Ald stared at the mystic, dark dragon before him. He shuddered, feeling the immense power it gave off, it was as if he were drowning and being crushed beneath it's mere presence alone.
'Dragonic… Antigod?' Ald thought, 'What is it talking about..? And what did it mean by "this era"?'
"Why are you even here?" Ald asked, although, he could already guess.
"Is it not obvious?" The dragon growled, stopping its pacing. "I am here to devour your god."
Ald grit his teeth. He could feel his body shivering as he stood before the Antigod. He felt uneasy… it had been a long time since last he felt fear of this degree.
"And what makes you think you'd actually be able to defeat Phenor?" Ald asked, trying to keep his wits. "He is, after all, a god."
"And I the Antigod." The dragon growled. "And do you intend to stop me?"
"Ha.." Ald laughed, even despite his heart crashing against his chest. "Intend to? I will."
The dragon stared at Ald blankly, a bored expression on it's face. It was as though the dragon were showing pity for Ald, like he already knew the outcome and looked down on the Pure Blood with dissatisfaction.
Ald raised the hammer, holding it in both hands. "As the Gatekeeper, guardian and Kin of the Dragon God Phenor, I will not let you pass."
The Antigod gave a low growl, almost like a sigh, then opened it's jaws ever so slightly, before clamping them shut. A shockwave blasted outward from the dragon, rupturing the ground around it and tearing up the earth as the shockwave bulldozed towards Ald, slamming into him and instantly shattering his armor before sending him flying and crashing into a tree. There, Ald grit his teeth, leaning against the tree for support as he forced himself to his feet.
It hurt just to breath, and judging by that, Ald could tell that some of his ribs had been broken.
"I… cannot… let you… pass.." Ald gasped, blood spilling from his lips.
The Antigod lifted it's head, staring down at Ald with contempt. It then lifted its talon, before lightly tapping it on the ground.
"Down." The dragon growled coldly, and an unseen force slammed down on Ald, crushing him beneath it and pinning him to the ground, but he resisted against it, his legs buckling under him as he was forced to his knees. The ground below him had indented, forming a small crater around his body. His kneecap had been shattered from the force of the dragon's attack.
Ald stared down at the ground with wide eyes as he took in one raspy breath of air after the other. 'How… can this dragon.. be so strong..?' He thought in awe and terror.
The Antigod began to slowly walk towards Ald, one talon after the other, clacking on the dirt and stone. And then it was above Ald, staring down at the Kin with cold red-violet eyes.
"It is an inane endeavor, pure blood. You cannot bring me down. Now, bow your head and concede, only then shall I let you live." The Antigod growled, his reddish-black scales shimmering like obsidian in the firelight.
Ald grinned, blood dribbling down his chin, as he lowered his head.
"Good. Now stay there, and be content with your puny existence." Then the Antigod turned its head away. Just as it did, Ald's hammer flew from the air in a massive burst of speed, crashing into the lower jaw of the dragon, the impact sending forth a shockwave as the ground cracked at Ald's feet. He grinned at the fact that his attack had landed.
Unbeknownst to the dragon, the entire time Ald was down, he was channeling wind magic into the hollow shaft of the hammer. The hammer was light and had the slits and hollow points in it so wind could channel through it, allowing it to move much faster and have much more force.
But then Ald's heart dropped. He'd succeeded in nothing but lifting the dragon's head just barely. A low growl could be heard from deep in the Antigod's throat as it turned wrathful eyes to Ald.
"Hah." Ald closed his eyes and smiled sadly. "So that's how it is then. Truly.. a puppet dancing to the strings of fate."
And then, talons raked across his lower body, digging into his ribcage and tearing open his chest, his body sent into the air before slamming to the ground in a spray of bone and blood.
Ald, the Pure Blood Dragon Kin, was dead.
— — —
Bolts of electricity burst forth from Abyss in waves, the lightning arcing through the streams of water around the dragon's body. Myru grinned a wide, mad grin as her hair began to flow in the air and her eyes began to glow gold. Lichtenberg figures began to spread across her skin as electricity zipped around her.
"What.. the hell?" Emma said in shock. "Two elements?! How is that even possible?!"
Just then, Gena rose into the air, flying beside Emma and Ellira, her gold scales shimmering in the light of the rising sun, which cast a divine glow across the tundra. Her golden eyes narrowed as she looked down at their foe.
"Gena, how are Gänhir and Shiratt?" Emma asked.
"Out cold. They will be down for some time, for now, this fight is up to us." Gena growled in response.
"What? What about Treasya and the others? Why can't they assist us?" Ellira asked, her silver scales shining beside Gena's gold.
"They will be of no help against this enemy… they will only die. Myru and Abyss are on par with Mourtas and Zickarys.." Gena said grimly.
"What?" Emma asked, flashbacks to the hopeless battle against the black dragon and it's rider. "You.. are kidding, right?"
"I am not."
"How.. can we beat her without Dagon, then?"
"We won't." Gena said simply.
"Then what do we do?!" Emma asked, adrenaline running through her veins.
"All we can do… is hold off until he gets here."