Machina Arcanis: Two Worlds Collided-Chapter 273. Last Dance

273. Last Dance

Columns of light shone from above. Night became day at the presence of the Princess of Solis Aeternum.

Something unlocked within Zetius’s body — a mythical surge he had never felt before. His mind sharpened to a razor's edge. His movement became instantaneous. Power arced from his skin like living lightning, yet there was no pain, only a tickling numbness that allowed him to sense exactly where the crackling energy flowed.

He punched Ignius, hurling the Celestius a hundred metres back.

Zetius blinked, moving with near-light speed, and delivered a flying kick that sank deep into Ignius’s stomach. A cone of electricity burst outward from his enemy's back.

"Argh!" Ignius grunted in pain, feeling his body ricochet within the maelstrom of lightning bombardments.

Hundreds of strikes — punches, kicks, knees, and elbows — caged and punished him every second.

Against that lightning speed, Ignius could only resolve to defend. Five decades of martial arts, footwork, and technique meant absolutely nothing against Zetius in this state.

"Stay down!" Zetius growled, his fist flying.

Ignius blocked with his arm. Something snapped.

Continuing the merciless slaughter, Zetius forced Ignius to stumble, bounce, and stagger. Grunts alternated with the deafening crackle of ozone filling the battlefield. Ignius should have died from these blows; strikes that could easily strip flesh from bone. Even an Epic-tier Magnetos shield would crumble in an instant, but his endurance was somehow divine.

It must have been his new form, capable of withstanding billions of joules of energy.

Even in this state, Ignius consciously focused on the limitless mana, churning it and adapting it into Blood Mana. Either he adapted in time, or he would perish by the vicious combo.

Zetius knew he didn’t have forever; he was racing to destroy him. He unleashed a low kick at the shin.

Ignius collapsed to one knee.

Zetius caught a glimpse of his dragon eyes, looking back with pure contempt.

"I said, stay down!" Zetius growled.

He landed a clean uppercut. A lightning bolt snapped tens of kilometres into the sky.

Then, Ignius’s palm caught Zetius’s fist, holding it in place. Lightning still snapped at him, sending massive electrical shocks through his palm and into the crumbling ground.

"Huh?" Zetius gasped, feeling Ignius’s strength return as the Celestius power overwhelmed him.

"Magnetos-Iasis!" Ignius chanted.

The field blasted outward, throwing Zetius into the air.

"Oh no!" Aurelia gasped, her voice strained. "Don’t tell me he adapted already?"

Zetius was the master of aerial manoeuvres. He spun a few times before turning into pure lightning, whizzing in an irregular zigzag back toward the ground.

"Mana manipulation is the first thing I learned," Ignius said. "Of course, it will only take minutes for me to refine and channel it back to my arcane." he studied his metallic gloves.

His eyes matched Aurelia’s as he licked the seeping blood from his lower lip. "It is delish, Princess."

Seeing Ignius’s limbs snap back into place, Zetius shouted, "Aurelia! Again!"

He rushed his enemy. "Astrapyion-spatha!"

Zetius shoved his arm to the side and summoned his blade, the two-metre-long sword gleaming with majestic and intricate craftsmanship. Aurelia rushed to his aid, resuming the ritual as she floated in the air.

Together, their power was indomitable, and their will was valour.

Zetius lunged at Ignius. His blade extended indefinitely, becoming a straight line of lightning.

"Fool!" Ignius launched a palm strike that spat a massive cone of flame.

Then, the bolt of lightning abruptly turned. It zigzagged over and around the fire before slamming into Ignius’s back.

The man heaved, tumbling forward. His shoulder smoked.

Panicked, Ignius glanced back, realising the striking portion of Zetius's blade had dissipated and reformed.

"Bloody hell?" Ignius groaned, healing in the short window he could find. Frustration seeped into his motion.

Zetius leaped into the sky and swung his weapon. The blade became thin, weaving like a ribbon of lightning, akin to a sentient, ravenous serpent consuming everything in its wake.

