EGO: Explore Game Online (LAMBDA)

The air grew tense as the Void Knight's voice boomed, commanding attention. His words carried an ominous weight, as if the very room was bending to his will.

"Art thou finished selecting all that thou requirest?" the Void Knight asked. He didn't wait for an answer. "Well, the fight shall now commence."

Ronin stepped forward first. "Abyss Sword!" he declared.

From thin air, a glimmering dark blade materialized in his hand, its surface swirling with shadowy energy. It shimmered like the night sky, yet staring at it too long felt like staring into the abyss itself—like gazing into the face of death.

Takashi was next, a confident grin spreading across his face. "Physical Enhancement!" he shouted, his body beginning to morph. Muscles swelled, his frame growing larger and more imposing, veins pulsing with raw power.

Ryoka wasted no time, his voice steady and commanding. "Abyss Fiend!"

A monstrous, shadowy figure appeared to his left, towering and exuding an aura of malevolence. Its form seemed to ripple with the energy of the void.

"And Fortuna!" Ryoka continued.

To his right, a radiant figure materialized, glowing with a soft, golden light. The Spirit of Good Fortune stood as a stark contrast to the Abyss Fiend, exuding hope and balance in the face of darkness.

Rosewalt stepped forward. "Divine Archery!"

A brilliant bow of pure light formed in her hands, accompanied by a quiver filled with gleaming, ethereal arrows. The weapon radiated a divine energy, its power unmistakable.

Sherry followed with a nod. "Requip: Shiryon HaGiborim!"

In an instant, her armor shifted, transforming into the Hero's Armor. The dazzling plate glowed with sacred energy, its intricate design a testament to its divine origins. The air around her seemed to hum with power.

Ichio stood silently. "I'm ready," he said.

Yasei grinned as he raised his hand. "World Daggers! Dagro!"

Twin daggers materialized in his grip, their edges gleaming with otherworldly power. The energy emanating from them felt sharp enough to cut through dimensions themselves.

The Void Knight stood unyielding, his dark armor gleaming as his blade materialize embedded in the ground. With a single motion, he lifted it and pointed it toward them.

"Get over here!" he roared, vanishing from his position in the blink of an eye.

In an instant, he appeared in front of Ichio, his blade descending with terrifying speed. The attack would have struck had Sherry not intervened. She warped in front of Ichio, her sword, parrying the blow with a resounding clang. The sheer force of the impact sent the Void Knight flying backward.

The Void Knight stood, his voice calm yet menacing. "I commend thy strength. Verily, ye mortals are indeed mighty."

Sherry smirked. "This sword... It's Excalibur. One of Arthur's greatest swords. The Holy Sword wielded by the Hero King, Arthur Pendragon. Its power is legendary."

The Void Knight rose again, his grip on his void blade tightening. He charged forward, but before he could strike, Yasei appeared behind him, his daggers poised for an attack.

"You're wide open!" Yasei said, driving Dagro toward his back.

The Void Knight, unfazed, uttered a single phrase: "Black Hole."

A miniature singularity formed in an instant, its gravitational pull threatening to consume Yasei.

"You think you can absorb me?" Yasei retorted, smirking. "Dimension Shift!"

In a flash, his body flickered out of existence, leaving the Void Knight's black hole to consume only emptiness. Yasei reappeared moments later, standing with his friends.

The Void Knight's eyes glimmered beneath his helmet, his tone shifting to one of genuine respect. "I see. So, y'all are indeed quite powerful. Then I have no choice... I will have to get serious."

The Void Knight lifted his blade, his presence growing more menacing as he uttered two chilling words: "Black Hole, Gravity Fuel."

A massive black hole materialized between him and Elohim, its pull immense. The forcefield of gravity it created was so powerful it pressed them to the ground, their knees buckling under the intense weight.

Rosewalt gritted her teeth, trying to steady herself. "I can't move!"

Takashi struggled, his enhanced muscles trembling as he tried to resist the crushing force. "This... gravity is insane!"

Ichio, standing tall despite the immense pressure, sighed. "Oh, a Metra-based attack. Well, it won't actually affect me."

The others turned to him in surprise.

"You're resistant to this?" Takashi asked.

Ichio nodded. "I might have resistance to Metra, but I can't dispel something this complex. It's far beyond anything I can understand."

Rosewalt raised her bow. "Then I'll take care of it. Divine Arrow!"

She released a brilliant arrow of pure light, its radiant energy soaring toward the black hole. But as it neared, the black hole absorbed the attack entirely, leaving no trace.

Her eyes narrowed. "So that's how it's going to be."

She closed her eyes, summoning a new weapon. "Reflection Bow," she intoned.

A bow of impossible design appeared in her hands, its form utterly incomprehensible. It was inside out, upside down, distorted and twisted in ways that defied logic. She summoned a matching arrow, its energy pulsing with similar irregularity.

"Reflective Tarten!" she declared, loosing the arrow toward the black hole.

The arrow reached its target and, rather than being absorbed, it inverted the black hole's pull, absorbing it entirely. The energy coalesced into a new form and shot back toward the Void Knight with unrelenting speed.

The Void Knight raised a hand, his voice calm yet commanding. "Erase."

The arrow disappeared instantly, vanishing without a trace.

Rosewalt's eyes widened in shock. "What? My arrow takes in any attack and reflects it back at the enemy, no matter how powerful. How did he erase it?"

Ichio turned to her, his expression grim. "Erasure isn't an Artem-based attack. It's more complex than that, even I don't fully understand it. And I doubt anyone can counter it."

The group fell silent, the weight of Ichio's words settling on them.

Takashi clenched his fists. "So he's just letting us live because he wants to. If we don't take him down fast, we're done."

