The Bunker was bustling with crowd after crowd. Each person, Dragon or otherwise, stood together in the cafe. Raia stood on the second floor, eyes scanning over each head. She bit her lip in frustration at the gathered Dragons, confused as to why they all had to take the Bunker and leave so suddenly.
It gave no time for preparations, no time to consider rations for everyone aboard.
This isn't even the worst of it. There's more in the Canyon. Luckily that's a pretty massive space, but it's still basically filling up, She thought.
Nana came up the stairs then, the two sharing a glance before looking back to the first floor. "Where's everyone else?"
"Canyon. Trying to get everyone to file and be informed."
"Nana," Raia began. She could tell something was on her mind, and she didn't like it. "Where is he? Is he alright?"
"I don't know. I really don't." She gripped the railing.
"Don't worry so much. He always pulls through. Now, can you kindly run me through the whole situation again? Why is it that the entire population of Dreulara is in our home? Better yet, how did you manage to convince them all to follow?"
"That would be my doing," Gavin said. He slipped through the line that was standing in front of the Canyon elevator. His forehead held wrinkles, more from stress than age. Any wounds he might've suffered were healed, and his face was stern. "Telepathy over a scale that wide is child's play. It's how we broadcast announcements and such."
"Wow," She replied. "I don't even think our best telepaths could accomplish that kind of thing together. Dragons sure are something." Raia leaned back against the railing. "Still, why evacuate?"
"If I had to guess, I would say that those three would be pulling out all the stops. I fear our planet may be a simple battleground now." Gavin gave a heartfelt sigh.
"I'm sure things will work out."
"You're oddly optimistic for a hermit," Nana commented, turning her eyes to Raia. "What are you thinking?"
"All in good time," She replied.
Nana wasn't sure if it was her mind playing tricks on her, but for a moment she swore she saw Raia's eyes flash a white color. She opened her mouth to ask about it, only to stop at the rushing air behind her.
Snapping her attention to the two gates that formed, her heart sank once Kairas and Aqua hit the floor in front of them, both scrambling to get back up and go back through. Both gates closed before they could reach it, Kairas letting out a loud and frustrated yell.
"What happened!?"
"Takabi is still on Dreulara with that fuck!" He stomped off towards the control room. Kicking the door open, he hurried to the console to try and change directions. "We need to go back! He can't fight alone! Porrelth! Syrreth! Where are they!?"
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The two were in front of the Bunker's exit door. They watched as Dreulara grew smaller and smaller in the distance. Quietly, they held one another's hand, glancing and catching each other's eyes.
"You feel it?"
"Yeah," Syrreth replied. "It's… It's going to come to an end. This ominous feeling in my chest."
Porrelth chuckled softly at her, snatching his hand back. "Dreulara is where we lived. Where we grew into adults. It's our home."
Syrreth nodded, legs trembling and struggling to stay firmly in place. "Takabi is alone down there."
"Alone with Jade. I know." Porrelth closed his eyes. "I can feel their mana. It's… It's going to be bloody."
They looked at one another closely, somberness settling in their expressions. "You know if we go, it won't change much. It's suicide to fight Jade with that stone."
"Takabi has two gems. If we join him, we may turn the tide of the battle."
They stood, debating and mulling over the best course of action. They knew, truthfully, that once they stepped off the Bunker and went back, it would be the last time they would see anyone else. Any of their family or friends that they've made.
"If you go, go now."
The two snapped their heads around, catching Sara watching with a stoned gaze. She crossed her arms and approached the pair, eyes locked firmly on Dreulara. "Takabi is Garuga's student. Your student. Can you actually live with the idea of not helping him?"
Syrreth watched her sister, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Father died. He died and you've been on your own since." Tears began welling in her white eyes, slowly spilling down her cheeks. "I don't want you to be alone."
"Sister, please." She touched her hand. "I detest the idea of being pitied. I've grieved enough."
"But," Syrreth began, but Sara stopped her words.
"He needs help. More than anything, you two have to go back and help him. If you don't, who will?"
"Garuga," Porrelth spoke before he could stop himself. The three stood in a pained silence, and the pair averting their eyes from Sara. "Right."
"Garuga is gone. No one else has the ability to make it that far in time."
Syrreth looked at Porrelth. The Fire Dragon ran a frustrated hand through his hair, exhaling flames. "You're right. You're right."
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The air was intensely thick.
It held a cloud of mana, enough for any human to suffocate in. Takabi stood firm, eyes locked on Jade's. The two were silent, fists clenched, staring each other down and sizing one another up.
Jade slumped his shoulders, breaking into a laugh. "This must be fate. In a sense, we're brothers, about to fight to the death. Our convictions, our motives and ideals drive us forward. It's why we can't see eye to eye, or accept the reality before us."
"Which is," Takabi asked, an aura of white swallowing him whole.
