Chapter 99: The Lion's Roar
Two monstrous auras devastated the City of Floeur d'Alene, scattering citizens across the river and to the surrounding hills as a constant shadow clashed against an ever-shifting display of the five elements.
The waters of the central city fountain spiraled upwards, transforming into two immense flood dragons made of ice, their shimmering bodies clashing amidst the city's flaming ruins.
As the dragons roared and plunged into a nearby building, freezing everything in their path, a vast shard of shadow speared into one of them, spreading rapidly and shattering it into falling chunks of ice.
A shadowy streak tore from the remnants, racing towards its twin. The remaining dragon roared defiantly and charged, meeting the shadow head-on. Just as they collided, an enormous lightning palm descended from the sky, striking both at the point of impact. The collision was marked by a violent explosion, with lightning and ice tearing across the sky.
From the chaos, a smoking figure shot through the city, leaving a trail of destruction, and finally collapsed into a crater of rubble. Immediately, Trayton pushed a fallen wall off himself as shadows quickly mended his wounds.
Emerging from the crater, his face instantly met Darius's black gauntlet. Unlike a typical punch, the force remained, rattling Trayton's insides with increasing intensity. A flurry of punches, each heavier than the last, followed, culminating in a kick that hurled him back into the crater.
Above the chaos, Darius stood with his white hair billowing in the wind, his black eyes gleaming as he stared down at Trayton. However, his brow furrowed as the dust settled, revealing the Vampyre had vanished.
A raspy voice echoed from behind, "How'd you do it?"
Darius swung, launching an explosion of flames against a distant wall.
"You've impressed this one, but it's pointless."
Spikes of earth erupted from the ground beneath shifting shadows, Trayton's voice moving with them.
"You seem changed, wild and angry, powerful, yes..."
Trayton materialized beside Darius, his claws aimed in a deadly strike toward his heart. Reacting swiftly, Darius raised his gauntlet, blocking the strike, the impact sending his body hurtling backward like a cannonball.
"Must be Primordial Artifact," Trayton's form melded back into his shadow, his jaw unhinging as his eyes glowed a fierce red.
Darius skidded along the ground, digging his heels in to halt his momentum. He leapt up just as the ground where he stood was engulfed by a gaping maw of shadows, large teeth snapping shut. Hovering in mid-air, Darius's aura flared with intense flames as he unleashed a barrage of fiery punches downwards, each strike igniting loud cracks that tore the ground apart like exploding rain.
Landing, Darius slammed his hands into the ground, causing large rock spikes to burst forth around him, ripping Trayton from his shadow. Caught mid-air, the vampyre writhed as multiple explosions engulfed him, his form lighting up with dozens of burning fist imprints, followed by a thunderous lightning palm from above.
As chaos reigned, Darius stood encased in a swirling cocoon of wind mana, his white hair whipping around as he advanced with measured steps, his killing intent thick in the air. He halted abruptly, turning to his left.
Trayton, emerging on the edge of the storm, smirked as he smoothed out a large dent in his chest that healed instantly, "Powerful, yes, but lacking. You can't kill this one with your strength." His shadows billowed out, forming tendrils that snatched up chunks of debris, flinging them with monstrous force.
In a breath, Darius's aura switched to water, summoning a massive watery mirror in front of him that absorbed and redirected the hurtling debris back at the Vampyre. Quickly following with a barrage of Solar Tyrant's Fists, each strike exploding upon contact with the Vampyre's shadowy tendrils.
Trayton vanished into his shadow, seamlessly evading the onslaught. His form merged with the darkness beneath him, moving fluidly and unpredictably across the battlefield.
The fight escalated, becoming a blur of motion and elemental fury. Harnessing his shadow, Trayton would often emerge suddenly, his claws aimed directly at Darius's heart, only for Darius to parry at the last moment with his gauntlet. Each attack was a dance of near misses and sharp counters, with Trayton using his shadow to slip away or shield himself.
Darius's body was a shifting spectacle of fire, lightning, wind, water, and earth, each manifesting violently as he countered Trayton's relentless assaults.
Their duel tore through the city, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. Buildings crumbled under the force of their power, streets cracked, and the air was charged with the raw mana of their violent exchanges.
The climax of their clash came abruptly, when an immense amount of lightning mana, summoned the largest lightning palm yet. It descended from the sky with a deafening roar, igniting the city with a brilliant flash of blue light. The impact created a massive explosion, ripping through the heart of the city and sending shockwaves in every direction.
A strange stillness followed, smoke and dust hung heavily in the air. Trayton's shadow was momentarily scattered by the immense force, and for a brief moment, the relentless pace of their battle paused, leaving the city itself holding its breath, waiting for the dust to settle and reveal the consequences of the ferocious duel.
From a small mound of debris at the edge of the battlefield, dirt shifted, revealing a startled Haku. He shook off the grime, his eyes darting towards the center of the recent explosion. A mixture of confusion and concern flickered across his face, "What's happening? Why does he look like that? He even smells different."
Haku leaped onto a nearby pile of rubble, his expression shifting to shock as he stepped back, "There's no way... how...how?!"
Amidst the settling dust, Trayton stood untouched, his pale skin devoid of any signs of the recent attack. A sly smile played across his pale lips as his shadows swirled protectively around him. He declared with a chilling calm, "Even your strongest attack cannot kill this one. You cannot win, do not deny your death any longer."
