Chapter 92: Demi-Divine 1

The black-feather swung his arm, releasing a black lash of energy.

Elania slipped around it, the crackling tendril missing her by mere inches. She raised her [Regalia], taking aim at him, and squeezed the trigger.

The shot went wide, the bullet whizzing past his head.

He darted inward, swinging his black energy like a whip. She brought her wing up to block the attack.

Black electricity cackled down her feathers, sending a shock through her body. Elania gritted her teeth and pushed through the pain as the distance between them disappeared.

He stabbed at her with a black energy dagger. She strafed away from it. He continued his rush, swinging wildly, faster than she could track.

That wasn’t acceptable. She didn’t want to get stabbed.

[Demonic Aura] came to the forefront, and she focused on her opponent, willing the air to resist his movement—every movement. There was an immediate effect as the surrounding air thickened.

But it didn’t stop the black energy that shot out of his hand, turning into a series of red and black claws. They slashed her side, cutting through her scale armor like it wasn’t there.

Blood flowed freely from the wound.

It wasn’t healing.

Worse, it hurt. Like, more than normal.

She pushed a pulse of [Power] through her [Regeneration] ability, willing it to close, but nothing responded. The gash remained open, blood dripping down her side.

Anti-regeneration magic? She’d encountered nothing like that before. Hadn’t even known it was possible.

She dodged another slash, simultaneously pumping another dump of [Power] into her aura. The effect doubled in strength, the air around them cackling with energy and growing more oppressive. She slipped around his next strike easily, and slashed his midsection with her wing, willing the appendage into a razor-sharp wedge.

Blood spewed through the air, but the move had failed to cleave him in half as she’d hoped. Elania cursed under her breath. He was stronger than the previous two demi-divines she’d faced.

He grabbed her wing, blackfire claws tearing into feathers. Sections of them were consumed or ripped free, leaving glowing nets of gold mist behind. The feathers didn’t regenerate either.

“You bastard!” Elania growled, materializing a dozen light spears and flinging them.

Each one was countered by more black lashes, the tendrils whipping through the air.

Holding him in place with her [Demonic Aura] was draining [Power] far faster than was acceptable. She needed to end this.

Flipping open the cylinder of her [Regalia], she swapped out her standard ammunition for flame rounds. They had a wider area of effect, perfect for agile opponents like this one.

She summoned another barrage of light spears and flicked her wrist, sending them toward the writhing tendrils. Each one exploded with a blinding flash, illuminating the sky.

While he was blinded, Elania leveled her revolver and fired every round into the light. A geyser of flame erupted from her weapon, expanding rapidly in a giant cone of roiling red and yellow heat.

As the energy began to dissipate into the air, the black feather was revealed, his form blackened, scorched, and wounded.

She flipped her pouch open and pulled out another speed loader—this one lightning.

The enemy’s chest heaved as he struggled to breathe, but he still retaliated, summoning a beam of black flame in a desperate gesture.

She jetted out of the way, accelerating as fast as she could in a curved path to dodge the searing attack. Heat licked at her feet as he swiveled to track her movement.

She took aim and blasted him with a barrage of lightning bolts.

The energy seared the black feather, causing his body to jerk and spasm erratically. He tumbled and began to fall.

Elania reached out beside her, summoned a massive light spear, and gripped the pulsing weapon tightly before diving after him.

With a powerful thrust, she impaled him on it, and together they streaked towards the ground.

On impact, the spear exploded, blasting his body into a plasma that scattered in every direction.

Elania landed with a thump before looking at the scattering energy. She clicked her tongue in disappointment, realizing there wasn’t even enough left to absorb.

She patted her side, which continued to bleed, and a sense of panic began to set in.

What if the wound never healed? She had half expected whatever he had done to her to end with his life.

A bolt of fire slamming into her back tore her thoughts back to the battle. Turning, she saw Monevoian infantry and mages charging up the street.

