Dragonlord

Ep 125. Do You Think Yourself Invincible? (3)

“What the hell…is that…?”

“…That’s…”

Both Raizel and Karas stared into the distant, mesmerizing display.

The breaking daylight had instantly died out, replaced with brilliant glimmers of distant stars. A massive sword of light hovered in the faraway skies, plummeting towards the ground.

But before the weapon would reach the earth, rays of starlight rained down from the heavens, razing the blade to dust.

And, much to Karas’ dismay, Raizel immediately rose back to her feet.

“Raizel, wait! You’re still-“

“I’m fine! It doesn’t hurt much anymore. I’ll be okay. And…”

The youngling tightened her fists. Her eyes strained to make out the details of the battle afar, but the distance was far too great – and the settling darkness certainly didn’t help.

“…Lord…is still out there.”

“…”

“…I need to go.”

Raizel didn’t bother waiting for Karas’ answer. Metal wings sprung forth as the youngling leapt into the skies, flying into the darkness beyond.

After a long sigh, Karas fixed his gaze upwards, staring into the shimmering stars.

‘…Serenis.’

For a moment, Karas took a step forward to chase after the steel dragon.

But soon, the professor reluctantly turned back, his feet guiding him back towards Light and Ilias instead.

“…”

In his hurried steps, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d regret this decision down the road.

✧ ✧ ✧

Colossal blades of light ruptured the darkened skies; the world rained in the First’s blessings to destroy the earth, each aimed at the ruler of dragons.

But with one flick of the dragonlord’s hand, countless were sundered apart by the very demon they sought to cleanse. None would reach beyond what the stars would allow.

A burst of light blinded Hathelon’s vision as starlit rays destroyed his blades midair.

When his eyes could see again, the hero’s frown only deepened as the dragonlord remained unharmed. Slow footsteps continued to close the distance between them as Serenis approached her assailant.

Once again, her hand was raised into the air. Shortly after the dragonlord’s gesture, an ethereal ray of magic blasted forth at her enemy.

“Hmph!”

Letting out a frustrated grunt, Hathelon slammed his foot into the ground. The light soon washed over his figure, consuming the deity entirely.

But his frame remained firmly in place. The light would soon dissipate, revealing the same figure now donned in a set of hazel armor.

“…No hero is born a victor. It is the victor that is made to be a hero. As always, mankind will prevail.”

“Bold words for a coward hiding inside another’s shell.”

“This is but a means to an end. Never again will mankind yield to demonkin – your demise will be our salvation, sinner!”

When Hathelon pointed his sword skyward, the blade levitated out of his palm to hover in the air. Glowing in a blinding radiance, the weapon’s light split itself into a circle of numerous others, forming an arsenal of hazel weapons above the deity’s head.

As he dashed forward, Hathelon reached towards the ring of arms above him, plucking out a halberd from its midst. He then leapt into the air, swinging the massive weapon down towards the ground.

As Serenis stepped aside from the weapon’s path, several prismatic rays shot forth from the distance to strike at her enemy. But each faltered before his armor, disappearing harmlessly.

“Know your place, demon. This world is no longer yours to rule!”

“…”

Discarding his buried halberd, Hathelon swiftly plucked out a gleaming scythe from above. A deathly swing skid past the dragonlord, barely scraping against her skin as she retreated back a few additional steps.

A soft sigh escaped Serenis as she studied the arsenal floating above her assailant.

“…Is that all you can do? Summoning an endless array of equipment?”

“Hmph!”

Instead of answering, the deity once again discarded his weapon to pluck out a long spear, thrusting forth at the retreating dragonlord.

Brilliant white wings sprouted from Serenis’ back, beating at the air to throw her out of the weapon’s path. But as she distanced away from her enemy into the air, Hathelon quickly discarded his spear, replacing it with a bow and quiver.

A number of arrows nocked themselves at once, aimed skyward at the flying dragonlord.

“Mock all you’d like. You and your stars may sunder the very skies, but your magic cannot pierce this armor.”

“…”

Serenis bit her lips as Hathelon’s volley of arrows took into the air.

‘…At least it never rained shells when you were alive, Kelador.’

Making a bitter smile, a furious wingbeat flung the dragonlord out to safety. But her opponent allowed little respite as he slammed his palm into the ground.

In response, the earth cracked and ruptured as the deity’s ancient magic took hold of the soil. Coiling roots sprouted out to join one another, forming two human-like figures.

As Hathelon’s light spread onto them like disease, each wooden figure began to mimic his actions and voice, summoning the same bow and quiver that their summoner held.

“…Here, we seek truth.”

“…Here, we seek salvation.”

When Hathelon himself finally arose, he and his two wooden dolls nocked their arrows in unison, aiming at the demonlord before them.

“Here, we seek judgement – and fated retribution!”

The First’s light guided his champion’s hazel-tipped arrows. As each volley was fired, the arrows were seemingly drawn towards Serenis, weaving in the air to find their target.

“…”

‘The First’s chosen hero, wielding both his blessings and his fragment…and a champion of mankind, wielding both theirs and demonkind’s strengths…’

A bitter smile curved the dragonlord’s lips as she faced the oncoming hail of weapons. A loud wingbeat sent her speeding downwards, but Hathelon’s rain of arrows continued to chase after her.

Hovering just barely above ground, Serenis continued her flight – straight towards her assailant.

As the dragonlord rapidly approached him, Hathelon firmly planted his feet into the ground, replacing his bow and quiver with a greatsword. The wooden dolls followed suit, readying their blades just the same.

“None shall escape.”

“None shall deny.”

“None shall live, and none shall defy!”

