April and Lily stood off against Archer, understanding they need to beat him in a fight if they want to continue searching around for me, Heifer, and Nina. Archer stood before them with a smirk and aimed his bow at them, summoning a celestial arrow then chuckled softly, feeling his power and strength renewed.
"It's time for you to die, dear cousin of mine and August's worthless pest!" Archer laughed, launching waves of arrows toward the two of them.
Lily deployed her cross as a shield, blocking the arrows but grunted as she was being pushed back. April rushed forward, leaping toward Archer with a high speed kick but Archer dodged her attack, knocking her away with a kick. April grunted as she hit the ground, but recovered into a running start.
Black lightning flashed around April's body then she bolted toward Archer, rushing him with attacks from all directions, each strike trailing streaks of black lightning. Archer dodged every attack then launched April into the air with a powerful kick to her stomach. He aimed his how toward her, generating another celestial arrow, the arrow shining blue.
"Zodiac Arts: Gokuen.." Archer said, his tone cold and intimidating.
Archer's arrow began to become encased in blue flames surrounded with black energy. Before he could release his arrow, Lily dashed forward, swinging her cross and landed an attack upon Archer. Archer grunted as he was knocked back, missing his shot and the arrow hit a tall structure and exploded, forming a massive smoke cloud.
Lily hurried over toward April, catching her and grunting as she and April tell to the ground. They glanced at each other, giving each other smiles before helping each other onto their feet. Archer dusted invisible dust off himself, his gaze meeting April's and Lily's.
"So it seems that Absolute Attacks don't work here. This let's me know that this is no normal Domain...and this is not entirely my father's Domain," Archer said, placing a hand in his pocket.
"You're in a Gestalt Domain. In this Domain the control is Equalized, and Absolute Attacks don't work. Gestalt Domains are the result of two clashing Domains, creating a battlefield that tests your actual skills instead of the need to rely on hax alone," Rama explained, crossing her arms as she hovered behind April.
Archer looked around, noticing a few wormholes showing different Realms within th same Domain, understanding what she meant. He closed his eyes and hummed, now in deep thought. "That means your allies could be anywhere within Old Exzodia. Heh, that really sucks for you. They won't make it in time to save you all from certain death!"
Apollo chuckled as he watched Archer power up, noticing his blue fiery aura surging around his body. "Ahh this kid's a natural. Zodiac Knights, it's time you learn what it means to be a true Knight! Are you willing to die for your purpose?"
Lily stared at Archer, changing her cross into her Holy Spear. She twirled it around and got into her stance. "My cousin is too far gone now... Unlike Shelly who still had her light, Archer has none."
"What does that mean?" April asked, looking at Lily and her Crest of War shining on her hand.
Lily kept her gaze on Archer, her grip on her spear tightening. "He can not be Purified or Redeemed. He needs to be Sanctified. Smited.."
Lily dashed toward Archer as Archer aimed his bow toward them. Lily bellowed as she began rapidly deflecting his arrows then rapidly thrusted her spear at him, but Archer evaded each one, kicking Lily back then fired a Gokuen Arrow toward Lily. Lily changed her spear into a sword, roaring as she slashed downward, slicing the arrow in two and causing both pieces to fly by them, exploding upon hitting the structures behind them.
Archer laughed at Lily's shift in demeanor from compassionate and empathetic to serious and calculated. "So you can be more than a dumb generic healer? You have power I was unaware of. This will be interesting.."
Lily glared at Archer, lowering her sword. "You've given me no choice but to tap into my Warrior Angel side. Now I must show you that there is more to a Virgo than being a Holy Maiden..."
Archer smirked at Lily, chuckling darkly. "Show me then, cousin. Show me that strength you hide within."
Lily and April glanced at each other then looked toward Archer. April dashed forward, launching a swift roundhouse kick toward him but Archer evaded the kick and twirled his bow, changing it into a golden dagger and slashed at April's neck. April evaded the slash and grabbed Archer's wrist, twirling him behind her, bumping him forward.
Lily rushed forward, landing a slash upon Archer's torso and marked him. She kicked him back then handed her cross to Imogen, Imogen taking it and deploying it, firing lasers of Heavenly Energy into the air. Lily summoned her gauntlets, dashing forward with April and patting her back, marking her as well.
'Hm? She marked her own Ally? What could she have planned in that head of hers?' Apollo thought, sitting back and watching the battle from a distance.
Lily warped toward Archer and launched a swift punch toward his face, but he dodged it in time due to his Danger Sense and launched a counter strike. Lily warped behind Archer to his attack while April charged forward at high speeds. Archer noticed April and prepared to counter her, but Lily swapped their positions, surprising Archer and catching him off guard.
April rammed into Archer from behind knocking him into the air then Lily warped above him, kicking him to the ground. April knocked Archer away with a powerful Fury Strike, knocking him into a structure. Lily landed beside her and smiled then rushed forward with April hurrying behind.
