Sigmund Krieg was currently being bombarded by fire.
Looking up, he saw meteoric fireballs crash down upon his position, leaving craters in the bark of the canopy of Yggdrasil. Despite the vast, continent-sized nature of the World Tree, which stretched as far out as he could see, the area was being bombarded into desolation by Ricowen's merciless fire spells.
Standing his ground, he swung his sword and unleashed a single blue burst that took the form of a silently roaring dragon that devoured the fireballs in a single gulp before surging toward the hovering Ricowen. The golden armored demonic warrior dodged the pursuing dragon, slashing through the ferocious blue energies with his gleaming spear before hefting it up and above his shoulder.
Ricowen's eyes narrowed as he took the measure of his opponent, realizing that a simple fireball spell wouldn't be able to subjugate him, even through sheer volume of fire. Tossing his spear, he then hurled it like a javelin.
"Solar Spear Flare!"
His Solar Spear split into dozens of fiery lances that streaked down like flaming comets, obliterating the entire clearing around the monolith, though Ricowen had taken care not to accidentally destroy the accursed monument that he had been tasked with protecting. Even so, the entire area was reduced into a molten wasteland, the spears pummeling Sigmund's position even as the black swordsman weaved and evaded through the storm of fire.
Skidding to a stop and realizing that he had no place to run, Sigmund raised Balmung in determination and swung it, unleashing a horde of blue energy dragons that snaked toward the remaining Solar Spears. Each dragon was annihilated when impaled by the Solar Spear, but they destroyed the fiery lances in turn, nullifying the divine technique and clouding the region in thick smoke.
Not waiting for his opponent to show his next move, Sigmund was already swinging his sword once more, blasting apart the enormous plume of smoke with another draconic eruption, and this time the titanic blue dragon bellowed soundlessly as it soared across the horizon, vaporizing clouds in its wake before it tracked down Ricowen. The fiery demonic spearman simply clenched his fist and unleashed a ruby beam of fire that tore through the pursuing dragon, tearing it apart and piercing through the lethal energies to strike at an almost unguarded Sigmund. The black swordsman shifted his head at the last second, avoiding getting his face incinerated by the intense beam that hurtled onward to carve a molten line through the trees behind him.
Gritting his teeth, Sigmund kicked off the ground and launched himself at his opponent, cutting through a screen of flames that the latter hastily conjured to discourage him. Hurtling through the fiery curtain, he slashed his glowing sword at Ricowen, but the spearman had already recovered his golden lance and was barely able to parry the ferocious strike before he could get hit. He allowed the momentum to fling him further away, and while he stabbed his spear into the ground to skid to a stop, he spun about and threw out his other hand to toss a new salvo of flames at his pursuing enemy.
Sigmund dodged the first volley of fireballs before slamming his foot against the ground and heaving his sword up. Another blue pillar of light erupted from his blade before he swung it down on the distant Ricowen from range. Caught off guard because he wasn't expecting his opponent to be able to reach him from so far away, Ricowen brought his spear up to fend off the elongated blast from Balmung, and the ground beneath him disintegrated from the impact.
His knees buckling, Ricowen almost fell to a kneeling posture, but he cleaved through the blade-like blast and countered with another torrent of flames that spiraled toward Sigmund. Even though Sigmund ducked the incoming flames, he had to pause for a second – and that was all the time Ricowen required to recover and rise to his feet.
Sigmund made use of his momentum to close in, all the while approaching Ricowen while dodging the enemy's fire. Whirling around, he brought his sword down in close range, only for Ricowen to deflect the glowing blade with his gleaming spear. Sparks flew as their powerful weapons collided, each impact causing more of the ground to break away in scorched debris and broken bark. The World Tree shuddered and almost appeared to wail from the violence, but it was a divine construct that had endured for ages untold, even before its centuries of existence in Earth (or Midgard). It would survive this, or so Sigmund hoped.
In any event, he would have to end this battle soon or he and Ricowen might risk destroying Yggdrasil in their colossal clash. Embers rained down, red and blue, as they continued to trade earth shattering blows.
"Ugh!"
"Argh!"
The both of them sprang apart in another shower of sparks, the ground beneath them crumbling away into another molten crater. Trees vanished, burned away or devoured by draconic shaped energies. The two combatants skidded to a stop, pausing to catch their breaths.
Ricowen, predictably, was the first to recover. He raised a hand and conjured an enormous fireball almost the size of a building and hurled it at the exhaling Sigmund. The black swordsman glanced up and charged his Balmung with more azure mana before he cleaved apart the flames. He countered with another draconic blast, but Ricowen was already moving away. As more of the forest atop the World Tree's canopy was leveled and turned into a barren wasteland, the golden spearman was leaping high up and almost flying in the heavens.
"I need a decisive hit," he muttered, hefting his Solar Spear up like a javelin once more. Infusing it with fiery mana, he flung it right after yelling the name of his technique. "Divine Solar Spear Storm!"
Words had power, and by uttering the name of an incantation, they would bestow upon the spell unrivaled strength. That was why many mages shouted the titles of the spells out, for those simple words filled the enchantments with so much more potency.
