The morning sun peeked over the mountain and shone upon the combined forces of Camelot and Roxburghshire. The two armies were stationed down at the bottom of Mt. Etna. Even with the dim light and fog, everyone could see the massive amount of black specks that moved around like ants on a hill. The numbers were countless, far outnumbering the human army.
The location chosen was the smallest chokepoint that Nidhogg soldiers would take. The mountains quickly jetted up and blocked off most of the eastern side. The Western side suddenly opened up, and it was far too large to confine. Should Nidhogg’s soldiers decide to go around the army, it would be possible. If such an event occurred, the Army would lose much of its effectiveness.
As the armies began to take their formations, Duran and Martel were together in the war tent.
"The soldiers have been positioned as you asked; Four different groups with two having twice as many as the other. The center will remain open with the majority of the soldiers surrounding that area. The outer flanks will have the least amount of soldiers... Are you sure about this? Won't this give them direct access to the main camp?" Duran asked.
Marty nodded. "That is what I'm planning on. Nidhogg’s soldiers are mindless, thus only able to do basic combat. Nidhogg can only give basic instructions as it has no intention of leaving its den." He said as he thought back to the information Artoria had given him. "It's intention isn't effectiveness, but to cause as much death and despair as possible. Nidhogg will not leave its lair and will not be able to judge the situation outside accurately. It won't be completely blind, but complex commands are impossible. As such, we can more efficiently trap a large number of them, destroying a bunch of them at once."
"And you plan to do this personally?"
"No, I do not. I need to keep my strength if Nidhogg attacks."
"Why aren't you attacking Nidhogg now?"
"Contingency in case something goes wrong with the soldiers. I intend to wait until numbers are down to both ensure your safety as well as lower the probability of Nidhogg’s soldiers interfering. If enough of them get together, they can even threaten me."
Duran sighed. "Be honest with me, what are your odds?"
"I can beat it," Marty replied.
Duran looked at Marty but did not reply. He noticed that Marty had been acting strangely cold, even more so than usual. It gave Duran an ominous feeling that he could only keep to himself.
"You shouldn't worry about the fight though, I've secured reinforcements," Marty said.
"Really? Who?"
"You'll find out," Marty replied before he walked out.
Duran sighed as he rubbed his brow. He was tired and stressed as this fight had too much at stake. Soon after Marty left, another man walked in.
"Your Majesty, I have a report."
"Go ahead."
"We've noticed the fog is moving strangely in the Northwest and is not dissipating."
Duran furrowed his brows. "Is this unusual?"
"I asked some people who live near here, and they have never seen such a phenomenon."
"Ignore it. Hero Martel would know about it and do something if necessary. How is morale?"
"Not great. We are outnumbered and facing things that aren't even alive. Under the circumstances, we are doing better than I originally thought we would in that regard."
Duran nodded. "Let's hope it stays that way."
After Marty left the war tent, he immediately made his way to the private tent he had set up. Within the tent he found Elizabeth and Cali waiting for him. The inside of the tent stood out as it looked more like a temporary medical center from Earth. Marty had taken some of the highest level medical equipment available as it would be needed.
"Are you going to tell us why we are here?" Elizabeth asked disgruntled.
Marty didn't respond. Instead, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This was the moment of truth, his final chance to back out. If he backed out now, he could leave and take the people he cared about with him. Then he would be up to live a happy life. However, if he did that he would live with regret; He would regret not taking the deal. Perhaps he would regret not knowing how life would be like without the deal, but the dead cannot regret. Perhaps death was an extrication of the Fate he found hammering down on his shoulders. His eyes opened with resolve, and he turned to Elizabeth.
"You are here to save a life." He replied before he listlessly whispered: "Yggdrasil, when you are ready."
In Camelot, there was a large mansion illuminated by white fire. The abnormal fire flickered and cast the shadow of a broken window on the ground, dancing in the night.
A young man holding a young golden-haired girl dashed through the mansion. His eyes filled with tears, and another’s blood covered his clothes. In the room where the fire started a golden-haired young woman lay on the ground. Her hair was disheveled; her clothing was cut and torn; her breathing was slow, weak, and ragged as the gash across her torso was a mortal wound.
