The Infinite Court is silent The Judge of Oblivion is gone erased by Ryo's hand The shattered marble reforms under his will but the weight of what just happened still lingers in the air Kael leans against a pillar his chest heaving with shallow breathsYuna sits beside him her hands trembling around her staff Ryo stands alone gazing upward at the endless cracks in the Court's ceiling.
Kael: panting Hah… hah… damn it… I thought I'd seen monsters before but that… that wasn't a fight That was a nightmare.
Yuna: quietly It wasn't just a nightmare It was erasure If I'd been a second slower you would've
Kael: snapping then softening Don't Don't say it I don't want to hear it.
He grips his fists tightly, knuckles white His eyes usually full of bravado flicker with something he rarely admits fear His voice cracks.
Kael: I… I wasn't ready For the first time I felt it That if I messed up I'd be gone No scars no afterlife nothing Just… gone.
Yuna: hugging her knees And Ryo… he just stood there Watching Not afraid Not even surprised.
She looks toward Ryo who still hasn't moved His back is turned his coat swaying faintly as if stirred by a wind no one else feels.
Yuna: whispering How can anyone… face Oblivion like that?
Kael: grimly He didn't just face it He destroyed it Like it was nothing.
There's a long silence Kael wipes sweat from his brow but his hands won't stop shaking Yuna's doubts fester unspoken until she finally voices them.
Yuna: hesitant Kael… what if we're following something we don't understand?
Kael: startled Huh?
Yuna: looking at him with wide eyes You felt it too didn't you? When Ryo raised his hand it wasn't like watching someone win a fight It was like… like he rewrote the rules Like he wasn't bound by existence anymore.
Kael: gritting his teeth Yeah I noticed.
Yuna: shaking What if what if he's becoming something else? Something beyond us?
Kael: snapping louder than he means to He saved us Yuna! Without him we'd both be less than dust right now!
Yuna: hurt but firm I know that! But don't you see? That's exactly why I'm scared! He's not just saving us he's changing With every Judge he faces he grows stronger… stranger What if one day he doesn't need us anymore? What if one day he doesn't even remember us?
Kael looks away his jaw tight The thought pierces deeper than he wants to admit For all his bravado Kael knows Yuna is right Ryo is no longer just a man they've seen gods
monsters and Judges and Ryo towers above them all The gap between them grows wider with every step.
Kael: low almost to himself Damn it Yuna… I don't know.
Yuna's voice softens her doubt heavy in the air.
Yuna: quietly I trust him… but I'm starting to wonder if he's even the same Ryo we began with.
Ryo finally speaks his voice cutting through the silence like a blade He doesn't turn to face them.
Ryo: You fear me.
Kael and Yuna freeze The words are simple but the way he says them flat calm unshaken makes their blood run cold Ryo lowers his hand the last fragments of the Court fully restored.
Ryo: Good.
Kael: stiff forcing a grin Heh That's one way to put it You've gone from ally to nightmare fuel in record time.
Ryo: finally turning his eyes gleaming faintly with an inhuman light Fear is proof you understand Each Judge is a fragment of something greater To defeat them I must become greater still You feel the distance growing because it is.
Yuna: staring voice trembling Ryo… are you saying you're leaving us behind?
Ryo: flatly No But the path I walk is one you cannot follow. You will walk in my shadow That is enough.
Kael opens his mouth to argue but the words catch in his throat He looks at Ryo's face the calm the certainty and realizes he can't find a crack to push against Yuna lowers her head clutching her staff tighter as doubt gnaws at her heart.
The Court trembles again A new fissure splits across the sky and light pours through signaling the next Judge's approach Kael steadies himself though his legs feel heavy.
Kael: forcing a grin Guess break time's over Ready for round two?
Yuna: quiet bitter …Do we even have a choice?
Ryo looks upward the faint light reflecting in his eyes When he speaks his voice carries not just strength but inevitability.
Ryo: No choice Only judgment.
The cracks widen The next trial begins.