Silence…
It was a silence as heavy as an invisible sheet of molten steel, pressing down on everything in this plaza of death. The wind whistling through the skyscraper ruins did nothing to ease the atmosphere. On the contrary… it sounded like the lament of a dead city.
Owen stood motionless amidst the wreckage of the final battlefield. He hadn't taken his eyes off the lone knight kneeling before him for a single second. Her broken, sorrowful, synthetic voice still echoed in his head like a reflection from a deep well…
"…Have you… come to destroy what remains…?"
Her single red lens was still fixed on him, unblinking. It was a cold, emotionless gaze, as if she were assessing and judging his every move with a kill program that had been faithfully running for an eternity. It was the gaze of a machine… but deep beneath that emptiness, Owen could feel an immense, hidden pain… the pain of a trapped soul.
Owen's heart pounded a heavy rhythm in his chest, but he felt no fear… What he felt now was pity… and a heavy responsibility that had been thrust upon him without warning.
He hadn't come here as an enemy… but as one who would release these bonds.
Owen took a deep breath. The smell of rust and ozone in the air was a reminder of the devastation around him. He slowly raised both his hands to chest level… Every movement was slow and deliberate… to show that he had no intention of fighting… he came in peace.
Seeing that she had no reaction, Owen decided to be the one to start the conversation. He spoke… his voice as soft and sincere as he could make it, trying to send his feelings to the shattered soul before him, not with power… but with humanity.
"I didn't come to destroy…" he said, slowly shaking his head. "I came to help… I came to set you free."
His words vanished into the silence, but Owen continued. He paused for a moment, his eyes fixed on her, unwavering.
"I saw it… I saw the memories of this place… I saw Unit 734…"
The moment that name was spoken… the red light in the Sentinel's eye flickered for a moment… as if something in her damaged programming had been triggered… as if a fragment of her past self was trying to awaken from a long slumber.
And Owen saw that reaction… It was hope…
"I understand…" he continued quickly, before correcting himself. "…No, I can't say I fully understand, because I've never faced the pain you all had to face. But drowning in it won't make anything better. So… you have to stop, and rest now."
He tried to send all the empathy he had, hoping it could penetrate the armor of despair that enveloped her…
But then… that faint hope was extinguished…
Her red lens returned to being cold and emotionless, as if Owen's words were just junk data that had been meaninglessly deleted.
And then… her broken, synthetic voice sounded again, but this time it wasn't a question… but a sad mumble she repeated to herself over and over… the sound of the final protocol still running in her broken body… the sound of a duty she had failed…
"[Alert… Unidentified lifeform detected… Analyzing… Intent cannot be determined…]"
"[Threat level… unknown… but must be eliminated…]"
"[Civilians… must be protected… Failure… is no longer an option…]"
Owen frowned, a chill running down his spine. 'This is bad… she's in no state to talk at all… It's like… she's stuck in a loop of her final, failed duty…'
Her spirit was no longer here… What stood before him was a broken machine, repeating its final command over and over… for eternity.
And in the split second Owen was about to say something… perhaps a plea… or a prayer…
The Sentinel's body vanished from his sight!
No warning… no preparatory movements… She just disappeared from where she had been kneeling, like an illusion dissipating into the air!
Fwip!
The sound of air being violently parted came from above! His raw instincts, honed from life-or-death battles, screamed a frantic warning! Owen looked up and saw her form appear in mid-air above his head! She was dropping down with the broken half of her energy sword, which was now glowing a brilliant red… an attack meant to split his body in two in a single blow!
No time to think! Owen's body reacted before his brain could command it. He threw himself to the side with all his might! It wasn't a graceful dodge… it was a clumsy roll to save his life!
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
Her energy sword slammed into the concrete floor where he had been standing a split second before with immense force! It wasn't a slash… but an impact as violent as a small meteor! The massive force shattered the ground and caved it into a shallow pit! An invisible shockwave exploded in all directions!
"Urk!"