Standing across from him, Darius stood, expression blank. His black eyes suddenly erupted with darkness as a large array instantly activated beneath them, it's runes expanding to encompass a large area with blue light.
Stepping back, Trayton's eyes darted across the battlefield before he quickly sank into his shadow, retreating to the safety of a broken rooftop. As he emerged, he drew a deep breath through his nose, his eyes flaring with realization, "He's gathering mana..." His gaze shot to the sky, claws extending, muscles bulging in fear.
Sensing the danger, Haku transformed. Flames engulfed him as he shifted into his beast-form, "That's the Elemental Nexus Array." His eyes widened as the realization hit him, "He's going to wipe out the entire city!"
The sky darkened, crackling with thunder and lightning as if responding to Darius's intent. Trayton, no longer hiding in the shadows, charged forward, his body closing the distance in an instant.
A blinding flash erupted around Darius as Trayton's claws collided with an unseen barrier, the force of his attack repelled entirely. Trayton roared in frustration, his claws relentlessly hammering against the shield, each strike echoing across the city like thunderclaps, the sky above raging in tandem.
Within the barrier, Darius stood resolute, his form radiating power like a god of lightning. His palm was drawn back, an intense, pulsating light gathering at its center. The blue of the lightning deepened, pure and searing as it accumulated, the energy almost unbearable in its intensity.
Above, the dark clouds twisted and writhed, massive arcs of lightning dancing through them. The lightning didn't strike but instead crawled through the sky, shaping the clouds into a colossal, crackling palm.
The palm loomed over the entire city, casting a dreadful shadow and radiating an oppressive killing intent that pressed down on everything below, locking the area with a suffocating pressure.
"It's too late!" Haku braced himself, knowing what was coming and that he didn't have time to flee. Planting his paws, he screamed, "Darius, don't do it!"
Trayton, sensing the imminent danger, attempted to flee, but the crushing pressure from the sky slowed his movements to a crawl. Roaring in defiance, he gathered his shadow to shield his body.
Darius's eyes crackled with lightning, his face emotionless. But just as he was about to release the attack, his expression shifted. He frowned, slowly turning to look behind him.
"You've done enough." Marcus smiled gently, his entire body engulfed in golden flames. Before Darius could react, he thrust his rapier forward, shattering the barrier Darius had formed. In the same fluid motion, he lunged further, striking Darius at the base of the neck with an enormous shockwave of force.
As Darius collapsed, Marcus caught him effortlessly, cradling the unconscious form in one arm. The weight of the lightning mana still surged wildly around them, crackling dangerously. The massive energy, now without a focus, began to spiral out of control, threatening to backfire into Darius's body.
Marcus, his expression grim and focused, felt the overwhelming charge in the air. Without hesitation, he drove his rapier into the ground, his fire aura flaring to life with renewed intensity. Golden flames danced along the length of the blade as it acted as a conduit, drawing the rampant lightning mana away from Darius.
Channeling his own mana into the rapier, Marcus created a countercurrent, a controlled vortex that redirected the deadly energy. The lightning surged through the blade, which glowed white-hot, before being dispersed into the earth with a thunderous crack. The ground trembled as the energy was absorbed, the air sizzling with residual heat and sparks.
Marcus's leather armor, reinforced by manaforged gauntlets, vambraces, and sabatons, crackled as it absorbed some of the residual energy, the intricate runes along its surface glowing briefly before fading.
His breathing was calm, while his stance remained firm as he ensured that every last trace of the destructive mana was safely grounded. The storm overhead began to dissipate, the sky slowly clearing as the massive lightning palm dissolved into harmless arcs of light.
With the danger past, he carefully adjusted Darius's unconscious form, his gaze hard and determined. "Rest now, kid," he muttered, more to himself than to the unconscious Darius. "I'll finish this."
In a blink, his golden figure vanished and reappeared beside Haku. "Find the others and my son, and take them out of the city."
Setting Darius down gently, Marcus observed his long white hair as it slowly darkened back to its usual black, save for a single strip that remained white at the front. With a nod, Marcus disappeared again, leaving only a swirl of dissipating flames in his wake.
Haku blinked, momentarily taken aback by the sudden disappearance, then carefully picked Darius up, gently taking him into his mouth. He sniffed the air and with Darius secure, turned and bounded off towards where he sensed Crelos.
Appearing before Trayton's shrinking dome of shadows, Marcus stood patiently, his golden flames intensifying. His blond hair fluttered wildly around his face, animated by his raging aura, as if alive with the same fiery energy that erupted continuously from his eyes. His manaforged armor, now intricately etched with glowing lions, shone brightly against the surrounding destruction.
As the shadows receded further, Trayton's eyes widened in a mix of surprise and apprehension. "You sacrificed your potential," he accused, his voice echoing with disbelief, "why didn't you do this earlier if you were willing to go this far?"
"I purposefully didn't ascend, living longer just didn't appeal to me, and I was never one to blindly pursue strength. I'm sure the fear of outliving your child is lost on a creature like you, but now that you have taken him from me, you took away that fear... and replaced it."
With that, Marcus's flames erupted, a towering column of golden fire stretching into the sky. As the column expanded, it morphed into the majestic head of a lion, its mane billowing like the sun as it roared, intensifying the flames dancing throughout the ruined city of Floeur d'Alene.