Ben 10 Radiant War, Volume 4

Erice's Sacrifice

"This power.. is of the highest kind."

The 14 year old Erice Tsukiyomi looked at the woman in a white dress who sat next to her on the rolling green hills outside of the main city where she lived. 

"The highest kind?" Erice murmured as she took her popsicle and nibbled on it a little. "What you talking about Viv? All we do is control water."

"Does Excalibur just control water?"

"Hmmmm.." Erice shrugged. "You tell me. I've never seen that legendary sword, though I think Bedivere from the Knights of the Round Table returned it to you when Arthur died right? Can't you just show me?"

"No, for the day you see Arthur's relics will be the day your power is no longer needed." said Vivian quietly.. her face obscured by the bright light of the sun.

"I don't understand.." Erice whispered. 

"I gave you this power to freely wield, for you to hold it as your own, now and forever.. however.. no power is ever permanent. One day you will have to relinquish it, as all heroes must eventually before death.  When you wish to no longer use your power, or when all seems lost, there is your final and greatest ability.. the ability to sacrifice it all for the sake of that which you hold dear."

"Are you telling me.. there's a way to get rid of my power?" Erice muttered. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to do that yet.."

"No you are not. But when the time comes to relinquish that power for the sake of another.." whispered The Lady of the Lake. "That is when you shall see it.. the power of Excalibur.. of the other side of the World."

"The other side of the world?" 

"There you will meet her." said the Lady of the Lake. "And perhaps then you will understand.."

In the present day, an explosion to frighten gods themselves shook the very confines of Ben's mental landscape..

God Swampfire hurled a giant churning supernova of white fire from his palm.. letting it barrel across the cityscape, melting buildings into pure magma as it passed and collided with Zs'Skayr's own eldritch eye blast. 

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!"

Erice ducked and clutched a rock as searing heat nearly dehydrated her. She was watching from at least a few miles away, but even here it wasn't safe. She wasn't nearly powerful enough right now to even think of assisting in this battle.

This was a fight for gods pure and simple. 

God Swampfire's feet ignited like white rockets as he shot through the sky and Zs'Skayr let forth a massive explosion of millions of tentacles that exploded from beneath the surface of the earth, unharmed by the lava spilling across the landscape. 

The millions of tentacles made to surround God Swampfire. 

God Swampfire slashed his hands out, and cherry blossom petals by the millions and billions erupted from his his head like cinders, swirling around him in a brilliant glowing pink and white cloud. 

The petals all glowed brighter for a moment, before each detonating with extreme supernova levels of force, ripping apart the tentacles into mere atoms. 

Erice felt the only reason why the planet itself hadn't yet shattered from the force of the God Alien's counter attack, was because this entire world was a mental mindscape.