The staircase that led to the surface was filled with the smell of wet grass. The sound of rain hitting the ground echoed through it. When Chaos exited the maze they expected a night or maybe even a sunny day. Yet here it was raining cats and dogs. Gray clouds covered the sky, making it look like it always had that color. The rain pretty much created a great curtain of water that left nothing dry.

Phantom tried to shield himself with his wings, but the rain still found the way to hit him. Demon grimaced at that. He always hated heavy rains like that. Nothing good ever happened during them nor were they useful.

Fenfir on the other hand seemed to be in heaven. Hound wagged his tail up and down, chasing the rain drops. He jumped all over the place like a little kid that had its first time playing in the rain. Samukai followed the wolf, but with much less enthusiasm. He definitely didn't like the fact that his boots were now covered in mud while Fenfir's fur pretty much had a new color nor the fact that he didn't have any proper sheath to protect his swords from the rain. Yet despite all of that he still was glad, and played with the hound. Wolf even pounced playfully a few times at the warrior and that was when the samurai decided that he had enough.

- Like kids, just like kids- Phantom shook his head. But he had to admit that seeing how these two could enjoy the moment made him somewhat calmer and not think about the heavy rain so much.

Noktum too had enough of that rain. Bottom of his robe was all covered in mud and he was wet and cold. He wondered if there was a spell that could clean clothes. Other than those that would probably burn them of course. At least the books were safe inside the bag, so there was one less thing to worry about.

But then came another thing. In front of them was a field full of yellow flowers that shaped themselves in a pattern that somewhat resembled a thunderbolt that spread in all directions. While neither of them could've been called a genius, it didn't take one to know that being wet and a thunder was not a great combination. Or at least it was not great for those who were hit by it.

Soon enough a familiar temple rose on the horizon. It rested on a hill surrounded by those yellow flowers. A cloud much darker than the rest hung in the sky over the temple. A stray thunder hit somewhere far from time to time. This all wasn't filling Chaos with optimism.

When they entered the temple, the first thing that got their attention was a great cube shaped rock that stood in the middle of it. Another thing was how the floor and walls were covered in steel. When they looked up, all they could see were many gray clouds.

Sound of footsteps filled the building and the third king appeared. The only thing that made him stand out from the rest were his robes, which were yellow. Other than that he was just like the rest.

- Welcome thee in my temple. For I know that you possess three of the crystals thus, allow me to skip over the introductions. Now prepare yourselves- the king threw the crystal high up into the clouds. A yellow shine came from them, followed by shrieks similar to those from an eagle.

After that something dived down from the clouds and landed on the stone cube. It was an enormous bird looking like a mix of eagle and falcon, made purely out of thunderbolts. It shrieked again and took off to the sky. It circled over the Chaos, dodging an abbadon coming from the demon.

The elemental opened its beak. Sparks of electricity danced around it, forming something akin to an arrowhead. It hit the wall, completely missing the Chaos. But then the electricity spread all over the temple, shocking the team. For now it wasn't all too bad, yet neither of them wanted to check if it would be worse than that.

Phantom immediately ordered them to go on the stone cube that seemed to be the safest place in all this building. Then the demon continued the assault with abbadon. The elemental was the fastest one of all they have fought, dodging each spell that was thrown at it. After that it vanished in the clouds. A bright yellow light illuminated the upper part of the temple. Soon many thunderbolts came hitting the ground, once again making the temple a dangerous trap.

- So, any ideas how we can hit it?- warrior asked, looking at the clouds.

- As for now I say we should try everything we have- Phantom answered, preparing some triple dragon chains. Bird finally came down from the clouds. While the demon wasn't sure, he thought that the elemental looked slightly different. It seemed to glow more than before. Either that or his mind were playing tricks at him.

The bird opened its beak and let out a stream of electricity, aiming it at the Chaos. They have barely dodged that, just in time to see how it destroyed the stone, leaving a carved path from where it went.

- I don't think we all will leave this temple in one piece- Noktum said looking at the warrior. Before he could answer, Phantom took out to the sky once again aiming abbadon at the bird. The elemental dodged for a while, but after some time it finally got hit. When the red beam connected with its head, sparks were sent flying everywhere. It stayed in the air not moving even an inch. Its head slowly returned to its former state.

After that elemental seemed to lose some of its glow. It screeched again and returned to the clouds. It stayed there for a while. Attack blindly seemed to have little to no effect, so the demon just observed the clouds. Few seconds later the bird once again descended to the battlefield, glowing brightly just as before.

This time, the demon was sure. Something in the clouds strengthened the elemental. Now the question was when will it vanish again.

As he was thinking Fenfir howled and from the ground rose another cube. Smaller than the first one, but still with enough space to fit them all. Bird hovered over them, his shrieks causing the thunderbolts to come down from the skies. Their aim was terrible, only some of them managed to hit the cubes, but that maneuver made the walls become fully charged with electricity with sparks now not stopping.