[I know he will. He will protect her.] Freyja thought as she had seen Martel scoop up Morgan. She coughed blood as it flowed from her mouth. Her body began to feel cold, and tears slowly began to spill from her eyes. [I do not wish to die. How I want to live. I want him to hold me. I want him to kiss me again. I want him to embrace me. I want to feel his warmth. I want to be his completely. I want to have his children. I want to grow old with him. I want to love him more. How cruel that I cannot even die in his arms. Is the world so cruel to deny me that? Is there no one who will answer my wish, my prayer?]
As she thought this, there was a crackle like fire. She looked up with her blurred vision and saw an illusion that defied her senses and responded to her prayer. A door appeared from nowhere; from elsewhere, and she saw a man waiting on the other side. The door passed through her, and she gently fell into his arms.
[Ah, yes. You would be the one to hear my wish, My Hero.]
In the warmth of his arms, the cold darkness of death embraced her, and she died with a smile on her face.
After Marty spoke, a woman suddenly appeared in his arms. The moment after he embraced her, he heard an expelled breath that marked the end of her life. He choked up when he listened to her final breath before he quickly put her on the medical table.
Elizabeth was shocked when Freyja appeared, but she very quickly began to do her job. When Cali saw Freyja, a brief smile appeared on her lips before she promptly joined Elizabeth and Marty as they began to fix Freyja’s body. Organs had to be repaired, and bones had to be moved and reattached. Together, the wounds that Marty was originally too weak to repair could now be fixed. They quickly worked as time was of the essence.
Unknown to them, Freyja was watching the medical procedure performed on her body. Her form was ghostlike; opaque. Her soul's color was mostly white but had traces of gold within. Only a thin thread connected her soul to her body. She lovingly watched as Marty ever so meticulously fixed her body. She felt her heart bleed as she was aware of her death and unaware of any means to revive a person.
"Bring me the defibrillators," Marty said after they finished. "Clear!" He exclaimed before Freyja's body arched without any other response. "Clear!" Again, no response.
Marty trembled as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, he didn't know why, but his vision was pulled above her body. Unknown to him, their gaze met. "Come back to me." He softly said before he used the defibrillators again.
With a jolt and a deep inhale, Freyja’s eyes shot open. Her out-of-body experience was fuzzy, and she did not wholly comprehend where she was. A small amount of panic suddenly set in.
"Freyja, it's all right," Marty reassured as he gently held and stroked her face.
Her breathing returned to normal as a small smile appeared on her lips. She was alive! Her body fixed. Visions of the magical surgery came to her mind, and the ease of her breath confirm her body had healed. With what little strength she had at the moment, she grasped Marty and sat up slowly. "My Hero." She said as she closed in for a kiss. However, their lips never met. Instead, her lips met his finger. Marty gently held her up as she nearly collapsed in surprise from the first time Marty ever rejected her advances.
"I'm sorry, Freyja," Marty said gently. Sorrow and guilt were evident on his face. He gently laid her down before he turned without a word and exited the tent.
Cali quickly hugged Freyja before she rushed off after Marty. Elizabeth stayed to watch the now dumbstruck Freyja.
Freyja couldn't understand what happened. Why didn't he accept her kiss? Why did he look so sorrowful? Could it be that he no longer held feelings for her? What had happened? Many thoughts went through her mind and time past beyond her recognition.
"That's what he's hiding." A female voice Freyja did not recognize said outside the tent. In walked two attractive young women of an ethnicity Freyja did not recognize.
Miyuki and Kuromi both enter the tent, curious as to why Marty was so secretive. When they enter the tent, they weren't sure what to expect, but what they saw left them both dumbstruck. The reason there dumbstruck was not because he was hiding a woman, but because they recognized the woman from Marty's paintings as Freyja, who had supposedly died.
"Hello," Miyuki said.
"Hello," Freyja replied.
"You are Freyja?"
"Yes."
"Nice to meet you. I am Miyuki, and this is Kuromi. Can you tell me what the last thing you remember is?" Miyuki asked as she saw that Freyja's clothing still had blood in the area in which she should have been wounded.
"I was in my room. I fought Freed, and I was badly wounded."
"That's strange, given that that happened nearly six months ago."
"Six months?" Freyja asked in disbelief.
Miyuki nodded. "If I'm not mistaken, it's almost been a year in this world since you died."
"Wait a second. Are you telling me I just healed a dead person?" Elizabeth, who had ignored the conversation until now asked.
