In the relentless turmoil of battle, as fragments of the floating islands crumbled and plummeted, Valicar clashed ferociously with the Pillar of the North. Sophia struggled to maintain consciousness, overwhelmed by Mike's dominating presence within their shared mind. Meanwhile, Mike tapped into newfound power surging within him, seamlessly blending demonic and holy magic to fuel his relentless assault. With Blue Dawn gripped tightly in his hand, his voice reverberated across the chaos, dripping with raw emotion. "You fucking cunt!" he thundered, his words cutting through the tumultuous din. "You took Altheack from me, and for that, I'm gonna fucking kill you!"
"Fool! You wield power beyond your comprehension, Otherworlder," thundered the Pillar of the North as they clashed once more. "But know this: the might you wield is reserved for the gods alone. And I shall demonstrate its futility now, for even slaying that half-breed was but a mere taste of my wrath," he shouted, feeding Mike's rage.
Adding to his fury, memories of past allies flooded Mike's mind, stoking the fires of his seething rage. "Where the hell are those motherfuckers Zaltheral and James? That bastard stops me, then vanishes like a scared pussy," he seethed internally, his thoughts brimming with contempt and anger. The betrayal cut deep, fueling the inferno of his fury.
Yet, beneath the rage, a pang of sadness gnawed at him. The weight of his fractured mind and the actions he'd been compelled to take against Sophia bore heavily upon his conscience. However, he ruthlessly suppressed these emotions, refusing to allow them to weaken his resolve. "Damned broken mind, now I'm talking to myself," he growled inwardly, bitterness tainting each thought, "and what I had to do to Sophia... But I can't stop now. I'm so close, she will understand," he resolved silently, recalling Anna Sha's unsettling words with bitter determination, even as he disregarded her pleas.
Sophia could feel her brother's rage and grief, she continued to desperately reason with Mike, pleading, "Please, Mike, stop this....we are going to die! We can't let Altheack's sacrifice be in vain, we are destroying Valicar's body!" But her impassioned words fell upon deaf ears as Mike persisted in his relentless assault.
Valicar, her body battered and broken, was handling powers no mortal could wield. Even a full dragon would struggle to channel such immense power. But Mike was not drawing mana from the world, which normally had its limits. He was channeling it from beyond the Veil, tapping into divine magic in its purest form, both holy and infernal. Their armor had shattered under the strain, but Mike had learned to harness these forces without the aid of a pact or artifact. He had transformed himself, merging his abilities with those of a sorcerer, turning the powers into raw mana—a feat no mortal should be capable of.
Unmoved by Sophia's pleas, Mike unleashed his fury upon the battlefield, sending the Pillar hurtling through several of Minerva's floating islands, shattering them like fragile glass. The destruction-fueled his power further, his resolve unyielding in the face of adversity.
Despite Mike's efforts, the Pillar remained steadfast, his divine strength unyielding. With each passing moment, he began to gain the upper hand, overwhelming Mike with his relentless assault.
Valicar's once-majestic body bore the brunt of the onslaught, each blow tearing through her flesh with a savage ferocity that left her maimed and bleeding. Limbs were rent asunder, blood flowed freely, and yet, amidst the chaos, her healing magic surged forth with an otherworldly power, rivaling even the Pillar's own regenerative abilities. It was this formidable resilience that prevented her from being torn apart from the inside by the relentless onslaught of Mike's magic, her very essence pulsating with an indomitable will to survive.
High above the crumbling landscape, Valicar soared into the sky, her draconic wings beating with a furious intensity as she prepared to descend upon the Pillar of the North. In a thunderous collision, Mike came crashing down to meet his divine enemy once more, the clash of their blades resonating with a deafening roar. Blue Dawn clashed against the Pillar's golden blade, sending sparks flying in every direction. With a savage ferocity, Mike raked his taloned feet across the Pillar's thigh, leaving deep gashes in his divine flesh. As the Pillar recoiled from the onslaught, Mike's tail whipped around, sending the divine entity hurtling through the air. With a primal roar of rage, Mike beat his wings and launched himself at the Pillar once again. In a swift and calculated move, the Pillar severed Valicar's sword hand with a single swing of his blade, but before he could deliver a fatal blow, Mike caught his falling blade with his tail, his mana-infused claws parrying the Pillar's attack. With a triumphant grin, Mike sank his razor-sharp teeth into the Pillar's neck, tearing away a chunk of flesh as his arm regenerated before their very eyes. Blood was sprayed in a gory spectacle as the two adversaries continued their brutal dance of death, each strike fueled by a primal instinct for survival and vengeance. Mike appears more beast than man, his movements fueled by a raw and primal rage that threatened to consume him entirely, using tooth, claw, and tail in his relentless assault upon their divine enemy.
