That's Why It's Called Falling... (Closed RP)

[mugenginga]

Yuugi was helping Anzu up when Nyx addressed the group. He paused and looked up at her with a frown, which actually deepened into his rare glare. His feelings of pity for her were the same as what they had been for Malik. The other teenager had been right in being angry at what he had been forced through, and those scars had been horrible. But it hadn't excused what he'd done to Jounouchi, and how many people he had probably forced to their deaths. Anzu's eyes widened as she saw Yuugi's expression, and she turned towards the thing in the sky.

Teddie twitched and managed to swing himself to his feet. He'd heard what Nyx Avatar had said, as the two healing spells ahd been cast around the time Nyx began to speak again. Atem had gotten to his feet without help, although he had used one of the pillars to his side to do so. He had heard the voice, and held no pity. If the situation were reversed? He glanced towards Yuugi and saw the glare. He had once gone away from what was fated for his Partner. But a whole world? No, he'd do what needed to be done to prevent that, as painful as it would be.

"We want to be happy, but not by giving up! What you're doing isn't giving anyone peace, its making them run away!" Yuugi shouted.

"I don't want any peace that won't let me be with my friends!" Anzu had straightened up as Yuugi shouted, "Life isn't all about suffering!"

"I believe in the strength of humans and the heart! I'm willing to fight for it with Sensei-tachi!" Teddie stated.

"What makes us human is we fight against the bad times so we can spend the good times among our friends. Running away by dying is inexcusable, no matter how often we may 'secretly' want to," Atem stated with a glare.

"Tch, would you quit talking to that wall up there and help me over here!" Kaido shouted, barely sidestepping an attack by a Shadow, "The only one that damn thing's even listening to is that Minato guy!"

"Anzu, look for trap and magic cards that can help! Nefertum, Diarahan!"

Jounouchi was on his knees around the time Minato gave his challenge to Nyx. He was holding his head and still trying to come to term with his surroundings. Atem gave a quick glare to the being in the sky and ran over, helping the blond to his feet. Kaido made another tch noise as Yuugi had his Persona heal him, but got back into the fight. Anzu might not have been any help, but as far as he was concerned Atsuro could quit standing there like an idiot.

"Atem-kun, what's..."

"Nyx is trying to convince us that we really want to die and she is doing us a service by killing us," Atem stated.

"I still have to kick Kaiba's ass before I keel over!"

Atem almost smiled at that, "No one's agreeing with her. Stay back until you can figure out a magic or trap card to use. Red Eyes went down when you were knocked out."

"I say that you can only speak of that because you see a chance," Nyx Avatar reached up to its face again. Its hand covered the entire mask, "What would you say if you didn't?"

The fingers pressed the edges of the mask, just above and forward from where the ears would be if Nyx Avatar had them. They pressed down with enough force to create holes, a sort of handhold. Black ooze characteristic of shadows seeped out from the holes, almost like blood. The face lost the usual unnatural elasticity it had as the hand pulled forward.

A sort of shloppy sound could be heard, and those with the right angle (pretty much limited to Minato) would see that the shadow ooze was pulling away from the mask as it lifted up. It still seemed to have what passed for hair on the being connected to it, and thick strands of shadow ooze stuck to it. With a jerk the entire thing was ripped off Nyx Avatar's face. There was nothing underneath, just... black. It almost seemed to be moving like an unidentifed Shadow mass and was rather unsettling. Nyx Avatar lifted the mask into the air and slammed its arm down, sending it to the ground where it completely shattered, the largest piece being smaller than a penny.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Minato realized with horror what Nyx was doing as she reached up to the face and pressed down. He was at exactly the right angle to see the bloodlike ooze and his defiant expression had changed to one of absolute horror as Nyx continued.

"No, stop it!" Minato cried as Nyx pulled at the mask. There had been no response, and she pulled the whole thing off. Minato had an expression of pure shock on his face as Nyx raised the mask into the air and then tossed it into the ground.

