The Sanctum opened, endless attacks lacerated the large being, being low in output as to only act as a buffer to keep him immobile. Momo fired his bow at the large beast, the arrows slightly indenting his armour, piercing it as he stabbed at the beast.

“Imprison.” Raúl chanted, chains of Darkness and Spectral Energy rising from the ground, binding the beast down as Rancour amplified the Dominion.

Momo launched himself in toward the beast, raising his fist to hit it with an Ardour’s Spark. Before he could try, the beast broke one of the chains, grabbing Momo and lobbing him at Rancour, as they were both thrown into the Sanctum, destroying it with a thunderous crash and de-activating the Dominion.

Stunned, Raúl quickly dodged one of Dæinvorol’s fists, sending a shockwave at the beast, creating distance. Raúl raised his sword, dashing to the side of Dæinvorol and slashing at him and propelling him into the air and tightening gravity around him, beginning to crush him.

“Time to die.” Raúl stated calmly, tightening the gravity.

Momo stood up, watching as the beast evolved, becoming invulnerable to gravity, and crashing back to the ground.

“Spectral Dominion: Axis of the Beyond.” Raúl chanted, as a barrier formed around the two, forestry forming around, with a temple behind him, enshrouded in an orange mist.

In the same instant of the Dominion opening, the beast became paralysed from the Dominion’s effects. The Dominion took control over Dæinvorol’s body, puppeteering him into being unable to move as he began to be erased from existence using the most powerful application of the Dominion, Eradication.

The beast attempted to move, but its evolution was being stifled by the Dominion’s negation field, which was making its adaptions take significantly longer despite the extreme exposure to attacks. Dæinvorol began jittering, making tiny movements which signalled to Raúl that he needed to bring the others inside the Dominion.

Opening a small area of the Dominion, Rancour and Momo rushed in, running toward the slowly dying beast. Rancour launched a matrix of slashes at Dæinvorol, cleaving off an arm as Momo rushed toward the beast, punching it rapidly and weakening it. Puring his spectral energy into his punches, he hit maximum output strike after strike as he prepared to attempt an Ardour’s Spark.

Seeing the beast weakening, Rancour drew his bow with a clap, flames enveloping it in a beautifully horrifying dance around the structure of the bow. As the pieces fell together, Momo knew it was now, or never.

“Ardour’s Spark!” Momo yelled, as Rancour launched the most potent fire arrow possible, one that if not contained, would destroy all of England and the north.

The Dominion shattered, just in time for the fire arrow to entirely envelop Dæinvorol as nothing could be seen of him.

The three stood up, bruised and beaten as the beast had finally fallen.

“That was more effort than I am willing to admit. I’ll see you all around.” Raúl averred, flying away from the pair, returning to London.

“Return to your friend Momo, I will return later.” Rancour ordered.

“I understand. Thank you for the help.” Momo replied.

The two shook hands, as Momo turned, returning to the Sanctum to find Takahiro healed and waiting for him. As Momo walked to Takahiro to discuss the victory over Dæinvorol, he collapsed, feeling a sharp pain within himself, as if his soul was being pried open. Refusing to indulge the pain, Momo got up, shaking in agony as he turned to find Amirah, but was stopped short by an unfamiliar man.

“Sorry for the wait Momo, I had to get myself sorted.” Rancour explained, newly returned to his body.

“Why?” Momo asked weakly, as his soul still reeled from the separation from Rancour.

“I told you, months ago of my ambitions, you denied them, so I knew, once I fulfilled the terms of our pact, I was free to claim my ambitions. I don’t expect you to understand, however I would rather not to kill you, so pledge your allegiance now, or die.” Rancour threatened, standing over Momo.

“I should’ve know you were a snake.” Momo replied, sending a shockwave at Rancour as he rushed to grab Amirah, sprinting outside the Sanctum with Takahiro following close behind.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Momo sprinted as fast as he could, his raw speed slightly outpacing Rancour, who threatened to gain on him if he slowed down.

“What’s happening Momo?” Amirah asked, curiously terrified.

“Rancour is no longer who he seems, we have to escape him.” Momo briskly replied, speeding up.

Momo felt the slightest echo, perhaps a vision into time itself. He felt three arrows, and their exact trajectory. Momo stopped, unsheathing his sword and blocking all three arrows as Rancour caught up.

“There you are. Your growth is quite impressive, it seems you’ve unlocked foresight. It won’t save you, or your sister.” Rancour slyly remarked, unsheathing his sword, as Ellanher appeared from behind his master.

