled, started to recreate. The void was no longer enveloping the universe.

Back in the battlefield, Nazar was lying face down on the ground and he was 100% vulnerable. If someone were to shoot him, he would die. Of course, he would be back but his plan would fail. The universe will not be fixed.

30 seconds.

(Ah. I get it now.) Bur’goth thought.

He smiled and he stopped punching the bubble from inside.

(You wanted me to use all my powers, didn’t you?)

He clenched his wings.

(You wanted to see the limits of my powers and see me use the powers so you can create countermeasures.)

His wings lit up with energy. It was not fire, but pure energy that he had stored within his body. Just like humans and other beings, demons also store many forms of energies within them. So, Bur’goth pushed all the energies from his body and added it to his wings. His grey wings were glowing like a rainbow.

(So, the only powers you can countermeasure are the ones I have used.)

His wings started to look like glass.

(You are so pathetic.)

He slashed the bubble with his wings and he was free of the bubble once more.

Solace tried to create another one, but he had attacked her and ripped her in half. This all happened with a blink of an eye.

20 seconds.

Bur’goth without wasting a second, he moved to Eddie and strangled him. Popping his eyeballs in the process.

He then moved to Iket and punched a hole through his chest.

He then moved towards Hoel and ripped his head apart.

Then a magic circle appeared beneath Luan. The magic circle turned into a massive explosion, which blew her apart with ease.

He then moved towards Wep and ate her head.

Kiet, Wep and Hial and Lian saw the death of their parents and friends. The beings whom they loved and hated at times. The beings who were dear to them.

They all shouted, but they were too far away. Their screams did not even reach the demon and frankly, he didn’t care. He just wanted to see them suffer emotionally.

Bur’goth stood victorious in the battlefield. The leaders of the biggest empires were dead.

And all it took was 5 seconds to do so.

15 seconds.

Bur’goth walked towards Nazar, who was lying face down on the ground.

“Ah, you are so pathetic. Did you really think you guys stood a chance against me? I have been playing without until now.”

When he was close enough, he kicked Nazar in the stomach, thrown him away a little.

“Oh? Standing up now?”

Nazar forced his battered body to stand up.

10 seconds.

It took him a while to stand up.

5 seconds.

When he stood up, he was looking down.

4 seconds.

He raised his head and he was smiling.

3 seconds.

Bur’goth clicked his tongue in annoyance.

He increased his speed.

2 seconds.

In less than a second, he had punched Nazar in the chest.

1 second.

CRACK!!

The sound of bones can be heard.

Nazar started to cough out blood.

And there was a hole in his chest.

0 seconds.

But he still had a smile on his face.

His eyes opened. And he was in darkness once more.

1 second.

He was still inside the dark place with no sound or light.

2 seconds.

He smiled.

3 seconds.

He laughed and laughed but he could not hear himself.

4 seconds.

A light appeared.

5 seconds.

He raced towards the light as fast as he could.

6 seconds.

He caught the light.

8 seconds.

The hole in his chest was fixed.

9 seconds.

His heart started beating once more.

10 seconds.

He opened his eyes.

11 seconds.

He stood up in front of the demon once more while having a grin on his face.

“You lose, Bur’goth.”

Nazar twitched his fingers and Reaper appeared behind Bur’goth.

Nazar threw a punch at Bur’goth’s face from the front and Reaper did the same from his back.

WHACK!!

The two fists made contact with Bur’goth’s head and squashed it.

Nazar looked around and saw all the dead bodies.

Eddie’s body was starting to heal.

He then looked at Kiet and the others and he could see the sad emotions inside them.

He then looked at Reaper.

“Did you do it?”

“Yes. I did everything you told me. And the universe is back to the way it was.”

Nazar smiled.

“No. It is different.”

“Huh? Wh-what are--”

“That was not mere restoration. I made changes to the universe. I changed the laws of the universe.”

Reaper was in shock.

Eddie’s heart started beating again.

“The old laws were different. The universe was weak. It could have been destroyed with ease. I made sure that it will not suffer like this. Reality warping should not cause any problems to our universe now.”

Reaper tried to speak, but he was in shock.

Bur’goth’s head healed.

(Reality warping.)

Nazar added another power. As he crouched down next to Bur’goth, the moon was transformed into a grassland.

“See? There are no longer cracks. Reality warping is no longer causing us too many problems. It is not going to destroy us all.”

Bur’goth opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was, Nazar.

Nazar picked up Bur’goth’s head with one hand and brought it up, closer to his face.

He looked the demon in the eyes and said, “It’s time for you to pay.”

Bur’goth replied with a laugh.

“You are still a hum--”

“Yes, yes. I know. But I just spoiled all your plans. You will not reach your goal this time, demon.”

Nazar slammed his head into Bur’goth’s.

“Welcome to my universe, bitch.”

Eddie opened his eyes.

He slowly stood up and looked around.

He was in the middle of grassland.

As he looked around, the green grass had been turned to red in some places. It was next to the dead bodies of Iket, Hoel, Luan and Wep.

Nazar then turned the grassland into a desert.

As Eddie saw that, he froze in his place.

Nazar then picked up Bur’goth by his throat.

“You cannot kill me. I mean, I am too powerful to be killed by you.”

Nazar did not pay attention.

He closed his eyes and once he opened it, it was lit up with scarlet energy.

Bur’goth’s laugh vanished.

His face grew pale and pale.

“Wh-what are doing to me?”

Nazar tilted his head a little.

“Ever heard of DNA manipulation? I am rewriting your DNA.” Nazar paused and smiled. “Once you die, you will return back to your current state, but for now, you will be nothing more than human.”

“N-no.”

Within seconds, Bur’goth was a human. However, his appearance did not change.

“I can no longer feel my power… I cannot access my magic.” Bur’goth moved towards Nazar. “Just what have you done to m--”

Before he could reach Nazar, he was killed by Kiet. He was shot with a weapon made of dark matter.

“DIE, YOU DEMON!” Kiet shouted on top of his lungs as he kept shooting Bur’goth.

Within seconds, Bur’goth’s body could not be identified.

Nazar had manipulated the reality to temporarily weaken Bur’goth and make himself more powerful.

Reaper pulled him back a little.

Nazar looked around and saw the crying faces of people he barely knew a few hours ago.

Eddie walked close to Nazar.

“Solace, are you okay?”

- Yes, Master. My physical form if not my real form. -

“By the way, thanks, Solace. You were a big help.”

- I am here to serve you, Master. -

Eddie looked at Nazar in confusion.

“Just… just what happened?”

Nazar restored the reality to what it was.

It was darkness once more.

“It’s time for us to take a leave. Our job is over. This is no longer our problem.”

Nazar and Eddie left them on the moon of planet Xiem and went back home.