With the devastation wrought upon them, most of their armor and artifacts lay in tatters, their once-protective shells now reduced to mere scraps of metal. Valicar stood half-naked and exposed, her scales glistening with blood and sweat as she faced down the Pillar's relentless onslaught. Their magic sandals and armor, symbols of their former prowess, lay shattered and forgotten amidst the rubble, offering little defense against the divine fury that assailed them from all sides.
With each strike, Mike's power surged, tearing through the very fabric of reality itself. The Pillar retaliated fiercely, his divine strength proving to be a formidable match against Mike's rage-fueled onslaught. They were evenly matched in their ferocity, but both their bodies were rapidly deteriorating, locked in a brutal battle of attrition.
As Mike's rage surged, he unleashed a devastating combination of fire and wind magic, creating a blazing inferno that lit up the sky with its purple flames. The Pillar, now in his true godly form, proved to be a formidable opponent, unfazed by Mike's rampage.
The battlefield was a gruesome sight, with Valicar's regeneration struggling to keep pace with the relentless attacks from the Pillar of the North. In a moment of sheer brutality, the Pillar cleaved Valicar in half, her torso severed from her hips in a spray of blood and viscera.
But in a display of desperate determination, Mike lunged forward, grabbing Valicar's legs as if pulling on a pair of pants, and forcefully shoved them back into place, reattaching her torso to her hips. The magic surged, knitting the two halves back together in a grotesque display of twisted healing.
For a fleeting moment, Mike's rage wavered as he pieced them back together but James finally reappeared, his voice cutting through the chaos. With a surge of demonic power, James summoned forth a pocket dimension, briefly restraining the Pillar of the North. "Go to the Vault, Sophia!" he shouted, his words echoing across the battlefield. "Free yourself of Mike and use the Artifact to end the Pillar! In his divine state, we can rip his soul out of his body and send him back to the beyond!"
"But Mike's fury quickly resurfaced, his rage boiling over at James' interference once again. "I CAN KILL HIM!" he roared, his voice tinged with madness and bloodlust. The Pillar would not be held long and just when all seemed lost, a familiar red dragon descended from the heavens, its voice booming with ancient power even if it was obviously wounded. "Remember who you are, Kin, awaken Solaria!" it urged, a beacon of hope as he engaged the Pillar with James.
With Ignial's call sparking her memory, a long-forgotten name echoed in Sophia's mind, her dragon name in its truest form spoken by one of her kin. Remembering who she was, the same guilt weighing heavily upon her soul, but now empowered by her true identity, her spells flooded back to her. She was more than just a brute who fought with fire and claw, like Ignial; she was the Archmage of Dragons, a master of necromancy who had honed her craft over centuries. With newfound clarity and resolve, Sophia turned to face Mike, wielding her magic against him. With a whispered incantation, she summoned forth the chains holding down her soul, breaking free from their confines. Channeling her latent draconic power, she cast a teleportation spell by chanting, "GAS AH CA!" In an instant, they found themselves standing in the vault before the artifact that held the answers to their problems."
Sophia, tapping into her draconic soul, summoned the strength to hold Mike in check, her grip firm as she approached the machine. Placing her hand on its surface, a flood of memories from her past surged through her mind, overwhelming her with images and sensations.
"Fucking Let go, Soph!" Mike's voice pierced through the chaos, his struggle evident as he fought for control of Valicar. His knuckles tightened around Blue Dawn's blade, his eyes blazing with a mix of anger and desperation.
"Mike, let me solve this! We can still win if you just fucking trust me and stop trying to kill Valicar!" she pleaded desperately, her voice tinged with urgency as she combined the Shadow Orb with the machine. The necromancy of the device fueled the artifact, its power crackling in the air.