Without hesitation, Takashi charged forward. "Shutter!" he roared, his fist smashing into another black hole the Void Knight conjured, shattering it into fragments before landing a powerful blow on the Void Knight, sending him flying backward.

The Void Knight landed and rose to his feet, dusting himself off. "I commend thy strength," he said, his tone still calm.

But before he could finish his sentence, Yasei appeared beneath him, emerging from the shadows with his World Daggers. He struck upward with incredible precision.

The Void Knight smirked. "Shift."

In an instant, he vanished, reappearing behind Yasei.

Yasei grinned. "Not bad, but I can do that too. Shift!"

He disappeared into Ichio's shadow, reappearing behind him.

Ichio's voice carried a warning. "Yasei, be careful. If you're not cautious, he might erase or corrupt you."

Yasei smirked confidently. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."

Ronin stepped forward, his Abyss Sword shimmering in his hand. "It's my turn. Come, Abyss Sword!"

The dark blade grew even more menacing, its shadows deepening as he charged the Void Knight. Their blades clashed with a resounding boom, the Abyss Sword and the Void Sword locking in a battle of pure energy.

As their weapons connected, the Abyss Sword began to draw the void from the Void Sword, siphoning its power. The Void Knight stepped back slightly, his tone impressed. "I see... so that is the Abyss Sword. It is indeed quite powerful."

Before he could finish, Sherry warped in front of him with impossible speed, her Holy Sword Excalibur glowing in her hands. She slashed toward him, the divine light searing the air, but the Void Knight parried her strike.

Their blades clashed in a flurry of exchanges, sparks flying with every impact. Sherry then switched positions with Ronin, who continued the relentless assault.

Meanwhile, Ryoka raised his hand, calling on the Abyss. "Bind him!" he commanded.

A massive shadow surged forward, attempting to halt the Void Knight's movement. But the dark tendrils failed to take hold, dissipating against the Void Knight's sheer power.

The Void Knight, unfazed by their combined efforts. "Verily ye mortals are indeed mighty, but might alone won't save thee from the void."

As the battle raged on, Ichio suddenly shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos, "Guys! I've finished analyzing the Void Knight! It was difficult, but I managed to do it somehow."

The group paused briefly, their attention snapping to him.

Ichio continued, "He's made entirely out of Metra energy. If we can find a way to disrupt the Metra in him, we might have a chance to defeat him."

Rosewalt frowned. "Doesn't that make him more of a concept than a living being?"

Ichio nodded. "That's what's strange. He's composed of pure Metra, but there's something else—human components. It's almost like..." He trailed off, unable to explain further. "I don't know why, but there's definitely a reason behind it."

Takashi's eyes gleamed as he clenched his fists. "Good thing I chose the Metra Fluctuation Artem. That means I can disrupt him!"

Before anyone could stop him, Takashi charged at the Void Knight, his steps resonating with sheer determination. The Void Knight raised his Void Sword to block the assault, but Takashi slammed his fist into the blade with a powerful shout.

"Fauna! Lauta! Kauta!"

As he invoked the Metra Fluctuation spell, a ripple of energy surged from the Void Sword into the Void Knight's body. The corruption spread like wildfire, distorting the knight's form. The stars embedded within his dark silhouette began to flicker and glow erratically. His entire presence warped as if he were unraveling.

The entire room, the Void of Abyss, suddenly plunged into complete darkness. A suffocating silence blanketed them as the group froze, unable to see or sense anything.

Then came the Void Knight's voice, fractured and faltering:

"Trig... trig... trig... forb... forb... forb..."

The voice echoed hauntingly, reverberating through the impenetrable darkness. It sounded broken, as though the entity itself was falling apart.

Ichio's voice broke the silence, urgent and commanding. "Something's wrong! This isn't normal. Guys, we have to do something, now!"

He turned to Ryoka. "Summon one of your devils with control over space. We need to stabilize this!"

Ryoka nodded, summoning his power. "Spatial Fiend, I Invoke you!"

A tear in space opened, and a devil wreathed in shimmering, otherworldly energy emerged. Its presence immediately countered some of the spatial instability.

Ichio glanced at Ronin. "You, too. Use the Null Sword!"

"Ichio, don't give orders I'm the leader here" Ronin shouted enraged.

"Shut it, this isn't the time Kenji, he knows what he's doing so just let him do his thing, besides he knows more about Metra than us" Sherry shouted, shutting Ronin up.

Ronin then planted his Null Sword into the ground. Its nullifying energy spread, working to neutralize the chaotic distortion.

Yasei stepped forward, "Gleipnir" conjuring the mystical Chains of Gleipnir.

"These chains can bind fates and connect them. I'll link the Null Sword and the Spatial Fiend together to stabilize this space."

As he invoked the chains, the links extended, the very essence of the Null Sword and the Spatial Fiend. The chains pulsed with power, locking the two entities into a synchronized effort to stabilize the collapsing space.

The room gradually regained form. Shapes and outlines returned, allowing them to see each other once more.

Ichio exhaled, relieved. "At least we can finally see. Now we have a chance to fight."

Takashi, frustrated, turned to Ichio. "Didn't you say disrupting his body would give us an opening? What's going on?"

Ichio shook his head, visibly unsettled. "I don't understand. This shouldn't be happening."

Suddenly, the Void Knight's faltering voice ceased. A moment of eerie silence followed, broken by a cold, monotone declaration:

"Forbidden Information Is Now Accessible. Those who seek 'IT' shall meet the end."

The group froze as a new voice echoed—a mechanical system voice, resonating like the interface of a game.

"A bug has been detected in the individual: Void Knight. Commencing reprogram."

The tension in the room became suffocating as the Void Knight's distorted form began to shift unnaturally. Lines of code flickered across his body, glowing faintly, as though his very existence was being rewritten.

 CHAPTER END.