"You and I are more alike than we'd like to admit."
Takabi's eyes went wide. His mana erupted, the intense weight and pressure forming a crater under his feet. "We are nothing alike."
"I beg to differ. In fact, our only differences would be minor things. We're both men of virtue. People who care and put others before ourselves. Well, I used to be anyway. As you age, you start seeing things differently. Start seeing the truth." Jade took a step forward, his walk calm and casual. Full of confidence.
Takabi narrowed his eyes, picking up his own feet and approaching the Dragon with a strong itch to shut his mouth.
"I would never kill willingly, especially those I claim to love."
"Or so you say. There are times where we are left with no option."
"Never," He muttered, mind flashing back to his high school years.
Back when it all started, he took the life of a classmate, Blake. He was Jewel's boyfriend at the time, and he killed him in cold blood. Not out of hate, but defense.
"Is that so? Well then, if you think that way," Jade said, pausing only when they were standing face to face. Jade looking down at Takabi, and the boy looking up at him. "Beat me without killing me. I'm Garuga's child. I share his flesh and blood, and certainly share his features and magic. Prove to me, prove to your God that your ideals are true. Show me."
"You talk too much."
Takabi slammed his fist into Jade's stomach. The Dragon coughed loudly, before Takabi's next punch tossed him hard through the trees. He ran after, keeping pace at the inhumane speeds, landing blow after blow. Each strike felt as if he was striking something harder than diamond, the skin around his knuckles tearing upon each punch.
Jade flipped, landing just short of a cliffside. With his palm against the soil, he willed the earth at his touch to rise, shooting out spears of stone. Takabi covered his face, the spears cutting at his arms and sides.
The wounds healed, steam rising in a heavy cloud that blocked him from view. Jade narrowed his eyes, trying to scan through the mist in front of him. "Hiding now are we?"
From his left, something emerged from the smoke. Jade snapped his head towards it, only to spot a large rock falling off the edge of the cliff. Behind him, Takabi burst through the smoke, Nova formed in his right palm. Thrusting it forward, he connected the spell and twisted his wrist, watching Jade's flesh bend and spiral at the impact.
Jade recovered from the pain, pulling his arm back and striking Takabi's cheek, dazing the boy enough to kick him off the cliff. Flames bellowed around his arm, Takabi throwing it forward, shaping it like a hand and gripping Jade's leg, pulling him down with him.
The two sprout their wings, descending quickly, throwing punches and kicks at one another. Takabi's wings spread wide, his body coming to a sudden halt against the rushing air. Fire stars appeared between his fingers, each one flying as he threw his hands downward. Jade waved his palm to the left, using air to stop the first wave. Then to the right, freezing over the next barrage with ice.
"Try harder! Please!" He laughed.
Takabi appeared before him, knuckles slamming into his face with intense force. Jade flew head first through the rockbed below, breaking through and forcing light into the deserted Water Kingdom underground. Free Falling after him, mana built up within Takabi, the boy releasing a roar of power, fire and lightning dancing madly around him in a white light.
Jade stopped his fall, brushing his nose and wiping away the pain. "So you really do get stronger through battle. Fallen Angels truly are one of a kind."
Takabi looked at the markings of the White Gem. Closing his eyes, he clapped his palms together, pulling them apart and willing a ball of light to form. It grew, expanding greatly in the air, rising up as he raised his hands above his head. Fire and lightning danced within the sphere of light, Takabi throwing it at Jade with no hesitation.
The Dragon raised his palm, stopping the spell cold in the air, before closing his hand and watching it disappear into nothingness.
"That level of power is nothing." He hunched forward, opening his mouth. Mana gathered in his throat, a dark light surrounding his body, before he exhaled. Shadows burst from his lungs, barely missing Takabi and ripping through the soil.
As Dreulara shook, magma burst from under the Water Kingdom's roads. The heat quickly made itself known, Takabi watching it flow into the streets and consume everything in its path. Jade stopped his roar, noting the change in weather above the surface. He raised his palm, lightning surge around his arm in response to the thunder clouds outside.
"Lightning Dragon: Heaven Bolt."
Yellow burst from above. Takabi snapped his gaze up, only to take the full force of lightning to his face. He screamed in pain, muscles burning from the inside out. His wings ignited and burned, mind shutting down for a moment as the lightning stopped and his body dropped like a meteor into the pool of lava below him.
Jade crossed his arms and counted the minutes. Five had passed, then another ten. Slowly, he floated downward and landed on a bent over street lamp, dark eyes scanning the magma for any signs of movement. Sure enough, his eyes fell on Takabi crawling out of the orange lake, clothes crisp and black around the edges, but body unscathed. Steam was rising from him, not just from healing, but from pure heat as well.
"You're incredibly difficult to kill," Jade commented loudly.
