Confrontation (38)

Airson sat on the top of a skyscraper. It was faint, but he could sense bloodlust coming towards the city.

Neo dropped in next to him.

Airson didn't move.

"There is a god headed this way." Neo said.

Airson looked at him. "How do you know?"

"I have an ability to sense god energy. I can tell if one's close."

Airson looked back in the distance. "When we first met you said you wanted to kill me. Why?"

Neo held his sword out at Airson's neck. "I have to be the one to kill you, for the simple fact that we are brothers. But I must annihilate you at your best. So you must get stronger first. Actually, you can have this god. He doesn't seem all that strong anyway."

Airson had a slight smile. "Something doesn't add up though. Mastermind gave you your abilities right?"

Neo nodded slightly. "Yes. I was his main subject. He raised me from birth. He is like a father to me."

Airson looked at him out the corner of his eye. "That man is no father. He doesn't actually care about you. To him you're just another experiment."

That ticked Neo off a little. "What do you know?! You don't know what's happened in my life."

Airson looked at him. "Three years ago, shortly before I first met you, Mastermind came to me and told me that I had a brother, and that you were with him. He said something that didn't sit right with me. That you were my final test."

Neo froze at those words. "A...test? A test? Me? YOUR test?" He started laughing darkly. "I'm stronger than you. What test could possibly have anything to do with me?"

Airson shrugged. "Don't know. But I'd rather not fight the only family I have."

Neo put his sword back in his sheath. He clenched his fists. "Tch!"

Neo teleported, leaving behind those bright blue pixels.

Airson got up and flew towards the bloodlust he felt.

A large man was walking slowly. He had a large belly with no shirt on, and wore black pants under a green kilt.

The man stopped in front of Airson. He tilted his head to the side. He spoke in a lazy, slow voice. "Who...are you?"

Airson looked up at him. "I'm Airson. I need to know what a god like you is doing here."

The god spoke again. "I am Matso...God of...Gluttony. I'm here for the princess."

Airson charged himself up to Ultrasonic 3. "Sorry big guy, but I'm not letting that happen."

---

Neo teleported to a field of flowers somewhere in southwestern Arbok where Mastermind was picking flowers.

Mastermind looked up. "Ah... Neo, it's you."

Neo walked up to him. "What's this about me being a final test?"

Mastermind ignored him, still picking flowers.

Neo's eyes glowed bright blue. "Answer. Me."

Mastermind stood up with his picked flowers. He opened a portal and placed the flowers inside, then closed it.

"Was I just another experiment to you?! Did I not matter at all? Is that why you spend all of your time with that angel?!"

Mastermind looked at him. "That angel will be one of the strongest men in existence if he kills a few powerful gods. He's of the utmost importance to me."

Neo was pissed off. "So what am I? Who am I?!"

Mastermind removed his mask. Recently he wore a plain all white mask that had eye holes.

A brown skinned man was underneath. It's not like Neo had never seen Mastermind's face, he lived with him. That wasn't the problem.

"You are my nephew, and one of my greatest experiments."

Neo's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Nephew? I thought you were the doctor that delivered me."

"Oh but I was, that was no fib. But I was also your father's brother."

Neo teleported to him in a second and grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him closer. "Where is... my father?" he said in a low stern tone.

Mastermind grinned. "I don't know actually. I tried to kill him not too long after you were born. I admit he was stronger than me. But he escaped with some fatal injuries. I doubt he's alive. I'd heard his first son survived a natural disaster, but you were just a normal child, born with no natural ability. So I gave you some. I raised you in order to become a fitting compliment to my angel. But first you had to kill your brother. But if he killed you, then I would have had him become the sidekick instead. Now... unhand me."

Neo's eyes watered from rage. He let him go.

"Now that we've cleared things up, come on, I want to show you something." Mastermind started walking away.

Neo unsheathed his blade. "The only thing I want to see... is your dead body."

Mastermind's smile left. His face became serious. "So this is the path you've chosen. What a shame. I'm the one who gave you your powers and trained you. What good will this bring?"

