PHASE 32 - WE ACTUALLY TURNED BARNEY INTO A SWORD

“Return back to the Phoenix Incident, you stubborn turd!” Aeternos kicked my face, pushing me towards the Time Gate with full force.

The Time Gate was created just below my feet, so it outrightly sucked my left leg in. I immediately lost my balance, but my impressive reflexes are enough for me to do one more act to prevent my utter defeat in this fight.

“You’re going with me! Hraaah!” With my right arm, I hooked my fingers on his right leg and exerted effort to pull him in.

“What the-!!!” Aeternos cried. “Get off me!”

Thud! Thud! His left foot repeatedly stomped on my face. Thanks to the Aether Armor’s helmet, my handsome looks were not affected at all. No matter how many times he stomps on me, it won’t do any damage!

“Graaaah!” I climbed up as I crawl on his leg, his shoulder, and finally, I had a grip on his armored head. I managed to get away from the Time Gate, but then this happens…

Aeternos went out-balanced and fell to the Gate, together with me. When we’re both sucked by the time portal, there was a blinding flash of light that transported us to a different time.

<>

When the flash of light faded, we both realized that we’re no longer in the Realm of the Frozen Soul. The ground looks dry as drought, and there were tall grasses around the area. There are also weird-shaped coconuts in the background with weird football-like fruits.

There are also weird birds flying away that are about the size of a human, and they have beaks like those of a pelican. Wait, are those pterodactyls!? Did that Time Gate transport us to the Jurassic Period!?

When I looked at the enemy, my hypothesis was already concluded. Why? Because he’s holding a gigantic lizard by its tail, and he’s going to slam that poor creature to me! He’s gonna smack me with a T-Rex!

“Wha-”

“I’m gonna smash a motherf*cker with another motherf*cker!” Aeternos cried as he bashed down the T-Rex like an oversized buster sword.

In the nick of time, I was able to guard myself with my arm. Well, blocking the attack with my arm is useless as I’m wearing the Aether Armor right now. It’s just a reflex.

When the T-Rex was slammed to me, a huge crater was formed. The ground trembled, and the T-Rex can be heard crying due to pain. Poor him. I’ll sue Aeternos with dinosaur abuse once I neutralized him.

“Take that! And that! And that!” Aeternos laughed like a madman as he continued to slam the T-Rex over and over to me. The crater went deeper as he slams his dinosaur non-stop!

“Darn it! !!!” I coated my whole armor with electricity and used such power to jump out of the area of effect of Aeternos’ sadistic dinosaur attack.

I looked around the area to counter him, and finally, I found a dinosaur of my own. There was a stegosaurus that was peacefully eating tall grass in the area, so I immediately went to it and grabbed its tail.

“You can’t run away from me!” Aeternos jumped forward like a slam dunk exhibitionist, ready to smash his T-Rex to me as a final blow.

“Hiyaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!” I cried out loud as I also made my super move- a Stegosaurus Slash. The spikes on its back can make it a really great weapon, so I’m pretty sure that it will beat Aeternos’ T-Rex Smash.

SPLAT!!!

Blood rained as our dinosaur weapons clashed. As I thought, my stegosaurus won as it completely ripped the T-Rex’s flesh to shreds. Now Aeternos has nothing but a lump of the shredded dinosaur. My stegosaurus is still intact, but now unconscious.

“Stop playing with dinosaurs’ lives!” I cried out loud as I threw away my stegosaurus blade and materialized my Weapon Gem katana. “Dinosaurs are humans too!”

“Right back at you! You killed my pet Rexy!” Aeternos yelled. He also materialized his Weapon Gem and focused himself on a more serious fight.

Swish… When the wind blew a powerful breeze, both Aeternos surged at each other.

“!!!” , “!!!”

There was a blink of darkness, and two silver streak was made. That two silver streak was followed by twenty other silver streaks that came from our relentless sword slashes.

"!!!" , "!!!" Both of us shouted and our fists were coated with solar flame energy.