Ignius coiled his knees as the bolt zeroed in, dodging to the side.

"Ha!" he grinned. His sheer reaction time still outperformed Zetius’s spatha.

The crackling noise didn’t cease. The slithering snake zigzagged and circled in the most bizarre way imaginable. Ignius saw its motion and trajectory; his mind calculated, his movement seemingly fading into mirages at equal speed.

"Astrapyion!" Zetius thundered over the noise of the battle.

Cauterisation.

Zetius transferred thousands of amperes of current in less than a second. The summit of the Alp — two thousand metres in the distance — exploded into a cloud of mist and flashed into steam.

A second later, the ground shook.

Zetius and Aurelia turned at the destruction they had inadvertently caused. The cloud and the dark obscured their vision, but it appeared the looming summit was annihilated; at least the first five hundred metres of the peak had been reduced to atoms.

A few seconds later, the shockwave of a witching scream reached them.

"ARRGGH!" Another, more human of a wailing scream drew their attention back to Ignius. The sharp burn at the nerve endings was visible; Ignius’s hand had become a black stump, smoke roaring out of where the limb once was.

"What should we do?" Aurelia exclaimed. "Father will never forgive me for this!"

"Focus, Aurelia!" Zetius urged her, his shoulders squaring up as he raised his high guard.

She forced her panic down with a big gulp of guilt and followed his words. The stream of mana flowed continuously from her palms to his back.

The man glowed in golden radiance. Brilliant and divine.

Lightning often followed the path of least resistance, and Zetius was always led by that principle. However, that abstraction was about to shift forever. Now, he had acquired the ability to command his blade to slither. This level of energy manipulation was far beyond human comprehension, as if it were the power of the mightiest of deities — holy power in the palm of Zetius.

He took a glimpse at his sleek sword, admiring its artistry, while Ignius still winced, shocked at the earlier strike, his good hand clasping at the missing one.

"Witness the might of Zeus!" Zetius invoked.

His mind entered a state of Zen. Time moved a hundred times slower. His mind's eye entered the vision of a colossal storm — the Mesoscale Convective Systems — massive complexes that combined hundreds of storms into a titanic wall of clouds.

His eyes glowed magical red.

"Red Giants!" Zetius screamed as he unleashed a diagonal slash.

His Astrapyion-spatha extended, curved, and zipped as it converged on Ignius’s heart. Its tip converted to red translucent plasma, akin to the most powerful upward lightning — the gigantic jets.

Eyes went wide.

In the last fraction of a nanosecond—

"No!" Ignius twisted his torso.

His shoulder took the burn. The sickening cut cauterised his other arm.

Ignius fell to his knees, panting and limbless. His left hand and entire right arm were severed by the atomisation.

Planting his feet, Zetius twisted his blade into an overhead guard. He heaved, hands struggling, his feet almost skidding across the ground as he pushed all of his power to slash skyward, mitigating the ground destruction.

The sky became bright red in a flash.

It was as if doomsday had arrived. The thick cloud cover cleaved in half like the walls of hell. People from thousands of kilometres away watched the semi-global phenomenon, unrivalled, with mixed emotions: perplexity, amazement, and terror.

The bright starry night and the red moon returned a moment after.

"I have to direct it to the sky," Zetius said with shortness of breath. His glowing red eyes returned to normal, and his golden skin receded to its natural colour. But his blade remained amplified, radiating red light.

"Is it over?" Aurelia gasped, doubled up on her knees. Sweat dripped from her moist skin.

"I don’t know." Zetius watched the kneeling man, his head hung low and unmoving.

"I must admit, you’re incredible, Zetius…" Ignius’s voice came. As his glowing gold eyes locked onto Zetius’s gaze, he chanted. "Empyrion-Iasis!"

"NOOO!" Zetius screamed and surged forward.

Too late.