"Should be. Marty wouldn't hide something as serious as this for me, and you healed the wound that she supposedly died from."
"Marty?" Freyja asked.
"Yes, he's been going by Marty since you died. I believe he told you that Martel was an alias."
Freyja nodded, trying to wrap her brain around what was happening. She was able to realize that significant time had passed which could help explain Marty's behavior. Moreover, it seemed as if Miyuki had a special relationship with Marty. She relaxed a little bit because she realized that Marty's guilt and sorrow most likely came from these two new girls. It would be surprising if he hadn’t moved on in this time and she knew that he promoted monogamy. Having thought about this, she began to relax. "Can you tell me what I missed?" She asked.
"I'd be happy to," Miyuki replied.
...
The sun blared down on the large field as it caused the armored troops to sweat from the afternoon heat. There was an air of tension and nervousness as Nidhogg’s soldiers were scheduled to advance soon. Time slowly went by as the movement on the mountain began to change. Instead of the random swarming, there was a slow noticeable trend of these dark entities moving down. Soon they started to swarm coming out from behind rocks and trees with their numbers swelling before they began to charge the Army beneath.
"I hope you know what you're doing," Duran said astounded by the sheer number of soldiers.
"It indeed is a lot, but their numbers are within my expectations," Marty replied.
Duran nodded before he looked to the Northwest where the fog remained. "Is that your work?"
"Not directly." Marty shrugged as he pulled a pocket watch out. "Right on time. This will be fun to watch. Be sure to order them to hold the line no matter what happens. Reinforcements are on the way."
Duran nodded before he ordered a reminder.
Even from this distance, one could see that the movement of Nidhogg’s soldiers had a purpose. Because there were so many of them, they headed out in nearly every direction. However, they noticeably gathered up towards the center and the North-Western area. It was not engagement, but breaking to enemy lines that were their priority.
Duran's face turned ugly. "They have some intelligence."
"Yes, enough to make use of. If they didn't, they would move randomly on instinct, which would be much harder to predict. The small amount of intelligence they have makes them smart enough to realize the path that is the easiest to take to reach their objective, but not smart enough to realize it's a trap. Nidhogg's personality is inherently arrogant. It looks down on us and is not expecting us to have the strength to fight back. This also lets us use the siege weapons as soon they will come within range instead of waiting for us to advance as is normally done. Speaking of which, they are entering the area now."
Soon after Marty spoke, the trebuchets began to fire. They had been set up long before the fight had begun along with giant chiseled rocks that would allow them to roll across the battlefield instead of stopping immediately. The ground trembled as the boulders struck the enemy lines and continued to rain havoc. Though the subsequent holes in the enemy formations quickly filled, their numbers had begun to drain.
A shout erupted from the Army as morale was beginning to inflate. Because Nidhogg soldiers didn’t move fast, they remained within the range of the trebuchet for quite some time.
Soon, Nidhogg’s soldiers entered the archers’ range. Volleys and volleys of arrows descended upon them. Multiple regular arrows would be needed to take down one, but the majority of these arrows also contained Ki which improved the potency. From a range, they could be picked off without much problem. It wasn't until they reached the frontline that they would become a problem as their numbers would quickly exhaust the soldiers. Soon, a melee broke out. The trebuchets continued to fire to try and lessen the impact on the front lines.
"I hope you have a good plan," Duran said as he looked worried.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
"The counterattack will be swift and fierce," Marty replied as his vision went to the end of the area between the armies. There, a lone woman slowly walked.
Dressed in her miko clothes, with a white katana on her waist, Miyuki began to cast a spell. It was a very long spell that she had recently managed to make thanks to her newly found Ki which increase the potency of her spells.
Nidhogg’s soldiers had swarmed the center heading toward her as well as the Northwestern flank which was left unguarded only seemingly blocked by the mist that had never dissipated. As Nidhogg’s soldiers closed in Miyuki finished her spell, and her Soul Armament Fan appeared. With a wave of the fan, the magic intensified and activated. A gigantic tornado traveled horizontally up to the center like a giant hungry worm swallowing its prey. The formation was perfect for this attack as it allowed only about 10 feet outside of the spell, ensuring that there were no friendly casualties. The cold air even dissipated some of Nidhogg's soldiers indirectly.
There was a moment of pause before a massive cheer erupted.
Duran looked down mouth agape before he looked at Marty. "Where did you find this girl?" He asked in shock as Miyuki's magic had wholly exceeded his comprehension.
