Second Genesis

After a few more seconds, Grey felt just fine. But he also felt like it would be foolish to ignore what he had just experienced.

What price was he paying to go back in time? And if it really was a problem of how quickly he was doing this, did he even have a choice right now? 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Back in the Instance world, there were quite a few hours between his deaths a lot of the time, especially at the beginning before Esmeralda’s patience started wearing more and more thin.

But as time went on, it got shorter and shorter. However, because Grey was busy hacking up his guts every time he revived, it was hard to distinguish what pain he was experiencing from frequent loops to what he was experiencing because he had ate too much metal.

This time, though, it was obvious. There was nothing else that could be doing this to him other than the loops. But at the same time, there were many other variables at play as well.

Was it the speed of his loops, or was it his new Frame? Was it more difficult to send him back in time now because he was more powerful? Should he be using more energy per loop now, then? But why hadn’t Prometheus prompted him to do that, then?

Grey took a breath and ran his hand through his hair.

There was no other choice right now. He would only have an hour or so between loops no matter what, so if he needed to avoid loops for a while, then his own chance to do that was going to be to make it through this Canon Event alive first and foremost.

He didn’t get an answer to his last question to Silva, but he knew what the truth was, at least. However, just going to the ceremony and exposing Terran as a blasphemer wasn’t going to work.

Grey needed another method. And that was going to start by ransacking whatever the hell the Baron had here. But unfortunately like most of his unhinged plans, he was going to have to somehow figure out exactly how to do that.

...

Grey walked into a familiar foyer. But this time, his face wasn’t visible. It was hidden behind his Skrill Mask and his iron jaw. The only part of him that could be seen clearly were those ruby eyes that somehow looked an even deeper shade of rouge than ever before.

"Ah, Grey, you’re here. This is good--."

The instant Silva opened his arms to guide them toward the door, Grey stabbed him right through the chest.

It all happened so fast that the others didn’t even have the chance to react. In one moment, Silva was smiling and being accommodating as always. And in the next moment, there was a dagger through his chest.

Not a single soul could have expected for Grey to suddenly form a weapon from thin air, and certainly not one powerful enough to kill an Established Class warrior in a single blow.

"YOU--!"

Grey moved faster than they could react. He met Mauve’s eyes with Void Gaze, a swirling blackness leaving her falling into a quagmire.

Her own resistances kicked in and Grey could feel her ripping herself free as Brad slammed a gauntlet-laden fist toward him from the side.

Grey had seen this attack before. But when during the last battle, Brad had only used it a single time during his surprise attack. After that, despite having been even more enraged, he hadn’t used it a single other time. It was clearly a one-time use attack, or at the very least, it had a very long cool down.

Whatever it was, Grey didn’t care. Before, he had been surprised and tanked it point blank. His Metal Body might not seem like much to the likes of Terran and Silva, but to Brad it was practically an impenetrable wall. And if the situation was such that Grey was ready for it...’

BANG.

Iron Veil activated, coating Grey’s shoulder and a portion of his arm. Brad slammed right into it, cracking through. But by the time the attack slammed into Grey’s body, it had lost so much of its momentum that it was like he had held back to avoid harming him.

Grey hardly swayed off his path. He appeared before Stella who was grabbing her bow out of her boot in a step more.

She barely had the time to stand back up to her feet before Grey’s blood blades shrank down to their little stubs once more.

He pierced them both right through her eye sockets, twisting as a sinister glint flashed through his eyes.

They erupted in size and blood blades jetted out of the back of Stella’s head.

Grey really couldn’t stand her.

"Stella!" Mauve shook awake and a tempest of energy rolled around her head, descending toward Grey’s skull.

Unfortunately, it was worthless. Grey directly turned his back to her, facing off against a follow up attack from Brad with a grab at the latter’s wrist, an oblique kick at his knee, and a throw over his shoulder.

His daggers had vanished back into his palms during the combo, and the moment Brad’s back slammed against the marbled ground, Grey had already summoned them back, driving them both through the enormous man’s chest and ripping them apart.

At the moment, Grey’s chat was going crazy. They had been during the first battle in the carriage, but at least that one they could understand. This time it just seemed as though Grey was completely unhinged. He attacked without reason and dealt one death blow after another without missing a beat.

Rather than hating him for it, though, they only sent a larger and larger stream of emojis as his number of viewers ticked up from the low 100s to the low 200s.

Grey turned to face Mauve, shrugging off her mental attack with a pulse of light from his eyes.

He met her gaze, indifferent to her trembling. She shook like a leaf in the wind, her steps hesitating as she took one back, and then another. She wanted to run, but she also didn’t dare to turn her back to the madman in front of her.

Grey’s blade flashed and her head fell from her shoulders.

Just as Grey was about to leave, he thought better of it. His gaze landed on Stella and he frowned.

She had obviously been fighting him for the Holy Item for a reason, and she had ultimately failed. But somehow, she had ended up with Giyoto’s favor anyway.

How?