149 people stood in a large grassy plain. They are the remaining members of the New Dawn. A group of the strongest and brightest humanity had to offer, once numbering in the thousands. These were their best members, known as the 149 Shining Stars. The greatest heroes whos brilliance banished the shadows. They were an odd mismatched group full of different people.

There was an old man cloaked in a blue robe holding a wooden staff. A woman in shining full plate armor bearing shields and swords. A bearded man riding upon a griffon. All manners of weapons and tools. The best that could be found.

One thing most of them had in common was the fact they were all old. Most of them well past their 60s.

"It's time. I hope you're all ready. The Final Battle is upon us."

A Grim voice resonated across the large field. Everyone stared at the enormous castle in the distance they were about to attack. This was their final shot. A chance to save humanity from extinction. There was no room for mistakes.

Standing in front of the crowd was a tall and well-built man. Unlike the others, he was still youthful appearing as if he was in his early 20s. His hair was spun gold, and his eyes a deep sapphire. He held onto a beautifully adorned greatsword whose blade glowed with power from the magical runes engraved upon it. Silvery armor and a bold crimson cape, he was the bunch despite being the youngest.

His power and leadership were unquestionable and his mere presence radiated a sense of confidence within everyone there.

"Hell yeah, let's go kick fucking some ass!"

A loud and boastful voice echoed from the back, breaking the solemn atmosphere. The crowd broke into small chuckles

"Way to kill to mood, ya idiot!"

A female voice scolded the man and he just sheepish rubbed the back of his head as if a child.

"Heh, that's just like you Vincent. I doubt you guys want to listen to my boring speech so let's just go. Fight for your family and friends, fight for humanity's survival! Fight for a New Dawn!"

Their battle cry shook the ground as they charged towards the enemy's stronghold.

Their job was to pierce through the enemy's defenses in one go. The majority of the opponent's army had gone to confront their allies from The Six Pillars, an alliance made of 6 of the largest guilds left.

Everyone was betting on this final shot. They couldn't fail here.

Although it was the middle of the night, the skies were bright from the explosions of high-level magic and skills being fired none stop.

Everything that stood in their way was either cut down, crushed, and blown into smithereens. They left no survivors in their warpath.

The ground was slick with blood and bodies of the dead. They didn't look back. Not even when one of their own was cut down or sacrificed themselves so their comrades could take even a step closer to their goal.

It was a sprint through and through, and once they reached the throne room there was only 21 of them left. Bloody, bruised, and exhausted.

"Well, what do we have here? If it isn't the great heroes! To what do I owe the pleasure of your presences before me?" Sarcasm and contempt dripped from its forked tongue. Abelastros. A high ranking demon. One of the top species who has brought disaster and calamity to countless worlds. He took the form of a Naga. A serpent with the torso of a man.

Unlike other Nagas, his entire body was covered in thick black metallic scales and he had three pairs of arms. Abelastros' size of immense as his torso alone was the size of an elephant. His natural armor looked more like they were mental to shred flesh from bones than to serve as a form of defense.

The golden-haired man said naught a word but merely raised his sword. His allies behind him readied their spells and weapons before they charged as one. They needed no words after their years of camaraderie.

An Archbishop chanted in the back and a blue aura surrounded his allies. He was standing behind a warrior with two tower shields. His job was to support and heal. Surprisingly he appeared to be close in age with the leader of the group.

With their bodies enhanced by the magic, the group scattered into battle position.

A figure in green scaled leather darted between the pillars found within the room. He was holding a longbow. The archer's hands moved in a blur as they rapidly fired arrows towards the giant Naga's eye as if a machine gun. He constantly moved, never stopping for a moment, as he scanned the beast for weak points.

To the left, a mage used a spell to float into the air before casting a high-level spell. The temperature dropped immediately as everyone could see their breath. Hard claws made of ice formed to the side of the beast and clamped down onto him. Holding him in place.

Shieldbearers charged head on to the beast, pinning down its upper body while the attackers had climbed onto it like ants attacking an elephant. They hack and slashed away with reckless abandon.