There was a moment of shocked silence from everyone. Amaterasu had stepped forward to sniff the shard of the mask that had flown her way. Even Abel seemed to have a degree of shock.

"Ryoji!" Souji cried.

"Why.... why would you do that?!" Naoto screamed. No, she knew exactly why. Because Ryoji meant nothing to Nyx. The same way Souji had meant nothing to Izanagi, Ryoji meant nothing to Nyx.

Minato was still staring on in shock. And then he raised his left hand. Four cards appeared in it. He held them up, closed his eyes, and then crushed them. Almost immediately there was a huge surge of power from around Minato. Because he'd chosen four very particular Personas to appear. Messiah, Helel, Lucifer, and Satan. Lucifer reached over and yanked the sword from Minato's shoulder, causing him to fall a few feet before Helel caught him and placed him on the ground.

Souji was gaping at the scene. He could practically feel the power coming off of Minato from here. Souji didn't even think it was possible to summon multiple Personas like that. Minato had never mentioned anything like a "Fusion Spell" around him. And even if he had, Souji wouldn't have thought it was possible to summon four. But the amount of exertion it took to summon one and control it... Minato was going to die if he kept it up.

Minato took a step toward Nyx. His right arm was hanging limp, and he appeared to be limping. He also seemed very tired. His face looked almost broken, and he was crying.

"Give him back," Minato said through the tears. He took another slow step forward, and then another. "Give him back, you bitch! Give him back!"

[mugenginga]

"Atsuro, get your ass over here!"

Yamato-Orochi had been defeated by the Shadows. And there were far more than before as Nyx Avatar lifted its hand into the air with the Ryoji mask. Anzu gasped as she realized the weight of everything being said and the actions the being was now taking. Yuugi felt helpless, and he shouted at Nyx to stop, but giving everything else that was going on it was pretty much missed. He didn't have any attacks strong enough to do any good.

Atem's eyes had widened. He'd realized what was going on as soon as Nyx Avatar had reached up to the mask. Minato was going to kill Nyx Avatar if that happened. Jounouchi glanced up, knowing that something terrible was about to happen mainly by the reactions of the group. Cain held out an arm to the group. There wasn't any time to stop the goddess, and recklessness would just get them killed. And then it had happened. The mask had fallen and shattered into dozens of tiny pieces.

"He is going to get everyone here killed," Cain said to himself. He turned to Abel, "Knock him out! If he kills it we won't have a chance!"

_{"Ry...Ryoji-kun...."}

It was all Yuugi could say. He just had no words. Atem had said Ryoji could be lost, but he hadn't believed it. He'd never believed it. The short teenager looked broken, the tears welling up and falling from his eyes without notice. Anzu looked towards Kaido as he yelled and then back at Yuugi. She looked at where the mask had shattered and then back at Yuugi.

"Yuugi, you have to snap out of it!"

"Minato-kun, wake up! You're going to kill yourself! Sensei, we have to do something!" Teddie was looking between Souji and Minato in a panic.

Atem looked towards Teddie as he shouted. What could they do? They had to stop Minato, that kind of drain with the power he could sense? He was going to get himself killed. Cain was right, he was going to get them all killed. The former Pharaoh couldn't blame him for the desperation, especially if Ryoji really was dead, but...

"Minato-kun, stop! Ryoji wouldn't want this!"

"Where is your insistance on life, now?" Nyx stated to Minato. The voice still came from the same lack of location, "Death ends all suffering..."

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Atsuro forced himself to tear his eyes away from what was going on with Minato. Kaido was right, he had to go help. Barong was the only one of his demons still alive; Lakshmi had gotten killed on the way up the tower. The demon ripped through the coming shadows with a Maziodyne as Atsuro ran over to aid Kaido.

Abel didn't need to be told. The moment he realized what Minato was doing, he started running over to him at a blinding speed. But as he got close, Helel kicked him away, sending Abel flying. He slammed into another pillar, actually leaving a sizable crack in it, and for a second, Abel thought he saw a defiant smirk on the Persona's face before it looked back at Nyx Avatar.

