Guardians of Terraria II: The World of Calamity

Episode 35.1 - Confessions of Fighters

She didn't immediately shoot him down, but after a few seconds she still took a step backwards.

"Sid, just... I'm sorry. But I can't."

***

Lord Yharim stared upon the distant plain, the dark red haze of Calamitas's domain having faded away some minutes ago.

He knew what had gone down. He'd sent Calamitas after Sid and Robyn, but the victor was in no doubt. Despite that, he was certain Sid and Robyn wouldn't kill her.

She had once been their friend. Their ally.

He turned around, one hundred and eighty degrees, and stared up at the Nexus Tower, turning over the piece of Miracle Matter in his hands.

It would be so easy. To just plug this final piece into the core in front of him, create the portal, drawing from the energy of the other four towers in addition to this one, and then just step through.

He heard footsteps on the grass behind him.

"Yharim."

He had foreseen this battle coming. Knew it would find him.

He turned around.

"Robyn. Sid."

Robyn, of course, had her bow drawn, an arrow pointed right at him. Sid's summons all hovered behind him, ready to strike at him when the time came.

"I was expecting you to arrive," he said.

"We're not going to let you take over the Nexus!" Robyn shouted. "Or every other world out there!"

Yharim just chuckled.

"Really? You believe what the Eidolists believe?" He drew his Ultisword from behind his back, held it aloft, but then stabbed the point into the ground, a loud sound of pierced dirt and stone resounding from the impact.

"There was once a time when all I wanted was absolute power," Yharim said. "I was filled with anger and hatred, for the king that had ordered my family be executed. His death, along with the death of everyone else that had served his regime... they did not satisfy me."

"So you decided to take over the whole of your world," Sid said. "You invaded entire civilisations and slaughtered everyone there. But that's still not enough. Is it?"

"It wasn't," Yharim admitted. "But it wasn't other worlds that I had my sights on. It was on the one that had directly caused my brother to go crazy, which led to the execution of my family." He took a step forward, away from his sword, and spoke one word. "Xeroc."

Robyn and Sid exchanged a glance. Neither had heard the name before.

"Growing up, I worshipped Xeroc," Yharim spoke, now beginning to pace. "As did most in the Jungle Kingdom. But my brother, Ignalius, he... happened upon an artifact that, when invoked in a ritual, could be used to summon Xeroc. I believe that was what drove him mad. Because of this, to try to sate my hunger for revenge, I once sought audience with Xeroc. I challenged them to a duel."

"Given you're still walking, I take it he declined?" Sid asked.

"Xeroc only showed me a taste of their power," Yharim said, casting a hurried glance at the core. "And I now knew what had driven my brother mad. Xeroc... their power was purely incomprehensible. Of a form that should just be impossible.

"But somehow, against all odds, I was able to read their mind, without imploding my own in the process." Yharim turned his gaze to Robyn and Sid. "I learnt the truth about Xeroc. They are only a god in the sense that they created the world. They created the Nexus, and the world I am native to, and every other world in existence. All those worlds that the Eidolists believe I wish to conquer." Yharim just flicked his hand in disgust, shaking his head. "I couldn't care less about those other puny worlds. I seek the realm of Xeroc." He stared deeply at Robyn and Sid. "A realm... that you two have memories of."

Real life, Robyn realised. He's meaning real life.

"I know this realm, this real world, to truly exist," Yharim said. "I've known since my meeting with Xeroc, but when I met you, in the Nexus, the further evidence of its existence was actually shocking. It's almost as though... Xeroc put you in the Nexus, to guide me to his realm."

Robyn stepped one foot forward and pointed her bow at Yharim.

"Or maybe we're meant to keep you away!"

Yharim just laughed.

"Don't you want to enter the realm of your memories as much as I want to discover it? I can think of one other person who does."

Almost on cue, another person clad in the same sort of armour as Yharim landed next to him.

Except unlike Yharim, his helmet was off, his face showing. Brown hair, blue eyes.

"William!" Robyn gasped.

"Robyn..." he replied, but his voice was airy.

Yharim held out an item in his hand. Robyn recognised it as Miracle Matter.

"The four of us are all here," he said. "The three of you, the three who started off with memories of the real world. And me, the architect of the portal that will take you there."

Sid's entire army of summons made a series of metallic roars and yells.

"We're not going in there with you!" Sid shouted. "Not after all you've done! Did you never think that we're perfectly happy just living in the Nexus? With the citizens and with... each other?" He pointed at Robyn and William. "The two of them were in love, goddamnit, and you came along and ruined it! You ripped them apart!"

"This world isn't real," Yharim just said. "All the war, the conflict, everything I've done... it's all turned out to be meaningless. A vindication I was not expecting. What matters... is out there." He thumbed backwards at the core. "William, you have memories of what matters, don't you? A wife? A daughter?"

"I –" William stuttered, suddenly looking flustered.

"What?" Robyn shouted, now pointing her bow at him. "Since when? How do you know?"

"I... uh..." he stammered.

She took some steps forward. "Is that why you joined Yharim? And dumped me? Just because of that?"

"I didn't want to dump you!" he shouted. He seemed to instinctively draw a sword – the Zenith, Robyn realised. "Please don't shoot me. I just want us all to be happy! And safe!"

"We were happy and safe in here!" Robyn exclaimed. "But now..." she breathed. "We can't."

She let loose her arrows.

This is getting real, real fast!