It has been half an hour, but things were going well. There wasn't another casualty and they had settled into a rhythm.

Cut, dodge, back off, jump, rush.

Their minds had no room for idle thoughts, only on surviving.

Which was why they didn't notice the odd look in the demon's eye.

Suddenly a scream was heard from the back and a blurred object crashed from behind them into a wall.

It was the one with the tower shield. His armor was crumpled by a fist judging by the indentation on his waist. Blood pooled out and they knew he was dead.

The scream wasn't his though. It had been the Archbishop. He had been torn in half, his legs were meters away, yet he was still alive. His screaming was cut short when a clawed hand crushed his throat before tossing him to the side like yesterday's trash.

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It was a smaller Abelastros.

The thing with demons was they were incredibly hard to predict. They were an illogical species whose members varied greatly in both appearances and abilities. Once they reached certain levels they naturally unlocked unique skills. It was clear to them this was one of his.

The Large one suddenly bloated up before exploding into an acidic mist, the hard stone walls and ground, which had withstood they blows and spells with ease, started to melt into an ooze.

It had taken half of their close combatant in surprise. From 21 they were now a measly 8.

The battle raged onwards. Perhaps because they stopped attempting to preserve their lives and only aimed to deal another wound, their battle prowess exploded.

There was no inch of space that left untainted with mana as they gave it everything they got and then some. Deep wounds and gashes started to cover the once pristine scale of the monster in front of them. A woman wielding a spear had her arm lopped off, but she only gave a grunt as she charged onwards, piercing an open cut with her weapon in her remaining arm.

The archer who had long lost his bow used his body as a meat shield to block one of Abelastros' flailing limbs to give her the chance to further drive it in.

They were men and women possessed by an all-consuming drive. From 8 their numbers swiftly dwindled to only 2, but each had made sure to take their pound of flesh from the vile serpent.

The golden-haired leader was cloaked in blood, whether his own or his comrades was not known, but he remained relatively intact.

A large man with bronze skin and bulging muscles stood beside him, his armor broken and fragments melted to his skins, yet he had a large grin on his face.

"Heh, looks like it's going to have to be you after all. Do me a favor would ya..? I know it's selfish of me to give you another burden, but please help me with my greatest regret."

Tears streamed down the young man's face as he heard what he knew was his friend's dying request.

"Of course, Vincent, I'll see you soon."

"Heh, not too soon now alright? I'd like to enjoy some peace, ya know."

The herculean man rushed forward with a beastly roar, Abelastros claw forward with the intent of piercing through him. He succeeded, but that was exactly what Vincent was aiming for. He stepped forward so that the arms were further inside of him, lodged deeply in place.

He tensed his muscles as he hugged the Naga with all his might, locking it in place. Its tail whipped and thrashed madly in vain as the giant of a man gave it no traction to move.

"Do it now Jason!"

The young man had been gathering energy for his ultimate attack. The blade shone and wisps of energy crackled around it as if it was a divine sword of a thunder god. He thrust forward and released a deafening explosion of energy. The torso of both the monster and his friend was burned to a crisp, falling down with a heavy thud.

It was over.

He fell to his knees as his wounds were taking its toll on him. His eyes were glued to an artifact resting on a pedestal behind where Abelastros was resting. It was a shining blue gem whose interior seemed as if they held entire galaxies.

The goal they were all searching for. The hope that drove them onwards. The reason why they sacrificed everything in this one final charge. He was most likely the last of humanity by now.

He crawled forward on his hands and knees. It was merely a dozen meters away. There were no more guards, no monsters to get in his way, just a matter of covering the distance.

Blood dripped down his chins and one of his eyes was destroyed, but he had a grin on his face.

'Finally, with this, I can change everything. I can save everyone. Vincent, Sarah, Lee...' names and faces flew pass his mind as he inched forward bit by bit. Some of friends and families, others of pass love lost.