Archer grunted as he got up, looking at Lily and April. He stood onto his two feet, his finger twitching and a large root rushed toward them. 'Domain Arts: Hymn of the Woodlands..'
April slid under the root while Lily leaped over the root, Lily warping the both of them in front of Archer. Archer locked eyes with them and a large root was generating, knocking them both away then Archer generated four arrows behind him, firing each one toward them at high speeds.
April caught the arrows and absorbed their flames and smirked at Archer. She took a deep breath, her eyes flashing brightly then the blew out a large purple fireball toward Archer. Lily ran past the fireball, subtly marking it with a tap then warped behind Archer.
"Not this time!" Archer bellowed, using his dagger to slash back toward Lily.
Lily ducked under his slash then smirked, swapping placed with the purple fireball and causing it to slam into Archer, a large explosion happening. Lily appeared next to April, standing up straight and adjusting her gauntlets. April and Lily gave each other a fist bump, pleased with their performance.
Archer let out a bellow, his dark aura surging powerfully around his body then he stomped his foot down, forming two orbs of blue fiery energy behind him. "Enough! I refuse to be beaten down by two weakling girls who think they are strong!"
"We don't think we are strong...We KNOW we are strong because unlike you, we have strength in numbers and trust between each other!" April retorted, getting into her stance then The Bloodshed Avatar formed behind her, allowing her to transform into her Warmonger Form.
"You can have your dark strength and dominance, but like every Dictator, every Assailant, every Dark Leader, they must fall! You will understand what true strength means! Now let's go! Enough talking, let's fight!" Lily bellowed, her light energy surging powerfully around her.
April and Archer noticed Lily's power evolving, Lily obtaining her second set of wings and transforming into an Ascended Angel. April looked at her with a mix of awe and excitement while Archer grit his teeth, now readying himself for Lily's evolved Zodiac Power.
'Evolution...Heh, this girl is starting to really interest me,' Apollo thought, chuckling to himself as he watched.
"Let's go, April!" Lily called out.
"Yeah!" April nodded, her smirk growing more wide.
Lily and April launched themselves toward Archer and Archer lunged forward, all three of them bellowing. They all clashed, Lily and April launching synchronized strikes at Archer but he blocked and evaded each strike, landing a clean uppercut to April's chin then knocking her back.
April rolled backwards then then recovering into a running start, black lightning flashing around her powerfully. She bellowed and rushed forward, her body becoming a bolt of lightning. Lily dodged Archer's next strike then warped out of the way, allowing Archer to get hit at lightning speeds by April.
"Zodiac Arts: Kukken Rush!" April bellowed, striking Archer from all directions at near invisible speeds.
Each strike launched Archer higher in the air, April's body a blur and flashes of black lightning. April appeared above Archer then swapped placed with Lily, Lily landing a powerful strike to Archer's back and knocking him to the ground. April roared as she charged forward, ramming into Archer then flipped backwards, her Zodiac Crystal shining brightly.
As Archer flew backwards, the lasers of light began crashing down upon him, generating explosions of light and weakening him even further. Archer groaned softly as he slowly stood up, his heart thumping and he sensed a dark presence behind him.
"You would make a fine ally..." A voice spoke to Archer, black fog faintly forming around Archer.
'Who...are you..?' Archer thought, noticing black fog forming around his body.
"I am...The God of Nothingness. Ryoya Balor...also known as Darkness. You will not win this fight, but that's alright. You and Apollo will join me and serve well for my purpose," Darkness said, looking forward to at April and Lily.
"Let's finish this, April!" Lily bellowed, her Zodiac Crystal shining brightly.
"Alright! Let's end this together!" April nodded, her Zodiac Crystal also shining brightly.
"Dual Zodiac Arts!" They both bellowed, a surge of Divine Earth and Fiery War energy spiralling around them. They formed a large spear of their combined energy, black lightning and Heavenly Energy spiralling around the spear. "Spear of the Holy War!"
They launched the spear toward Archer, the spear hurling toward him at high speeds. Darkness chuckled as he used his black clouds to protect Archer, causing a massive explosion of light and fire. Amidst the explosion, Darkness warped away with Archer and Apollo, escaping the domain through his void.
The smoke cloud cleared, April and Lily noticing Archer and Apollo gone. Noticing they had won the fight, they cheered and high fived each other, interlocking their fingers together, celebrating their important victory together. Rama, Imogen, and Mehira smiled at the two, satisfied with the results.
"Lily! April!" A voice called out to them.
Lily and April looked over to the source of the voice, noticing me, Nina, and Heifer hurrying toward them. They smiled and hurried over toward us, Lily hugging Nina tightly and April tackling me into a hug. Heifer smiled at our interaction then noticed April's gaze meeting hers and April pulling Heifer into a hug as well.