Minato actually stopped as Atem yelled. But Nyx's taunts caused whatever lapse he'd had to pass.

"This is all your fault, Nyx! If it weren't for you, none of this would have happened! He had a chance to break free and you killed him!" Minato screamed. "I'll wipe you out of existence! I'm going to end all of this, even if it takes my last breaths to do it!"

Amaterasu snarled and swiped her tail a couple times, leaving two horizontal lines in the air. Suddenly, a large amount of mist appeared in the air, and while none of those present would realize it, Amaterasu had slowed time for four seconds. She ran forward at a blinding speed. She had intended to reach Minato and knock him out, but something broke through the mist and jumped in front of Amaterasu before she could reach him.

It was Messiah. The white shape didn't even regard Amaterasu for more than a second before pushing Amaterasu away, the mist disappearing at that instant.

"Ammy!" Issun cried. Amaterasu whined and got to her feet again. That boy was dead set on doing this. He wasn't going to let anyone interfere, not even a goddess. Especially not a goddess.

[mugenginga]

"About time," Kaido grumbled at Atsuro.

Kaido took out a few more Shadows, allowing Atsuro and his demon to handle the ones immune to his punches and kicks. Or worse, the ones reflecting the damn attacks. He didn't have the Pierce ability, Atsuro did. It was a rather annoying difference, come down to it. The man noticed that it was only Atsuro and his demon that was with them, and none of their group exactly had healing abilities.

"Hey, get that boyfriend of yours out of his stupor and help us over here!" Kaido shouted at Anzu.

Yuugi's eyes widened and he jerked his head over to where Kaido was at his words. Anzu's cheeks flushed a bit. She wasn't that obvious about it, was she? Yuugi looked over to where Minato was, but he knew he couldn't do anything. He glanced over at Naoto for a moment before refocusing on Kaido, Atsuro, and Barong. The latter was in the worst condition, and Nefertum didn't have the group max healing move.

"Mediarama!"

They had to focus on the now. The now didn't involve fighting back against what Kaido had said, even if it was embarassing. The mid range move covered all three active fighters. Anzu looked depressed at the reaction, but was hiding behind digging through her cards. The fact was she didn't know if any of these would work on the Persona or demons.

"You can not kill me... but ending this is what the Fall would do. Allow it to continue, it is inevitible..." Nyx had shifted to sounding depressed. She had confirmed her suspicion, but... it didn't change how the reaction reminded her that they were more or less fighting for the same thing.

"Temu, Ziodyne!"

Jounouchi's eyes widened and he held a card into the air. It vanished with little apparent effect, leaving him looking up and then towards the field. He seemed to be expecting something. He was looking at Minato's Persona. He'd figured out during the fight up that the things were similar to Ka and they required energy to maintain. That wrote Minato as insane. Speaking of insane, Minato was acting as crazy about this Ryoji person as he'd seen Atem act, and apparently he hadn't even seen the worst of it. Well, if they were best friends... in any case, if he could stop one of those things from using an attack, he could maybe save some of his energy.

No one would realize, but Jounouchi had set a trap, willing it to the center of the roof. Chain-Equipped Boomerang, under the rules of Battle City. It meant he could boost the attack Atem had just ordered, or he could use it as a trap. And he was using it as a trap. He'd even set up the order of who he'd stop from attacking if more than one attacked at once. Otherwise he'd just stop one. The order was Messiah, Satan, Lucifer, and Helel. Not that he was thinking of them with the names. It was more the white one, the blue demon, the other demon, and the angel. The effect would send a blade tipped chain and restrain the target, forcing them into a defensive position and halting their attack. It would also break up any combos the group tried to set up...