His arm suddenly snapped and he fell on his face. The already fractured bone couldn't bear the additional stress. He was so close, he was finally at the steps, one a few feet separated him from the salvation of the world.

He couldn't give up here. He ignored the pain and used his broken arm regardless of his body screaming at him to stop, begging him for a moment's rest. He carried onwards heedless of its warning. He knew that if he stopped for even a moment he wouldn't be able to start again.

His teeth cracked from the force he clenched them, but finally, he was at his goal. He reached forward towards the gem with a smile on his face.

A loud thud echoed the silent chamber. An arm had fallen. Jason Forrester had died.

The combination of blood loss, exhaustion, and poison had eventually claimed him. For although his will was of steel, the flesh was weak. His body gave out on him as it couldn't handle further abuse.

Thus, was the end of the legend of the golden hero, leader of the elites of humanity. Truly, it was a sad end for him, he was so close to his goals, yet those inches might as well have been miles considering the differences in result.

The rumbling of rubble echoed loudly in the silent room. A broken arm wildly groped around before it slowly clawed its way out. A figure dressed in shredded robes. It's once pure white now a brilliant crimson as it was dyed in blood.

Loud gasping could be heard as the figure crawled out. It was merely a torso, but its wounds could be seen regenerating at an inhuman pace.

The archbishop which had been incapacitated at the beginning had somehow survived. While his companions were fighting to the death, he had luckily or unluckily been spared from the assumption that he had fallen to his mortal wounds.

He scanned the battlefield and wept. He could figure out enough to piece together what had happened.

'Shit! If only I hadn't gotten caught off guard! If only I was smarter! Stronger! Better! DAMNIT WHY!"

His thoughts were in chaos as self-loathing and a feeling of loneliness consumed him. He was well and truly alone now. Everyone was dead and he was alone in this lifeless world crawling with demons and creatures of nightmare.

He could see the Gem they were going for sitting quietly in place as a silent observer of the tragedy that took place before it.

He reached out of it hesitatingly before stopping and biting his lips. He wasn't like Roy with his unwavering confidence. He wasn't strong like Vincent, smart like Adrian, he was just Tom. Plain old Tom. Worthless and useless Tom. He couldn't do anything right.

Couldn't even die to help his friends. Instead, he was knocked out like an idiot.

He was a fuck up since day 1. No, even before all of this started he had been a loser, bottom of the ladder.

Could he do this? Go back in time and help everyone? And better yet, did he even want too? To relive all those years of horror? The constant fight for survival and the screams of the dead haunted him. He was no hero, he was just a kid trying to survive. It was why he was of the Priest class. It wasn't from some noble wish to help others like he tried to tell himself.

No, deep down he knew the truth. He was a fucking coward too scared to fight. So he decided to be a support. To hide in the back as people died around him, for him, to protect a useless waste of space.

He started shaking, tears blurred his vision. Self-hatred filled his veins. Perhaps it was better to end it here? Maybe humanity was meant for destruction. He could just silently let it go into the night with him.

He had gone to step back when he tripped. He fell with a loud yelp and he hit his head on the bottom steps. It was Jason. he had accidentally tripped and shifted his corpse. Yet, even dead, he could see the confident smirk on his face, the sheer determination in those deep blue orbs.

'You can do it!'

He could practically hear his voice echoing within. Yes, he couldn't give up now. What the hell was he thinking?! After all the sacrifices, all the blood and lives used to pave their road here. He couldn't just spit on that. If not for himself, than for his friends. No matter how much of a piece of trash he was, he couldn't cross that line. He'll try for them.

He spent around an hour or two longer to bury his friends. It was hard as he lacked strength, being a priest, and the fact that there was no dirt, only stone. Yet he persisted, even when his hands bleed and his nails peeled back. He spent the majority of his mana trying to heal their bodies. It wouldn't bring them back to life by any means, but it would make their bodies more intact.

"Thank you, for everything. Watch over me now, eh?" Tears stung at his eyes as he grabbed the gem, a blinding light swallowed the castle.

'I'll do it right this time.'