THE SKY BURNS..
The moment Elias spoke the words—"I don't kneel"—the heavens split apart.
The great did not wait.
They did not hesitate.
The sky churned, gold and black swirling like a living storm. Divine power crackled through the air, thick enough to suffocate lesser beings.
Lightning rained down, each strike splitting mountains, ripping the earth apart.
And in the center of the destruction, Elias stood unshaken.
Seraphina clung to the edges of his cloak, her breath unsteady. Her fingers trembled, but her eyes were sharp. "They're furious."
Elias's jaw clenched, flames flickering beneath his skin. "Let them be."
Because now, it was his turn.
VARIAN JOINS THE FIGHT..
A golden barrier erupted around them, shielding them from the first wave of divine wrath. The force of impact cracked the ground beneath them, but the shield held firm.
A blur of movement—then Varian landed beside Elias.
His hands glowed with intricate golden runes, magic thrumming through his veins. He exhaled sharply, dust swirling around him.
"You really don't know how to stay out of trouble, do you?"
Elias smirked, rolling his shoulders. "Wouldn't be fun if I did."
Seraphina shot them both a glare. "Now is not the time for jokes!"
But beneath her frustration, relief flickered in her gaze.
She was alive.
She was here.
And Elias would make sure she stayed that way.
THE GODS DESCEND...
The storm twisted, shadows coiling into three shifting figures.
The remaining gods.
They had no true forms—just flickering masses of light, shadow, and absolute power. Their presence alone distorted reality, bending space itself to their will.
But it was their eyes that burned with something more than divinity.
Rage.
The tallest god stepped forward. His voice, deep and resonant, echoed through existence itself.
"You have crossed the line, Valen."
Elias's fingers twitched, flames licking at his knuckles
"Then I'll cross it again."
The god's hand rose—
And the world collapsed.
THE FIRST CLASH..
Elias barely had time to react before the attack hit.
A force like a collapsing sun slammed into him, sending him crashing through stone and ruin. Entire structures crumbled under the impact.
Seraphina gasped, moving to run toward him
But Varian caught her wrist. "Stay back!"
Elias coughed, dust and fire swirling around him as he forced himself upright. His body ached—but the fire in his veins burned hotter.
The gods weren't holding back.
Neither would he.
He exhaled sharply, and with a flick of his wrist—
The battlefield changed.
The ruins of Auris twisted, shifting under his will. The land bent to him, reshaping into a battleground of his choosing.
The gods had their domain.
Now, this was his.
And in his domain—
He would win.
SERAPHINA WON'T BE LEFT BEHIND...
Seraphina's heart pounded as she watched Elias move like a force of nature.
But she refused to be a spectator
She turned sharply to Varian. "I'm fighting."
Varian's gaze darkened. "Seraphina—"
"No!" Her voice was steel. "I won't just stand here!"
This wasn't just Elias's battle.
This was hers too.
Before Varian could stop her, she was already moving.
Already fighting.
A KING AGAINST THE GODS...
Elias met the first god's strike head-on.
Their forms blurred—faster than thought. Magic clashed, thunderous shockwaves ripping through the ruins.
The second god conjured chains of celestial light, unbreakable bonds meant to imprison him for eternity.
Elias snapped them apart with a thought.
The third god unleashed a storm meant to erase him from existence.
Elias walked through it.
He had become something beyond their understanding.
But there was still one problem.
They weren't fighting to kill him.
They were fighting to contain him.
THEY FEAR WHAT HE IS BECOMING...
Varian realized it first.
He whispered, voice tight. "They're not trying to destroy him."
Seraphina frowned. "Then what—?"
Varian exhaled sharply. "They're trying to lock him away."
Seraphina's breath hitched. "Because they know they can't win."
Varian's expression darkened, his grip on his runeblade tightening. "No. Because they know if he keeps going—
His gaze flickered toward Elias, who burned brighter than a dying star.
"—he might become worse than them."
Seraphina's heart clenched.
Elias was winning.
But at what cost?
THE LAST GOD'S WARNING...
The battlefield froze.
The tallest god suddenly stepped back, raising a single hand.
Everything—the wind, the flames, the very air itself—came to a standstill.
Even Elias hesitated.
Then, the god spoke.
"Valen, listen to me."
Elias stiffened.
Something in that voice—not power. Not wrath.
Something else.
Fear.
Elias frowned, his flames dimming slightly. "What are you talking about?"
The god's silver eyes dimmed.
His voice, once unshaken, now trembled.
"You are not the greatest threat to us."
"The true enemy is waking.
A WAR BEYOND THE GODS...
For the first time—
Elias felt it.
Something beyond him.
Beyond the gods.
A pulse of energy, ancient and cold. Older than creation itself.
Watching.
Waiting.
It stirred in the abyss—a presence Elias had never noticed before.
The gods were afraid.
And suddenly—he understood why.
Because this was not the final war.
It was just the beginning.