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Minato didn't seem like he was going to halt his attack at all. He reached up with his functional arm and tightened the scarf around his neck. The extended fight had left the scarf tattered and disheveled. But Minato had just wanted to do one thing. He'd just wanted to give it back to who it rightfully belonged to. He just wanted to see Ryoji again.

And now Nyx had torn that all away.

"You don't understand at all... I'm going to destroy every bit of you. So that you'll never come back... so that you can't ever do this to anyone else. I don't want this to ever happen again," Minato yelled. He was done talking. The others would just try to stop him if he continued. He held out his left hand. He felt dizzy.

Messiah and Lucifer both held out their arms, while Helel and Satan appeared to be concentrating. But before any of them could form their attacks, Minato was struck by Atem's Ziodyne and Messiah was caught in a chain that forced it into a defensive stance. The chain moved from Messiah to Satan, then Lucifer, and then to Helel. Minato fell to one knee as the chain moved.

"...What?" That... that was a Trap Card. He knew it had to be, which meant... It had to be Jounouchi.

Naoto and Kanji had joined the fight near the stairs. Naoto was proving to be a huge help with her Mamudoon and Mahamaon skills, which took out some enemies the physical skills Atsuro and Kaido favored couldn't.

[mugenginga]

Nyx Avatar looked towards the moon as Minato insisted he was going to kill it. Or kill Nyx. It had once said they were one in the same, but that was never as true as it was now. The being looked back at Minato in time to see his Persona getting into a formation. Without its sword, it couldn't channel the energy right. So it simply waited. If Minato defeated it, the Fall could come as it should. It could be rid of this universe and this trouble. However, the expected attack didn't come and the faceless being lowered its head to see Minato had fallen to one knee. There wasn't much time, but it was clear the fight was almost over. He was the only chance they had, if Death could embrace him...

Cain found himself wondering why Abel was stalling. His brother, the King of Bel, generally had his head about him better. A result of the presence of the two forms of Lucifer, perhaps? He was showing far too much in the way of weakness towards the fallen angel. In any case, he held up his hand and braced himself as a Megidolaon released and headed towards Minato. Unlike the Atem, he wasn't pulling any punches. If the blue haired teenager died, it was his own fault, and as it was his emotions were going to get them all killed.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

The Megidolaon hit. Minato, already weakened from the effort of keeping four Personas summoned at once and his various injuries, finally collapsed unconscious, the four Personas disappearing as he slipped out of consciousness.

Abel slipped back into reality as he realized that Cain had done his job for him. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He should have just gone ahead and knocked Minato out. He'd only hesitated because of the two Personas of his.

As it was, the group holding off the shadows at the stairs were starting to feel the effects of this extended fight as well. They were all running low on energy, especially Naoto, who was spamming wide area attacks just to stop the large amount of Shadows coming her way. It was almost a flood of the things.

[mugenginga]

"Minato-kun!" Yuugi had seen Minato fall.

Atem's eyes widened at the way Minato had fallen. It hadn't... hadn't seemed the same as the others from before. He realized in horror it was very possible the teenager was dead. He looked at Cain with a nasty glare. They couldn't attack Nyx Avatar, he respected that the man knew what he was doing holding off there. But he had a feeling Minato had been the only one that could get through to him. Jounouchi was more vocal with his opinion on the situation.

"You bastard!"

"Sensei... I'm not sure... he's alive..." Teddie said with wide eyes. He looked up at Nyx Avatar. What were they supposed to do?

Yuugi had glanced back over at the group that was fighting after his shout. They were all very tired. He was feeling it too, and he instinctively realized he couldn't heal them and revive Minato. A quick glance over to Seth and Phoenix proved that Phoenix was having issues with strength. With the entire group as it was, he had to make a choice. Anzu had looked up in shock as Minato fell and then towards Yuugi. She seemed to get his delimma.

"Take care of Minato-kun! I can handle the healing!"

Yuugi didn't argue, "Nefertum, Samarecarm!"

"Rain of Blessing!"

