Sero launched everything he had at Apep, draining his entire mana pool within seconds. The Catastrophe simply fired off waves of Disarray, which was able to disrupt mana flow, explaining why nearly all of the Ascendants were out for the count. In a final, desperate move, Sero fired off another Annihilate, watching it crash against Apep's own attack.

Collapsing to his knees, Sero heard faint pops behind him, most of his familiars disappearing as his mana reserves ran dangerously low. There were no more of Apep's snakes around that Sero could steal mana or strength from.

Apep stalked closer, an insane grin spreading across his face as he slowly closed the distance between them. He raised his hand, black energy crackling and sparking as it swirled around his fingers, and then thrust it forward, unleashing a powerful wave of Disarray directly at Sero.

A dark green shape flew in front of Sero, absorbing the attack. Moss.

Lime howled, dashing forward and drawing green strands of light from Apep. Finally, Sting blinked into sight, rushing the Catastrophe down with a flurry of jabs from her rapier.

The dragon twins seemed to be at their limits, trying to help Sero recover as well as support Sting by hindering Apep. The Catastrophe was visibly angry, his aura of black energy flaring and crackling as he took a step back. He glared at the dragon twins, his violet eyes burning with hatred. Then, he lifted his hand and snapped his fingers.

A deep and dark violet, almost black, sphere of sinister energy condensed in front of Apep. With a snarl, he sent it rushing forward.

'Ruination', a Skill that completely corrupted and corroded anything it touched. Sero knew that his dragons and Sting would forever be altered if it even grazed them, instinctively calling them back against their will.

However, that left Sero defenseless, watching as the mass of chaos sped directly towards him.

"Champion, move!"

But he couldn't. If he did, then the others would get hit. Worse, what if it hit Amaya? Sero didn't want to risk that.

With barely any mana left, and the tiniest sliver of strength, Sero forcefully emulated Lawbreak, casting Cat Paradox.

It helped that Apep wasn't expecting Sero to put up a fight as the Ruination suddenly vanished without a trace. But Sero couldn't enjoy the satisfaction of seeing the surprise on the Catastrophe's face as his body finally gave out.

Falling to his knees, Sero fought his hardest to stay conscious under the overwhelming exhaustion and agony. His muscles burned, his mind reeled, and his heart raced, but he refused to give up.

"Why push yourself this far?" Apep mocked, drawing ever so closer to him. "You could've fled, prolonging your death. Instead, you chose to stay and watch as everything you cared for crumbled into dust."

Out of spite and anger, for both the misery he had endured thus far and at Apep, Sero lifted both hands, flipping the Catastrophe off.

Apep's violet eyes widened in surprise, and then narrowed. His black energy flared, a bolt of Annihilate flying towards Sero as Aphiel screamed in despair. Sero winced, knowing that he wouldn't be able to dodge it.

"Mom, Dad... I'll see you soon," Sero whispered, closing his eyes as he braced for the impact of the Annihilate.

But it never came. Instead, Sero heard an audible clang as Apep's attack suddenly hit something... metallic.

Opening his eyes, Sero saw that a fortress of steel had been constructed before him, though it seemed destroyed from the Annihilate. Apep himself was a bit taken aback, but grinned as Sero heard two footsteps behind him.

"Looks like we came back just in time."

"Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with you? There are people dead!"

"Yeah, but not all of them. That means we came back in time."

Sero had never been so glad to see the familiar bickering sight between Enzo and Maximillian. Both Janitors had taken off their suit jackets, appearing slightly disheveled. The two men stopped in front of Sero, towering above him.

"Looks like you got your ass beat," Maximillian remarked with disdain. Normally that would've annoyed Sero, but seeing the ridiculous confidence and nonchalance the men carried reassured him.

"Go easy on him. He's the only one still conscious." Enzo bared his teeth at the Iron Tyrant.

"So? It's the truth, isn't it?"

"Two new toys to play with?" Apep interrupted the two, looking a bit miffed at being ignored. "I welcome the challenge. Please, try not to disappoint me!"

"God, why does this shit always happen to me," Maximillian grumbled, enveloping his body with metal by casting Metallicize. "I don't get paid enough for this."

"Teach..." Sero croaked, but Enzo shook his head.

"Stay down, Sero. You can't do anything in that state." Enzo crouched, helping him sit up as Sero looked at the two Janitors with an expression that was a mix of surprise and disbelief. "Just rest and let us handle this."

While he was relieved at their arrival, Sero wasn't entirely sure the two of them could take on Apep having witnessed first-hand the Catastrophe's strength. As soon as that thought crossed his mind, however, he was immediately assaulted by two incredibly dense pressures emanating directly from Enzo and Maximillian. With a start, he realized that the two men were preparing to go all out.

