Iemis fumbled his step a bit as he stepped forth from a portal he created to take himself quickly to Theapan's Temple. The very place the world tree once stood tall. His entire body collapsing into the pool of holy water that had been left behind. As the cool liquid mana soaked into his body he could feel his condition becoming more content.
I wish I could be there to help you, Shides. Be careful, my friend. Iemis thought deeply about the situation that he had left Shides behind to deal with. A heavy wave of worry coming over him.
Meanwhile Shides had no idea that Iemis had already fled the heavenly realm while he was confronting Chynir directly.
If he had it would not have changed his decision to stand up for Iemis. He would still buy time for him to get away without him when it came to protecting the eldest god.
Chynir was not like Shides, who could not sense that Iemis's presence had left already, his own overwhelming presence was making it difficult for Shides to notice and that only made Chynir laugh out loud, "It seems you failed to notice. He has already forsaken you!"
Iemis? Shides concentrated harder on sensing him but found that he was no longer within his range to sense. He left the heavenly realm again.
"He has no reason to remain behind and help me. I told him to not get involved." Shides tried to justify why Iemis was not there to help him. He could not allow Chynir to realize how weak Iemis was becoming.
Crrrraaacckkkk!
A loud crackling noise could be heard from above as the thunder rolled across the sky. Lightning scattered and crackled in colorful sparks. It was like dancing lights in the sky that wanted to engulf the whole area.
"How about we test that loyalty of yours! Do you think it can keep you alive this time?" Chynir asked while his body dashed forward. Electricity sparking out from his body as it moved in Shides's direction without hesitation.
Shides swung his flute up to his lips and quickly played a tune. At the sound of the song a large sound wave vibrated through the air. The ground between the two of them shattered as a large crevice broke open from the ground. Chunks of ground shot up like bullets in Chynir's direction.
Dodging the most fatal blows from the chunks that flew at him, gashes were sliced open on his face and body as Chynir continued to move. Chynir was the second eldest god. He had endured many kinds of pain in his lifetime. In his own mind nothing could compared to the things he had experienced. Definitely.
"Parlor tricks wont help you!" Chynir shouted as he found himself jumping over the large crevice in the ground and coming face to face with Shides.
Chynir's fist shot forward right into the center of Shides's stomach. The sparks of electricity in his arm solidified more. Becoming stronger the shock was sent right into Shides on impact.
BAM!
Shides's body impacted backwards against a large bolder. The bolder cracked and broke apart from the sudden impact behind him. It felt as if all the bones in his body were about to break. His breathing was quickly becoming ragged.
"There will truly be no possible redemption for you if you do this," Shides struggled to calm the enraged god before him, "Chynir, you must think about this carefully."
Chynir laughed as he played with the electricity at the palm of his hand, "I have thought about it. I thought about how to kill you for trying to get in my way."
"You will only get yourself killed in the end." Shides knew that, no matter how bad things got, the path Chynir was on would only lead to his own death one day.
Chynir only smirked silently for a moment before replying to Shides, "A man with nothing left to lose in his life, has nothing to fear before his approaching end."
"There is always something left to lose in your life no matter how empty things may seem." Shides could not help but respond with his honest opinion. He understood why Chynir had given up on himself. There was no way he would be unaware of the time in Chynir's life when things took a drastic turn for him. It was also something he knew he could never understand the pain behind it because he would never go through a similar experience. Nor would he want to.
It was not something he would wish on anyone. Not even the person he hated most. Even if that person themselves was the god that stood before him.
Standing up from the rubble of the bolder he crashed into. Shides dusted himself off and readied his stance with the flute while watching Chynir ponder over his words carefully as if they had struck a nerve.
"Heh. How ridiculous this truly has become." Chynir reached the palm of his hand out to the side as a lightning bolt took form in the grasp of his hand.
Swinging his arm, Chynir sent the lightning bolt straight in Shides's direction. The flash of light shooting through the air was blindingly bright. It was impossible to see a thing. A feint sound of flute music could be heard beneath the sound of explosion.
Banngggg! ZZzzzp! Zzzp!
The lightning had struck violently against a barrier created by the sound waves of Shides's flute. The collision of the two together caused sparks of purple and green electricity to shower around the ground from the sides of the barrier. A beautiful scene and yet a deadly one as Shides struggled to protect himself from Chynir's lightning.
BANGGG! BANNGGGG! BANNGGGG!
Chynir's lightning began to rain down from above at the same time. He continued to throw bolts of lightning with his own hands. The barrier was beginning to waver as Shides played his flute as best as he could to keep his barrier up.
Overwhelming pressure on the barrier was causing it to crack. They were small cracks at first. He knew that even if they were small; it was a sign that his barrier was beginning to fail. Thinking as hard as he could Shides tried to come up with a way out of the situation.
No. There is no way out of this situation. That realization settled deep into his mind in that very moment.
CRASH!
The barrier shatter like glass all around Shides. Many bolts of lightning came at him from all directions. There were more then he could count in that instance. Time moved too quickly for him to find a way out.
Shides could feel the thousands of bolts of electricity surging throughout his body as the lightning collided right into him. A shrieking scream escaped his throat without a thought. His flute lost from his grasp fell towards the ground beneath his feet.
As the electricity began to subside he found himself unable to stand any longer. His insides felt charred to the core. If it was not for his existence as a god he would have died instantly from that attack.
Thud.
Shides fell to his knees as his eyesight was hazy. He could still make out the figure of Chynir standing before him. Taking slow steps towards where he had knelt down the figure of Chynir began to kneel down to his level.