***

The night Jernvik’s sky flashed red, the streak cleaved through the heavens as though the earth’s belly was torn open.

The end of the world.

Marionette stood frozen, the tea in her hand forgotten.

"What in Gaia’s name?" Nohr gasped, bemused as she rubbed the standing hairs on her arms.

"It is as if my father has returned…"

They turned to the source. The golden-haired deity watched the sky, his eyes glittering with the reminiscence of the ages of mythology.

"Eons upon eons, like piles of leaves stacking as high as Mt. Olympus. Each leaf represents a century." Apollo’s statement was beautiful, but laced with rueful longing.

Marionette watched the long lashes that curtained his eyes. "What do you mean?"

Apollo shook his hands in the air, his frivolous smile returning. "It’s nothing."

He stepped closer to Marionette, touching her stray hair delicately. She stepped back, flustered at the sudden intimacy. She couldn’t meet his striking eyes.

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"Fates have demanded your hand once more, Bearer of the Sol Bow!" he announced, sticking his hands to the side.

Nohr tilted her head, one of her fox ears flopping back in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Marionette frowned. "Apollo?"

"I ask for your help, my Queen!" His hand swung and pointed to the east. "I ask not in the name of divinity, not in the name of the sun. But in the name of your posterity!" His tongue danced eloquently.

"My posterity? What?" Marionette squinted, turning to Nohr, who stood very still. Her eyes glanced back awkwardly.

"This is the defining moment, my Queen! Raise your bow and shoot—" he paused to think, his finger floating to the left, then slightly to the right. Then he decided to point a bit higher. "There!"

Confused, but compelled, she summoned her bow. The ornate, symmetric arch formed; she raised the golden instrument and aimed.

"Yes! Drawwwwww!" Apollo commanded crisply.

She drew the golden string. The Sol Arrow formed between her fingers. The surge of wind burst against the pressure.

"Wait, wait! What are you guys aiming at? I don’t get it!" Nohr ran her mouth, while other Wildrens poked their heads from the windows to watch the light work with awe.

"And fire!"

There was no delay in her movement, no hesitation. These months of their journey had taught her one thing: this was the crucial moment, and she needed to play her part.

Faith.

Marionette felt the mana rush from her body. The arrow erupted from her bow, fluttering her hair and clothes, then glided through the sky before the light faded.

"Bullseye!" Apollo exclaimed with delight, crossing his arms.

"Did what you asked. This better mean something," she quipped, pointing at his face.

"Of course, it will. I work in mysterious ways!" he said, his voice soft as he placed his hand on her head.

Then she saw the streak of light passing through her eyes.

***

"Ignius—you don’t know when to quit, do you?!" Zetius clashed blades with Ignius’s flame. The pressuring blast was just as strong as his spatha. This was the true display of Mythic-tier Empyrion.

"I believe that’s my phrase, not yours!" Ignius grimaced as he shifted his weight and bombarded him with fist strikes, his palms reciprocating near the speed of light. Zetius was forced onto the defensive, overhanging his blades and twitching into sweeping blocks.

"Empyrion-Fusillade!"

Ignius fired his fists. Hundreds, if not thousands, of flaming blows lit up the sky as Zetius danced with his parries.

A mere hundred meters away, a shadow emerged from the ground. Jovian appeared, carrying Frain and Lupus on his shoulders, his clothes and body a complete mess. The cacophony of the barrage continued at the hillside, the red and amber flashes dancing on his pale face.

"Im… impossible?" Jovian murmured, his jaw hanging low. "Ignius is still alive?"

"This way!" Ziyue took his arm, her purple gaze filled with worry when Jovian couldn’t break his eyes from the hypersonic dance.

"We must evac now! This is beyond us!" Ziyue’s voice cracked.

"But… I need—"

"Uncle! Look at you, you’re in no condition to fight!" she jerked at his arm, more forceful.

"No… I need to get Celestius Virtius! Zetius needs our help, Ziyue."

