It all happened too fast. Kyros tried to stop the attack, but the slashing force had already struck Mechiel.
Mechiel's body was sliced in half. Kyros quickly caught the upper half of Mechiel's body and stood in front of her. As a vampire, it was still possible for Mechiel to survive that attack. But with a terrifying enemy in front of him, it was nonsensical for Kyros to put up a fight.
The space shattered as the Eldrich emerged once more.
"How dare you play me, Vicarous a fool?" The enraged Eldrich screamed.
"You made me waste all that to break space and find you! How dare you!" Vicarous roared.
The roar alone sent Kyros tumbling back. Kyros grabbed on to Mechiel and tried to flee, but suddenly a strange force wrapped around him, and Kyros couldn't move at all.
Vicarous had held on to a strange jewel, and his expression grew angrier by the second.
"Your interesting ability to wield all elements saved you. You took the brunt of my attack and made it your own to protect you from the catapults burning energy! What ingenuity! I should praise that Queen for her tact. What an interesting scheme! As a reward, I will feast on her right before your eyes!" Vicarous laughed.
Kyros tried to move but found that his body was unable to comply.
"Trying to escape? Foolish. I stopped time around your body. You have quite a strong soul. I guess using these artifacts to capture you is worth it." Vicarous laughed as he walked towards Kyros and snatched Mechiel off Kyros's arms.
"I guess I have to find my son a new mate..." Vicarous sighed and immediately drew Mechiel to bite her.
Kyros exploded in rage but alas, not an inch of his body was moving.
Suddenly, Vicarous stopped right before his bite connected.
"Perfect. Just as planned." The laughter of a familiar old man was heard.
Standing right behind Vicarous was the old man, Calaminus.
"I told you you'd soon believe me." He laughed as he moved towards Kyros.
"Speak with your mind. I took advantage of this stopped time to emerge. After all, I can't be too careful. I know that after they cursed me, using my powers would alert them. So here I am left to do these shameful things like relying on a punk Eldrich to speak to you." Calaminus laughed.
"Who- who are you?" Kyros called out with his mind.
"As I said, I am Calaminus, the Ancient God of Time. And I am here, young Paladin, to help you."
"Help me? You are here to save me?"
"No. I am here to ensure that you do die!" Calaminus laughed.
"Enough with the games! Save her!"
"No. Rather, what are you going to do after this? Let's say you defeat this Eldrich... even if by some miracle that you do kill him, his family will come here. Didn't you hear? He used a time and space artifact to trace you! His first attack had already marked you with his Soul! If you kill him, it won't be difficult for the other Eldrich races to come here. This power to bend through time and space is based on an extremely inferior version of Time magic. But it's enough to get them here. This Eldrich is the weakest of all purebloods." Calaminus explained."
"Then what are you here for if not to save her! If you choose to save only me, then forget it!"
"My hotblooded friend... remember what I said. I am an Ancient God who is in the same predicament as you! I am being chased by the Greater Gods who betrayed me. Remember?" Calaminus smiled as he moved closer.
Kyros was confused at first but then tried to recall his former conversation with this old man.
"You... have the power to revert time?"
"Yes. It is the ancient of all magic. I can reverse time itself. All of this will not happen. And if you agree to help me, I can reverse time all the way back to the time before you even lost your adoptive family!" Calaminus explained.
"My family?"
"You can save them! Not just your family! You have a shot at saving your kingdom! You will even have the chance to save this vampiress whom you have fallen for and make her live a better life!" Calaminus laughed.
"Why me?" Kyros asked.
"Because you are the strongest person here."
"That Eldrich would laugh at your statement."
"Who do you think his real master is? This so-called Great War of All is just one of the effects of the battle in the God Realms. Besides, you hold an interesting legacy, the Celestial Code. It's a legacy from one of the Greater Gods who allied with us. Frankly, it's truly the blessings of the heavens that I have found someone strong and smart enough to wield the Celestial Code."
Kyros was stunned to hear these words.
"Great God Daradiel is my close friend. He must have appeared to you when you received this legacy of his! I can sense a bit of his soul in you, my friend."
"Daradiel is a God?!" Kyros exclaimed.
"WAS a god. He died fighting and sent his legacy to the lower realms hoping that someone like you would acquire it. It looks like it indeed went to the rightful owner. But alas, our enemy is smarter. I don't blame you for your weakness and ineptitude in falling for those many schemes. After all, there were several gods involved. But now is our chance to change it."
"I must die for this magic to work?"
"Yes. I will be passing down to you my magic. It is magic that can turn back time itself! However, I can only use it when the caster dies. As already explained, the curse granted to me is quite powerful. In fact, if I die and is reborn, the curse will travel back, and to some extents, the Greater Gods will know of my death and where I am when I reincarnated."
"Then what use is it for me to be resurrected in the past? Won't they just kill me and find out?"
"Except that when you were less than ten years old, you have such strange magic upon you that shrouds even my eyes. So if I can't pierce through where you were back then, so can't they! They may have an idea as to where you will time travel, but with such a broad scope, finding you will be difficult!" Calaminus laughed excitedly.
"Can't you see? You are the perfect one! You are the perfect vessel!"
"Vessel?"
"I have to die as well. I don't intend to leave everything to you. I will join you and die with you. My soul will be bonded to you, and you will face all those tribulations and painful moment and overcome it! This is your destiny! Haven't you wondered why you lived such a bitter life? Although you've had moments of victories, all that you gained were lost before you. Your family. Your kingdom. Your friends. And now, your love."
"What are you saying? I was destined for these things!"
"Yes! And this is why I'm sure that you are to be my vessel because an Ancient God died and used similar magic like mine to set the fates. It was by destiny that I arrived here. It was by destiny that I met you. It was by destiny that this Eldrich race found one of the oldest legacies I left behind and found a means to replicate the manipulation of time!" Calaminus waved his hands grandly to the heavens as if bragging of such great victory.
"The Greater Gods thought they won, but what they don't know, killing that Ancient God has ensured the survival of the Ancients! See how the heavens arrange our victory together!"
Kyros's had Mechiel in his field of vision. He could still see the dying expression of this beautiful vampiress.
"I accept. What must I do?" Kyros asked.
"You have to die. To be more specific, this Eldrich must kill you. I have just the thing to force him to kill you! This is a powerful poison strong enough to injure or kill an Eldrich pure blood." Calaminus revealed a small bottle and poured it on the blade of Kyros.
"I will use my magic to undo the time constraining your body. Stab him with your sword. This will be beyond his expectation. He will counterattack, and all you have to do is let yourself be killed." Calaminus explained.
"I understand." Kyros felt his hand growing itchy. He was hoping that he could exact revenge on this person for what he did to Mechiel.
"I'm sure that you won't fail me. Alright. I will be transferring my soul to you now. This body of mine will wither, and there will be no returning. I will be bound to your soul and will reincarnate with you. I can only hope that the destiny forged by Ancient Fate is enough to help me reform my godly being. If not, it is fine. If you are able to warn the Ancients, it will already enough to greatly aid our side."
"I will not fail you!" Kyros vowed.
"Good. Now let our souls be intertwined!" Calaminus reached towards Kyros, and almost instantly, the body of Calaminus turned to dust. Very soon, even the dust disappeared.
The soul of Calaminus was bound to Kyros.
And as Calaminus saw through the soul of Kyros, he pierced through all his secrets.
"MY GOD! WHAT IS THIS?!" A terrifying howl echoed within Kyros as the soul of Calaminus witnessed the horrors and wonders in Kyros's bodies.
"You...! This soul...! You are a Nephilim!" Calaminus exclaimed.