Noktum casted few barricades, forming them like stairs. Samukai covered Izanagi in a green aura and jumped from one barricade to another. Elemental was circling around them, making the task harder for both the warrior and magician. Samurai was aided with a few red beams that came from Phantom. While only one hit the target, they all managed to get the bird as close to samurai as it was needed.

He leaped at the bird, Izanagi closing in to elemental's body, but before he could wound it, an outburst of sparks sent him flying right at the Chaos. Hound caught him with his mouth. Warrior sat down recovering from the pure strength of elemental's spell.

Bird itself seemed to lose its electric cover as it now was only shining half as much as before. It returned to clouds, but not before crashing into the barricade that Noktum summoned at last seconds. After crashing with it, the monster lost even more of its electricity.

- I think I've got a plan- warrior said standing up.

- Mind sharing it with us?- demon asked.

- We should try to have him crash into the walls. If I understood right how he works, by just simply existing and casting spells he loses his cover thus growing weaker. Then if he will completely lose it we might kill him. Now there's a problem. Seeing how the walls are now, they could power him up.

- So we wait and then break his wings? Sounds good to me. Except, you know. There are these clouds!- Phantom pointed at the gray mass above them.

- I know, that's why we need to be quick. Noktum, could somehow block him from going there?

- I could cast a barricade, but that's it

- It will need to be enough- just as the samurai finished his sentence the elemental returned to the battleground in all its glory. Electricity danced around it, forming some sort of a sphere. Demon already prepared the abbadon and red beam and the warrior was preparing his trap that would greatly help them with the plan.

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The bird had not noticed that Chaos found out about its weakness and kept on casting spells. It released the burst of electricity that was stopped by Noktum's barricade at the last second. Then the magician joined his master and released a reddish beam. Elemental dodged the spells diving down, keeping close to the ground. Then Fenfir started blasting the bird with fireballs.

As the elemental was dodging the assault, it was just like the warrior said. It absorbed the electricity from its surroundings, shining twice as much as it was just moments ago.

- Can you cast it faster? He's up to something!- Phantom shouted to the samurai. Yet the demon saw some bright red points quickly appearing and disappearing.

- Hold him just a little bit longer- elemental's beak opened and a stream of electricity flowed at Chaos. It carved the stone in which they stood. Magician's barricade managed to last only a few seconds, but that was more than the warrior needed. Just when the spell was broken, the first slash created of black energy appeared.

- Trap of the black serpent- samurai whispered as the first red point appeared for good. From it came a black beam of pure energy that aimed at another red point. When it connected, the first beam stopped its journey so that another beam could start its. With each more point connected by black beam, the “serpent” was chasing the elemental. Although the bird was masterfully dodging between the beams. Yet the black serpent was not giving up, continuously chasing its prey. In a matter of a few seconds, the serpent pretty much covered every corner of the temple. Just as the bird was sure that it was safe, as it was running away from the current “head” of the serpent, a final beam came. It was read and instead of coming out from the serpent, it was coming for it. The elemental couldn’t foresee that and the beam hit the bird while also cutting off the head of the serpent.

When the bird collided with the metal wall, the entire temple was covered by a bright light. After it faded in a place where once was elemental now was something more akin to a golden eagle.

It screeched furiously, but had no time to attack as two red beams were flying at it. They have grazed the bird as it took off to the sky. It made black clouds appear and shoot out thunderbolts. While it was as vicious as before, it lacked strength. Thunderbolts once carving the stone now just barely scratched it. Elemental noticing its weakened state returned to the clouds, but not before taking a hit to the leg from an abbadon.

- So they can bleed- demon murmured- Noktum, next time we should try to focus on the head

The bird stayed in the clouds longer than any of them had expected. A good minute had passed and there still was no sign of it. Perhaps they have wounded it deeper that they thought? While that was an uplifting thought, it was quickly dismissed as the clouds turned yellow.

- Scatter! Now!- Phantom commanded as the elemental descended from the clouds like a thunderbolt. Demon took off to the air as his companions landed on a barricade created by Noktum. After the dust faded elemental stood proudly on whatever was left of the stone cube. Its sharp gaze scanned the temple searching for the challengers. As soon as it noticed them, it started spewing out thunderbolts.

This time that it knew their tactic it wouldn't let itself be cornered so easily. Even abbadons couldn't make it take off to the sky. Samurai kneeled once again preparing his trap. Elemental noticing that aimed another spell at him. Before the shadow could react and try to save his companion, the warrior was hit with such force that he flew at the metal wall a few meters away.

Wolf jumped to the warrior to check if he was fine as both magic users were keeping the bird busy. Combination of abbadons and fireballs worked surprisingly well for a while. Samurai stood up, supporting himself with the hound. Then the elemental once again soared the sky, coming at the warrior. Fenfir howling and raising another stone cube made the bird retreat from its attack as it itself screeched, commanding the clouds to rain down thunderbolts. Samurai and the wolf quickly jumped on the stone, just barely escaping from the wave of electricity that went their way.