Elania raised her hand, summoning two dozen golden orbs. A simple gesture toward the enemy sent them surging forward, bombarding them with a series of explosions.

Soldiers were sent flying through the air, while others dove for cover.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

The charge faltered and reversed as men fled into buildings or pushed their fellows back.

Elania looked back, spotting the Neftasu District Tower. Yolani would be up there.

She jumped into the air, covering the distance quickly. Sure enough, the defense cannon and guards were still there, sniping away at the enemies within range.

Yolani looked up at her and waved.

She touched down with a thump, and Yolani’s gaze was immediately drawn to her side. “Are you hurt?” she asked, concern etched on her face.

Elania nodded. “Something the enemy demi-divine did stopped the healing.”

Yolani reached down, pulling the torn scales apart and wincing as blood drenched her hand. “This looks bad.”

Elania let out a pained breath. “It’s not healing. [Regeneration] is replenishing my blood at least, but it’s burning energy fast.”

Yolani shook her head and tugged at Elania’s belt, opening her potion brace. They were all still there. “I guess you didn’t try these.”

“It just happened, and I just got here,” Elania mumbled.

Yolani pulled one of the sparkling blue potions out and uncorked it. A quick splash on the wound followed.

Elania winced. It tingled and then burned like an antiseptic. Suddenly, [Regeneration] took hold, and her flesh re-knitted itself.

“You shouldn’t rely purely on [Regeneration],” Yolani advised.

Elania nodded, a sheepish look on her face. “Thanks, Doc.”

Yolani bit her lip and gave her a look.

Elania rubbed her side, then focused on [Divine Mending], willing her armor to repair. It followed her will, and the damage was undone. “How’s the defense going?”

Yolani shook her head. “It just started. The enemy has a lot of infantry, so I called up the machine gun. It’s on the way.”

Elania nodded, a flicker of approval in her eyes. “That’s a good idea.”

She glanced towards the distant airships. “The Gold took some damage. We’ll need to try to repair it when we get a chance.”

Yolani frowned, her gaze following Elania’s. “We can, but we’ll have to be quick. We can’t leave the district unprotected for long.”

A sudden shout from below drew their attention.

They hurried to the edge of the tower, peering over the wall to see a squad of guards hurrying down the street, civilians in tow. The group disappeared inside, and Elania frowned. “What’s that about?”

Yolani shrugged. “Probably a messenger.”

Elania bit her lip, instincts tingling. “It looked like they had civilians with them.”

Yolani’s frown deepened. “We should go meet them.”

Elania grabbed Yolani’s waist, eliciting a startled squeak.

They leaped from the tower, landing them both safely at the entrance. Yolani pinched her on the arm and gave her a miffed look. “If my heart stops working, it will be your fault.”

Elania grinned at her. “We’re too young to worry about that.”

They hurried inside, Elania’s voice ringing out, “Hey!”

The squad turned and looked at them. The group was still catching their breaths and minding their packs.

Allie emerged from the cluster, making a beeline for Elania and Yolani. Elania blinked, surprise etched on her face.

“What’s wrong?” Yolani asked.

Allie’s words tumbled out in a rush. “The mushroohums are in trouble and need help! The arena is under attack.”

Elania and Yolani exchanged a look, then Elania nodded to Allie. “I’ll go.”

Yolani reached out, grasping Elania’s arm. “Don’t forget your healing potions.”

Elania nodded, then squeezed Yolani’s forearm, her gaze intense as she looked her in the eye. “There are more enemy demi-divine than we expected. You need to be careful.”

“I think I can handle them if there’s only one,” Yolani replied.

Elania frowned, worry creasing her brow. “Don’t hesitate to drain as much [Divine Power] as you need. The fights with the other two haven’t drained much, and I’m still nearly full.”

Yolani nodded, a promise in her eyes. “I won’t hold back.”

Elania smiled, leaning in to press a quick peck to Yolani’s lips before turning and heading out the door.