"Don't get in my way, mutt." Maximillian muttered to the Demonic Judge. "I can't afford to slip up with so much metal around."

"Same goes to you, asshole. You think I haven't noticed the potshots you've been taking against me?"

"Ma'at." Apep spat, narrowing his eyes at Enzo. "I recall another one of her Ascendants utterly defeated by the aftershocks of my strength. What makes this any different?"

"Well, for starters, that's my younger brother," Enzo replied, conjuring the Jury in one hand. "And the other thing is–"

Sero saw Enzo disappear, only to pop up in front of Apep in the blink of an eye. It was so instantaneous that even the Catastrophe couldn't react in time.

"My abilities are a natural counter to yours."

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With one swing of the golden axe, Enzo casted 'Retribution' on Apep, returning all of the damage the Catastrophe had inflicted on everyone excluding the caster. The resulting impact was several times larger than Sero's Revenge, immediately flattening the rubble around the pair and expanding outwards. However, a choir of screeching metal filled the air and a silver cube of solid steel formed around the combatants, trapping the explosion inside.

"I hope that kills him," Maximillian muttered, lazily strolling past Sero towards the cube. "Although that's just wishful thinking. I doubt even Gregor can kill that mutt."

Sero watched in awe as the cube burst open, with Apep being flung out. Enzo followed closely behind, a crazed grin on his face as he swung his axe.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Maximillian yelled, irritation on his face as metal shards harmlessly peppered his body. "Did you just break open the cage? You were supposed to fight him inside it, not outside!"

Apep, still smoldering from the impact of Enzo's attack, looked up at the white-haired man with anger and disdain. "Fool," he growled. "You think you can contain me? I am Apep, the Catastrophe! I will destroy you all!"

The Demonic Judge swung his axe down, missing the Catastrophe, but still catching him with the aftershock of the attack. "I'm Enzo. I can't be destroyed."

The unhinged grin still plastered on his face, Enzo leapt after the flying Apep, successfully striking him with the Jury axe. Apep howled in pain as he was slammed into the ground, steel chains suddenly erupting from the earth to bind him.

"Fucking battle-maniac. Enzo, you realize we have to finish him off quickly, right?" Maximillian scowled, his hand outstretched to keep the chains bound to Apep.

"What do you think I'm trying to do, asshole?"

Enzo was forced to retreat as Apep used Disarray to dispel the chains binding him. The Catastrophe jumped to his feet, condensing an enormous amount of black energy in his palms. His focus was disrupted when an iron pillar burst from the ground behind him, knocking him towards Enzo.

"Batter up!" Enzo shouted, raising his axe. Timing his swing, the Demonic Judge smacked Apep with the Jury as if he were a ball, sending the fiend hurtling through the air once more. A storm of metal shards appeared out of nowhere, raining down on Apep and causing him to crash to the ground, pinned by the projectiles.

"Holy... shit," Sero whispered, watching the two Janitors toy with a being he himself couldn't deal significant damage to.

"Ma'at's and Hephaestus's champions... they are on a completely different level..." Aphiel also seemed to be in awe. "Where were they all this time?"

"Knowing them... I think they might've gotten into a fight between themselves before they noticed Apep..." Sero replied dryly, wincing as he struggled to catch his breath.

As he watched, Sero could tell that Apep was still evenly matched against the combined efforts of Enzo and Maximillian, able to rise up against the storm of metal raining down. "He's gonna break free soon," he muttered.

It seemed as though the two Janitors also realized this, with Enzo diving back in to engage in close-combat with the Catastrophe as Maximillian kept launching powerful metal constructs at the fiend. The battle was brutal, with both combatants using every trick at their disposal. Enzo managed to land a few more solid blows with the Jury, but Apep's uncanny resilience made each strike less effective than it could have been.

Slowly, Sero dragged himself over to Amaya, who was still unconscious. He gritted his teeth, frustrated by the agonizingly slow recovery his body was making. "Stay with me, Amaya," he muttered, his voice weak. "We're almost there."

A deafening boom caused him to look back at the battle, seeing the Iron Tyrant fly backwards into a ruined building. The structure groaned as it collapsed on itself, crushing Maximillian. Sero's heart sank, but only for a moment as Maximillian burst from the rubble with a roar.

"Fool!" Apep howled, charging towards Enzo. "You think you can defeat me with that pathetic weapon?" He swiped at Enzo with dark lightning, only for the Janitor to duck out of the way. Enzo countered with a swift kick to Apep's side, sending the Catastrophe stumbling back.

"I don't know, seems pretty effective so far," the Demonic Judge bared his teeth as he continued his onslaught. Maximillian joined up with him, and together the two Janitors launched a flurry of attacks, metal and red Hellfire blazing around them.