"I can't believe we got separated for a moment, but since the Zodiac Knights are all together again, we can find Nagini and Vinson together!" Lily said, smiling at each of us.
"Whoa, hold on. Did you just evolve? You have four wings now!" Nina exclaimed, her expression a mix of awe and wonder.
Lily looked at her wings and smiled, nodding and her gaze returned to Nina. "Mhm! I evolved when we were fighting against Archer, but we don't know where he ran off to now. He relinquished his Psychic Tanzanite to us and awakened a Dark Zodiac!"
"Seriously..? Like father, like son...both of them are just power hungry beyond relief. At least he's gone for now. We all suspect Vinson is at the castle in the distance, but we need to find the right wormhole to reach it," Nina said, holding her arms and looking around for any wormholes.
As we looked around, we noticed the area warping and the structures around us changing and shifting around. Suddenly, a masked figure in a tattered light brown hooded cloak appeared in front of us, her presence feeling if it was warping reality within the Gestalt Domain. The figure stared at us, generating four orbs of energy behind herself.
We stared at the masked woman, readying ourselves for a battle against the masked figure. I stepped forward, adjusting my gauntlets and my white clouds spiralled around my body. April, Lily, Nina, and Heifer all readied themselves for a battle, ready to follow my command and lead.
"Alright everyone...I hope you're ready. We have a Esso Alchemist on our hands. Are you all ready?" I asked, looking back at everyone.
"Yeah! I'm ready!" April nodded, getting into her stance.
"We're ready," Lily and Nina said, preparing themselves for battle.
Heifer's cloak flowed with the breeze, nodding her head. "I'm ready."
"Let's go!" I roared, launching myself toward the Esso Alchemist.
The alchemist warped out of the way of my initial attack, appearing beside me and kicking me away. She began dodging April's lightning fast strikes, warping reality and causing a large earth pillar to appear over April, dropping it down over her. Heifer charged forward to April's aid, summoning a barrier around herself and April, blocking the earth pillar then grunted as her barrier cracked under the pressure of the pillar.
A barrage of razor winds sliced the pillar, causing it to shatter as Nina flew by them and went straight for the alchemist. Nina launched a swift kick toward her, but she dodged her strike, landing a powerful blow to her stomach and knocking her back. Lily bellowed as she flew toward the woman, slashing her sword but noticed she phased through her body.
"Burst Skill: Sealed Heaven's Hail," The woman said, shooting one of her orbs in the air and opening a rift in the air, a Sacred Light shining down and a stream of divine energy blast began raining down upon us.
Lily deployed her cross, raising her arms in the air. "Zodiac Arts: Heavenly Storm!"
A barrage of light lasers were fired from Lily's cross, colliding with the endless stream of divine energy blasts. Lily grunted as the masked woman's attack began overpowering hers, but noticed silver aura surrounding her body.
"Conquest Arts: Victory Surge!" I bellowed, uplifting Lily's power with my Crest of Conquest.
The light lasers firing from Lily's cross began to transform into silver Celestial Arrows, now starting to push back the alchemist's attack. A bright light began to shine, blinding each of us and inhibiting our vision.
The light soon dimmed, my eyes opening and I noticed I was floating in another part of the city. I looked around, noticing only April with me. We noticed the alchemist appear in front of us, holding out her arms summoning her orbs.
"This Esso Alchemist seems to have control over the Phantom City which means she works for Vinson," April said, floating next to me and readying herself.
"Reality Warping is a tricky ability to counter, but it doesn't matter when I have the Abilities of an Ophiuchus Zodiac along with my Leo Ability and Conquest Abilities. Let's take her down, together," I said, readying myself for the second phase of the battle against the alchemist.
The second phase went underway as April and I flew toward the alchemist, launching synchronized strikes toward her, but the Alchemist warped out of the way of each strike. She launched her orbs at me, but I deflected them back, summoning my Conqueror's Bow and launching Celestial Arrows toward her at high speeds.
The woman warped reality, causing the arrows to disappear and sensed April's attack from above, swiftly moving out of the way. April stopped herself in midair, turning back and noticing the alchemist warp in front of her, landing a clean strike that sent her flying to the ground.
April felt a bed of white clouds form underneath her, cushioning her fall and looked up at me. "Thanks, August!~"
I smiled down at her then looked at the alchemist, rushing toward her and clashing with her. "Why are you doing this? What is your motive? Why are you working with Vinson?!"
The alchemist pushed me away with a powerful pulse of her aura, her gaze unwavering. "Working for Vinson? As if I would work for that pathetic human...I am here for you, August Eyica."
I watched as dark aura spiralled around the figure, revealing her true form to us. I didn't recognize her, but Leona did, immediately getting on the defensive with a low growl.