"We’ll die!" she argued, begging.

"You’re my successor now. Lead the Shadowbringers." he licked his lips. "It’s a fight worth dying for." Jovian smiled at her.

She lingered, lost for words.

He unloaded the unconscious Frain and Lupus to Ziyue.

"Uncle!"

Heeding not her words, he ran toward the battlefield, leaving them behind.

Zetius slipped. Something grazed him, and he retreated into a zigzag of lightning before re-emerging beside Aurelia.

Even with Aurelia’s limitless mana, he was somehow losing to the Master of War.

Aching all over his body, he clasped his shoulder. Zetius stumbled to his feet, steadying himself. Lupus’s vengeance. Willhelm’s possession. Triss’s blindness. Empress Aurora’s death. Cartier’s sorrow. The people of Britainia. Every bit of pain, every sacrifice pushed him further, like palms resting on his back.

"Their sacrifice will not go in vain!" His voice was a guttural rasp, yet it felt rock solid.

Zetius’s sword turned sharply, but Ignius rapid-fired, forming a condensed wall of power.

"I can’t touch him!" Zetius ground his teeth. This was a fight that could last days. One mistake was all it would take for him to lose. He couldn’t fight Ignius while protecting Aurelia once his enemy realised he was vulnerable.

The Sol Arrow streaked across the sky like astral light, weightless. It landed squarely on Ignius’s location. The area was immediately coated with transmuted gold; Ignius’s hand stopped mid-punch, his jaw hanging open.

Zetius, Aurelia! Now!

It was a voice that rang inside their heads, like a thought. But its pitch and tone were clearly Marionette Zel Celerius. Frantic, yet full of concern.

A shadow emerged from behind. A streak of purple blade dragged through the air. "Zetius!" Jovian lunged forward for the backstab.

"Aim at the heart!" Zetius shouted, raising his blade parallel to his collarbone. "Astrapyion-Red!"

He became a streak of crimson lightning.

The attackers converged on the golden foe in the middle. Ignius’s eyes slowly moved, tracking Zetius’s location. The deep hum of the spell fractured.

"Don’t tell me…" Zetius’s eyes bulged.

Ignius snapped out of the crystal encasement, specks of gold floating into the air.

Zetius's blade protruded, its tip a mere hairbreadth from Ignius’s chest. So close. But the Celestius anticipated it and backstepped out of the way.

His execution missed.

"Ugh!" Ignius grunted, feeling the sharp pain from his back.

"Die, you old cunt!" Jovian screamed and thrust his blade further into his enemy’s flesh.

Ignius grimaced. His backhand slammed into Jovian’s face. Air erupted as the Celestius of Sagittarius was hurled hundreds of metres in a heartbeat.

It’s now or never! Zetius’s mind raced. He must attack now before Ignius casts Iasis again.

Ignius smirked as he raised his palm, his lips moving to form the word. "Magnetos!"

He encased himself within a spherical defence. Zetius’s spatha collapsed and buckled until it was nothing but claws, red lightning sparking into a shower of sparks.

A guttural scream of desperation and despair tore from Zetius's throat. Though his red edge was a mere millimetre from Ignius’s palm, the space between them equalised to a mountain.

Zetius couldn’t touch him… Hope was like a distant star, untouchable.

In that moment, the figure of a Warmongering arcanist formed in Zetius’s mind's eye. She was a silvery blur at first. Then she sharpened; her glowing silver eyes looked at him — dignified, yet warm. He felt her gloves on his shoulder, squeezing tight.

What is this? Zetius’s mind reeled, comprehending the impossible. One moment, he was fighting tooth and nail with Ignius, but was he back at the edge of the Spiral Abyss with Empress Aurora again?

Zetius, you have exceptional potential as an arcanist. I ascertained that long ago. During our time, albeit short, you excelled in arcane progression faster than any mage I’ve met. Gaia... you’re truly her champion. But ultimately, you’re my champion. My prime disciple.