Even though he had escaped being split in half… Owen's body, which was rolling on the ground, was hit by that shockwave and sent flying several meters! His back slammed into the corpse of a monster so hard it knocked the wind out of him! But worse than that… a piece of shrapnel-like concrete, as sharp as glass, had flown with the explosion and embedded itself in his side… right in the old wound that hadn't fully healed!
A searing pain shot through his body! Owen gritted his teeth and quickly pushed himself up. He pulled the blood-stained concrete fragment from the wound… Fresh red blood gushed out again, staining his clothes a brilliant red…
His eyes widened with a mixture of shock and pain…
He knew instantly that negotiations were completely over…
And the female Sentinel before him didn't seem to be giving him a second to breathe!
Fwip!
The figure in the shattered silver armor shot towards him again! But this time, it wasn't an attack from above… but a horizontal assault as fast and continuous as a raging river!
Her attack pattern was completely different from the iron beast's. It wasn't a heavy but slow attack… but a "rhythm-less sword dance" perfectly blended with unarmed martial arts. It was a movement that was both beautiful and terrifying… fluid yet unpredictable…
She started with a precise thrust to his neck! Owen twisted away just in time, but before he could counter… she changed her stance in a flash! Her body spun into close range, her armored elbow slamming into his ribs!
THWACK!
Owen felt like his entire ribcage would crack! But that pain was drowned out by a new danger… As he was losing his balance, she used that moment to swiftly sweep his leg! And as Owen's body was about to fall… the broken half of the energy sword in her hand slashed horizontally, aiming to take his head from his shoulders!
Every one of her movements was filled with the utmost killing efficiency. It was a perfect dance of death!
In that split second between life and death, Owen didn't have enough time to regain his footing! His final instinct ordered him to raise his right arm, wearing the Gauntlets of the Sun God, to parry with all his might!
He didn't "block" the attack head-on… but twisted his wrist and used the edge of the gauntlet to "deflect" the sword's trajectory upwards at the last second!
CLANGGGGG!
The sound of metal on energy was deafening! Brilliant red sparks scattered like fireworks!
Even though he had deflected it from the vital point of his neck… the immense impact that was transferred was still too much for his off-balance body to handle!
Owen's body was hit by that force and sent rolling across the cracked concrete floor for several meters! His back scraped against the wreckage, a searing heat across his entire back!
But he wouldn't let himself be a sitting duck for long… The moment his momentum stopped, Owen used his hands to push off the ground and sprang back to his feet like a spring! His eyes no longer held any shock… but were filled with the unyielding spirit of a fighter!
And at the moment he stood up… he saw it!
After the Sentinel had slashed horizontally with all her force… she had a momentary opening in her defense…
Owen didn't hesitate for a second. He used that moment to shoot forward like an arrow! His right fist, wearing the iron gauntlet, was pulled back to its limit, before shooting out, aiming to punch her in the torso!
But then… it was a "trap"!
The Sentinel, who had seemed to have lost her balance from the previous attack, used one foot as a pivot and spun back with unbelievable speed! Her body spun like a killing top, easily dodging his punch!
Owen's fist hit nothing but air… and at that same moment… the hilt of the broken sword in her hand slammed back into his stomach!
THUD!
"Oof!"
Owen doubled over in pain! He felt like his internal organs were twisting into knots, all the air driven from his lungs in a single gasp! He glanced at his own gauntlets in despair…
[[Fist of the Rising Sun] Heat Accumulated: 0/6000 units]
'Damn it!' His thoughts were filled with panic. 'This is a completely one-sided attack! I can barely fight her… Every one of her movements is perfectly calculated for maximum efficiency! If this keeps up… there's no way I can accumulate enough energy for the gauntlets before I'm killed!'
And throughout the fierce and desperate battle… her sad mumble still sounded in Owen's head periodically. It wasn't a voice speaking to him… but an echo from the past… the voice of someone trapped in a repeating nightmare…
"[Alert… highest level… must evacuate civilians…]"
CLANG! Owen managed to raise his arm to block her slash, but the impact still forced his knee to the ground!