“I suspected this. I knew you had no good intentions placing everyone in your Sanctum.” Momo commented, as he and Rancour circled one another, their swords firmly pointed at one another.

“I tried diplomacy with you, but you hold on to virtues and morals. My only concern is power, that is how all things should be.” Rancour asseverated.

“You’re pathetic, to think I put you into this position. Unfortunately for you, I’ve figured that your true power lies in the ring and scimitar I possess, meaning you need to kill me, which won’t be happening.” Momo declared.

“Resistance to my power dies with you, and it will die today.” Rancour replied, his eyes gleaming in the gentle moonlight above.

“Get her out of here.” Momo yelled to Takahiro, gesturing to the far mountain.

The two launched themselves at one another, Momo landing an early kick to Rancour’s head, sending him sliding away as he leaped at him, their swords clashing. Rancour threw Momo back into the air, flying to meet him as Momo sent slashes downwards, leaving shallow slashes across his body as he palmed Momo’s face, hurling him into the ground as he raced to get to him.

Momo recovered quickly, blocking a strike from Rancour as he swept him from the legs and stabbed him in the abdomen. Rancour sent an array of slashes into Momo, creating some distance as he began cackling maniacally.

“How marvellous! Pain has never felt so real! I’ll cherish this even after I kill you Momo Elric.” Rancour exclaimed.

Momo grunted, wiping blood off his cheek as he took a ready stance once more.

I’ve seen the nature of the physical world, perhaps I can use the nature of matter to harm him, similarly to how he harnessed it. Momo thought to himself as Rancour continued to cackle with excitement

Momo formed two small spheres in his hands, one filled with electrons, and another with positrons, he thrust them forward, clapping his hands over the explosion and outstretching his hand, firing a gamma ray burst that enveloped Rancour, vaporising part of his body as he raised a resonance barrier to regenerate his body.

“Not bad kid, you got some wit on you to figure out something similar to my technique that quickly.” Rancour remarked, his glee sullied.

“I am a fast learner.” Momo responded bluntly.

“Spectral Dominion: Sanctum of the Vengeful.” Rancour chanted, as Momo raised a maximum output resonance barrier to protect himself.

Near instantly, the overwhelming attacks started cracking the resonance barrier to which Momo fired arrows into Rancour, rushing at him and engaging him in blade-to-blade combat, as he mustered his most powerful strike, sending Rancour’s sword flying away as his resonance barrier broke, instantaneously burying him in countless slashes and piercing attacks.

Momo impaled Rancour on his blade, coughing blood into each other’s faces as Momo threw Rancour into his Sanctum. Raising his resonance barrier at double its maximum capacity, Momo entered the Sanctum, his wounds closing as his eyes glared into the rapidly forming darkness.

Rancour’s red eyes stared into Momo golden ones. Momo wasted no time, hurling himself after Rancour, who quickly disarmed him, being punched backward for his hyper-fixation on Momo’s weapon.

“Your feeble life ends here.” Rancour avowed, shrinking the radius of his Dominion, breaking Momo’s resonance barrier again as he threw him outside.

Momo screamed with an intense hatred, launching himself back at Rancour, and kicking him down into his fists, punching him rapidly as he shattered all his ribs.

“ARDOUR’S SPARK!” Momo yelled, launching Rancour into his Sanctum and levelling it, destroying the Dominion.

The two stood, panting as they both finished regenerating.

“I underestimated you, Momo Elric. You were chosen by the goodness within the Spectral World, that I can be sure of, one who fights with such passion to be landing so many Ardour’s Sparks is truly blessed, however, I believe it is time to give you a true taste of the power of war." Rancour imparted.

“Absolute Proficiency: Equilibrium of Totality.” Rancour chanted, a small sphere appearing before his index and middle fingers, as he pointed a finger gun at Momo, blasting off his left arm and part of his chest and midsection, dashing toward Momo and charging a maximum output punch, landing it on his liver, bending him around his fist, as he collapsed.

“I’ll remember you, Momo.” Rancour stated coldly, as he pointed another totality at his head, before feeling a sharp pain in his side, being thrown into a nearby hill.

“Hey kid, you should get up, that’s a flesh wound at best.” The large man commented jokingly, extending a hand to Momo.

“Hjalmarr!” Momo exclaimed.

“Let’s call this even for sparing me. Let’s go finish him.” Hjalmarr proposed energetically.

Momo nodded, as Hjalmarr helped the freshly regenerated Momo up.

The two stood, awaiting the return of the greatest warrior in all history, the feeling of enmity riding high within the hearts of all the combatants.