Sempiternity (COMPLETED)

XII

Klaytaza had been destroyed by the previous Key and Master duo, and a new group of enemy Keys stood ready to battle now. They were all completely identical in their tight black bodysuits, off-white armor, and sword/shield arsenals. About five of them fit shoulder to shoulder in the decrepit street, and it was clear to see that legion upon legion of these enemies stood waiting, like an army of angels ready to strike down blasphemers. 

Arend turned and ran.

He had the double-bladed longsword in his hand, and with its oddly light weight he could have easily used it as a weapon, but there was no way he would win in a fight of uncountable enemy Keys. Especially without Klaytaza’s help. 

The Keys followed him slowly, marching in time with each other and stalking towards him. Even when Arend turned a corner and left the view of them, he found that he could still hear this constant, unchanging marching. Their steps did not dull in volume no matter how far he ran.

There was no way for him to fight such a large enemy. He had only the chance of absconding until Klaytaza returned to his side and could fight them off with her weaponry and time-slaying ability… If she even could regenerate. It came to Arend’s mind that the army of enemies, in following him, must have trampled and crushed the remains of Klaytaza’s body.

Could she regenerate even if there were no remnants of her body? Would being trampled destroy her core? Without such an organ, would she be able to stop time even if she was reborn? There was no way to answer these questions without testing them out in reality – and doing so would get him killed. Arend felt the cold hands of despair moving towards him again.

Just when he was starting to wonder how he would get out of this situation, Arend turned another corner and noticed a figure ahead of him turning a corner as well and disappearing from his vision.

He instantly stopped in confusion. Could there be another person pursuing him? Or could the specter had been the Master of the Keys behind him, evading his vision in order to stay safe? Looking down at the large blade in his hand, Arend knew there was only one path he could take here. Running at a higher speed than before, he dashed forward to the space in which the figure disappeared, his sword trailing behind him in a position to strike.

This time, when he turned the corner, Arend noticed the absconding specter again, albeit this time with a long sword trailing behind him.

Arend stopped in his tracks once again. This time, he was struck dumb by the implication of what he was seeing. Just to make sure he wasn’t going insane, he returned to where he made the turn through the alleyways into the narrow street and poked his long blade into its dark corridor. Down the street some distance, the tip of a thin longsword suddenly protruded and came into view. He almost dropped the sword when this came to pass.

Somehow, Arend was trapped within the confines of that which he could see. The downtrodden, gray palette street was composed of empty, lifeless buildings and a loop of time and space. Behind him trudged the ever-close army of Keys; in front of him still awaited the other remaining 988 Keys to Eternity, plotting for his destruction; and above him still loomed the red moon, inching ever closer to the earth and its final moments.

There was truly no escape.  

He thought about going through the loop anyway in order to buy time until Klaytaza regenerated, but this did not solve the problem of her as-of-yet to be found body. There was always the option of running forward through the street to escape, but he would eventually meet another Key and Master duo and his death would only come faster. Finally, there was the option of going backwards and facing certain doom head-on. 

But despite his words otherwise, Arend did not want to die. There was too much at stake to give up now. He had sworn on everything he knew to change things, to eradicate them, and that was just what he would do. Death was not an option.