But Mike's rage burned unabated, his voice echoing with defiance. "Damn it, Soph! You know she's only dead because we stopped fighting! I can kill him! So, Screw this world! I'll bring her back, and then you'll understand!" he roared, his words filled with a raw determination as he fought for control of the device, his hands trembling with fury.
High above the crumbling islands, Ignial and James engaged in a desperate battle against the Pillar of the North. Once-majestic floating landmasses now lay in ruins, their destruction reflecting the shattered hopes of those who once called them home. The legend of the Beloved of the Sky had perished with Altheack, leaving behind only memories and the fading echoes of a once-glorious past.
The Templar army and alliances that had not escaped the clash of gods were either dead or left longing for death's embrace. The landscape bore witness to the cataclysmic confrontation, with mountains flattened, forests reduced to ashes, and the very earth torn asunder by the ferocity of their battle.
Amidst the chaos, Ignial and James fought with every ounce of their remaining strength, their determination unwavering even in the face of overwhelming odds.
Ignial, his crimson scales tarnished with battle and covered in blood, soared through the air with the grace of a wounded dragon. With a mighty roar, he lunged forward, his jaws snapping at the Pillar's arm with the ferocity of a storm. His razor-sharp teeth sank deep into divine flesh, tearing through sinew and bone. The Pillar howled in pain as Ignial wrenched the limb free, casting it aside with a thunderous crash.
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Yet, in a swift and calculated move, the Pillar retaliated, driving a golden blade deep into Ignial's heart. Even the mighty dragon, a creature of legend and the pinnacle of all living beings in this world proved mortal in the face of such divine power. However, this exchange came at a cost for the Pillar of the North, as his time was almost out and he would not be able to heal his wounded arm.
James looked on, a mixture of sadness and gratitude filling his heart as he witnessed the sacrifice of the old dragon. Ignial's valiant efforts had bought them precious time in their battle against the Pillar, a debt that James knew could never be repaid.
As Ignial's life force began to ebb away, his ancient eyes locked with those of the Pillar of the North, a smug smirk tugging at his draconic lips. "You may have thought yourself invincible, but even gods can fall to the might of a dragon," he taunted, his voice resonating with the wisdom of centuries of battle. "And it was a mere mortal that managed to strip you of your arm. Perhaps you're not as powerful as you believe."
The Pillar's smirk widened into a contemptuous grin as he regarded Ignial with disdain. "You were a worthy opponent for a mere lizard," he retorted, his voice dripping with mockery. "But in the end, you are nothing but a speck in the grand plan of the gods. Your kin may try to avenge you, but she too shall fall before my might."
Ignial's lifeless body lay among the shattered remnants of the once-majestic floating islands, his final resting place marked by the largest of the debris atop the ruins of Minerva's castle.
With those final words, Ignial's soul departed, leaving behind his motionless form as a grim reminder of the unforgiving brutality of the battle for his pride.
James faced his own struggles against the overwhelming power of the Pillar. As demonic energy surged through his veins, he embraced Anna Sha fully, his form shrouded in inky blackness. With each incantation, dark tendrils of magic coiled around him, amplifying his spells with unholy power.
With a flick of his wrist, James unleashed torrents of infernal flames upon the Pillar, the scorching heat engulfing his brother's divine form in a searing inferno. Yet, even as the flames licked at his flesh, the Pillar remained undaunted, his divine resilience proving to be a formidable barrier against the onslaught.
In the solemn stillness of the vault, amidst the hallowed relics of ancient power, the twins' voices clashed like thunder in the darkness. Sophia's words pierced the air, heavy with sorrow and determination, as she confronted her brother amidst the shadows. "God damn it, Mike! I never wanted it to come to this," she lamented, her voice a plaintive cry echoing off the cold stone walls. With a trembling hand, she reached out to grasp at Mike's entwined soul, her heart heavy with the knowledge of the sacrifice that must be made to salvage what remained of their shattered bond.
Mike's response was a guttural mix of disbelief and betrayal, his voice choked with emotion as he grappled with the harsh reality of their predicament. "Are you really going to do this, Soph? You promised me a body.. not this" he pleaded, his soul quivering with the dread of separation from the only kin he had ever known—a bond woven through the fabric of their shared life since birth.
"I'm sorry, Mike," Sophia's voice quivered with the weight of her decision, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "But it's the only way to keep you safe, even if just for now. This will anchor your soul to this world."