"Long story. You can ask her sometime." Marty replied as he looked at his pocket watch. "Three, two, one."
Right after Marty spoke, a large number of people suddenly appeared in the center behind Miyuki. A large number of human troops and devil magicians appeared. Cali was above them floating; two large black raven-like wings extend behind her. "Charge!” She shouted before she charged forward to help clear the center. With a shout, the human fighters charged behind her and Miyuki also charged toward the front. With training, Miyuki had already reached Peak Rank 10 Ki along with Kuromi, who was within her shadow. The devils, led by Lucibelle, took to the air and began to cast spells towards the large groups which quickly extinguished them.
Soon after they began the charge, a large number of riders, led by an extremely pale Morgan, suddenly appeared behind the eastern flank. Marty looked at Morgan with surprise as she had opened a larger Dimension Door than he ever had. His heart bled when he saw her whitened face through his binoculars. The horsemen quickly began to circle in an assembly line of arrow fire. Even if they did not have control over their Ki, the eastern front had fewer enemies, and the horsemen’s presence helped balance out the fighting force.
Duran took a sigh of relief at the one-sided slaughter that was occurring. Now, he only had to worry about the Northwestern flank. He was just about to ask Marty what the plan for that area was when he noticed a small white figure shot out of the fog like a bullet. Shiro immediately decimated several of Nidhogg’s soldiers as a shout was heard from within the fog. Caelia, a crimson-haired man, and a large number of Demihumans suddenly burst forth from the fog and quickly engaged the nearby enemies.
When Duran saw the crimson-haired man, he gave Marty an incredible look. "You fooled everyone. How did you do it?"
"Parts of a pig and armor scraps burned to a crisp. The previous night I dug out a hole and stashed a set of armor. He hid in the hole, got changed, and walked out with the rest of the soldiers. You didn't think I'd kill Caelia's father, did you?"
"I'm relieved that is the case," Freyja said as she enters the tent as she had rested enough. "It seems you kept some secrets from me."
Marty visibly shuddered at her words while Duran mouth wordlessly flapped out of astonishment that his deceased sister had suddenly appeared.
"It's all right. Your secrets are yours to keep." Freyja softly said as she stood behind Marty.
Marty stood in silence for a few seconds before he turned around, took Freyja’s hand, and led her to sit down.
"Freyja, sorry."
"It's all right. So long as we're together, it's all right."
Marty did his best not to react, but his jaw shook ever so slightly.
"Miyuki and Kuromi seem like very nice girls, and I can't wait to meet the others," Freyja said with a gentle smile as she was sure that Marty's discomfort was due to this.
Marty nodded. "I hope you all get along and look out for each other." He said before he turned to the utterly shocked to Duran.
"How… This…" Duran began.
"You'll find out later," Marty replied. "I don't want to talk about this now."
Marty stood up and walked out to overlook the battle. At this point, the fight was over. Over three-quarters of Nidhogg’s soldiers had been destroyed. The magical bombardments from Miyuki and the Devils were especially potent and wiping out large numbers. After some time, it soon turned to battlefield clean up as there were casualties to care for and stragglers to take care of.
Morgan and Shalgana first reached the war tent as they did not enter combat and were on horses. Shalgana had to help Morgan off her horse as she was exhausted, barely able to stay awake.
Helped by Shalgana, Morgan slowly made her way to the war tent and Marty. "You jerk. That was exhausting." Morgan said.
Marty gave her a gentle smile and kissed her forehead. "I got your gift to make up for it. Look over there." He said as he pointed towards Freyja.
Morgan looked with hazy eyes that shot wide open when she saw Freyja. She rubbed her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing, and she even pitched her arm to ensure she wasn't dreaming. Her hands went up to her face as she bit her lower lip, tears appearing in her eyes. "Freyja!" She shouted with newfound energy as she rushed over and hugged her long lost sister, tears streaming out of her eyes.
Shalgana looked at them before she turned back to Marty. "So, you hid her?"
Marty shook his head. "No, she truly died."
"Then, how?"
"I made a deal. End of story." Marty replied, clearly not wishing to talk about this further.
Shalgana nodded before she sat down nearby, watching the happy reunion. Morgan quickly cried herself to sleep. Soon after, Lucibelle, Miyuki, and Kuromi joined them. Lucibelle was surprised, but didn't ask any questions and sat down with the two other girls and Shalgana.