For a second, Sero had hope that the two would prevail, but then Apep's anger seemed to reach a boiling point. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS!" he screamed, his voice shaking the very foundations of reality. A dark aura surrounded him as he grew to a terrifying size, towering over both Enzo and Maximillian. "I'LL END THIS NOW!"

With a roar, Apep charged at Enzo, who barely managed to dodge out of the way. Maximillian tried to intercept him, but Apep was too fast, delivering a powerful blow that sent the metal-clad Janitor flying across the battlefield. Enzo quickly recovered and engaged Apep in melee combat, their attacks clashing with an ear-splitting metallic screech.

As Maximillian slammed against another building, it took a while for the Iron Tyrant to get back up again. Worriedly, Sero watched as he shakily stood back up.

"Fuck," Maximillian growled, turning to Sero. "Enzo and I are reaching our limits. Try and get as many people out of here as you can!"

Sero nodded and, wincing, began to carry Amaya princess-style away from the combat zone. As he did so, he couldn't help but watch the brutal battle that raged on between Enzo and Apep. Enzo was starting to show signs of fatigue, and Apep was relentless, pressing his advantage with every blow.

Amaya whimpered, her eyes fluttering open. She looked around, dazed, and then focused on Sero. "Sero?" she said weakly.

"It's me, Amaya," Sero said gently, his voice trembling. "We need to get you to safety." He glanced over his shoulder at the battle raging between Enzo and Apep. Enzo was beginning to struggle, and Apep was looming larger with every passing second. It didn't seem like they had any chance of winning.

In a desperate play, Maximillian tanked a hit from Apep, countering by constructing a cage that trapped the Catastrophe inside as the Iron Tyrant was knocked away again. With a roar, Enzo's eyes glowed red as he casted a duo Revenge and Retribution, slicing through both the cage and at Apep with the Jury.

Another explosion similar from before rocked the entire ruined city, nearly causing Sero to drop Amaya. The force of the blast threw them both off their feet and sent them skidding across the ground. Sero coughed and sputtered, his vision blurred by smoke and dust. He struggled to get back up, his legs feeling like jelly, and looked around in disbelief.

Maximillian was nowhere to be found, and Apep had Enzo lifted up by the throat. The Demonic Judge simply scowled at his situation, his Jury axe nowhere to be seen.

"I'll admit, the both of you did quite a number on me," Apep sneered, his voice echoing through the ruined city. "But you should've known better than to think two would be enough to defeat me."

"Well, it was supposed to be three, but he's late, as usual," Enzo spat back with a sarcastic smile, still struggling within Apep's chokehold.

"Three?" Apep blinked. Sero was confused as well.

In the distance, he could hear a whooping, coming closer and closer. The Catastrophe, distracted, turned his head in the direction of the sound. Enzo used the moment to wrench from his grasp, leaping back to create some distance. Next to him, a pile of rubble trembled, and out popped an exhausted and de-Metallicized Maximillian.

"So, you're not invincible after all," Enzo taunted, grinning.

"Shut the fuck up."

The whooping came closer, and as Sero's eyesight adjusted, he saw a dark-haired man running full speed towards Apep. The man was wearing a suit, the standard outfit of the Janitors, but it seemed a bit too tight for his rather muscular figure. In fact, as he quickly approached, Sero figured he was as big, if not slightly less, than Gregor himself.

Apep growled, tensing his massive body as the man approached. The Catastrophe didn't deem Enzo and Maximillian a threat anymore, and that was because the men were exhausted. But the rapidly moving arrival had an aura about him that even Sero couldn't quite figure out.

"He's late, but he's always the life of the party," Enzo suddenly appeared behind Apep, his Jury in hand. As Apep whirled around, steel cables burst from the ground, wrapping around his body. Behind Enzo, Maximillian was breathing hard with his hand outstretched, struggling to hold the Catastrophe down.

"Long time no see, Dune!" Enzo roared, swinging his axe like a bat and launching Apep straight at the incoming man.

With a gleeful cry, the man named Dune leapt into the air. Sero saw that he wore shades, a strange accessory considering the darkness of the battlefield.

"How ya been, you two?!" Dune bellowed back before his fist connected with Apep. If he had used any mana, Sero couldn't pick up on it as Dune's punch slammed Apep into the ground so hard, it sent shockwaves through the rubble beneath them. The force of the impact sent Apep and Dune flying apart, the wind knocked out of the two combatants.

But Dune recovered first, a grin on his face as he bounced back up and charged straight towards the Catastrophe. With Dune's arrival, it seemed to have renewed Enzo's and Maximillian's vigor as the three Janitors moved to fight Apep once again.