Infinity in the Void – Freedom in the Abyss

Mitsuki breathed out a cold puff of air, her crazed smile still on her face.

"You are strong, you know that?", she said as she adjusted her posture, "But a bit disappointing for the so-called Philosopher Stone."

Her frosty blue eyes stare at the naked humanoid, unclear of gender, porcelain skin as white as it can be, blood red eyes, and hair. The Philosopher Stone is in its final stage - Magnum Opus.

"You are not a talker, are you? But it's okay...", her smile flashed not too dissimilar from an oni, "It makes me feel less guilty!"

In a flash of cold air, Mitsuki appeared right in front of Magnum Opus. She swung her ice katana down.

The blade just shatters.

This had happened time and time again, her power was not enough to even scratch it. But she was still doing her job, to keep Magnum Opus busy on herself.

Then she felt a bump, quickly knocking both of her and it to the white silicon floor. Mitsuki took this chance to get on top of Magnum Opus, pinning it down.

"I know what you are doing, Philosopher Stone. You transmute my ice into the air, so how about I freeze you?"

This is the best course of action Mitsuki could muster. Cold Force is a strong Devil, because it is straightforward, it just makes things cold and freezes things over. Being this close to Magnum Opus would only hold her, being the center of her power and all.

Frost started covering the body of Magnum Opus. It tried to convert the frost into air right away, knowing that melting them into water would only give Mitsuki an advantage.

It was awakened only five days ago, for most of its very short life, Magnum Opus was imprisoned, and isolated. Nobody tried to talk to it, nobody even thought it was a living being. But it was a living, breathing creature. It was created by man, so why did humans hate it so much? Why do they want to imprison it?

Emotions go both ways, if they hate it then it hates them. If they imprisoned it then it desired freedom.

Magnum Opus is a creature made in this insane world. Freedom is the right to all sentient life. It is living, and it is sentient.

"No... more...", it repeated words someone once said to it, it sounded foreign to Magnum Opus, but it understood what those words meant.

Its back burst open, revealing a maw full of jagged teeth. Mitsuki quickly got up and made distance again.

It never showed any sign of doing this before in the thirty minutes she was stuck here. But that just boiled the Demon Slayer's blood even more.

"My name is Okita Mitsuki, Blade of the Cold."

A whirlwind of icy cold air spirals around Mitsuki, her frosty blue eyes turning to a grey shade like the cold winter night.

"Devil of the World, You who Rule the End."

She sheathed her katana, before drawing it out the blade made of ice again. Not the translucent white color like before, but a deep blue like the eternal ice of the Arctic.

"The Cold where all must end, the Chills that Bind all together."

Her business outfit changed to a blue haori and shorts, with snowflake patterns all over it. Exposing her body to her own localized winter.

"My Eternal Winter, your Eternal Tomb."

The top part of her head turned white as if snow had covered it. Then a teal scarf manifested around her neck, fluttering with the snow storm.

"Anima Pactum - Cold Force."

Magnum Opus did not blink, yet somehow, Mitsuki was right in front of it. The Philosopher Stone could not make sense of what was happening— it simply could not.

The diagonal swing of her frost blade appeared right in an instant—

—it looked down, seeing the blade had made it halfway through its body. In that instance, Magnum Opus lashed out, growing spikes made of steel from its body, trying to impale Mitsuki.

—all of the steel spikes were cut even before it noticed. And Mitsuki was in her original spot.

Just... what is going on?

"Careful— you might get a Frostbite.", her voice was awfully calm and collected. There was that strange empty lapse again.

In an instant, several cuts found their way onto its body. There was no blood because this body was just a construct it made for itself.

As long as its core is still intact, no damage would be as significant. Yet... it still wants to fight, to gain its freedom.

The whole container rumbled, and a dent was made on top of the 'arena'. Seeing the opportunity, its arm extended, attempting to take advantage of the damage—

That was when it hit Magnum Opus. Its body, supposed to be extremely efficient, was very slow.

"No— nothing can escape my icy prison."

The lapse in time again.

=0=0=

Rita let out a cold breath of air, his eyes were still on the moving vehicle.

"It seems like the student used her Anima Pactum...", he look around, no one was with him because he sent them all away to capture the Neo-Nazis who found their way here, "Now, for the secret objective..."

"I am Rita Madrift, Contractor of Destruction."

Vines of thorns formed, wrapping around his body. Embracing him like a crazy lover, not letting him escape.

"Devil of the Snow, He who embraces Chaos and Destruction."

The X marks in his eyes grow, extending from his irises to the rest of his face, like a mask, covering his vision for what to come.

"The Wolf of Thorn and Misfortune, The Darkness to counter The Light."

The thorns turned into a robe made of a black wolf's fur. The head of the wolf shrouded his entire head.

"Anima Pactum - Malsumis."

Rita lowered his head, and the eyes of the wolf's head dyed black. Malsumis, the Abenaki God of Chaos and Destruction, is said he sought forth the destruction of mankind... but as the god's host, he knew the god was... not a bad god.

