People fear all kinds of things. Darkness, loss, or very commonly, death. But nobody has ever feared the Grim Reaper personally. Jack was no exception. Against his power, nobody could really do anything. A common human was nothing more than a mere fly to him, desperately fluttering its wings, often even completely oblivious to how easy it would be for Jack to kill them. But when he stood face to face with Death who was quite literally burning with fury, his legs couldn't help but shake. He already managed to kill two of them, so what's a few more, right? But the reality was different. He felt that with each ally they lost, his enemies were just getting stronger. To what extent, he didn't know yet.
The heat coming off of Beast's body was not just uncomfortable, but also very limiting. It wasn't the same as staying in the sun during the hottest of summer days. Instead, the magic seemed like a thick and invisible aura. For Jack, it felt like he was swimming in it. His movements were slower and the air was much more resistant all of a sudden. Almost as if they were fighting underwater. He knew that launching a direct attack against the Death right off the bat would make his defense drop, which could be fatal in such a situation, even if it would be just for a little while. So he stayed on his defensive, waiting for the first strike of his opponent. He didn't have to wait long. A little black fireball appeared on Beast's palm. He was walking closer and closer to Jack, almost as if he was bringing him a gift. And then, just about twenty steps away, he attacked. The fire started changing color and the ball grew in size. It got so big Jack had to use his ability to move out of its way. With a quick flick of his finger, he sent himself flying backward, avoiding the flames just in time. But as his body slowly flew through the heat-filled air, a realization came to his mind. He played right into their cards. This was what they wanted. That fireball was just a distraction. When he turned his head around, he saw the White death approaching him with open arms. Tears were flowing down her face. It almost seemed as if she wanted a hug if one wouldn't look into her eyes and see that murderous intent they were openly displaying. However, it seemed that the slower movement applied to her as well. Although she was running, the burning aura of this place was pushing her back, making her long steps feel more like a casual walk. That was Jack's chance. He immediately knew that he had to do something or he'd be a goner. Fortunately for him, the Divine Creativity fragment he carried made his natural reactions much faster. In such an environment, he had all the time in the world to think about his next movements. Actually performing them, however, was a different task.
He quickly reached towards White with his hand. He aimed to take her down right here and now. But hesitation quickly followed. Another pressure wave attack could technically kill or severely hurt her from this distance, but it would also send him flying right back into that fireball. Not to mention that her demise could be a problem. If the remaining Death would get even angrier, his powers could grow FAR beyond the manageable level. Even now, they already seemed too strong.
And so instead of attacking, Jack kicked the ground below him with his leg, launching himself over White. However, this was exactly what she anticipated. Her right arm grabbed the man's jacket with the strongest grasp she was capable of.
"You bitch!!!" Jack shouted as soon as he realized how close to dying he just got. When his clothes would rot away, his body would soon follow.
But going down like this was not an option. At least not for him. He had a plan in his mind. One that could still happen if only he'd find a way to defeat the Deaths. At that moment an idea sprung up in his mind. Perhaps it was even good enough to win him this battle. He raised his other leg high into the sky and fired off another one of his pressure waves, using it as propulsion that would add more power to the kick. His heel landed right on the back of White's head. Pain resonated throughout her body and made her let go of the jacket. That was exactly what Jack wanted. Before landing again, he managed to twist and curl his way out of it and threw his much-loved piece of clothing onto the floor. Soon after, it turned to dust.
White didn't even know what happened. Within a second, she lost control over her own body. Her legs turned into a bunch of noodles, and her vision slowly faded to black, long before she even hit the ground. Chester tried to use his plant magic to catch her, but as soon as the tiniest vines sprouted from the ground, they burned to ash. Beast's fiery aura completely negated his plant magic, even after it has been boosted by the power of Darkness.
"Don't worry, she's still alive," Beast managed to mumble to his newfound ally in an attempt to calm him down a bit. It didn't work as much as he intended. Vincent knew that at the moment, there was only one more Death left standing and if all three of them had trouble with Jack, then how can one finish what they started?
The freshly unmasked Death clad in black raised his right hand to the sky, along with the massive fireball he was now holding onto. At this point, it was already at least three meters in diameter, and the color of its flames was bright pink. Jack finally regained a stable footing. As soon as he did, a smirk appeared on his face. He felt great satisfaction with what he just did. Not only did he manage to avoid rotting away along with his clothing, but he also managed to find a perfect way to remove the most threatening opponent from the fight without triggering Beast's fury. Everything seemed to play right into his hands. Nevertheless, the remaining Death did not intend to give up. The ball of fire above his head kept growing more and more. It was clear to Jack that such an ability would be problematic if he was to use it, so he quickly rushed toward his enemy to deliver the final strike. He expected Beast to interfere in some way. "Maybe he has a defensive spell ready, or the fireball is just meant to lure me closer," he thought. But even after Jack stepped into the spell's range, the Death still didn't seem like attacking. He just stood there, charging up his magic.