Anzu had lifted the card up in the air. She was confident Yuugi would listen to her. The card vanished into light and she could feel the drain on her energy as the light vanished in a ring from the point above her. Had Atem called it Ba? A light shower of light descended onto the group. It would provide a significant boost in strength to the group, restoring a physical strength similar to a Mediarama spell, and even providing a small restoration of mental energy.

As Anzu had shouted out her attack, Nefertum had held out its hands and the ankh staff had hovered between them in the usual fashion. The entire ankh pulsed with energy and the aura shout out for about an inch, gathering in the loop and flying towards Minato. It hit him, but there was no effect. There was only on circumstance in which Samarecarm shouldn't work. Nyx Avatar's faceless head turned to the group.

"It is time to end this."

It raised one hand above its head and several pools of red energy spiralled above the group. The only member of the group that would recognize the beginnings of the move Night Queen was in a condition even Samarecarm wasn't reaching.....

----------

"........... ................... ..................... ........... ................. .................... ................... "

It was dark. It was cold. It was the feeling of not existing. There was a presence of moisture, perhaps flowing water. Aside from the possibility of some lingering emotions, that was all.

That's right, I wanted to end it. I wanted to run away, I wanted to deny who and what I was. Death is easier. Being a puppet is easier. If only I don't have to deal with these emotions...

"Mi....to. ........iv..........p. .................nd. ......... ...........................ou. .......ve..........!"

I said it was inevitable. It was just a mask. Perhaps that's comical. A mask with a mask? After all, I shouldn't even exist. Not existing would just return things to the way they should be. Emotion that shouldn't exist should be forgotten...

"Minato. .................up. ....understand. .....ase. ......on, .........ead you. ......have to.......!"

What was the purpose of it all? To come back? I knew that they'd say no. That they'd fight the inevitable. I tried to hide behind myself. Those emotions I claimed I didn't want. I came back for them, didn't I? I didn't believe I had a choice, but just a little longer. Just a little....

A single ripple....

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji couldn't believe what was happening. First Nyx had shattered Ryoji. Then Minato had completely lost it. None of their attempts to stop him had worked until a card that someone had activated had restrained Minato's Personas and Atem had hit him with a Ziodyne. And then Cain had fired that Megidolaon...

...And now it seemed very likely Minato was dead.

That was the only explanation. Souji had held hope Yuugi's Samarecarm could do something, but Minato didn't move.

There was no time for any outraged reactions. Nyx had raised its hand above its head and appeared to be preparing for another attack. Abel was on his guard, and Amaterasu was waiting to see whatever the attack was. The human and the avatar were dead. Whatever they did now would only prolong the inevitable.

-----------------

A voice had awakened him. That was all Minato could hear. All he could feel... water? Possibly? Everything seemed dark. Minato had the feeling he'd felt this once before, before he'd woken up on that rooftop in the same position he'd fallen asleep in. For some reason, it occurred to Minato that he was near a river. He wasn't sure why.

So this was how it finally ended. He'd been so stupid... suicidal even. And now he was dead. That calling voice was persistent. He knew he was being stupid. Destroying Nyx? What a joke. He'd only been able to seal away the very core of her being before. His friends had motivated him to do so. Even Shinjiro....

And what had he done? Ryoji and himself had both died. That voice was getting louder. It had been useless, hadn't it...

Minato sat up. That voice was calling for him. He couldn't hear all the words, but he knew it was calling for him.

"Ryoji?"

[mugenginga]

The pools of light in the air slammed down in wide pillars of what seemed like red miasma. They hit the entire battlefield. The attack knocked at least half those present down. Yuugi, Anzu, Jounouchi, Atem, Teddie, and Seth. That part alone destroyed Norn and Phoenix. Kaido was brought to one knee, but was faring better than the others. Still, it hurt, and the pools of red energy hadn't faded. Energy gathered in them and a series of explosions starting on them and spreading outwards went out. Seth and Teddie were knocked down. Yuugi, Anzu, Jounouchi, and Kaido were all knocked out. Nyx Avatar raised its hand again, and the miasma appeared in the air once more...