You’re stronger than you’ll ever know. I ask of you to believe. In your ability. In your valour. In your indomitability. But most importantly—in yourself.

Suddenly, the words he couldn’t hear back then became as clear as day.

"If I can graze the heavens, it is only because the light of the Aurora guides me." His voice swore of its own volition.

The magnetic barrier forced back against his rushing claws. In that fraction of a nanosecond, the riddle was solved.

"ASTRAPYION-MAGNETOS!"

Zetius dual-casted. The magnetic field rippled and began to bend inward to his command. His elemental power was associated with the electromagnetic field. In a sense, he could manipulate Ignius’s Magnetos as though it were his own.

Golden eyes saw true horror as his last line of defence distorted and punctured. "NOOOO! It can’t be!" Ignius screamed, his voice cracking.

Zetius’s claws went through his chest and exited from the back. Ignius’s grin was replaced with a wet gasp, eyes bulging, irises pin-sized.

A flash of blinding light followed.

Blinking his eyes rapidly, Zetius reoriented himself. It was blinding because of the white, empty space.

"Did I win…?" he questioned himself, looking at his trembling hands.

"You sure did…"

The soft, velvet voice of an old man rang out from behind. Zetius quickly spun, finding a man. Not just any man, it was Ignius back in his old age, with white hair and a long beard. Wrinkles were evident on his visage.

He felt the urge to raise his guard, to fight, but he knew better. Those golden eyes were filled with wisdom, not malice — a stark difference from the one he had just fought. Clearly, this entity was Ignius Lux Draconus before the ambush, the man who did everything in his power to redefine death.

His master.

"I… where are we?" Zetius asked, still disoriented. He lifted his bangs. "Where is everyone?"

"This is a pocket of the Dreamless Realm…" Ignius said, weaving light magic that appeared digitalised. Blocks and glitches.

Zetius watched with unblinking eyes. "Dreamless Realm?"

Before he could finish his sentence, Ignius flicked his hands.

Suddenly, the white room shifted. Microblocks of light rose up and rained colour, shapeshifting, filling surfaces. In a few seconds, he was inside the Royal Garden at Solis Aeternum once more.

Even the scent of flowers seeped into his nostrils; it was just how he remembered it.

"Look, look! A butterfly, and that thing is some sort of bug!" it was Zetius’s voice coming from behind a row of flowers. But much, much younger.

"A honey bee, maybe…?" Aurelia’s voice replied.

"No, that’s a wasp! Be careful!" Friederich chided her as he pressed himself before her and the insect. Always protective.

Zetius saw his child self, Aurelia, and Friederich. The trio couldn’t be more than ten years old. The nostalgia overwhelmed him. A time of joy. A time of peace — the comfort he had never truly grasped.

He watched them with glassy eyes, listening to their random conversation. His lips trembled, but he held it back as the emotion threatened to spill over. This was just a memory.

Smiling faintly, Ignius gestured at the white table in the centre of the open-air gazebo. "Would you like to take a seat, Zetius?"

"I don’t want to… we were fighting, Master…" Zetius’s voice hardened, then softened as he realised where he was. He brushed his arms sheepishly, not knowing how to feel.

"We were indeed. But you triumphed over me," Ignius smiled as he brought a cup to his lips. The aroma of matcha was potent, causing Zetius to wrinkle his nose.

"Fine," Zetius sighed, taking the chair opposite him. He caught a glimpse of Ryusei and Marionette, both dressed lavishly in silver, calling out and taking the children away through the oak doors. He remembered that day well; it was his birthday party. Even now, he smiled at the fond memory.

"I know you have so many questions right now, but let me explain first," Ignius said, his demeanour calm and affable. The cup clicked as he placed it back atop the saucer.

"During the ambush of our envoy," Ignius cleared his throat, "I carried your body, begging the Zodiac Council to make the divine miracle to be orchestrated. There were discussions for a while." he chuckled at the heated discussion.