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"Heh, that's a mistake!" Jack sent forth a punch, charged up with his pressure magic, flying right towards Beast's chest. But just as the deadly fist approached the Death, he pushed away Jack's attack with his own hand. The pressure got released as a shockwave in all directions. Both of them nearly lost their balance.
"You idiot!" Jack shouted at his opponent and looked at their freshly missing arm. Blocking something like that head-on was not a very healthy approach. The force was intended to kill and the Reaper just sacrificed his own arm to redirect it. That was a red warning light. If he now was to use that massive fireball, there would be nothing left of Jack. The pressure magic he used needed a short time to recharge, so he decided to handle this the old-fashioned way and simply punch the Death until he makes the spell disappear.
A single step forward was all it took for his plan to crumble. Before he could even approach Beast to hit him, the ground beneath him crumbled and turned into a shallow crater. A few black vines could be seen as they were sticking out of the rocks, but as soon as the burning aura reached them, they turned into ashes. Chester knew that the aura was covering the entire area around them, but as he soon found out, it only reached places with direct access to air. For that very reason, he decided to at least send his dark vines underground, where the fire wouldn't reach them, and dig up a few traps for Jack, which he'd set off in case something went wrong. They were just shallow craters, barely half a meter deep, but when one falls into them it would still take a while to get out.
"I have nothing more! It's now or never, Death!" Vincent shouted at his companion.
"Yeah, that will be enough." Beast's voice was suddenly all cranky and deep, but also sounded frail and not as loud as before, almost as if he was about to lose it any second.
Jack looked up at his enemy. He was standing there, looking as tall as death could be. His right hand was raised up and on the top of his index finger was a massive ball of colorful fire. It felt like staring into a smaller and much less hot version of the Sun. At this point, he finally realized it. He killed Garry because the portals were annoying and knocked White unconscious out of fear of her deadly ability, but the one who had the greatest courage and raw power was the one he mostly ignored. If he would take Beast down first, those other two wouldn't be able to do anything.
"You idiot! This will burn you too!" Jack shouted at the top of his lungs, unable to believe that the Death standing before him would be willing to sacrifice himself just to kill one enemy.
"I am fireproof," Beast mumbled and casually lowered his hand as if he just got tired of keeping it up all the time. The flaming ball fell to the ground on top of them. The entire area started shaking and waves of heat washed over the battlefield. Chester didn't know how to help, but his instinct told him to protect the one who can't protect herself. So before the attack landed, he quickly rushed to White's side and lay down on top of her, trying to cover her body with his own and protect her from all the rubble or fire that might be flying around.
Several seconds passed. Nothing but the crackling of fire could be heard as the enormous spell slowly dug its way deeper and deeper into the earth. And then it happened. A massive explosion could be heard even miles away. Vincent's ears were ringing and it seemed like all the other sounds suddenly disappeared from the world. Eventually, everything settled down. "That... can't... kill me!" The voice made the plant mage's heart sink deep into his stomach. He turned around and looked into the hole left behind by the fireball. Jack was sitting in the middle of it. He was down on his knees, clothes torn and burned up, his hand raised high into the sky.
"I... am... still alive!" he wheezed. It seemed that whatever he used to resist the last spell drained him greatly.
"Yeah? Well... so am I." Beast lifted himself off the ground. Up until now, Chester didn't even notice he was lying there. Both of them were exhausted. The fireball took almost all of the Death's magic. His flames and heat aura were all gone and for once, you could clearly see his face. It was almost pitch black and lacked a nose.
"I... am not... done yet..." he raised his hand to the sky. Upon closer inspection, one could see that even he wasn't as fireproof as he claimed. The damage done to his body was very similar to Jack's. Several of the loose bits of fire that got scattered around after the explosion gathered around the gentleman. They were swirling around, looking almost like little fairies dancing in a circle. Beast's hand started shaking and his face scrunched up with a visible struggle. This brought a smile to Jack's face.
"You can't do it, can you? All your power is gone now. You no longer have the strength to kill me!" With those words, he took a few steps forward. The tiny sparks followed him, but it didn't seem like they were capable of doing any damage at all.
"Nevermind. Even if I can't, Chester will kill you." The Death quickly looked at his companion who was still protecting White's unconscious body. He was visibly frightened by his opponent's abilities and the fact that he was capable of withstanding such powerful magic, but his slight nod made it very clear to Beast that he can count on his help.
"Haha, that doesn't matter. Even if he was to kill me, someone like him can never defeat Ifrit. As long as I can get rid of you, I'll win!" Jack raised his arm towards the Death standing in front of him. One more pressure wave and he'd be done for. But something stopped the man in his tracks. The air around him suddenly started to feel hot again and the little flames dancing around were suddenly getting bigger and bigger. Upon closer inspection, one could see tiny golden strands connected to each of the sparks, giving them the magical power they needed to grow and deal the final blow. Jack's eyes quickly followed the little strings to find the source of this mystical power. He didn't have to search for long. Very soon, he found what he was looking for. "Ah, I see. So you made it. And with still enough power to spare. That is quite unfortunate, don't you think, Mr. Wright?"