----------

The sensation of more ripples could be felt. Where he was... it wasn't beside water, but it wasn't in it either. There were many things that seemed both there and not around him. Words couldn't capture it, but the sensation would be fairly oppressing.

"Minato. Don't.....up. .....ally understand. Please. ....... on, I'll ..ead you. You have to........!"

In the end, it was right. Death, Nyx, they were all right. Death is inevitable, the Fall is inevitable. If Minato hadn't been there... I would have never realized. But it doesn't have to happen now. It doesn't have to happen in our lifetimes, or hundreds of lifetimes. I have to believe that. I accept that. I accepted it...

"Minato. Don't give up. I finally understand. Please. Come on, I'll lead you. You have to fight!"

The ripples had begun to increase and with each word Minato heard clearly, they became more active. It would still be dark. It would still be cold. But there was clearly water of some sort rushing all around the blue haired teenager. He wasn't floating, he was under water. Under liquid, perhaps, because he wouldn't be able to see.

A sound of splashing could be heard and what appeared to be an oar could clearly be distinguished from the darkness.

"We have to fight!"

[Firebreath Fishslap]

The red miasma had come suddenly. Barong had been destroyed by the attack, and Atsuro, Naoto, and Kanji had been knocked down. Amaterasu had only dodged the attack by careful application of Veil of Mist, and even that hadn't dodged everything. Souji and Abel was only standing because they had braced themselves for the coming attacks. The second part of the attack had knocked Atsuro, Naoto, and Kanji out. Souji had been brought down to one knee from it. Abel was only barely standing.

"I... will not die here...." Abel coughed out. He held a hand out, and concentrated in it was a series of lights identifiable as Holy Dance.

Amaterasu whined and got to her paws again. None of them would survive this next attack. There was no magical prayer that could empower her and allow her to seal Nyx. This wasn't like the fight with Yami. They were going to die.

------------------

It was the sensation of water rippling around him that allowed Minato to finally realize where he was.

Oh... I'm underwater... So, this is the Sanzu...

That didn't seem quite right. But he was underwater. There was the sensation of water rippling around him, and he could hear something splashing. But he could hear the voice clearly. He had to fight. Someone finally understood what he meant. At that moment, an oar entered his vision.

Ryoji finally understood. His efforts hadn't been in vain. They had to fight. They couldn't die here.

And so, Minato seized the oar.

[mugenginga]

Cain was standing out of sheer stubborness. It wasn't that he was afraid to die, anyone among this group that thought that were fools. No, it was what dying here would mean. He'd never believed this inevitability crap, and he was quite sure YHVH would have something to say about that world ending. After all, wasn't it generally the Chaos side of things that went that route? YHVH enjoyed His endless trials too much to go that route. The issue was that they would have two things to contend with if they died here, and damned if he was letting that Bastard force a debt on him. Almighty energy swirled around him and he held a hand forward.

Seth was on one knee, and struggling to stay up. This wasn't the worst he'd ever felt. He'd felt worse. He glanced down at the scarred hand on his knee. He'd felt far worse. He pushed himself into a standing position, but was clearly wobbly. What would happen when he died? At the end of the day, he still believed in hell. And he knew in the way he had once known God was merciful and loving that he was going there. If he had to go there, he was going with a fight. Ice crystals began to spiral around him. Magic wasn't his strength, but... he held a hand forward.

"Megidolaon!"
"Mabufudyne!"

Nyx Avatar had brought its hand about halfway down. The party wouldn't survive this next attack. That included the wolf Amaterasu was using as her avatar. With them dead, the Fall could arrive. Nyx pitied Minato, not that she expected she would believed if it came up. But he had died well. Ryoji would remain a mask. That shattering had been symbolic to force a reaction from his lover, and the entire group had fallen for it. Now...