"[Why… why can't I stop them… Am I… not strong enough?...]"
Fwip! He twisted away from a counter-thrust by a hair's breadth, the tip of the energy sword whistling past!
"[I… am the last guardian… I cannot fall… I must eliminate the threat!!!...]"
And in that moment… Owen realized…
He wasn't fighting a bloodthirsty "warrior"… but a "wound" that had never been healed. She had no hatred or intent to kill him as a "person"… but saw him as another "threat" she had to eliminate… to "protect" a city that had already fallen… to complete a duty she had failed…
But that understanding didn't make the fight any easier… On the contrary, it made Owen's heart feel heavier than ever before.
The Sentinel didn't let him rest or dwell on his thoughts for long. She shot towards him at top speed again, this time her attacks even more fierce and violent! As if her threat-elimination program had elevated his danger level.
She slashed her sword continuously like a storm! Owen could only raise his gauntlets to defend himself desperately!
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The sound of metal on energy thundered! Every time he blocked… the immense impact forced him back a step… and another step… His heels scraped against the cracked concrete, leaving long marks.
And finally…
THUD!
His back slammed into the ruined wall of a collapsed building! Concrete dust rained down on his head…
He was cornered!
Suddenly, the Sentinel stopped her attack… She stood motionless before him at close range… as silent as a statue of an ancient warrior, before slowly raising the broken half of the energy sword in her hand… The hot, slightly vibrating tip was aimed at Owen's neck…
The red light from the sword reflected in his wide eyes… He could feel the heat radiating from it, stinging his skin…
He had been completely defeated… and there was no way to escape…
Time in Owen's perception seemed to slow… He could see the small details clearly… the cracks on her shattered helmet, the sparks that flashed on the edge of the sword, and the dust swirling in the red light that shone out…
The hot, vibrating tip of the Sentinel's energy sword was aimed at his neck, so close he could feel the heat radiating from it, stinging his skin. The red light from the sword reflected in his wide eyes, revealing an image of defeat and impending death.
His mind was filled with despair and an acceptance of his fate. 'This is it… I've lost… Speed… experience… I can't compare to her at all…'
The Sentinel didn't hesitate. She raised the sword slightly… preparing to thrust down and end the "threat" before her.
But in the instant the sword was about to lunge… the image of the mist-filled forest… and the calm old monk named "Tenzin" suddenly appeared, superimposed in Owen's mind…
And then… his wise voice echoed in Owen's mind, which was about to give up… It was as clear as if he were standing and whispering in Owen's ear right now…
"...Trust in the power of a Guardian... do not trust what your physical eyes see..."
Those words were like a sledgehammer to his heart! Like a lightning bolt in the darkness! Owen's eyes flashed with a sudden understanding!
'Physical eyes… that's right…' His thoughts changed from despair to a complete understanding in a flash. 'All this time, I've been trying to fight what my "eyes" were seeing… a warrior in shattered armor… a broken sword… a fast attack…'
'But that's not the real enemy! Tenzin already told me! The real enemy is the 'Nightmare Knot'!'
'I can never defeat "her"… She is the Guardian of Arcadia… the ultimate warrior of this place… But maybe… maybe I don't have to defeat her at all!'
'My enemy isn't the "female Sentinel" in front of me… but the "sorrow"… the "guilt"… the "failed duty" which has become an endless loop that consumes her mind! I don't have to defeat "her"… I just have to defeat her 'Nightmare Knot'!'
The Sentinel's sword was already lunging… The hot tip was less than an inch from his neck…
But instead of trying to dodge or defend himself desperately at the last second… Owen did the craziest thing…
He closed his eyes…
His eyelids shut calmly… a sight that was a stark contradiction to the blade of death that was about to arrive… He no longer cared about the outside world… but was focusing all his concentration "inward"… to the [Essence of Dreams] that was vibrating in his soul… trying to "see" through her physical body… to find the "crack" or "weak point" of the Nightmare Knot hidden within…
He stopped looking with his eyes… and for the first time… he began to truly "see"…
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