Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)-Chapter 1097. Atropos, the Severer of the Strings
“Many Doves will be born. So much so that the Amalgam will never remember every face and every name. What is the loss of a Dove that has lost its feathers? A Dove that can no longer fly? A diseased dog, that has been given a cure, only to spit it out and bite the hand of its practitioner, ought to be put down. Do you not agree?”
“Is this how Act X swindles people? You loaded that question. If you weren’t what you are, then I’d put you down myself.”
The [Artwork] grew throws. Roses with razor-tipped thorns blossomed alongside the thorns, and they curled inwards, matching the way her face contorted with rage.
“The twins don’t deserve to be compared to dogs. You on the other hand, are nothing but a puppet made to talk for your owners. Do you believe that is the right way to deal with broken people? Because if that were the case, neither I, nor my sisters, would have been given a second chance!”
“Severance is the only answer to the ungrateful. Susitance can be gained from their corpse. Such is the way of an Insectid. You, Demi-Human…”
Something was coming. Res’ ears flickered forward, and the hairs along her body rose. They were a warning sign of an impending danger. Her instincts screamed at her to run. Rarely did her instincts flare at her to flee rather than fight. As a Moon, she ignored it and stood her ground.
A different voice then continued. It belonged to the being that had spoken through the Grand Narrator. It was a deep, hollow, masculine voice that could not belong to a living being.
“… Have you endured what it is like to be living being: that is capable of cognition: to be led by nothing but instinct?”
The Anids suddenly ceased moving. They made a chirping sound, and they curled inwards, as if afraid.
“I was unloving once through my actions. They believed they were unloved, O’ my children born limbless from sacred wombs.”
The Missionaries relayed a silent order, and the battlefield came to a sudden halt.
“The hunger. The desire. The primordial purpose.”
Then, the legs of the Milinid vacated the Grand Stage simultaneously. They were yanked through the ceiling, leaving countless Anids and Acolytes plummeting to their deaths.
“The severing is but a mercy to alternatives.”
She then saw it.
A pale figure, standing at 10-meters tall, descended from a hole directly above the light of the Milinid. Its wide shoulders spanned at five meters, and it boasted exactly eight arms. The creature was bipedal, possessing powerful armored legs.
It fell with an uncanny grace unbefitting a being of its weight and size. It had no eyes. Only a mouth lined with curved teeth that pointed inwards. Its head was a sleek, elongated mass that curved behind it.
Behind its back was a pair of wings that resembled two halves of a scissor. Each were held at the tip by its upper hands, ready to draw them like blades from his back. It was being of pure, pale radiance, and it was disturbingly humanoid despite how close it also resembled an Anid.
Indeed. Res thought it was an Anid at first.
And she was not wrong to believe this.
Atropos
The Severer of the String
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< Moirai >
LEVEL : 235ORIGIN : AnidHP : ???
ATT : ???MAG ATT : ???ATT DEF : ???MAG DEF : ???MP : 500,000
RESIST : ???AGI : 165
Her jaw dropped. The AGI… the level.
Her instincts were correct.
She could not possibly fight this being, thus, running away would have guaranteed her survival.
“Level… 235. Almost a Beholder… How did Act X keep this a secret for this long…?
Atropos only answered when he graced the ground. His feet never touched the earth. He floated inches off the ground, and extended his arms outward, as though he was being controlled by invisible strings.
“O’ Eye. Were you under the impression that Clothina reigned alone?”
An illustrious aura surrounded him. She was mesmerized by its radiance. She had expected it to be dark, like Qliphoth. But instead, it was a pure light that flickered from his form like a flame. It manifested into a pale-blue mantle similar to what the Missionaries adorned themselves in.
“As there are three who make up the Three Heads of Security, there are three who make up the Moirai.”
Slowly, he began to draw both blades from his back, and he brandished them in the air like he was performing a prayer.
They were a staggering fifteen meters long, pale, and semi-transparent.
“Clothina the Loom.”
The blades intersected with a terrific clang.
“Lachesis the Weaver.”
The blades twirled until they were held in a reverse grip.
“And I, Atropos, Father of Clothina…”
Then, he released the blades–
“The One Who Severs All Strings.”
–And he caught them with his lower hands as they sank into the earth.
So sharp were the blades that they would have disappeared had he not caught them.
“Step aside, Eye. There is a pair of strings I must sever, for these ones have failed.” 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
“Your life holds greater value than theirs.”
“Do not waste it.”
The choice was obvious for Res. She had fought tooth and nail alongside the others even when the odds were stacked against them. But in truth, there was not a moment where she was at the forefront of it like Frost, or even Cer for that matter.
… This must be how Frost feels. To be pit against an enemy that has no right to be this strong. I’ve never been afraid. I’m not afraid now. But this feeling inside of me… It rarely comes. The feeling of wanting to survive and succeed. This is what Frost planted in every Moon.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Res stood her ground.
“As the Script has entailed.”
“You need not move at all.”
“You cannot protect them.”
Res knew what was going to happen. Her AGI could not compare to Atropos. In the same instant her tail began to paint additional spirals to hold him off, he had already disappeared. The world moved in slow motion.
She could only see the faintest afterimage of Atropos. Her eyes could not track him.
Atropos only needed to sever the strings of the twins. Thus, he could be at any elevation and succeed. She could only wonder why he had bothered to converse. Was he the same as Lachesis? Was he also secretly on their side?
Hope. That was all she could do. Hope that Jury, by some miracle, could intercept him.
*Clang*
Her prayer was answered by a spectacle of blue and golden fireworks. Something had clashed with Atropos.
Something of equivalent speed.
And there, standing before her, as Atropos was sent skidding backwards, was none other than Cer.
“Too dramatic of an entrance for you sis?”
“Cer!? You… You’re here…”
Her voice was wracked with disbelief. She had thought for certain that the twins would have their strings severed. But miracles were common with their group, and it just so happens that the one person who can match Atropos head-to-head had finally arrived.
“Always have been here! So this is… Atropos. Severer of the String. A Moirai. What the hell are these names supposed to mean?”
“An unaccounted mishap. Impossible. You are neither the Amalgam nor an Aspect of Amalgamation. Yet your presence distorts the strings…”
“Heh. What can I say? I learn from the best.”
“You will answer. You possess Light. That alone is not enough to avoid a written Fate.”
“Pfffft. Fate? What’s this guy talking about? You realize you’re talking to the wolf who could? What’s your Fate Mechanism got to write about someone who’s five steps ahead than it?”
“What could you possibly–!?”
“THIS!”
An electric claw, empowered by Absolution, sent Atropos flying out of the Grand Stage. Cer cupped her eyes, whistling as she watched him disappear.
“Whew. He’s a lot lighter than I thought. Hey, sis. Ber’s coming. I’ll deal with that bastard. You good?”
“Yeah, thanks to you.” Res softly smiled. “… They can’t predict you?”
“Not sure why, but that’s a huge advantage, right? Heh. They think they know my future better than I do.” She gave Res a toothy grin before waving her off. “Don’t relapse. Heard the shit they were talking. They think we didn’t already overcome it.”
… Cer…
Cer was worried about her. It was natural to be worried for one’s sibling. But for some reason, this one moved her immensely. Perhaps it was because of her near miss, or how her instincts had suddenly flared in the face of an insurmountable wall.
Whatever it was, she was thankful of Cer.
Her tail brushed tips with hers for a fleeting moment before Cer gave chase to Atropos.
The legs of Milinid returned. Twenty appeared this time, as Act X and the Anids resumed their march. They had also expected Atropos to end it then and there. But Cer had foiled their plans by merely existing.
“… Alright. Where were we?”
