Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction / Saint Seiya Fan Fiction ❯ The Intense Clash of the Gods ❯ Tale 82 ( Chapter 82 )

"HYOGA, THIS COULD BE CONSIDERED AN ACT OF WAR!" The Aquarius Saint was slammed into the wall, Kanon's hands clenched around Camus's shirt.

"What do I care? She's still alive, isn't she? The terms are simple. If I lose my fight, Zepplin goes free. Besides," he glared back at Slate, "This is retaliation for what Isaac did to my mother." The Gemini Temple radiated wtih power as the two Gold Saints looked at each other, nose-to-nose and all but about to begin exchanging blows. "You wouldn't dare risk a 1000 day war here, would you?"

"Well, he's got backup." A red rose struck into the wall next to Hyoga's head, Sepal stepping into view from the shadows along with Ignacio and Shaina. "In hindsight, Hyoga... I think Isaac was right in taking the drug away from the addict."

"Cold turkey..." Shaina smirked at the remark as Hyoga looked at them all in frustration. "Hyoga, break the coffin down and let her go and we might forget this whole mess after Pope Aiolos decides on an appropriate reprimand."

Hyoga looked at them all, knowing he lacked the power to defeat them all, even if they did lack their Gold Cloths. As he was about to finally make the slightest sign towards relenting, however, a bolt of lightning shot through the temple.

"Hyoga, do no think of doing anything of the sorts," Aiolos announced as he walked towards the group. Kanon immediatly let go of Hyoga and moved towards Aiolos to plead his case, but the Pope of Sanctuary merely rose his hand and the man became silent. "I know exactly what is going on, and I feel Hyoga has been wronged. It is only fair for Hyoga to return the favor, provided he maintain his part of the bargain and release Asuka provided he loses."

"Sir-" Kanon started to say, but Aiolos silenced him again with a simple hand gesture.

"Kanon," Aiolos nearly spat, trying to hold back his loathing for the man before looking at his supporters, "Shaina, Ignacio, Sepal... you support a Corona rather than a fellow Gold Saint?"

"It's simple, really," Shaina began, "We know more about the Pentrine's motivations for winning the Kamui than we do know of our fellow Gold Saint's... or yours, sir."

"Charybdis Tiamet is a noble woman, as are her three charges," Shura continued. "She very easily could have killed during our fight... she practically did as it was. I doubt their intentions are anything more than seal away the Kamui and ensure they aren't going to fall into the wrong hands. Besides, with the Holy Wars against the Underworld officially over, there's no need for them in the first place."

Kanon felt relieved... this was a perfect nail in the coffin... he could practically hear the noose tightening around Aiolos's throat.

The Pope, however, jsut turned and walked away. "Very well then... if anyone would like to continue voicing their opposition to Hyoga's actions, I'm sure Shaka would be more than willing to listen." He paused, waiting for the right moment to turn around before acting on it. "That is something you're willing to do, no?"

Kanon, Psyche, Aphrodite, and Shura all froze in shock as Hyoga realized he was safe, if only until his final battle against Isaac to settle this all. He... he wouldn't... Kanon struggled to come to grips with.

Seeing he had won yet another debate, Aiolos turned and walked away. "I thought so. Good day then."
_
"We will do nothing of the sort," Mina said as the remaining Coronas, along with Julien, Fenrir, Charybdis, Isaac, and Cecil sat around her. It felt... odd for Ambrosia to be surrounded mostly by people that had tried to kill her in the past, with proper justification. The fact, however, that it was because of those actions in the past that three of them had obtained Combat Awareness dampened the blow, if only a little. "Isaac... you had enough cognative skills for Combat Awareness to let you know Asuka was still alive, correct?"

The Mariner nodded. "Hyoga's Freezing Coffin might be more structurally sound than mine, but it lacks the high kill ratio. She's alive, in suspended animation."

Julien's hand slammed down on the table. "This is absurd. We can't just wait around a few days and-"

"I think Mina's got the right idea," Fenrir suddenly spoke up. Everyone turned to him in surprise. "We're not just in a situation involving Hyoga, his mom, and Isaac's twisted hate-triangle here... well, by now it's a hate-square with Asuka, but also worrying about the Kamui. We charge in, guns blazing, and there's a shitload of confusion. And you know who works well in confusion?"

"Eurydice..." Mina sighed.

"So we wait?" Horoki asked, as everyone slowly nodded. "But-"

"We'll still need a backup, though," Mana Kirishima raised. "If all goes to hell without us, we really wouldn't mess the situation up any more than it already is."

"Well," Charybdis started, "Dohko Kido is dead... we could easily pilfer his Cloth and use its weapons to cut her free. A Libra or a Scorpio, depending on either the Traditional or Sidereel Zodiac would be able to use the Cloth."

"I fit the bill then," Fenrir shrugged. "We'll get her back as soon as possible, we promise."

"There hasn't been a problem we haven't been able to overcome just yet," Cecil added as the four members of the Pentrine stood up. "Five Gold Saints left unaccounted for, five of us. Won't even break a sweat."

"Lord Poseidon," Charybdis and Isaac said, bowing their heads to him before the four of them walked away. The sea god, along with his friends, watched them leave, heading once more towards Athens.

"They'll do fine." He smiled, knowing there was no challenge that could truly crush the human spirit.

"Are you kidding?" Mizuki sighed. "There's few things worse than getting one of those people pissed."