Zetius relaxed his shoulders, releasing the tension he had been holding since the start.

"Until I decided to trade your twelve Primordial Essences to each of them. Only then did the council unite for once, and the true marvel of arcane eventually occurred." Ignius made hand gestures as he spoke.

"There was a gift from each of us to remake you, Zetius." he clasped his chest, looking at the table. "My gift was the fire of compassion, the Heartfire."

Zetius nodded slowly, although he didn’t fully understand.

"I knew you wouldn’t understand. I mean, how could you?" Ignius chuckled lightheartedly. "Always feigning intellect. Still, I see it—it’s the will that jump-started your desire to live. An ignition to your rebirth, I would say."

"Ah… I see." Zetius nodded firmly now, still grasping at the metaphysics of it all.

"Anyway, you’re pretty much you. Our gifts are there to unlock your true potential," Ignius added. "It’s a miracle, indeed." His voice lilted in disbelief.

Ignius shifted in his seat, leaning slightly forward. "But, I was wrong… I was a human seeking the power of the gods." His voice lost its levity, becoming solemn and grim.

Zetius studied the regret and guilt in his tired eyes. He couldn’t find any words of comfort. He knew full well he couldn’t find it in his heart to forgive Ignius.

"To compensate for my lost legacy... like I said, it’s a miracle that you have been Jack Squire. But the next question was, you were less of Zetius, I knew."

His words led Zetius's mind to the time at the space station with David and the DebrisX crew. Weightless and empty, only the warmth that echoed held one another in place. It felt like a distant piece of memory.

"I didn’t know you were able to be reborn to where you are now! That’s why I did the foolish thing… I studied the forbidden art. I thought she was Gaia at first, but then… I realised I was deceived by Hera." Ignius closed his eyes, contemplative. Admittance.

"I…" A hard, big lump formed in his throat. "I was almost gone when a part of me created this place." he looked at the gazebo where Zetius had always found him. The chill breeze, warm sun, and lush aroma. It was his place, his paradise.

"I’m sorry for everything…" Ignius grimaced, clenching his fists until his knuckles turned white.

Zetius just looked at him.

"But, there’s something I never regret—you." Ignius’s statement was sincere. "For that, there’s one last thing I want to say…"

This time, it was Zetius who rose up, the chair creaking unnervingly. "Master, I…"

"I am proud of you, Zetius. You are incredible…"

His voice suddenly faded before Zetius could say another word.

One blink and he was back.

The tang of ozone pierced his nose; the heat was unbearable. It was a clash between heaven and hell.

In front of him was Ignius’s body, looking at him with unmoving eyes. Unresponsive.

"Huh?" Zetius felt the thumping in his claws that penetrated through the man.

The corpse’s skin began to flake into specks of dust until Ignius was nothing.

The low hum was a serenade to the chaotic scene. "Ignius’s fire…" Zetius studied the fire essence in his hand. Judging from the size, there was no doubt this was Mythic-tier.

It was pure, unadulterated power.

Zetius breathed in deeply, taking it into his chest.

The wind blew back, almost knocking him to the side. He had never felt so tired, yet he was still standing.

A light smile tugged at his lips.

"Zetius! You okay?!" Aurelia’s voice emerged from his left.

His knees buckled suddenly.

"Whoop!" Cubie held him up, already shifting into her humanoid form. She offered him a beaming smile.

"We won?" Zetius couldn’t believe his eyes. It was like a dream. An impossible dream.

"Yeah… I thought you were gone…" Aurelia wiped her tearful eyes with her sleeve. "But we really did win!" she smiled sweetly at him, and he returned a weak one.

"Shall we go?" Cubie asked, feeling his heavy weight crushing her shoulders. But her smile never faltered.

"Now, now!" Aurelia followed, ducking under his wing to carry him from the other side. "Better?"

Cubie nodded happily.

"Let’s meet with the rest," Aurelia suggested, life and excitement returning to their faces.