Shortly after, a voice spoke nearby. "Where is he?" Caelia asked from nearby. Soon, she found her way to the war tent. When she saw Marty, she froze momentarily for her eyes teared up. "You bastard." She said as she rushed up to him, hugged her arms around his neck, and very awkwardly kissed him. She truly loved him, but the fact that he had killed her father was a wall that she could not pierce through. But now, that wall no longer existed.
Surprised by the kiss, Marty awkwardly looked out of the corner of his eye towards Freyja whom he could barely see. Freyja looked at them with a small smile, seemingly unperturbed by Caelia's show of affection. Seeing her expression, Marty thoroughly kissed Caelia back as it was her first kiss, and he wanted to make it a happy memory. After a few seconds, Caelia finally pulled away, having to take a deep breath. She gently caressed his face, her reddening cheeks showed her embarrassment, and her smile showed her happiness. "You're a jerk." She happily teased.
"As I said, I expect you to forgive me for what I have done, not what I am doing."
"What are you doing?"
Marty just smiled.
After a couple of awkward seconds of silence, Caelia finally looked around and was shocked when she saw a familiar face that she never expected to see again. "Frey-"
"Freyja!" Shiro shouted as she immediately zoned in on her, attracted by the familiar light fragrance. She merely rushed up and hugged Freyja while happily crying.
"You got a little bigger," Freyja said as she gently stroked Shiro's head before she turned Caelia. "It's good to see you."
"Good to see you too," Caelia honestly replied, a little embarrassed by her previous display of affection.
"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" The crimson-haired man asked as he entered.
"Not at all, Tom," Marty said with a smile.
Tom nodded before he came close to whisper to Marty. "Does she kiss well?" He asked.
Marty rolled his eyes and replied with a karate chop to the head. “Seriously, old man. You planned this all out, didn’t you? Made me hide the news from your daughter and sent her to me.”
“I couldn’t have her potentially live her whole life in exile with her old dad. I wanted her to find love and happiness.”
“I could have brought you too.”
Tom shrugged. “I wanted to watch over them for my wife's sake. Besides, you wouldn’t want me interrupting your family time, would you?”
Marty rolled his eyes.
"Where is he?" A familiar question was suddenly spoken. However, this time, Tom froze up.
Queen Morgan rushed into the war tent, her eyes locked on Tom. An angry expression filled her face as her eyes began to tear up. "You bastard!" She shouted before she rushed up and punched Tom.
"Morgan, sorry." He replied softly with an aggrieved look when he saw Queen Morgan's harmed puppy face.
Freyja looked at the two of them. "Oh, my." She said in surprise as she realized that the two of them had a history.
"Father?" Caelia asked aware of the apparent romantic tension, but unaware that they had a past together.
Tom looked at everyone with a forced smile on his face. "We get to know each other when she came to her castle after her engagement with my brother. We got along well."
"We got along well?" Queen Morgan repeated with a hint of anger. Tom began to back up, but Queen Morgan grabbed his collar, pulled him closer, and kissed him, hard. There was a collective gasp at the sudden show of affection before Queen Morgan ended the kiss and walked out without a word.
Marty walked up to Tom and bent down to whisper in his ear. "So, how was the kiss?"
Tom rolled his eyes, and he quickly chased after Queen Morgan.
"Wow, I didn't realize my father had such a past," Caelia said.
"Did you forget you’re technically a princess?" Marty replied.
"Yes."
Marty smiled before he looked at the girls. He had a moment of hesitation before he grabbed all their attention. "I'd like you all to get to know each other well. It is my deepest hope that you all become friends and look out for each other and help each other in times of need. I love you all." Marty said before he turned to Cali. "Cali, I need your help with something. Can you follow me?" He asked.
Cali nodded and followed him out of the tent. The other girls quickly began to talk with Freyja as in the center of attention, and the girls quickly learned how she ended up here. They had talked for nearly an hour before they realized that Marty disappeared for a while and Cali never returned.
"Cali is nearby," Morgan said as she had already woken up during the discussion. Having reached the level in Emotion Magic that she had, she was able to sense Cali's presence.
Having nothing better to do, the girls all decided to find Cali and Marty. Soon, they came to a somewhat abandoned part of the camp.
