"You might be right. The choice must be easy for you, right?" Sirius asked.
"--" Finn didn't respond, not quite knowing what the man meant, though not liking what it suggested.
Sirius continued with a small smile, bringing his thumb and index finger together before–
Snap.
As that sound met Finn's ears, he found the scenery of the crimson cavern replaced by a luscious garden of colorful flowers, blooming with life.
"Huh?--" Finn let out, perplexed at the sudden transportation as he looked around.
Above him, the sky was a reverse field of flowers, completely engulfing him in the scenic majesty of nature before he looked ahead at the man who seemingly brought them both there.
"What I mean is, the choice between your world and this one must not be that much of a struggle. After all, you see this place as one on the brink of fading away as it is," Sirius pointed out, holding his hand out as a stray dandelion gliding in the wind landed on his palm. "You're not wrong, but there's still beauty left."
There was something surprising about the attitude of the "Storm King", a title that Finn believed belonged to a mindless brute, though he found the complete opposite standing across from him in the serene field of flowers.
"You seem aware of what's going on...Can I ask why you're holding on so tightly? There's barely anybody left in this world, from what I've seen. What are you protecting anymore?" Finn asked sincerely.
"Isn't that what you're doing?" Sirius said.
"Well..." Finn thought about it.
"There's still things worth protecting–even if I might be the last person still standing, it's my duty to preserve the memories of this world. The legends, heroes and villains, cities, wars, victories, people–all of it," Sirius told him, letting the dandelion crumble away by a passing breeze. "Once this world is gone, so are those memories. That's what I'm protecting, Finn."
Hearing it from the man meant to be his enemy, the meaning of those words were conflicted within him. He wanted a reason to hate him, to despise the one he had no choice but to kill, but he was given the opposite of what he asked for.
"Why're you telling me this? You know what has to be done–" Finn asked.
"I'm giving you an option. If you want, you can live in this world. I'll personally see that you and all of your companions are given royal chambers and protection. You wouldn't have to fight anymore," Sirius offered. "Neither this world nor yours are stable; both are fleeting."
Amidst that serene field of flowers, it didn't seem like a bad offer; that world did have qualities of its own. Even so, Finn already had an answer in his heart, meeting the ruler of the First Order eye-to-eye.
"I can't do that," Finn answered.
Sirius' soft smile stayed as he nodded his head, "Yeah, I expected that answer. I wanted to avoid fighting if I could. I guess that was naive of me–that's the way things always are, aren't they?"
Hearing the words of the man who seemingly wanted peace, there weren't any words Finn could find, as he felt conflicted about the ordeal. He knew what needed to be done, even if it was impossible at the moment.
"I'll be waiting at the castle, then. I'd suggest training yourself up a whole lot more, by the way–if you tried to fight me at this moment, you'd end up in a grave in the blink of an eye," Sirius advised him with a playful smile, bringing his thumb and index finger together again.
Snap.
"Knock it off, mate—!" Jasper sharply told the brawler.
The noise brought Nova down to the first floor as well, seeming to draw a bit too much commotion for a nice afternoon. It was the last thing he felt like engaging in after what he experienced.
"I'm just saying–if I had the boss-of-all-bosses in my sights, I'm either winning or I'm dying right there," Seung said, leaning against a shelf while folding his arms over his chest.
"Luckily not everybody is an idiot," Charlotte remarked.
"What?--" Seung barked back.
Finn spoke without looking at anybody, merely speaking his mind of the encounter still fresh on his mind, "I was practically a child throwing a tantrum against him. There was absolutely nothing I could do."
"I knew it was going to be an uphill battle, but it's that bad then," Jasper said, taking in the information.
"You just got taken by surprise, right? It can't be that bad—" Nova tried to reason, waving her sleeves.
"I was the one that took him by surprise. At least, I tried to. Look, as we are right now, we don't stand a chance," Finn admitted.
The truth of it wasn't exactly hopefully news to any of their ears. Either way, there was nothing to do except to accept that reality.
"Did you use Sleuth on him? What was his level?" Seung impatiently asked, nudging his elbow against the shelf.
"One-hundred," Finn answered. Enjoy stories on m_v lem|p-yr
Charlotte repeated what was said, "One...hundred?"
"That's a bit off the rails, mate. We have to face a monster like that?" Jasper sighed.
Seung didn't say anything as he marched his way out of the forest abode, practically stomping past the threshold. Nobody tried to stop the golden-haired man, nor did they feel like hearing what he'd have to say.
"Where's he off to?" Nova asked with a raised eyebrow.
"To level up," Finn answered. "What we all should be doing."
"You're definitely right. It's just...we can't be reckless about it," Charlotte reasoned, holding her hands by her knees as she stayed beside him.
"You mean what Seung is doing? Pretty sure that guy is just throwing himself at whatever looks at him the wrong way," Jasper jokingly asked.
"About that..." Finn added in. "That guy might be a bit crazy, but he definitely knows how to level. I mean, you can't deny he's higher than all of us."
"That's true," Charlotte admitted.
With the safety of the group in mind, but the pressing matter of having to deal with an astronomical enemy, the path was unclear. For the time being, at least, the best course of action was simply to sleep on it.