Crumble...
The Island was in Shambles. Rubble, ruin and debris scattered everywhere.
The lighthouse had completely collapsed and some parts of it were fizzling out as residual of the ethereal blue energy of Time kept dispersing.
Some rocks and debris shifted, a beautiful white dome of light came forth.
[Shield of Iris].
"Huuuuu... that was a close one.",[Shield of Iris] fizzled out and the disk turned grey. Gazeera totally juiced out and exhausted.
"My works done here, I guess.", said Gazeera. "I'll just wait for Jake and the rest to take care of the aftermath."
He looked at the shore, surprised to find a platoon gathered over there.
"Today was nasty, tedious and horrible. I might have to take a vacation after this.", thought Gazeera. "Yeah, I'll just do that."
[[Frame]:
[Blank]]
"Damn, this fucking cockroa-"
Boom!!!
Debris was sent flying away, a dark black sludge shot forward, transforming into a monster and punching Gazeera.
Bam!!!
Gazeera was sent crashing, his eyes bulged out bleeding, his stomach caved in, his lungs punctured.
Crash!!!
His head crashed the wall, concussing. Everything went blank.
"You were scampering around, being a nuisance, so I thought you would have been able to tank this.", grimaced Echidna, a purple [Mark of Iris] glimmering over her head. "But I guess this is all that you amount to."
She turned away. Just then a bright orange flaming spear impaled her right through her throat.
"Round 3, bitch.", declared Gazeera. The emerald on his bow tie gleaming, covering him with a translucent white light [Rejuvenation]. His breathing stabilized, his stomach relaxed and he reoriented his focus.
"You... just won't stop.", glared Echidna, as she dashed towards him. The air around them turned pungent, everything around Echidna started to decay, the plants started whithering away, the sea around them became contaminated.
The whole island was being covered by a mist of rot.
Gazeera snapped his fingers. The flaming spear exploded, imploding Echidna.
Boom!!!
[Mark of Ignis]
"Grraargghhh!!!", screeched Echidna, her face burning.
"There is no other choice, I guess.", said Gazeera, while assimilating all the tanslucent energy of [Rejuvenation], completely healing himself. "I would have rather not done this."
The emerald went gray and solid, crumbling down.
"No more chances. I can't seal her, I can't kill her." he thought. "I have to try and exile or at least expel her from my realm."
"Huuuu...", sighed Gazeera. " Today sure was a nasty day."
He formed an archaic emblem, it had a head of a snake and a body of a spider.
[Emblem of Despair].
He ate the emblem, blood started pouring out of every pore of his body, his eyes started bleeding tears of blood, he screeched as he writhed from the pain.
Echidna was genuinely startled, as she had rarely seen anyone voluntarily eat the [Emblem of Despair].
Nevertheless, she never lost her cool.
She was extremely cautious, circling around that bloody mess of a human. She didn't charge recklessly, her face still burning. She summoned a weapon. A wooden cane. [Rune of Cham] was etched onto it.
She slowly and steadily advanced towards Gazeera, who was still twitching and writhing in pain.
She never lowered her guard.
Tap... Tap... Tap...
She kept advancing, walking towards Gazeera. When suddenly-
Gazeera flicked his wrist and sprayed his blood onto her.
[Curse of Aging]
"I have to remember this.", thought Gazeera. "[Chains of Humanity], [Mark of Time], [Mark of Iris],[Mark of Ignis], [Curse of Aging], [Mark of Death]. I have to remember this. I have to exile her... have to exile her... exile her..."
"EXILE!!!", roared Gazeera.
He charged at Echidna, his blood gushing out, forming a pool, spraying everywhere.
His originally built form shriveling and withering, his appearance dry and husk.
"What the...", Echidna trembled, genuinely frightened and terrified. Gazeera's blood splashed onto her, drenching her in it. She lost her composure, loosened her stance as if preparing to run away. The body she had possessed, she had consumed, Alice's body, started aging, withering and corroding. Echidna for the first time, since she had arrived onto this world felt threatened.
"YAAAANRRGHH", screeched Gazeera as he ran after her, a pitch black shadow looming above his head, staring down to her core.
Echidna completely lost her bearings, she ran scared witless, terrified and anxious. Her body was aging way faster than it should have, a madman was chasing her, as dry as a scarecrow, unyielding like death.
"You wanted a fight, huh? 'Mother of all Monsters'. Well don't run away now.", sneered Gazeera. Laughing and roaring, crazed from the pain, roaring and laughing.
Echidna bolted even faster running towards the edge of the island. Augmenting herself with the [Charm of Monstrosity]. She jumped and was about to lunge into the sea when-
[-"Alice you really got me, this was unexpected. But whatever it is you are trying to summon will surely regret it. Hell with that, you will regret betraying me."].
[Mark of Death], grey energy surrounded Echidna, targeting her core, attacking her soul.
"GRAAAAHHH!!! HRAAA!!!", wailed and roared Echidna, as she fell down on the remains of the light house.