Darkness filled the area, and all we can see are meteors hitting each other. Correction, those are our flaming fists trying to beat the crap out of each other. Ember sparks splashed over the area as we exchange blows like there's no tomorrow.

When the darkness faded, we found ourselves backing off from one another. Our strengths are the same. Our endurance is the same. Our willpower is the same.

Having the Aether Armor makes us both invulnerable from any attacks. We will also have the same pool of infinite prana sources as our bodies inside the armor are frozen beyond time. This battle will just turn out into a stalemate.

“Heh…” Aeternos smirked. “I know that you are thinking about the same thing as me. We both know that this battle will be endless as long as we have our Aether Armors equipped. You are thinking that you have forced a stalemate with me.”

Aeternos swiped his sword in the thin air, creating another Time Gate.

“But that is where you’re wrong,” Aeternos said. “I have the God Core of Chronos. I can create a Time Gate whenever I want. All I need to do in order to win this is to trap you from a time where you had no means of going back.”

“I won’t let you!” I roared as I dashed forward, planning to ram on his Time Gate that he has created. “!!!”

Suddenly, Aeternos swiped his sword again, creating a Time Gate that is supposed to block my path. I can see inside that Time Gate that it contains the barren wasteland where the Phoenix Incident took place. It’s a portal to come back where I left.

It’s too late to stop. The momentum of my speed will prevent me from stepping on my brakes. There is no other choice but to go towards that Time Gate.

But before I get sucked in, I still have something in my sleeve. Something that Aeternos or the future me does not have.

“Hraaaaaaaaagh!!!” I desperately punched the Time Gate with the hopes of destroying it. By combining the prana I have and the excess nuclear prana I have absorbed from Key, I unleashed a powerful explosion that is enough to shatter the Time Gate.

My armored body is packing up a lot of radioactive heat as I surged forward. Atoms break as I continue to fly through, aiming at my enemy’s chest.

“What the-!!!”

“Take this! Hoooreyaaah!!!”

Boom! The nuclear punch I charged was a direct hit on Aeternos’ left cheek. As a result of the attack, the fragments of reality shattered, and the Time Gates exploded. There was a blinding flash of light once again.

<>

“Rikkun…?”

That familiar voice of our love woke us up.

When Aeternos and I opened our eyes, we found ourselves back in the Realm of the Frozen Soul, with Tiara, Jeanne, and Erylle as our audiences. The place is still as frozen as ever, and there is a tall diamond-shaped ice crystal that contains the new Frozen Soul: The .

“Huff… Puff…”

Both I and my future self panted. It’s funny that we are acting like we’re exhausted, even though our energy is unlimited. Aeternos is still on his Aether Armor, and so was I. No matter what we do, we cannot make a dent out of our adversaries' defense.

“So…” Aeternos muttered. “You succeeded in shattering my Time Gate and delivering us back to the present time. But what now? Our situation does not change. I still have my way of winning. If I could only get one chance to push you to my Time Gate… just one lucky chance… and it’s all over for you.”

While my future self is blabbering some nonsense, I stood up, readying for another round of brawl. Aeternos did the very same thing too. I swung my katana to the side, and he swung his katana to the side in the very same manner.

“How about you? How do you plan on winning this fight?” Aeternos laughed. “There is nothing left for you but despair, Alaric Eisenhower. That fate is the only thing you need to accept.”

He might be right. I might be right. Alaric Eisenhower’s fate is those of a carnage, full of sins, betrayal, and hellish hardships. Alaric Eisenhower is destined to become Aeternos no matter the cost, no matter what happens.

But there is someone who believed in me.

I looked at the worried Tiara who had this tearful puppy eyes. Then my eyes shifted gaze towards the sword that is frozen for all eternity. Seeing its endless glow gave a smile on my face.

I fully disabled the Aether Armor, making me stand on my base form. I know I’m defenseless and prone to any attack, but there is no way Aeternos would kill me. I am his past self, so if I die right here, he dies too.

“There is one thing I know that you don’t.” I smiled at my future self. "Hey, mister future Alaric Eisenhower... do you know the true name of the ?"