With a trembling hand, she began to chant the ancient spell, "Zas Fu Ra Da Hz Mun Av!!!!" the words resonating with power born from a distant past. Each syllable seemed to carry the weight of centuries as she summoned the necromantic energy needed for the ritual.
As the incantation reached its crescendo, Sophia reached out, her fingers trembling as they brushed against Mike's essence. With a surge of agony that seemed to tear through her very soul, she ripped his spirit from hers, their intertwined forms writhing in anguish.
Together, they struggled against the searing pain, their cries echoing through the chamber as they fought to maintain control. With a final, desperate effort, Sophia directed their combined essence into the waiting device, using the Shadow Orb to sever the bond between their souls.
In the aftermath, as the echoes of their torment faded into the silence, Sophia sank to her knees, her breath coming in ragged gasps. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she gazed upon the device, her heart heavy with the weight of their sacrifice.
As Mike grappled with the disorienting sensation of being elsewhere, a sense of bewilderment washed over him. "Where the hell, wait, am I Dead?" His voice cracked with disbelief, the echo bouncing off the walls of his mind, drowning him in a sea of confusion. Each passing moment felt heavier than the last, the weight of his circumstances threatening to smother his resolve beneath its suffocating weight.
Yet, amidst the tumult of his thoughts, a flicker of recognition began to stir. It was as if a dim light had been lit in the darkest corners of his consciousness, illuminating the path forward. Slowly, tentatively, the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place. With a dawning clarity, Mike began to understand the gravity of his situation.
"Then, there is no other way now," he whispered hoarsely to himself, the words heavy with resignation. The realization settled upon him like a leaden shroud, casting a somber shadow over his thoughts. Memories of Altheack flooded his mind, their love serving as a guiding beacon amidst the encroaching darkness. He could still feel her presence, her ethereal voice echoing in the depths of his soul, a reminder of the sacrifices he was willing to make to honor her memory and save Sophia, even in the face of betrayal.
Ensnared by the binding tendrils of the ancient treasure, he surrendered willingly to the encroaching darkness of his mind. The memory of Sophia's betrayal lingered like a bitter taste upon his tongue, yet even in his anguish, he could not bring himself to abandon her to the same fate that had befallen him. For beneath the layers of resentment and betrayal, a flicker of compassion remained—a testament to the depth of his love for his sister, despite the pain she had inflicted upon him.
As the darkness consumed him, driving him ever closer to the brink of insanity, he clung to the memory of Altheack like a lifeline. Her face, etched with love and longing, danced before his eyes, urging him forward with silent encouragement. With each passing moment, the lines between reality and delusion blurred, until he could no longer distinguish between the two.
And so, with his mind teetering on the edge of oblivion, Mike emerged from the depths of his despair as a grotesque parody of his former self—a lich, a ghastly specter of death and decay. Yet, even in his twisted state, his determination remained unyielding, fueled by the twin flames of love and vengeance that burned within his shattered soul.
As Sophia, poised to execute their desperate plan, felt the artifact surge to life, its pulsating power filling the chamber with an ominous intensity. The shadow orb clicked into place, merging seamlessly with the ancient machinery, sealing Mike's fate with a chilling finality. With each passing moment, his triumphant roar faded into the abyss, leaving Sophia's heart heavy with a dread she could scarcely bear.
A tide of darkness surged relentlessly, devouring everything in its path with an insatiable hunger. In its wake, millions were ensnared, their souls torn asunder by the relentless grasp of the artifact. The anguished cries of the dying echoed through the desolate landscape, a chilling chorus that pierced the very heart of existence.
Soldiers, once valiant and resolute, now fled for their lives, only to fall prey to the relentless onslaught of the darkness. Innocent children, their laughter silenced forever, succumbed to the unfathomable horror, their futures stolen in an instant. From bustling market squares to remote villages, no corner of the land was spared as the dark wave swept across the continent.
Adventurers, whether delving into the depths of a goblin cave or traversing the tranquil countryside, met their fates with a cruel and indiscriminate hand. The device's soul-wrenching power spared none, its dark influence spreading like a malignant plague, leaving devastation and despair in its wake.