Takabi raised his head and turned towards him. Slowly, he stood, rolling his shoulder to loosen the stiffened muscle and bone. "Yeah, I get that a lot."
"You're still holding back."
"Obviously," He said. "I'm not trying to kill you. That was the bet."
Jade narrowed his eyes. "Am I a joke to you?"
His lips rose in a smirk in response.
"Show me," Jade said. The magma splashed at his words. "I want to battle to the limit. Show me my Father's teachings weren't in vain."
Truth is, nothing I threw even phased him. Takabi took a step back. I need some distance to breathe. My body is healing, but I can't constantly repair that kind of damage. It takes a lot out of my stamina.
Jade thrust his palm upwards. The lava shot up, swallowing Takabi whole. It burned, but not enough to do major damage. Jade knew that, so he forced his other arm forward, wind shooting outwards, placing deep cuts along his body. Leaping into the air, a ball of darkness appeared in his grip. The magic circle under it expanded, many times its original size, to the point of being as large as a small moon.
"Show me!"
With no mercy, he launched the spell at Takabi. Each element danced with one another perfectly, striking without a moment's break. It felt as if each cell in Takabi's body was dying just as fast as it was healing.
Damn it!
His left eye flashed. Violet rushed up his left, completing its design with the other half of the wingset on his collarbone. Takabi thrust his arms out at his sides, dispersing the barrage of elements against him. White and Violet burst from his feet upwards, ground quaking under the sudden release of power.
Jade charged down at him, pulling his knuckles back. The two slammed fists, shockwave forming a crater under Takabi's feet. He pulled his right back, throwing it at Jade in a heavy hook. Once it connected, Jade flew high into the air, breaking through the surface layer and into the sky.
With speed immeasurable, Takabi appeared behind him, pulling his arms back and slamming them down on Jade's spine. Crying out, he fell hard through the air, using his wings to stop himself before he hit the soil. Takabi dashed down, body flickering as he got closer, throwing a kick that Jade blocked with his left arm. Takabi thrust his left fist forward, and Jade caught that with his right palm.
As they vanished from the naked eye, both moving at equal speeds through the air, shockwave after shockwave marking their presence, the ground caved in and shattered. Lava burst high, swallowing what remained of the Water Kingdom in an ocean of orange.
Jade landed a straight, breaking Takabi's nose before kicking him down into the capitol. Takabi hit the concrete, shaking his head before he flipped back and slid across the ground. The Dragon landed across from him, stomping at him without pause.
It hadn't occurred to either of them that Jade was losing his composure and he was growing in size. His feet were that of a Dragon's, large tail hanging from his back and muscles bulked up.
Takabi dodged his kick, zipping around and clenching his arms. Jade snapped his gaze backwards, bringing his palm up and striking with a ball of light. Dodging to the right, Takabi spun and kicked, flames coating his foot as the impact rattled Jade's brain.
Stunning him momentarily, Takabi flipped back and landed, running towards him with two Nova's forming in his palms. Jade raised his head, then exhaled a breath of all elements. As the cloud of magic crawled towards him, Takabi narrowed his eyes and leapt over, spinning and twirling through the air until he landed behind the Dragon.
Smiling, Takabi threw both spheres at Jade, watching them erupt in white and violet fire. Clenching his fists and calling forth more power, he slammed his wrists together and released Nova after Nova, each ball of magic more powerful than the last.
Jade felt his body twist and bend, muscles spasming against blast in mind boggling pain. Takabi raised his palm, one last Nova erupting into the air, and threw it. The ball connected, a star of light forming before an explosion ripped through the air and shattered the deserted silence with cackling fire and lightning.
Fire snapped as Takabi finally relaxed himself, sitting down and watching the fire dance. For a moment he shut his eyes, if only to gather a deep breath. He felt a chuckle in his stomach, and before he could stop himself, he laughed, opening his eyes and watching the flames freeze in place.
From the fire, Jade stepped out. Anger was on his face. Frustration and denial in his posture.
"How… Dare you…" His voice was deeper than previously.
"You told me to. Not my fault," He stood up, brushing his pants.
"I am a GOD!" Jade screamed, magic burst from his wounded body. "I cannot be injured! I can't lose! To do so would mean I am not a God, and that isn't true! I rule with judgement! I do as I please and all fall in line at my feet."
Takabi craned his head aside, a confused look on his face. "Dude, you snap? Can't be a ruler or a God if there's no subjects that worship you. If anything, you'd be a false God at best."
"Your taunts… Will do nothing. I've had enough of this! This fight will end now!" He raised his hand, the flames behind him gathering in his grip. "You and I both, we both shall perish with this planet!" He thrust his palm downward, a blinding light erupting.
As his magic traveled downward, it cut through layer after layer of soil and lava. It struck the planet's core, Dreulara shaking before erupting in a massive light that could be seen all throughout space.