As they scaled the dark stairs, navigating by the thin light streaming through the crack in the doors, Erina realized something. It grew clearer and clearer with every step.

  "What is that sound?" said Erina.

  Akira tilted her head, trying to hear it better. "Huh. Wouldja look at that."

  "?"

  The closer they approached, the clearer the notes became. Powerful, yet graceful and poised. The song flowed as effortlessly as water. It was a piece long since familiar to its player. Erina imagined he could play it in his sleep if he wanted.

  And indeed, it could only be him.

  Erina pushed open the doors with a loud creak, and stepped into the top floor of the Binding Association Headquarters.

  Pure white marble pillars, high domed glass ceilings, and almost every wall a window. Stormy gray clouds roiled above and all around them, churned by the winds of the typhoon and casting their dismal gray light into the throne room. The lavish red carpet underfoot guided Erina's eye forward, to the elevated dais at the far end of the hall. There stood the throne, high-backed, a ring of swords with their tips fanned out in a circle emanating from where the back of its occupant would rest. Dozens more blades stood driven point-first into the marble around it.

  On the Surface, it was the round table where the Binding Association's leaders convened—though as it was today, only three continued to attend in the physical room itself. On the Reverse, molded by perception, it was the throne room of their one king, alone and unrivaled.

  But the throne's intended occupant wasn't there.

  With his back turned to them, Darius sat at the foot of the steps leading up to the throne, off to one side of the carpet. Mechanical fingers flew across the grand piano before him. If they offered him any impediment, it didn't show now. He played perfectly, as fluidly and naturally as if he had been playing since birth, with these very same arms. Haruka stood at his side as he played, a quiet incantation on her lips. Rings of pink runes encircled him – a healing spell, washing away whatever remained of his injuries from his prior battles today.

  Erina clenched her hands into fists to quash their shaking. "Darius-san."

  He stopped and rose to his feet, greeting them with a nod. "Erina-san. Akira-san."

  "There you are, you damn cyborg freak." Akira swaggered up with her hands behind her head and a grin slathered across her face. "Finally figured out not to keep throwing fodder at us? Felt like coming down from your ivory tower? Gee, I'm so honored!"

  Erina stepped forward. "Why?" she called out across the hall to him. "When we last met, you had nothing against us. Why did you attack us? Why did you release Yamata no Orochi?"

  Darius mulled that one over, letting it bounce and settle in his head. "Haruka."

  "Yes?" she said.

  "Do me a favor and be on your way, will you?" A quick look in her direction headed off the objection just about to leave her mouth. "For me. Please."

  Haruka shifted. She looked at the two intruders, and then back to him. "Understood," she said quietly. "Fujiwara Haruka… retreating."

  Akira didn't spare her a glance on her way past. "So is this your idea of honor at work?" she said to Darius. "Or are you just that full of yourself?"

  Darius adjusted his wide-brimmed hat, and then raised his arm. Black lightning coursed down it, and both girls tensed. Darius' brow furrowed in concentration. His artificial fingers curled, and then he wrenched down his fist.

  Bright light dazzled Erina, and she had to shield her eyes in her sleeve. She blinked out into the sudden brightness. "What…?"

  Akira turned her head partially aside, squinting into the light. "Oi, oi, oi."

  The sky was clear.

  Every single cloud, all around them, all the way to the horizon, had vanished at once. The sunset broke out from behind its veil, brilliant rays shooting through from beyond the throne and bathing them in its glow. The sky was a stunning golden orange, with not one cloud in sight. Erina couldn't hear the muffled howl of the wind either. In one motion, Darius had completely killed the storm raging on the other side of the glass.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "It's not an easy power to use," said Darius, lowering his arm. "All you get is a power switch. It's on, or it's off. There's no such thing as half power. It's always so, so simple to take the easy way out, and kill what's in front of me. So I learned to use it laterally. I shoot down concepts, and kill ideas. I don't target bodies, or lives—not when I can help it."

  Akira made a disparaging noise. Erina could only think of when she had the barrel of that revolver pointing straight into her face.

  "This is magic." Darius' coat flared in his wake as he turned and strode up the steps to the throne. "Power that men dreamed of in fairy tales and myths. Power to change the world, with our very own hands. But there's two sayings that come with it, aren't there? One, that responsibility comes with the mantle—and the other, that it corrupts without fail."

  "Oh?" said Akira. "Finally admitting to it, then?"

  He shot a quick look over his shoulder, and then returned his attention to the steps in front of him.

  "I have the strongest Affinity," he said. "Not saying it to boast, but it's the plain truth. The day I learned what it really was, I thought something. After using it for seven more years, I'm only more certain—it's too much. This kind of power is too much. Nobody deserves to have it, even myself."

  He stopped at the pinnacle of the steps, and turned back to them.

