User blog:Seieireppa/God Eater:Universitas, chapter 14: The Great Fall

“It’s basically like you’ve heard so far,” began Blake. “As both Idenn and I have mentioned, starting in the early 22nd century, Aragami began to evolve at an increased rate. They were adapting faster than humanity could adapt to fight them. Little by little, humanity was dying off, with the death rate at the hands of the Aragami swiftly eclipsing the birth rate, if one still existed by that point. I was a God Eater then, at the London Branch… but even Fenrir couldn’t do much to deal with the rising threat.”

Blake paused.

“And then, in 2125…” he continued, “…three Aragami appeared and completely destroyed the rest of humanity besides myself, in an event known as the Great Fall. One of these had the ability to completely shut down our God Arcs, as well as render all our forms of energy useless by placing them under its control. We called it the Hephaestus, after the Greek god of the forge, because in its presence our weapons were naught but hunks of iron.

“The second of these had the power to organize the Aragami under its control. With its arrival, the Aragami stopped attacking randomly and started carrying out organized raids and attacks against Fenrir branches and human settlements. We gave it the name ‘Hydra.’

“And finally…” Blake shuddered. “Finally, the third of these new Aragami appeared. We called it Lucifer, for wherever it went, it left nothing but hell in its wake. The advent of the Lucifer meant the downfall of humanity and the dawn of an age of desolation and death. Somehow, I managed to survive, but…”

“You’re the only one left, huh?” Idenn interjected. “I know how that feels… although not to the extent to which you must have experienced it.”

In the midst of all this, Sakaki stepped in. “I hate to break up this moment,” he began, “but what, exactly, does this have to do with Idenn’s situation and with the Boundary Aragami?"

“I’m getting to that,” replied Blake. “All this time, I’ve had no idea what brought about the increased Aragami evolution rate, the three almighty Aragami, or the Great Fall… but the timing of Idenn’s information makes too much sense. Something tells me… that the Boundary Aragami, and this mysterious mastermind, might be behind it all.”

Idenn blinked, as if in a moment of clarity. “You mean—”

“I do,” came Blake’s response. “My current theory goes like this: this mastermind of yours likely had been operating for some time before 2117. Those Boundary Aragami were probably a catalyst, seeds of a sort to set off something far, far greater. With the Boundary Aragami acting as kindling, the fire of the Aragami’s evolution ignited into a fierce blaze, spurring a greatly increased evolution rate that eventually resulted in the birth of the Hephaestus, the Hydra, and the Lucifer in 2125.”

“So,” spoke Sakaki, “what you’re saying is that the three almighty Aragami that caused the Great Fall can likely trace their origins directly to the Boundary Aragami?”

Blake nodded.

“I figure that, since the mastermind and the Boundary Aragami have made it to this time, they must have made it back somehow before the Great Fall happens, and that means that if we can take out the mastermind here and now along with the Boundary Aragami, we should be able to avert the Great Fall.”

Soma, who had not spoken in a while, stepped forward. “I’m all for that,” he began, “but what are the few of us here at the Far East Branch going to be able to do against this mastermind and all those Boundary Aragami?”

“Not much,” came Sakaki’s reply, “which is why I’ve taken the liberty of calling in reinforcements. The first few of them should be arriving shortly, so—”

Sakaki could not finish his sentence, as the ceiling above them suddenly caved in, a blurry green shape crashing to the floor in their midst.

What stood before them now was a familiar shape to some—a massive white wolf-like Aragami with powerful gauntlet-clad front legs and a Vajra-like mantle of glowing tendrils sprouting from behind its head, both of which emanated a green Oracle glow.

“A Boundary… Marduk?” Soma exclaimed.

Idenn tensed up. “I don’t remember fighting this one in the future,” she responded. “This must have been created recently! If we don’t act now, we’ll—”

She did not have a chance to finish her sentence, as the Boundary Marduk before them howled to the heavens and let loose a fierce green aura as the sound of its roar chilled the bones of all present. The Boundary Marduk assumed position and raised its mighty claw—

—before suddenly, a blur, and the claw instantly detached from the Aragami’s body, a spray of blood erupting from where it had just been attached.

“And that,” spoke Sakaki, “should be the first of them now. So glad you two could make it!”

As the Boundary Marduk roared in pain, two figures leapt down from the hole created by the Aragami upon entry.

Soma immediately stopped in his tracks upon laying eyes on the two God Eaters who had arrived. The first, a man, was impossibly tall, towering over everyone else in the room and carrying a short blade-type God Arc in his hand… whereas the second, a woman, wore short brown hair, a flowing black coat, a malefic red buster blade in one hand, and a sinister black scythe, dripping with what appeared to be the Boundary Marduk’s blood, in the other.

“Looks like we made it just in time,” the man exclaimed. “Sis went to pursue another Boundary Aragami we sighted on our way, so she should be by soon enough.”

The woman at his side, dwarfed by his immense stature, turned to face him. “You should be glad that old man Sakaki paired the two of us up, then,” she spoke in response, a playful tone suffusing her voice. “I doubt even you could handle something like this alone.”

The man laughed. “You’re right, I suppose,” came his reply. “I worry about Nia, but… I’m sure she can handle herself. Anyway, Nanako…”  The man readied his short blade, the tip pointed at the Boundary Marduk. “You ready to clean up?”

As he spoke, the woman beside him hefted her buster blade, held in her left hand, over her shoulder, pointing the scythe towards the Boundary Marduk. “In all the times I've fought alongside you, Bal, have I ever not been ready?”

“True enough,” returned the man named Baluar. “Anyway…”

The two of them charged forward, God Arcs poised to strike.

“Here we go!!”

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