"Are you sure she's here?" Shalgana asked with a strange expression as the area Morgan had led them was mostly supplies.
"Naturally I'm sure," Morgan replied. "She's tough to miss as she is a walking ball of emotions, which I've become far more sensitive to recently."
They quickly found Cali behind her barrels sitting poking her knees to her chest as she rocked back and forth.
"Cali, what's wrong? Where's Marty?" Freyja asked, suddenly feeling a deep sense of dread.
Cali looks up at the girls. "He… He's not coming back."
""What?!?!”” The girls exclaimed.
"Cali, what do you mean?" Freyja asked.
"In order… To bring Freyja back, he has to kill Nidhogg. However, Nidhogg is too strong, and he will die. The only way to kill Nidhogg is for him to start to absorb Nidhogg, and then die." Cali said. As she spoke, her eyes started to tear up, and she began to cry.
These tears kept any questions back. Even though Cali looked like a normal little girl, it was only a shell. While she could stimulate tears, she could not truly cry. However, everyone could tell they were true tears, tears from the depths of her soul.
"He asked me to kill him when it comes to that point." Cali continued as tears began spilling faster than ever. "I don't want him to die. I don't want to kill him. I want to be with him. I want to sit on his lap. I want him to pet my head. I want him to hug me. I want him to hold me. I don't want him to die."
The other girls, emotionally distraught by Cali's crying, and the sad truth that was suddenly thrust upon them, also began to tear up. Freyja's face became white as she realized that Marty's behavior suddenly began to make sense. He wasn't sorry because of the new girls, but because he traded his life for hers.
"Why can't he kill Nidhogg?" Miyuki asked.
"Nidhogg’s soul is too strong and carries the essence of destruction. Marty can't beat it."
"Not even with your help?"
"I could help him beat it, but I would have to use all of my strength, and I would die. He made me promise that I wouldn't do that."
"How can you help?"
"Because I carry destruction and creation. If I had enough strength, then there is a chance to kill Nidhogg and save him, but I don't know how." Cali said sobbing.
Miyuki was thinking as fast as she could before she remembered something. A small smile suddenly appeared on Miyuki's lips, but, before she could give the reason, a roar of a Dragon reverberated throughout the land followed soon after by another. The girls looked towards the mountains just in time to see a giant black dragon burst out from one of the caves halfway up, followed by a red dragon made of Ki. The two dragons circled one another on their way up to the top of the mountain. Once they were at the top, a Dragon made of blue flame suddenly appeared and struck Nidhogg down onto the crater at the very top.
Miyuki was looked at the other girls who were watching, all worried. "Do you want to save him?"
"Of course." "Yes." "How?" The girls asked.
"I have a way. I'm not sure it will work, but there is a chance. But, for it to have a chance, I need to know; Do you love him enough to die for him?"
The sound of dripping water and footsteps echoed through the cave lit by the flashlight in Marty’s chest pocket as he slowly walked into the depths of Mt. Etna. He did not know where the correct entrance to Nidhogg’s lair was, so he had some spelunking to do. However, the occasional soldier gave him a hint that he was on the right path. Only comforted by the sounds of his footsteps, Marty walked on.
...
After nearly an hour, the cave suddenly opened to a large cavern with a raised stone platform in the center. On top of the platform were two black-scaled arms with large Dragon head rested atop of them.
"So, have you come to your death?" Nidhogg's androgynous voice asked.
Marty looked at Nidhogg expressionlessly neither showing or feeling fear or excitement. Instead, all he felt was calm resignment. "Yes." He said slowly.
Nidhogg had a look of surprise on its face. "Really? Then why are you here? What could make you come willingly?"
Marty gave a serene smile. "I made a trade. My life for the woman I love."
"Ha!" Nidhogg's eyes narrowed as it gave a satirical laugh. "Love? Love makes you do this? But of course, why would I know? I was made without love; without understanding it. Since I cannot have it, I will destroy it!"
Marty looked at Nidhogg with pity. As a being made of negative emotions, it could only know of happiness, joy, love, etc., but never experience them.
Unaware of Marty’s thoughts that would only anger it further, its head reared back and black fire streaked from its mouth.