Neo's hair glowed pink.

"Ah. I see there's no talking to you anymore. Nebula Blade."

A weirdly unique sword appeared in Mastermind's hand. It was larger than Neo's. He swung it towards him.

A blue-purple slash of energy resonated from it.

The power was so great, that the ground completely started breaking up from the force.

Neo dodged by teleporting.

Mastermind appeared behind him.

"I can teleport too, remember?" He slashed his sword, which was countered by Neo, but the force still pushed him back to the ground.

Neo landed on his feet. He stuck his sword into the ground and twisted it. The ground immediately turned into sand.

Mastermind was caught off guard. "This is... elemental control. But when..."

"I stole it years ago. I wasn't gonna use it at first, but it turned out to be a useful ability."

Mastermind stuck his sword into the sand. Fire rippled out of it, turning the sandy ground into stone. He put his hands on the ground, the land within a hundred foot radius broke, sending large pieces of rock into the air. He grabbed his sword and swung, sending boulders at Neo at high speeds.

Neo swung his sword as well. "Wind Art: Slice Zero Barrage!"

A barrage of wind cut all of the rocks in the air into little pieces.

Both Neo and Mastermind teleported towards each other at the same time and clashed swords.

"I'm going to make sure that I be the one to kill you!!" Neo exclaimed.

"My blade is far stronger than yours. And you know this."

Neo jumped back. "Then give it here!!" He looked at the sword and closed an eye.

The Nebula Blade disappeared from Mastermind's hand.

Neo opened his eye back and held the Nebula Blade in his other hand. Now he had two swords.

"Tch! I forgot you could do that." Mastermind put his hands together. "Beast Art: Adakite Hounds!"

Seventeen large dogs made out of gray rock formed. They all attacked Neo simultaneously.

But Neo had two blades now. "Wave Art: Rising Monsoon!!" He swung both swords at once.

A raging wind and rain storm formed close to the ground, violently cutting up and breaking it, destroying the hounds as well.

Mastermind braced himself - he was getting cut up by the wind.

The storm slowly rose, going higher and higher until it became dark storm clouds in the sky.

"What are these techniques? I never taught you this!"

Neo looked at him with cold eyes. "I told you I was a God Killer. My spiritual essence is powerful enough to do much worse."

Mastermind leapt into the air, blowing a barrage of large fireballs at Neo.

Neo slashed each one with his swords, running towards Mastermind with great speed. He then teleported above the clouds.

"Where did that brat go?!" Mastermind exclaimed. He looked all over. Then he sensed Neo's energy from high above. "The sky?!"

Neo held both swords in one hand and holding his free hand out toward the ground. "Water Art: Cloudfall."

The clouds quickly grew heavy with water until they could hold no more.

VOOSH!!!

All the water in the clouds fell at once, like emptying a gigantic bucket.

Mastermind quickly made a forcefield out of red energy.

The water crashed to the ground, making a deep crater.

When the water cleared up there was a newly made lake in it's place.

Mastermind was safe inside his shield, but Neo simply teleported inside of it.

"Wait!! You shouldn't be able to teleport here- ACKKKKK!!!"

Neo stabbed Mastermind in his stomach with his blade. He took it out and the forcefield vanished.

Mastermind teleported away. He clapped his hands together. "Destruction Art: Heavenly Earth!!"

Neo was confused for a moment. Then he heard the sound of rushing air. He looked up.

The clouds split apart, and a rock the size of an asteroid was headed straight for him.

''"If that hits the ground...I'm done for!" ''Neo thought. He closed an eye.

The asteroid disappeared.

Neo was suddenly out of breath.

"So you could actually deal with something so heavy of that size... I took the powers of a God Killer too lightly. I might die here."

Neo looked at him after he caught his own breath. "Don't... underestimate me."

Mastermind grinned evilly. "Even if you do kill me. What will that do? My angelic god will still carry on my will. My work on this planet is nearly finished. Killing me is pointless."

Neo assumed a stance. "Killing you means revenge. My life has been the way it is because of you. All blood ties to me must die. Especially you."