- Bastard is learning- warrior said, dodging another thunderbolt. He then noticed Phantom flying right before the elemental, shooting abbadon at it which just made it angrier.

- Come on you birdbrain, why don't you attack someone on your level, huh? Or shitting around the place is all you can do- demon taunted his opponent, and while the warrior doubted that he could understand what Phantom was saying, it lunged right at the purple demon. He just barely managed to get out of its way. At least now the warrior had a chance to once again cast his arts. Noktum too aided his master in keeping the bird away from the samurai.

The elemental being distracted had no time to notice that it danced just as they had played him as it was chasing the purple menace that dared to shoot red beams at him. That was when it lost the warrior from its eyesight. But when it noticed him, it was already too late. Those slashes were once again chasing it, not even giving a chance to breathe. Yet now it knew what to expect, it just needed to make sure that the final slash wont corner it.

And that was easier said than done. Samurai's fellows were making sure to lead him right into a wall. It was really close a few times, but he was able to fly up, barely dodging a hit with a steel. When the final slash came the elemental went down, nearly touching the ground. It charged at the warrior, but the wolf at last minute howled and another stone cube rose from the ground, directly under the elemental. It tried to dodge it, but it still was hit in the right wing, making it flinch. That was when two abbadons were all that the bird could see, before being sent flying at the wall.

It lost its armor and all four challengers started attacking. The bird knew that it couldn't last much longer and flew up. The clouds were a great cover, for now any of the spells were not able to reach it.

- If only it could destroy the roof- the demon said, taking a chance to breathe.

- To hit it with the comet?- samurai asked.

- What else could I cast then?

Samukai responded with silence and just observed the clouds. A bright light flickered from time to time, but there still was no sight of the elemental. Perhaps it prepared something nasty for the next time or maybe it was barely alive. Then the warrior spotted some movement in the clouds. Or rather movement of the clouds.

They seemed to be sucked in by something, revealing the ceiling. When the last clouds vanished, the bird shone the brightest it ever was. It looked at the king, who only nodded, and the bird screamed. A great ball of lightning appeared above it, and it flew into it. After that from the ball came a powerful thunder. When it hit the empty stone cube, it completely destroyed it, leaving only scorched chunks on the ground. And when it hit the steel wall, instead of sending the electricity all over the place, it just melted it.

Now knowing the treat, Chaos jumped down on the floor. The bird stayed in the sphere of lighting, its gaze focused on them. It had not bothered to move as the powerful thunderbolts rained destruction around it. While Phantom tried to hit it with the abbadon, it was useless as the spell couldn’t pierce the electric cover.

- Damn it! I guess we can't touch the fucker until we won't get rid of his electric cover

- Anyone got ideas how to do that?- Noktum asked.

- Not really, but I heard how lightning only strikes the tallest point. Plus it is attracted to metal. So if I could somehow get his attention, then maybe just maybe I could tire him enough to destroy his cover- warrior was speaking more to himself rather than his teammates.

- And you basing those deductions on?- demon questioned.

- A pure guess- after that he ran off to the elemental, jumping on the closest stone chunk- Hey you fucking Zeus, why don't you strike me with your thunder?- samurai took out Izanagi and waved it high in the air. The bird took the bait. The sphere pulsated for a while and then a great thunder came out of it.

Samukai didn't even have a chance to regret his plan as it struck him. He tried hard not to scream, but gave up after a few seconds. He needed to use all his strength in order to even stand. He then saw that Phantom casted some blue magic circle on the floor.

- Noktum, do what I say!- shadow only nodded- Cast an abbadon at the same time I do. So on three

Samurai fell to his knees, trying to stand up. He noticed that Izanagi was slowly but surely melting. While black lead was a durable metal, it wasn't indestructible. And now it was pushing its durability to its limits.

- Three!- demon's voice echoed through the temple. Last thing that Samukai had seen was a great abbadon, easily the size of the bird, flying right at the ball. It penetrated the sphere and soon enough it came through the second hole melting the wall beside it, probably killing the bird in the process. As lighting faded, the warrior fell down.

When Phantom saw that he fired an abbadon at the king, but he simply dodged it. Noktum and Fenfir came to the warrior and picked him up. Demon ordered them to get out of the temple. After they left he came closer to the king.

- I swear if he won't wake up soon, I will murder all of you- he pointed his finger at the king.

- Worry not, for if we wanted to kill, we would fight you personally- the last part sent chills down the demon's back but he tried to not show it- Beside, you are dealing with a much bigger threat than that. For I warn thee, do not trust the crawling one- king then tossed the crystal to Phantom. He caught it and returned to his team.

- So how's he?- he asked, looking at the warrior who laid on the wolf.

- Honestly I don't know- Noktum answered as he got on to the hound's back. Phantom sighed, following the shadow and hoping that Samukai would wake up soon.