----------

The entire presence around Minato seemed to flow away. The dark turned to light, and a figure became clear. The moving water would cause a sensation of moving up, and the reality flowed away from the figure. It was was the way something would become clearer the closer to the surface of water it came. The figure wasn't Ryoji.

It was a humanoid upper body figure in a black cloak, the hood pulled up. A grey and black scarf was wrapped around its neck and face on the outside of the cloak. A white mask could be seen underneath, and its harsh eyes strongly resembled the mask Nyx had destroyed. It seemed to be in a long boat a fair bit like a casket, the bottom sharing the white pattern both Thanatos and Messiah sported on its own. The sides were taller to create the boat illusion. The figure had a brown gloved hand gripping the base of the oar, the actual oar part appearing to be a polished silver blade. That appearance rippled away....

----------

...Nyx Avatar paused. The wings flapped, but it seemed there was something missing from its presence. The hand that had been lifted shook, as if it were trying to force itself down but having no success. When it finally moved, it jerked to the left and the focus of the miasma did as well. Four pillars were destroyed as the attack fired in a horizontal manner well away from the main group.

The Holy Dance, Megidolaon, and Mabufudyne all impacted with precision accuracy. The being crumpled from the attack, and the wings folded. Nyx Avatar hit the top of the tower with enough force to crack the smooth ground in every direction, leaving even a minor dent. To describe the effect elsewhere as an earthquake was perhaps an oversimplification. Seth couldn't stay standing, and managed to collapse onto his knees, wincing at the pain. Even Cain only managed to keep his footing by grabbnig the pillar next to him. The Harbinger wasn't moving....

...and Minato was.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji fell to one knee as Nyx Avatar hit the tower, while Abel grasped the pillar he had been slammed into much like Cain had with the pillar nearby him. Amaterasu was managing to stay standing, but that had more to do with already being on all fours to begin with. Something had changed while Nyx Avatar was charging up that next attack.

And not only that, but someone who had very much definitely been dead was now standing up. He was still as injured as before. Nothing had changed as far as that went. Same with his exhaustion. That was his own fault anyways. But as he stood up, he was calm, and he was actually smiling.

"M-Minato!" Souji yelled.

"You're alive?!"

Minato took a step toward where Nyx Avatar had fallen. "I may be a hypocrite for fighting like this when I'd do the same things you have done. Perhaps I am a stupid human who keeps letting the Answer slip through his grip every time he grabs it. But one thing I do know is Ryoji still lives. I was wrong before. He's still alive. Because he's not a mask."

He stumbled but looked back over at the being with the still shifting face. "I love him. And we're going to fight this. To save everyone."

[mugenginga]

"It's useless. You should know this better than anyone," Nyx Avatar began to twitch.

Energy began to swirl up around the being. The tower began to shake, but that wasn't what would cause the group to fall down. No, a suppressing energy began to flow from the moon. The energy wasn't really visible, but a huge wind began to push down onto the top of the tower. The moon seemed to gain several cracks in its visible face, and they seemed to be slowly opening. Minato would recognize the occurances.

Seth was trying to get back to his feet when he felt something force him to the ground. It was like every muscle in his body had just expotentially gained weight. It was something like he'd seen increased gravity depicted, but it meant he hit the ground and still felt the pressing force once he was down. Cain had been preparing another attack when the force drove him first to one knee, and then to his hands. He was on all fours, and quite clearly trying to push himself back up. The snarl on his face was of a rare sort. He looked pissed, a rare expression for the man who for all extensive purposes was over five thousand years old.

"That aspect of myself is nothing more. Merely an aspect of my being... you can't stop this. For all your strength, those that wish for the end are far more..." Nyx Avatar's limp form rose off the ground. Things looked bleak, even more so to Minato who knew the signs. The moon had opened up to expose the inside now. It was repeating, even with the words he had been given, "It is too late..."

"Dammit... What good...." Cain was having trouble forming words, the oppression was that great.

"Hell..." muttered Seth through his clenched teeth. He meant it in every possible way.