Interlude

The Abyss

"Mankind is always inching itself closer to destruction. Every time we try to destroy each other, we only succeed in destroying ourselves. As I walk down this dark road, venturing further into the realm of my adversary, I find myself welcoming that warm, white light: the only true peace we will ever know."

-Erik Harbinger, Destroyer, p. 198

The Ark Knight woke up cold and wet. He found himself lying in a pool of water that seemed to stretch to infinity. Everything within this mysterious realm was captured in the water's mirror image. Looming mountains protruded from the water, casting a massive, dark reflection as if it were its own shadow. The sky above was black and empty, save for a sun blotted out by a giant moon. The fiery corona gazed down on Jaden like a fiendish eye that scorned the world. He looked down at the waters below to see his confused reflection, the only person there with him.

Where am I? he thought. Is this Hell?

"Hello?" Jaden called out. "Astra? Anybody?!"

"Jaden!"

He turned around to see the voice belonged a man standing next to a single tree growing out of the water. Next to him sat a pile of burning logs that shined in this dark world. Walking closer, Jaden saw that he was a blonde-haired man, well into his thirties, dressed in a blue tunic with a long, black cape hanging down to his feet. His face radiated with a sense of empathy that could be rarely found in a lifetime. He recognized his face from the photo that Ramon showed him at the Royal Sanctuary. He was the spitting image of Jaden come to life, or rather back from the dead.

"Father?"

"Hello, son. It's so good to see you again."

The young Ark Knight's mind was racing beyond belief, reaching the apotheosis of basic understanding. He had so many questions he wanted to ask him. Who am I? Who am I supposed to be? These were some of the many questions that had been swirling in his mind for years. But they all seemed to fade away as he asked just one.

"If you're here, does that mean I'm dead?"

"No, but everyone you know will be if Kaiser isn't stopped. His Dark Army continues to ravage your world, and his power grow more fearsome with each passing moment. If gets his hands on the First Star, there will be no stopping him. The entire human race will be wiped out by his hand alone."

As Jaden tried to process the threat of their grand Adversary, his mind returned to question of why. Why was this once beloved and revered hero trying to destroy the world he had sworn to protect? But then Jaden remembered what he said to him when they were alone in the Imperial Palace.

"Is what he said true?" he asked his father. "Did you leave him behind?"

At first, the spirit stood in silence when confronted with this question. Without looking at his son, he said with a remorseful tone—

"Yes, it's true."

"Why? He was your friend! Why didn't you go back for him?"

His father took a deep breath to try and purge the strain from his mind. Even though he was only a spirit with no need to breathe, some kind of primal, human instinct drove him to do so. All the pain and guilt he felt over Kaiser's fall had lived on long after his body had perished. One of the only traces of humanity that remained, he let it all pour out as he recounted his past to his son.

"When Kaiser and his team were captured, our other fighters were too weak to fight back. The Empire had overwhelmed us, and our mission had erupted in chaos. I knew that if we had gone back for them, we would've been captured as well, and our secrets would have been put at greater risk. I didn't want to leave him there, but I thought there was no other choice. Though he and his team had escaped from captivity, Kaiser had come back different. The man I had once called my brother had grown cold and detached. He had grown to hate the humans he had sworn to protect, as well as the people who left him behind. Over time, his hate grew and infected the Knights that were imprisoned with him. He led them all in a revolt against us, slaughtering everyone that dared to oppose them. We all fought until there was me and him. Though I had defeated him in battle, he still won in the end, and I knew that was to blame for it all. I thought what I did would preserve our kind's future. Instead, I ended up sealing our fate and put millions more at risk."

The specter hung his head down in shame, feeling the weight of his grave mistake press down on his shoulders. Jaden was rattled by the revelation that the Ark Knights he thought so highly of had left one of their own behind. He could hardly comprehend ever abandoning someone who needed him like that, especially not one of his loved ones. But then, he thought of all those other people he could've saved had he not tried to hide his powers. Did he already turn his back on them like his father did to Kaiser? Was he really trying to protect them all, or was he trying to protect himself?

"I'm so sorry, Jaden. It's my fault that you've inherited this strife. The Ark Knights were supposed to protect mankind, but our mistake had only led them towards destruction. But that is why I'm here! To ask you one thing. I know I shouldn't ask anymore from you, after everything I've made you suffer through. But please,...save Kaiser!"

Jaden was taken aback by this unexpected request. He figured he would ask him to keep fighting and save the world. But to save the one man who is threatening to destroy it? That seemed even more impossible. Seeing his son's surprised confusion, the spirit continued expressing his solemn plea.

"I know that everything Kaiser has done is unforgivable, but deep down, he is still the good man I once knew. Though our duty as Ark Knights is to protect this world above all else, I know now that if there even the slightest chance that he can be saved, you must take that chance and reach out to him. Don't you agree?"

The younger Ark Knight took a moment to consider his elder's plea. He did agree with him. He didn't want to have to fight with Kaiser, even after all his crimes against humanity. Even after all the horrible things he did to him and his friends, he didn't want to have to kill him. Jaden always tried to see the good in others, as dwelling on the bad only made everything more darker. He knew that even the greatest shadow can be cast by an equally large light. But with Kaiser, it seemed that the good man he once was had been consumed by the darkness long ago, leaving him hollow like the realm Jaden now stood in.

"I wish I can save him. I really do. But I don't know if that's even possible anymore. And even if what you say is true, I don't know if I'm the one who can do it."

"Yes you are! You may not see it yet, but you are far stronger and far more caring than anyone I have ever known! All of our race's potential has been passed on to you. You are the best in all of us. I believe in you, son. And now, the time has come for you to awaken!"

Jaden noticed a glimmer light rain down before his eyes. He looked up to see a creature made of shining, blue light soaring high above him. This anomalous entity spread its draconic wings, causing its dazzling aura to burn through the dark sky. This divine light continued to envelop everything, filling Jaden's eyes with a blinding white that thrust his being out of the darkness.