As each swung their blades downward, three pillars of light erupt forth from the ground. Successive pillars rapidly advanced forward to intercept the oncoming dragonlord.

But even as the shining waves came upon her, Serenis’ eyes firmly glared into the light – and the space beyond it.

In a momentary blink, Serenis wrapped herself in her wings, disappearing completely. The arrows that had chased her answered the pillars of light in her stead, each attack destroying the other.

Moments after, Serenis reappeared in the air some ways behind Hathelon. A wave of nausea washed over from the sudden teleport as Serenis struggled to regain her shaken balance.

And in those very moments, Hathelon’s ominous glare fell upon the dragonlord behind him. His dolls likewise turned around, chanting alongside each other.

“Submit, for your time has come.”

“Rejoice, for your end is nigh.”

The two dolls abandoned their weapons to immediately launch themselves into the air towards the dragonlord. While Serenis rushed to intercept the lunging dolls with rays of magic, hazel daggers shimmered into the doll’ emptied hands, cutting through the magic that threatened to disintegrate them.

The daggers effortlessly destroyed Serenis’ spell to make way for the dolls to grab onto her in the air.

And immediately after, each drove their dagger into the dragonlord’s back.

“…!”

Following the jolt of pain, Serenis’ wings lost shape as she plummeted back to the ground.

Plunging down in unison, the two dolls also began to lose their shape, their bodies transforming into that of a blinding chain. As soon as Serenis crashed onto the earth’s surface, each planted themselves into the ground to secure the dragonlord in place.

“…Hmph.”

Hathelon’s silent, callous gaze swept over Serenis as her magic faded away. Once again, morning sunlight began to break through the darkened skies.

The deity’s ring of weapons soon dispersed to nothing. Arming himself yet again with an old, rusted sword, the deity slowly approached his chained opponent.

And once he stood before the dragonlord, he hovered the blade’s tip above her throat. Firm eyes gazed into the endless depths of light and darkness beneath him.

“Be purged, and be forgiven. Wash away your sins, and rise anew.”

After a brief pause, the blade shimmered in divine light to deliver the deity’s final judgement.

“Farewell. I will remember you.”

✧ ✧ ✧

Even as harsh winds slapped at Raizel’s face, her eyes remained firmly staring into the distance – at an extremely specific location.

Did she know where Serenis was? Not at all. But it didn’t take a genius to guess that her lord would be at the source of all the splendorous explosion of lights and stars.

But as the youngling closed in, her eyes captured a sight she’d least wanted to see.

‘Lor-‘

In that instant, Raizel completely blanked out. Her wings ceased their beating, and her body rapidly began to descend towards the ground.

Instead of thinking about how to make a safe landing, or how to help her lord, the youngling’s mind began an incessant series of reflexive thoughts.

“Hey, do what you need to do, but don’t forget to drop that shard you’re holding!”

“…”

Raizel barely registered the faint voice that had randomly spoken to her. She lightly loosened her grip, letting the fragment fall out of her grasp.

Then, without even realizing, the gliding steel dragon spread her arms out wide.

Just as armored figure’s blade pricked at her lord skin, Raizel smashed into the deity to halt his weapon’s descent. Her spread arms instantly tightened around their figure in a crushing embrace, and her momentum carried them some distance away still.

But before they’d even grind to a full halt, Raizel’s wings disappeared, her frame rapidly expanding as the dragon took her proper form. The wingless youngling smashed one foot into the ground to stop herself, and another into the armored figure, launching him far into the air.

Following a deafening roar, sharpened metal pillars spiked forth from every direction to collide into the deity above. Successive pillars continued to drive themselves into the deity in a frenzy to form a massive spiked ball in the air.

And finally, Raizel herself leapt into the air, her claws raking through the mass of metal to smash her enemy into the ground.

When the dust cleared, the youngling lowered her growling head, furious glare staring into the armored prey her foot was on.

But within their helm, she only saw a pair of annoyed, distasteful eyes.

“…Begone, demonspawn.”

As the divine light surrounding Hathelon’s figure grew tenfold, an explosive force threw the youngling’s paw off of his frame. Additional pillars of light then erupt forth from the ground, piercing through the howling steel dragon.

Hathelon slowly rose to his feet, watching the youngling struggling to fight against the intangible beams of divinity.

Finally, the deity summoned a massive axe into his hands.

He then leapt into the air, swinging the weapon’s blade straight towards Raizel’s head.

✧ ✧ ✧

Serenis grit her teeth in frustration. Struggle as she may, the chains binding her were held fast onto the ground – and her magic was failing to aid her.

As she struggled in vain, Serenis was forced to watch as Raizel attempted to fend off her assailant. But it wasn’t long until the deity would strike back at the youngling, driving the steel dragon to the brink of an early demise.

Watered eyes blurred her vision as Serenis continued to struggle against her bindings.

‘Why…why are you here?! No, please…I can’t let this happen again…!’

With her body bound and her magic sealed, Serenis’ mind helplessly wandered for a solution. Unfortunately, none came to mind.

What instead caught her attention was a faint, white glimmer, sparkling just by her side.

‘…Is that…?’

A piece of the First’s divinity rested just beyond the dragonlord’s palm.

Serenis clenched her teeth, discarding every other thought besides getting out of her bindings. She desperately reached her bound limb towards the gleaming fragment – although parts of her body screamed from the tearing strain, she couldn’t care less for it.

Raizel’s deafening cries echoed into her ears as Serenis finally grasped the glimmering fragment. Furious eyes glared into the distance as she allowed the First’s divinity to sink into herself.

Moments after, scaled claws tore through Hathelon’s chains.