"Yeah... pissing you off," Mina, Horoki, Julien, and Mana all said in unison. Mizuki groaned, slamming her head into the table. These people were hopeless.
_
Grabbing a towel and drying himself off, Minos breathed easy. He quickly dressed in a light-green shirt and jeans, checking the calender. It was one day before the final rounds began... Chary and the others ought to be getting back soon. Grabbing a bite to eat in the cafe in the lobby of the hotel, Minos met up with Hilda, who briefed him on the details of her discussion with Deathmask. He really didn't know what to make of it just yet.

"What time are you supposed to be at Sanctuary?" Hilda asked afterwards.

Minos checked his watch and did some quick mental math. "I ought to be there in half an hour, so it'd be best to leave now." Hilda nodded as they both got up and began walking away, although after after a few steps, Minos's phone rang. He quickly flipped it open. "What is it?"

"Minos! We've been trying to reach you for hours!" It was Radamanthys. "Get your ass over to Sanctuary now!"
_
"This is madness," Rei growled as she stared at Aiolos in the Aquarius temple, pointing at the gigantic ice block with Asuka Soryu Zepplin trapped inside. "I cannot approve of this in any way!"

"I am sorry, Athena, but I disagree," Aiolos answered. "The Kraken was not punished in any form for crushing Hyoga's deceased mother under a large block of ice... destroying the one thing that brought him happiness. How is this any different?"

"Because it involves a living, breathing person!" Rei countered. "This is not how a Saint should conduct himself!"

"It is regrettable, yes," Aiolos sighed, "However, my duties require me to be elsewhere at the moment. Good day." He turned and walked away, ignoring Rei's shouts all the while. It didn't matter if she opposed him or not, for one reason: he was still the Sagittarius Gold Saint. No god would challenge him as long as he held the perfect sword and shield that were his and his alone.
_
"Charybdis, a moment." The Mariner stopped, seeing Kanon standing right there. She wondered how he had slipped into the Pentrine's preperation room past Fenrir, Cecil, and Isaac... besides, they were all about to draw lots to see who would fight who.

Looking at him, Charybdis shrugged, smirked, and leaned against the wall. "Take your time, Kanon."

"Thanks." He sat down, wondering where exactly a good place to start would be. "As... as you know, I'm teamed up with a number of... less than friendly Gold Saints."

"The notion did cross my mind," Charybdis responded. "What of it?"

"I did it... to ensure at least one Kamui would be under safeguard. I mean, we've got the strongest batch of Gold Saints in all of history... if I fought against them, I might beat one, but that wouldn't do much. At least this way, one would be under my care. Of course..." he shrugged, "That was before I found out you'd come here."

"Smart boy," Charybdis said with a grin. "I'd do the same thing myself if I was in your shoes. Let's get going."

"Yeah."
_
Sanctuary was abuzz with excitement as the two remaining teams stood to face each other, Aiolos relishing the applause that came for him as he steppd up to join them. "Gentlemen and laides!" He shouted out. Silence fell as all hung on his every word... except for those five invaders that still had a slight chance of compromising his plan. "The final round has at last descended on us... five epic battles, each one gurenteed to be more intense than the last!

"However," he grinned. He was looking forward to how the Pentrine would look after he broke the tragic news. "There is a slight snag for the Pentrine! Regrettably..." he began as a digital chart appeared next to him, "Their team has suffered, over the course of the tournament, five losses, one for each member of the group, whereas each member of Team Primary Gold has maintained a perfect record!" The screen quickly flashed between images of Aiolia, Aldebaran, Kanon, Hyoga, and Shion deftly defeating the competition with embarrassing ease.

"What's this have to do with anything?" Fenrir spoke up, clenching his fist. Across from him, Aiolia leered at the God Warrior.

"Well," Aiolos continued, "The problem is the fact that Team Pentrine's record is regrettably far worse off, at the moment, than Team Primary Gold's! Whereas Team Primary Gold has lost no matches and not even a single fight, Team Pentrine has suffered five losses so far... and due to the special rules of this final round..." Aiolos smiled again under the headpiece. "If Team Pentrine loses even one fight, you lose!"

"WHAT?!?" Fenrir, Cecil, Charybdis, and Isaac all shouted, although Minos held his composure.

"The situation is this," Aiolos elaborated. "The winner of the tournament is determined to be either of these two teams, depending on who has the least losses. Every loss in a fight counts as 1 point, and the loss of the final round also counts as 1 in this case. Team Primary Gold's score is currently 0, while yours is 5. The only way, therefor, for Team Pentrine to raise Team Primary Gold's score sufficiently so that they will win... is if they defeat all five of its members! That counts as a loss for Primary Gold as a whole so another point."

"And why have we not heard about this arrangement before?" Minos slowly asked.

Aiolos shrugged and chuckled. "What, and ruin the surprise? Your years as a Judge have ruined your sense of humor, Sylphid!" The screen suddenly changed to include the Pentrine's images on it, flashing by quickly as Aiolos explained. "We are now deciding the match-ups for the final round!"

"You didn't say random," Isaac countered.

"Who said it was?"

The screen suddenly expanded as much of Sanctuary roared in victory. First match: Charybdis Tiamet vs. Kanon Slate. Second match: Cecil Bodu vs. Aldebaran Rodruigez. Third match: Isaac Krylov vs. Hyoga Camus. Fourth match: Fenrir Volsung vs. Aiolia Talos. Fifth match...

"Minos," Shion spat.

"Shion," Minos retorted.