The light consumed everything. Akihiko felt his body dissolve into a white ocean with no beginning or end. There was no gravity, no sound, only the enveloping radiance that blinded him and made him float like a weightless specter.
Suddenly, everything changed. I was standing in a familiar yet strange place. A vast field of white flowers, each petal shining with a spectral glow. The sky was a blanket of fixed stars, as if time were frozen. In the center of the field, the Tree of Eden rose, majestic and menacing. Its roots throbbed as if with a pulse of their own, stretching to the horizon, burying themselves in the earth with an almost cosmic energy.
Akihiko moved forward slowly. Each step made the world around him fluctuate as if he were walking on a reflection in water. Suddenly, a figure appeared between the roots of the Tree. A dark-haired man with a regal bearing and a penetrating gaze. He wore ancient robes adorned with unknown symbols, and at his waist hung a sword that radiated a dark glow.
"So you've made it this far," the figure said in a deep voice. "The cycle repeats itself, but this time... something is different."
Akihiko narrowed his eyes. "Who are you?"
The man gave a wistful smile. "Someone who walked this path before you. Someone who failed."
A chill ran down Akihiko's spine. "What does this mean? What am I, really?"
The man reached out toward the Tree. "The Void, the Tree, the cycle... everything is connected. Those who have come here before you tried to break it or harness it, but they all failed. Why do you think you will be any different?"
Akihiko clenched his fists. "I don't know. But if this is all a cycle, then I must find a way to destroy it."
The man burst out laughing. "That's the answer everyone gave before you. And yet, here we are."
The sky began to darken. The Tree of Eden vibrated with a threatening intensity. Dark, twisted fruit, dripping with a luminous substance, began to fall from its branches. The earth trembled, and a roar emerged from the roots.
"Time is running out," the figure said. "If you truly want to change destiny, you must make a choice."
Suddenly, the scene changed. Akihiko found himself in the temple, surrounded by his companions. Viktor was badly wounded but standing, his gaze fixed on the glow. Isabella and Kael struggled to stay on their feet, feeling the weight of the energy surrounding them.
"Akihiko!" Helena shouted, her spear trembling in her hand. "Tell us what we should do!"
Akihiko felt his heart pound. The answer lay within him. He'd been through this before, one way or another. This time, he couldn't hesitate.
Then one last vision struck him.
The True Past
He saw himself, but not as he was now. He wore the same ancient clothes as the man he had spoken to. His katana was not his own, but another, older one, marked with the same symbols he had seen on the Tree.
He was in the same field of flowers, but this time he wasn't alone. Around him, figures from other eras surrounded him, some in warrior robes, others in garb resembling emperors or leaders. They all watched him silently, their eyes reflecting the same internal struggle.
"You are the last one," said a voice behind him. Akihiko turned and saw the same man who had spoken to him before, but now clearer, more real. "You are the last bearer of the cycle. If you fail... there will be no other chance."
The words fell upon him with the weight of a truth he couldn't ignore. All those who came before him... all had tried the same thing. And all had failed.
The Last Leap
He returned to the reality of the temple. Akihiko looked up and saw the core of the Tree glowing with blinding intensity. The void entity roared, its form distorting with fury. It was time.
He closed his eyes, feeling his connection to the Void, to the Tree, to all those who had tried before. And then, he made a decision.
He drew his katana and moved forward, time slowing around him. Each step took him beyond reality itself, his body feeling the weight of centuries of accumulated decisions. It wasn't just his fight. It was everyone's.
At the last second, Akihiko leaped and aimed his blade at the Tree's core. Not with the intention of destroying it, but something more.
Suddenly, the world split in two.
Time collapsed.
And history was rewritten.