  "But how can I throw it away? It's thanks to this that I can protect this world—save it from those with designs against us all, again and again. Power like this is what took me to the top. The First Horseman. The First Equalizer. Ace of the Association. Gunslinging Guardian Angel… Hero of Light. Where I go, peace follows. I am peace." His expression soured. "But I don't want to be."

  "Where are you going with this?" asked Erina.

  "Sealing my own power wouldn't be enough," he said. "Not so long as other threats still exist. I need to ensure that nobody ever wields such a weapon again." He clenched his metal fist, and the black lightning flashed. "Strong as it is, an Affinity is still magic. It draws from mana, and the existence of mana depends on faith made manifest. The lingering beliefs of man. In other words… the barrier of the Reverse."

  Darius lowered himself into the throne, swords fanning out at his back on all sides.

  "If the Reverse was destroyed," he said, "mana would go with it. Everyone would be stripped of their arms. And this era of walking living weapons of mass destruction, stretching on since the age of myth, can come to an end."

  "That's unthinkable," said Erina quickly.

  "Is it?" he challenged. "Do you have ideals to protect, Erina-san? Or are you just afraid of letting anyone alter the life you know?"

  She hesitated.

  "…Don't be afraid of change." Darius' tone softened. "Your eyes really remind me of her. But there's a kindness you still have—the humanity she doesn't. You who bear her final Affinity must understand."

  At that, Erina bristled. "Don't compare me to her."

  "And even if we did let you do what you want," said Akira loftily to him, "what about us, huh? Y'know, us li'l old things that are made of mana? Youkai and all that? You tear down the barrier, and everything inside comes spilling out. Like ripping the skin off an animal and expecting it not to bleed. You saying you'll have us all roll over and go up in smoke?"

  "Of course not," said Darius. "We'll have it under control. I try not to boast, but if it goes wrong, and anyone were to intervene on it, that would have to be me. This will be decided when th—"

  "And on top of that!" Akira drowned him out. "Who the hell gave YOU permission to decide that for me? And for her!" She waved at Erina. "And for all of my men! Huh?! Who said you can up and pull all this shit?"

  "I—"

  "You don't have a single plan for what to do with us!" Akira spat scornfully on the floor. "That's the whole idea, ain't it? Pull us outta the ocean and leave us to choke to death on dry land. No more youkai, no more problems! That's your big plan. Fuck you."

  Darius opened his mouth. He closed it. He had no comeback.

  "C'mon, Mister Hero! Cat got your tongue? Work with me here, you sorry sack of—"

  Erina put an arm out before Akira lunged at him. "Darius-san. Orochi would have destroyed the barrier on its own. Weren't you fighting to stop that?"

  He stared at Akira a while longer. She glared right back like she wanted to melt him to slag where he stood. Darius pulled his attention over to Erina.

  "It depends on the method," he said. "A great dragon bursting into reality—its presence would be undeniable. All people would see it, and believe without fail, that dragons are real. The myths are true. And as fantasy melds with reality, that would become an irreversible fact of the world."

  "So you stopped it, so you could bring an end to magic," said Erina. She was starting to have trouble keeping her voice calm. "Is that it? Is that what you fought for?"

  "No matter what you say, this will be over by the time the sun is gone under the horizon. I—"

  "Is that what you released Orochi for?" Erina's words cut through his, loud and clear. "Is that what Aileen-san and all the rest died for?"

  Darius looked directly at her, and Erina knew she had crossed a line.

  She didn't care, though.

  That was exactly what she was going for.

  Erina didn't back down from that cold gaze. "Your answer, if you would, Darius-san."

  He didn't move. He didn't answer for a long, long time. The orange glow of the sun filled the throne room with its light.

  Darius turned his head and one metal hand came up, shielding him from the accusation behind the question. Erina couldn't see it on his face, but hiding at all gave his answer. Regret. Shame.

  Until he lowered his hand, and the grim scowl twisted into a smirk.

  "…Ahh." A current of warped humor bubbled up under his tone. "Aileen. Aileen Lohrs. Is that who you're talking about? That woman?" Darius looked down on Erina, and declared, "She chose her end. What do I care?"

  "Is that really who you are?" said Erina softly.

  "You're not one to lecture me."

  Erina glared up at him atop his throne. Was this his true self? Or was it an act? And why?

  …No. It didn't matter. All she knew for certain was that she couldn't stand him. Not his ambitions, not his emotions, not even the garish way he dressed or anything about him.

  "We could've avoided this," he said. Her cold glare told him everything she was thinking. "From the beginning, we never had to battle. Why start now?"

  "I appreciate the kindness." The words off her tongue were cold and mechanical. "But we were always going to battle, from the day we met."

  And maybe even earlier than that, since before she was born.