Marty was waiting and ready and Dimension Door directly above it as soon as its fire obstructed its view of him. Gram erupted from his palm, and he struck down with all of his strength. Nidhogg noticed just in time to move out of the way. Blood splattered in the air as it ejected from the large gash on the side of its neck as the cave rumbled from its roar of pain. Its overall strength was only a little better then Fafnir as it hadn’t fully recovered. On the other hand, Marty was stronger now, which made their strength relatively equal.
Nidhogg lashed out at Marty with its claw faster than Marty could dodge. Multiple lights erupted from Marty's body as his Soul Armaments appeared in full. He brought Gram in front of the shield to block the long, rough, black talon that barreled down upon him. With a *bang*, he was shot backward, and he felt his organs shift from the impact.
Marty did a flip in the air, and his feet touched the side of the wall that crumbled as he launched off it like a bullet. The stale air moved and heated violently as his Wings of Spirit Creation flapped, and his Pack of Spirit Fire ignited to propel him at an incredible speed.
Nidhogg’s maw opened as it tried to bite down on him, but the extra speed allowed him to dodge. With a midair twirl, Marty slashed through Nidhogg's left oral commissure. More black-red blood spilled on the ground. Nidhogg's head swiveled just in time to see Marty perched on the ground with a glowing purple circle beneath him. Gram was filled with Ki, and he disappeared just as he began to thrust up.
Nidhogg was briefly confused before it roared in agony as the soft area of its right armpit was pierced. In response, it tried to crush Marty who was beneath it. However, Marty seemed to anticipate this as he had already created another space magic circle and had teleported above Nidhogg. With a flash, his Soul Armaments disappeared along with Gram. His Ki erupted and changed to red as it began to form a giant Red Dragon, still noticeably smaller the Nidhogg. Before it could react, the Ki Dragon bit Nidhogg's neck, it's claws sunk into the black dragon’s flesh.
Marty could feel the destructive nature of Nidhogg eating away at his Ki, but he could supplement it to balance out the loss. The flight was still tricky, and he was using every trick in his book, so it almost seemed an easier fight then against Fafnir. However, Marty did not dare to lower his vigilance because that could mean the difference between victory and defeat, life and death.
With an angry roar, Nidhogg flapped its wings and knocked Marty off its back. With a mighty leap and flap, Nidhogg shot into the air, a seemingly impossible feat for its size. It quickly flew through a large cave opening, and Marty followed without hesitation. As he gave chase, his fingers rapidly began to move as they began to cast a spell. The two combatants very quickly found themselves out of the mountain as Nidhogg roared while he ascended the mountain. Marty's let loose a roar of his own as he followed suit. The two dragons, red and black, twisted in the air only narrowly missing each other.
When they reached the peak and flew above the collapsed crater that was Mt. Etna, the tail of Marty's Ki Dragon managed to strike Nidhogg's face. The blow caused Nidhogg to tumble slightly just before the spell Marty was weaving had condensed. The ball of magical energy shot through the neck of the Ki Dragon before a blue flame in the shape of a Dragon exploded from its mouth. In response, Nidhogg breathed out a black fire. The two fires, blue and black, met in midair but the blue flame was stronger than the hurried black flame. The Netherworld Dragon struck Nidhogg and shot it down into the crater. Nidhogg's body began to ice over, and its movement was momentarily slowed just long enough for Marty to smash into it. Gram was inserted deeply within Nidhogg and made perch in its heart. Black-red blood erupted from the new wound and Nidhogg began to flail weekly in agony.
At this point, Marty was starting to get tired from the high tension, but he had finally defeated Nidhogg. The damage it had taken was enough. Marty closed his eyes as several beautiful women flashed through his mind before stopping on Freyja.
“Sorry,” He whispered. His mouth turned into a snarl, and he roared.
Nidhogg's body and the blood spilled on the ground began to turn into a black flame. The flames slowly began to crawl towards Marty. The black flame from the blood on the ground slowly began to crawl op Marty's legs, and the black flame from Nidhogg's body began to crawl up Gram. Marty's body began to contort as an incredible amount of pain wracked him. The flames began to become larger, and they moved faster. Marty's red draconified eyes slowly started to turn black. Suddenly, he felt as if a truck had smashed into his forehead and he began fighting for his life as Nidhogg tried to wrest control of his body, its only possible sanctuary. Marty fought hard, but Nidhogg’s soul was too strong.
The pain was excruciating, and he felt his consciousness slipping. He quickly called Cali to end his suffering. She appeared and, to his horror, was not alone.