Turning her gaze to a scrying spell, Sophia bore witness to the horror unfolding beyond the vault's confines. A monstrous form loomed atop Minerva's castle, his once-golden eyes now transformed into a haunting sapphire hue. Ignial, the once-majestic dragon, now a vessel for dark and twisted power, stood as a haunting reminder of Sophia's legacy, a fate she had once planned for in her past life, now unfolding before her very eyes for none other than her own brother.
Tears blurred Sophia's vision as she watched the nightmarish transformation unfold. "Oh, Mike... What have you done?" she whispered, her voice heavy with grief and disbelief. The weight of their separation bore down upon her like a crushing weight, threatening to suffocate her with its intensity. In that agonizing moment, she realized that their once unbreakable connection had been irrevocably sundered, torn apart by the consuming darkness that now gripped her brother's soul. It was a realization that pierced her heart with an unyielding ache, leaving her feeling utterly helpless and alone in the face of the monstrous entity that her brother had become.
With each soul claimed, Ignial was reborn, his eyes ablaze with an undead fury. Mike's triumphant roar pierced the chaos as he took flight, propelled by his newfound power, determined to challenge the Pillar of the North once more with all his might.
"YOU DARE? DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!?" The Pillar of the North bellowed with divine rage, confronted by his fallen archenemy rising once more, now a puppet to an otherworldly force, the epitome of false divinity. A mortal who had seized his own semblance of godhood through the souls of the fallen, numbering in the billions.
"I'VE FUCKING WON!" Mike's thunderous cry reverberated through Ignial's crimson form, his fury unyielding as the souls of the dead fueled him. With each soul claimed, the essence of the fallen surged into him, transforming him into a horrifying force of destruction. The sheer magnitude of the souls flooding from the central continent threatened to turn it into the same undead wasteland that plagued the north.
With a flicker of violet flame, he called his blade, Blue Dawn, to his side as he flew. Once held by Sophia, now it flew from her grasp to its true master. The red dragon of the north had it in his hoard for good reason; the blade grew to match Mike's size. It was massive, able to cleave mountains with a single swipe. Mike grasped it with Ignial's claws, now wielding a Violet blade of unmatched power.
He surged forward to meet the Pillar of the North once more, his violet blade gleaming with an ominous light as he prepared to unleash his wrath upon the divine entity.
Sophia watched in horror as her brother's genocide unfolded, the weight of the deaths he caused bearing down on her heart like an unbearable burden. At that moment, she knew that the darkness had consumed him utterly, leaving nothing but a hollow shell in its wake.
As the last echoes of the dying cries faded into the night, Sophia clung to a fragile hope that somewhere, buried beneath the darkness, a fragment of her brother's humanity remained. But deep down, she feared that he was lost to her forever, swallowed whole by the abyss that now threatened to consume them all.
"You have to stop him, Sophia," James's voice pierced through the chaos of battle, his words a solemn warning. "He will not stop until he has destroyed this world. We must use the machine to end them both."
Sophia stood in shock, grappling with the gravity of James's words. Despite all her brother had become, she knew she had to save him. With one final appeal, she would plead for her brother's soul. "I will not kill him! That idiot has given me no choice, however... I have to make him see I don't need saving if this is the cost!"
"It won't work, Sophia, and you will both pay the price. He has never seen you as his equal and he never will," James responded gravely, his words hanging heavy in the air before he vanished.
"He will soon," Sophia whispered defiantly.
With no other recourse but to confront the Pillar alongside her brother, Sophia summoned every last bit of her remaining mana, her desperation fueling her magic. With an uncontrollable surge of power, she charged forward to fight by Mike's side. In Valicar's small dragonkin form, she unleashed every spell she knew with fierce determination, her mana spiraling out of control.
Something deep within her snapped, a primal force awakening within her. It was reminiscent of the night they first died, but this time, it was different. Her body began to change, slowly at first, as she tapped into the true power of the dragon souls within her.
Her scales shimmered with a brilliant sapphire hue as they spread across her body, covering her in a protective armor of dragonhide. Her wings stretched longer, spanning the battlefield with a newfound grace, while her feet and talons sharpened into deadly, dragon-like forms.
Embracing her heritage and identity fully, Sophia vowed to stand by her brother's side. While he may have played at being a dragon, Sophia knew that she was the true embodiment of their shared legacy. Together, they would face the darkness that threatened to consume them, united in their strength and determination to overcome the Pillar once and for all.