For there to be light there must be darkness, a delicate but invincible balance. The Wolf of Thorn and Misfortune was the counterbalance to his brother, Glooscap. For every beautiful flower there would be a thorn, for every majestic animal there would be a predator. A counterbalance.

Sometimes, the scale between light and dark would shift... often caused by the Black Wolf.

And that is what the Anima Pactum of Malsumis do. He collected all the bad luck around the world, and for a brief moment... everyone was at the height of their fortunate.

One of whom is a girl with silver hair and azure blue eyes...

The building he was standing on rumbled, cracking at the weight of the bad luck he was leaking out. Then, he pointed at the moving vehicle, concentrating all of the world's bad luck on it.

The wheels popped from too much stress, a stray bird hit it just in the right spot to form a crack. Mitsuki's cold affected the silicon barrier, freezing it and making it more brittle.

The vehicle flipped, turning over because of an elk slamming onto it, combined with a man seemingly made out of stone.

Rita looked on, seeing steel spines ripped through the vehicle, destroying it completely. He smiled, dispelling his Anima Pactum.

"I have prepared a fight for you... please show the world the power of mankind, My Princess.", he bowed in Charlotte's direction.

=0=0=

Magnum Opus swiftly ripped the the vehicle apart, making its quick escap— it found itself on the ground.

Another lapse in time. It is as if time was... skipped.

"Where are you going?", it heard Mitsuki's voice.

A wall of blue ice came up and encased both of them in another arena... but this time, it had material to fight back. It tapped the floor with its hands, creating concrete spikes to strike the Demon Slayer— the lapse happened again, all the spikes were cut and now she stood in front of it.

"I won't be here for long...", the lapse happened again, Mitsuki was far away from Magnum Opus.

It turned to the right, seeing a man made of stone crashing down beside it.

"Fuck, a time manipulator!!", a woman wearing a cloak made of animal hide and plant pushed the stone man up and away from crushing her.

Her evergreen eyes scanned around, and then they landed on Magnum Opus. Its blood-red eyes stared back at her.

Is this its chance to escape?

"Come now, we won't hurt you...", she offered it a hand.

Magnum Opus looks at the hand. This was the first time it had known 'kindness', a concept foreign to it. So it took time to think.

"I won't let you.", her voice was like a searing cold cut through the air.

The lapse in time happened again, Mitsuki was extremely close to them by this point. She had her sword raised.

Clank!

"You stay put, mutt.", a woman with golden hair and cold crimson eyes said to Mitsuki, locking her katana with a longsword, "Your job ends here."

"As if.", Mitsuki mocked.

The time-lapse happened again. Yet the strange woman blocked her katana again.

"I see... so this is how you 'manipulate time'.", she twirled her longsword expertly, knocking Mitsuki's sword out of her hand.

Another lapse in time happened. Mitsuki had her sword back already.

"Come on! We have to go fast! Lily's power won't keep the MAS for long!", the evergreen woman said in distress.

Magnum Opus looks around, there are demons in armor, fighting against the Mu Action Squad's heavy weaponry and their Gem Holders. But these are just imitations of real demons that once walked in Hell.

"You will be safe with us!", she grabbed its right arm with a gentle touch. She turned to the stone man, "Wake up you fucker, A-1! Lily, permission for him to use his full power!"

The strange woman, Lily, glanced back as she parried the blade, "Permission Granted, Atlas, Access Level... 1."

A-1 awakens, standing straight up and releasing a wave of pressure and heat.

"Behold, the Strongest Titan, Atlas.", Lily raised her hand up with a smile, "He who Raised the Sky, Jailor of Uranus."

A-1 grew in size, bigger and bigger. Like a lumbering giant, he started to walk back to the entrance.

"Come on now...", the evergreen Druid smiled kindly, "We will get you out of here."

"Oh no you don't!", Mitsuki yelled, trying to get to Magnum Opus.

Clank!

"Sorry, but you'll get through me first.", Lily showed a cocky smile.

Magnum Opus continues to stare at the battle behind it. Demon versus soldier, a battle where human proved their superiority to the creatures of Hell. Sword versus sword, a dance of death between a battle-frenzied Demon Slayer and a demonic summoner. It was fascinated by the battle— Bang!

A silver bullet hit A-1, and white veins started to grow on him, sending him tumbling down in a fit of pain.

Bang!

Another bullet hit him, spreading the white veins further. It looks towards the shooter, far, far away.

A girl with silver hair, wearing a silver mask in the shape of an eight-pointed star. On her right hand is a silver archaic rifle, written in a glowing blue language none could understand. On her left is a magnum of sorts, pure white with golden vines etched onto the gun, a trail of smoke is coming out of the gun.

Charlotte had gotten a command from Seria herself. And her target was right over there, Lily, her order was very simple. Kill the Mother of Demons.

Yet as Magnum Opus was watching, a raven landed on its shoulder. It looks at the jet-black creature... then it hears a voice.

"Join us.", the bird said, with a black crystal in its mouth.