In response, Sigmund mirrored his opponent by raising his sword. Blue energies flared along the length of the huge blade, and he bellowed, "Balmung!"
The draconic blast surged upward and tore through the fiery spear, which had now expanded into a gigantic missile…no, a flaming tower that struck with the force of a nuke. For a moment, it appeared that the Divine Solar Spear had obliterated the dragon, but it then exploded in a blossoming mushroom cloud of crimson and azure sparks that scattered across the canopy like a dazzling aurora.
Ricowen's eyes narrowed, and then he dove to the side, just barely avoiding the next Balmung that blasted through the curtain of fire and ravaged the land, sending more trees and vegetation to oblivion. He shook his head, amazed at the scale of destruction.
"Even a spell of this level isn't enough to bring him down, huh?"
He rose to his feet and slowly ascended to a hover above the desecrated forest, flames dancing around him. Opposite, almost a hundred meters away, Sigmund exhaled wearily, holding his sword with both hands. Even for someone of his caliber, unleashing two powerful techniques consecutively was pushing him to his limits. He needed a breather.
Ricowen wasn't dishonorable to seize an opening when his opponent was vulnerable, but instead, he nodded in acknowledgement.
"I can sense your resolve," he said. "Your indomitable will, and the desire to protect. To save this world, and to prevent the corruption of Yggdrasil. I can sense all this through our exchange. You really are a worthy opponent. Your swordsmanship is topnotch, and your skills are impressive. It has been a long time since I've encountered an opponent of your caliber, with Ardena being the other exception. But even she was nowhere as tenacious as you."
"Ardena has her own strengths," Sigmund replied softly. "I have exchanged blows with her. She is not someone to be underestimated."
"I know. Her only weakness is her lack of defense. She nearly took me by surprise with her speed and her swordsmanship is no less impressive than yours. Had she not underestimated me and attempted a reckless charge, the outcome of the battle might be very different. Still, that lack of sturdiness proved to be her downfall. You might be slower, but you have lasted much longer than her."
"Only because her fighting style relies on speed rather than durability."
"Agreed. Like I said, it could have gone either way, had she not been reckless and underestimated me. That said, I probably would have prepared a countermeasure either way." Ricowen sighed. "But it's pointless to discuss on what could have been. She lost and is enslaved. That's the only reality that matters. And now the only thing that is important is whether you can best me or if you will fall to my spear."
"Bring it," Sigmund replied, raising his sword in a defensive stance. Ricowen nodded, his spear and armor melting away to flames.
"In recognition of your strength, I will put everything into this single attack. It appears that the only way to decide this is to execute an attack powerful enough to bring total annihilation."
Sigmund watched as the flames crackled around Ricowen, all of his armor and weapons turning into living fire and coalescing into a longish shape that hovered above the spearman's hand. He intuitively understood what was going on. Ricowen was foregoing defense and committing everything to offense right now. He was channeling mana away from his protection, using the energies required to maintain his armor and directing them toward his weapon for one decisive attack.
The sheer amount of fiery mana that was being emanated right now sent shivers down Sigmund's spine, despite the incredible heat that was being generated. So extreme was the temperature that the vicinity had turned into molten lava, the bark of the World Tree eaten away and flaking, burning and turning into what appeared to be molten rock that glowed red and black. He stood atop a pool of expanding lava, only his own innate Body Tempering technique – Draconic Steel Armor – allowing him to withstand the astronomical temperatures that Ricowen's flames were generating. Perspiration poured down his face and he exhaled wearily. Each breath he took scalded his lungs, and he was aware of the battered condition he was in. His black and silver armor had been incinerated and burned away in patches, revealing his bare arm and half of his torso. One of his gauntlets were gone, having disintegrated when he took on Ricowen's Solar Spear head-on earlier. Even with Draconic Steel Armor, his skin was reddening from the sheer heat.
"Your name was Sigmund Krieg, wasn't it?"
"That's right, Ricowen."
The spearman nodded, a fiery halo lit up all around him, everything vanishing into crimson flames that raged like the sun.
"Out of my utmost respect for you, who has proven to be a worthy rival, I shall offer you my strongest attack."
The black swordsman simply smiled and nodded subtly in response. Ricowen's lips tightened into a grim line and he lowered his head in respect, knowing what he must do.
"Fear the judgement of the gods."
"The demise of the Dragon is at Hand."
"Their Wrath is Extinction Incarnate."
"Deliver this World from the Unending Dusk."
"Burn All Creation to Ash…Solar Armageddon!"
"Devour all Evil…Balmung!"
The golden spear lanced forward, transforming into a colossal fireball that expanded over the heavens, resembling the sun itself, come to burn the world to cinders. In the face of the apocalyptic wrath from the gods themselves, a single blue dragon surged upward to meet the growing sun, roaring silently as it crashed against the gargantuan inferno sphere.
As the two ultimate techniques collided, the world momentarily vanished in an explosion that consumed much of the canopy of Yggdrasil and left everyone dazzled from the titanic shockwaves that ensued.