"Hehehehe", sneered Gazeera who was surrounded in a pool of blood, dancing around. "I was wondering how to put [Mark of Death] on you.", his voice sounded snarky. "But it seems, someone has already done that for me. Not only that but also anchoring your vessel to this island. Whosoever did this is simply genius."
He then formed a pitch black scythe. Echidna scampered away, running away from this lunatic.
Gazeera lifted his scythe, swung it down, slashing Echidna.
Splurt... ,Dark green blood gushed out, mixing with the pool of red blood. Her eyes widened, aghast.
Gazeera snapped his fingers.
The blood squirmed around forming an archaic formation.
"Oh, all prevailing God of Death, bear witness to the treachery of this vile and cruel creature, and banish her into [Eternal Slumber].", yelled Gazeera.
The formation started gleaming, rays of silver and black. disintegrating Echidna's body.
"Why!?!... Why!?!... does it always happen to be you. First you and now your [Fragments of Insurgence]. ", wailed Echidna, as terror swept over her. "Why is it always you, Dragon Kin-"
Echidna dusted away.
"Huuu... " sighed Gazeera. "I survive-"
His head imploded, blood gushed out of his ears, his eyes exploded. He fell on his knees and his body went limp.
************** **************** ****************
"Damn,.... "
[Marcelan Bay]
"Never seen these many of us gathered at one place.", said one of the B.A.R. operatives.
"I know, this is straight up insane. Jake, Gazeera and even the clean-up were mobilized for this.", said another.
"Even [Dome of Iris] was deployed."
"Everyone will be on stand by.", Jake spoke through the comms. "Everyone will stand their ground till we have gathered enough personnel or till the monster leaves the lighthouse. No one will rush out on their own."
BOOM!!!
A bright beam of purple light shot to the sky from the lighthouse.
The lighthouse broke apart and crumbled down.
"Should we rush in.", said one of the operatives.
"EVERYONE HOLD YOUR GROUND, PREPARE FOR BATTLE. NO ONE WILL RUSH IN, UNTIL WE HAVE CONFIRMED THE CIRCUMSATNCES!!!", Jake yelled through the comms.
"Get me some visuals. Confirm the survivors and the state of the bunker.", he instructed the Clean-up crew.
"...."
"Well...", Jake asked again.
"We are getting a visual on a person. It seems Gazeera survived.", a member reported.
Jake sighed in relief.
"The [Rain Level 6] disaster also survived. It is currently engaged in combat with the hired exorcist."
Jake's heart sank.
The island was suddenly being surrounded by green mist.
"We have lost visual."
Jake got anxious and depressed.
BOOM!!!
The island got shrouded by a bright orange flame.
"Still no visual.", reported the clean up crew member.
"What in Iris' name is going on out there!?!", exclaimed Jake.
He opened his [Tranciever]. The [Rain Level 6] ping was still active.
The operatives were anxious.
For three whole minutes no-one dared to move.
Then suddenly rays of pitch black and silver shot to the sky, like a beacon.
[Rain Level 6] ping fizzled out.
************** *************** ***************
Blank space...
[Region: Unknown]
"Gazeera...", said an unknown person. "Wakey-wakey."
"Gazeera! Wake up!!!", he yelled.
"Huh?!?", woke up a startled exorcist.
"Where am I?", said Gazeera, floating in that blank space.
"Well, you died, and got way too close to your origins, which is a good thing. For here you are. And here I am, giving the invitation to [Myriad].", said the shadow, he had bright yellow flames, and Dark green light emanated from him. His pitch black eyes, staring down to Gazeera's soul.
"Don't get me wrong.", continued the shadow. "You still have the choice to return to your 'Mundane Life', Gazeera. But if you accept this invitation it would be much appreciated, you have been deemed instrumental in stopping Ragnarok, which will eventually reach your world as well. So will you accept the glorious responsibility of fighting against Ragnarok or go back to your 'Mundane Life'?"
"And, yes you will be able return to this realm at this point of time, even after you ascend to [Myriad], culmination of all creation.", assured the Shadow.
"Ummm... Uhh O-Okay yo-", stuttered Gazeera.
"Oh, a positive response it seems. Ah, as expected. I am good negotiator aren't I. ", chimed the Shadow.
"Well then, off you go.", The Shadow tore the invitation apart and the space around Gazeera started warping and distorting.
****************** ***************** ***************
Whoosh...
Tap...
[Ruins of Ezekail's Bunker]
Jake along with his platoon landed.
They searched the place. Only to find Gazeera's dead body.
There were no remains of the [Rain Level 6] disaster.
Jake took out his [Tranciever]. There were no spirit activities nearby, which meant that Gazeera had finished the job, there was nothing more to worry about.
"Gazeera, went out with a bang, huh. ", Jake said looking at Gazeera's swollen, dry and bloodied head. The ears were completely drenched and red, eye sockets empty. "Took her down in 10 minutes. You truly are a legend."
"Sir, what to do now?", asked an operative.
"What do you mean?", said Jake, showing the operative his [Tranciever]. "All of us have a lot of work to do. You all go back and take care of the spirit outburst, I will handle the aftermath for this event."
########## ######### ##########