As she flew over the city, she spotted a group of enemy soldiers pinned down by Neftasu Guards firing their rifles from the safety of nearby buildings.

There was no time to help directly, but Elania couldn’t just leave them to fend for themselves. She flung a few light spears at the enemy, hoping to bombard them and slow their advance.

Banking sharply, Elania jetted towards the arena.

It wasn’t far, and as she approached, the problem became immediately apparent.

The small group of guards defending the structure were pinned down, their numbers no match for the Monevoian infantry led by a Gold.

The guards had retreated to a small building, firing from the windows and roof. The enemy was trying to break through the arena’s heavy steel door.

Without hesitation, she aimed directly for the Gold, diving towards him.

He turned, noticing her at the last second.

It was too late.

She slammed into him with the force of a meteor, using his body and armor as a makeshift brake. It pulped him in half, sending a spray of blood and viscera across the Monevoians.

They turned their attention to her, but she acted first by grabbing the two halves of the Gold’s mangled corpse. She hurled them at the enemy soldiers with enough force for it to blast into them, pulverizing half their number.

The ones that remained turned to flee, but she knelt down on the ground and grabbed a handful of rocks.

Then threw them at their backs with all her might.

That turned the simple stones into a deadly grapeshot, men exploding as if struck by a shotgun blast. The lot of them fell to the ground, a heap of shattered bones and torn flesh.

The few that weren’t dead moaned in agony. She ignored them.

The guards waved at her from the building. In order to examine the building, she took to the air.

The major problem became quickly apparent—holes in the hatch roof had allowed the dense atmosphere to escape.

Mending the smaller holes wouldn’t be that hard, but there was one where something large had blasted the entire hatch away. Elania glanced over to the building the Neftasu Guards were in.

She hovered over it and shouted for them to get out.

They complied after a minute, confusion etched on their faces.

Focusing her will, she called up her [Demonic Aura], using it to slice off the flat roof and brace it as she lifted it into the air. Flying back to the hole in the arena, she dropped it in place to seal the breach.

Yolani would have had a lot easier time with this, she thought. But that didn’t stop her from calling upon [Divine Mending] and doing her best.

It worked well enough, golden light fusing with the material to cause it to melt together. She could feel her connections to the mushroohums below strengthen as well. It wasn’t mending just the structure.

She turned her attention to the atmosphere. Restoring that wasn’t as tricky, as it only required funneling more [Power] into her existing aura.

A few minutes later, the mushroohums were as safe as she could make them in a hurry.

Elania ascended, to get a better view of the battle and the city. Monevoian barges had landed—or crashed, disgorging hordes of enemy soldiers onto the streets. The defending Silvers were fighting back valiantly through the districts, their silver armor glinting as they scattered the lighter enemy troops.

A flash of green caught Elania’s eye, and she spotted Elysia locked in combat with another demi-divine. They moved with blinding speed, a dazzle of elemental fury erupting with each clash. Not far away, Lyra faced off another one, each spilling arcane workings through the air that shot at one another.

Ember was on the other side of the city, but her fiery presence was unmistakable. She flashed between landing barges, a swirling vortex of flame erupting from her hands. The tornados tossed the vessels into the air, searing them in an inferno as they were thrown from the city.

The city’s central spire continued to unleash a relentless barrage from its cannons and turrets, the enemy airships’ arcane fields flickering under the pressure. Dozens of ships burned and began to falter as they spread their formation along the city’s edges.

A nagging question tugged at Elania. Where were the Sun Emperor and Arlois? The two most formidable combatants on either side had yet to make an appearance.

Considering that the entire battle was riding on them, their absence was conspicuous.

Elania pushed toward the central spire to investigate, unease filling her.

Almost there, a glint of gold caught her eye. A large group of Golds, their armor flashing in the sunlight, were rushing up the path towards the central spire.

Towards the Celestial Engine.