The woman exuded a dark and regal presence, combining elements of nobility and mystique. She had long, flowing midnight blue hair and striking pale eyes, which give her a serene yet powerful look. Her expression was calm and composed, exuding confidence and authority.
She wore a black dress with intricate designs, which added to her regal and somewhat gothic appearance. The dress was elegant and fitted, highlighting her slender figure. The blue accents on her dress provided a contrast that emphasizes her unique style.
She donned a dark, spiked crown that signified her royal status and high rank. The crown was an integral part of her appearance, suggesting that she holds a position of power and influence. She also carried a tall, ornate staff, which likely served as a symbol of her authority and possibly her magical abilities.
"My Knight, be careful...she isn't everything she appears to be. That is Melinoe, also known as Maliz. She is a Fallen Legend," Leona warned, her gaze fixated on Maliz with a burning intensity.
"A Fallen Legend? Like Darkness? Hm...so you also fell from grace huh?" I asked, my gaze meeting Maliz's directly. "Why do you want me? What is your goal in this?"
Maliz pointed her staff at me, giving me a smirk and licked her lips slowly. "You have a power that was only known by one man in the past. The Hero of Origin, Henosis. I want you to myself so I can unlock more of that power..."
"What?" I asked, genuinely confused and glanced between Sephora, Leona, and April, all three of them shrugging as they were just as confused as I was. I looked at Maliz once again, crossing my arms. "Unlock more of my power? And why would an enemy of mine want to help me?"
Maliz giggled softly, floating toward me and cupped my cheek into her hand. She leaned forward, whispering in my ear, her tone as smooth as honey. "Because if Darkness gets to you...he will just kill you before you can even know your true power..~ You need someone to unseal your Demon Abilities and I happen to be the daughter of the God of the Underworld, Hades..~"
I grunted softly as I couldn't help the slight shiver I got from her whispers. I didn't know what to say, my mind racing with questions as I tried to find any form of deceit on her words.
April grunted as she pushed Maliz away, holding my arm tightly. "Back off him! There's no way I'm letting you manipulate him, no matter how husky and seductive you make your voice!"
"You weren't even supposed to be in this part of the city. I only wanted August alone, but you happened to run to him last second before the blinding light. This is between me and him, so you back off," Maliz said, pointing her staff at April, preparing to warp her away.
I stopped Maliz, preparing my white clouds for an attack. "If what you say is true, I'll trust you for now...but only on one condition."
"My Knight—" Leona began then felt Sephora's hand on her shoulder. She looked at Sephora, noticing her reassuring smile.
Maliz looked at me and placed a hand on her hip. "I'm listening.."
"You listen to everything I say. You're still a Fallen Legend and I can have you roaming around freely around me without someone keeping you in check. You may very well betray us in the future, so I'm keeping those chances low as I will be the one to watch you," I said, lowering my white clouds and hand.
Maliz's eyes sparkled with glee as she listened to my condition. She nodded, accepting my conditions and giggled darkly. "I accept..~ I'll listen to all of your commands..~"
April groaned softly, glancing at me. "I don't know about this. She is still a Fallen Legend at the end of the day..."
"I know...but I'm still in the process of self-discovery and getting Unsealed. She's a Demon essentially so she could very well help me unlock my Demonic Abilities. I'll be sure she stays loyal for as long as I can," I assured, looking down at April with a reassuring smile.
April nodded, holding my arm tighter then glanced at Maliz. "I hope you're right about this..."
"Alright Maliz. Warp us to the castle if you can or at least to the wormhole leading to the castle. Make sure my allies are also there. We have a Headmaster to kill so we can leave this Domain," I said, looking at my Gauntlets and seeing my Crest of Conquest flashing slowly, signalling I was on the last stretches of this form.
"Alright~ Stay close~" Maliz giggled, warping reality and warping us in front of the wormhole leading to the castle.
Nina, Lily, and Heifer looked around, noticing they were in front of the wormhole and saw us in front of them. They noticed Maliz and quickly readied themselves for a battle.
"Hold your horses, ladies. She's with me. Meet, Melinoe," I said, keeping Maliz's true identity a secret for now.
Maliz waved at them, feigning a sickening sweet smile at them. "Hello, sorry I attacked you all earlier~ I just...wanted to test your abilities before you all decided to fight against Vinson."
Nina gave Maliz a skeptical gaze, crossing her arms. "Mmm...it's alright I suppose. A warning would've been great."
Once everyone got acquainted with Maliz, I stepped forward toward the portal, bracing myself for the final battle to finally put an end to St. Meishi. "Alright everyone. This is it...once we kill Vinson...St. Meishi would be destroyed. The war against the institution will be over. Are you all ready?"
Everyone glanced at each other, nodding and showing their readiness. With everyone ready, we stepped inside the portal and there was no turning back. It was time to fight against Headmaster Vinson.