Chapter 55: Seraph and Diablo

Estoff Wraith

Two hours before the sun was due to rise, morning broke once again. The sky still cloaked in darkness, yet the resplendent Seraph Dragon form of Elumina illuminated everything with its radiant light. The moon, overshadowed by the luminous aura emanating from my beloved, paled in comparison.

Descending upon a partially demolished, three-story building where Kyle had crashed, I witnessed the rooftop bearing the brunt of the impact. Dust and smoke billowed into the air, revealing the lunatic, his teeth clenched tightly as he struggled to regain his footing. The newly signed contract between me and my lover had stripped him of his right to harness Elumina's power.

Now, the time had come for him to face the consequences!

Kyle appeared to have suffered a broken left elbow and right knee, with a metal tube ominously impaled in his right kidney. Despite being wracked with agony, he mustered a wicked laugh. "MUHAHAHAHAHA! Beautiful! Truly astounding, Estoff Wraith, Elumina Cryst. The Vesryn Pulse of two lovers is undeniably God's greatest creation. I wager your compatibility rate is a perfect hundred percent."

Delving beneath his tattered General uniform, he retrieved a black pulsating object, roughly the size of a baseball. I had seen it before. It bore an uncanny resemblance to the heart of the zombie Black Phantom—an ominous, dismembered organ. "I never imagined I would engage in battle with both of you. Yet, this is the ideal scenario I have long yearned for! For years, Estoff, I have awaited this moment to steal Elumina away from me! It is PERFECT!" Disregarding the object's size, he promptly forced it into his mouth, swallowing it whole, without a single chew.

Kyle collapsed once again, this time writhing in excruciating chest pain. The sensation of choking overwhelmed him, and his skin began to tear apart, as if being shredded. Particle by particle, the outer layer of his body evaporated, revealing his muscular system in all its grotesque visibility. His eyes, now completely round due to the absence of eyelids, possessed an eerie and unsettling gaze. The pupils glowed with a sinister crimson light.

The General's screams grew louder as his body underwent a horrific transformation, akin to the power-ups seen in zombie movies. Six blood-soaked wings erupted from his back, while his form became swollen with bulging red muscles, turning him into a monstrous abomination standing at a towering seven meters, rivaling the dragonoid's formidable dragon form. Two massive black horns sprouted from his ears, spiraling like those of Satan himself. A long, spiked tail crashed through the second floor of the building, reducing it to ashes. With a powerful flap of his wings, he ascended into the air.

"W-What in the world?" I stammered, astounded by this unprecedented display of power. I had never witnessed anything like it. Was it the result of magic? Science? How had he attained a dragon form?

"THIS IS MY TRUE POWER, ESTOFF WRAITH!" Kyle's voice had transformed into a demonic resonance.

"I AM THE LIGHT BRINGER DRAGON, THE KING OF JUDGMENT!"

In each of the demonic dragon's hands, two dark orbs materialized, which he promptly hurled at us. Elumina displayed impressive aerial maneuverability, deftly evading all the occult projectiles launched by the enemy. However, the demon had an unexpected trick up his sleeve. His elongated jaws opened wide, unleashing a beam of crimson flames that struck the back of the Seraph Dragon.

The intense heat from the crimson flames caused my white dragon, Elumina, to unleash a painful scream. "Elumina!" I cried out. But she reassured me telepathically, "I'm alright, this is nothing for me," as she continued to whirl through the sky, maintaining her aerial grip.

A sudden blast of blue energy sliced through the Light Bringer Dragon's right wing. The powerful strike inflicted a first-degree burn on the formidable Diablo. It was Amphere's battered Deus Ex Machina, with only half of its ribs remaining, one functioning eye, and a lone surviving arm. Enraged, the Diablo charged a blazing red sphere in his mouth and unleashed it upon Amphere!

In its final act, Deus Ex Machina fulfilled its purpose—to protect its knight and dragonoid. The metallic titan's skeleton melted into a pool of shimmering mercury. Thankfully, Amphere and Airelina emerged unscathed from Kyle's last desperate assault.

A grave predicament confronted us. Elumina was not a dragon built for battle; her strength lay in healing and creating protective barriers. The only spell we could borrow from her was Lightsurge, but it required a light-infused sword, such as Kyle's slim blade or Reina's short sword. Furthermore, I had no knowledge of the incantation required to activate that spell. I doubted my own sword would have any effect against the demon either.

"We have a single attack that can defeat Kyle once and for all," Elumina conveyed through my thoughts.

"No, we can't," I shook my head, understanding her intentions all too well. Dracaryx. Activating Dracaryx meant halting Elumina's heart once again. She had already utilized it nearly twenty times before, and the next usage could cost her life. I refused to harm her.

"We have no choice! Do it, Estoff!" Elumina's imperative cry echoed in my mind.

"Promise me, Elumina... Promise me that you can endure this pain."

"I'm certain of it! Do it, my love!" For the first time in our lives, she stood beside me, commanding me to unleash an attack against Kyle. Those telepathic words filled me with both determination and a sense of bittersweetness. Inhaling deeply, I summoned every ounce of strength and shouted with unwavering conviction.

"DRACARYX! Activate Crusader Arrow!"

Elumina transformed back into her humanoid form, her eight wings still present. To ensure I wouldn't plummet, she lifted me by my armpits. My left arm moved of its own accord, aiming at the demonic dragon stationed fifty meters away. Suddenly, eight wings sprouted from my left arm, merging together to form an enormous white bow. With my right hand, I swept my fingers through the air, causing a golden arrow to materialize from the surrounding particles of light.

Noticing my preparations, Kyle let out a ferocious roar and lunged forward, desperately attempting to reach me before I could release my arrow. He launched two, three, four dark orbs, but all of them were effortlessly deflected by Elumina's protective barrier. It was too late for him; he had lost his speed. Now, he resembled nothing more than a sluggish, doomed bird.

"Be gone, Kyle Leviticus!" With unyielding resolve, I released the arrow from my grasp.

As the arrow soared through the air, mere milliseconds passed, during which it absorbed the latent energy of the wind, causing it to expand and grow in size. By the time it collided with the Light Bringer Dragon's forehead, it had transformed into a colossal projectile, resembling a regular dragon in its dimensions. The moment of impact triggered a burst of energy, engulfing the area in a golden, cross-shaped flame explosion that illuminated the entire Twilight City.

An earth-shattering explosion reverberated through the skies, unleashing a shockwave that swept across the land, conjuring swirling dust storms in its wake. The form of the demonic dragon dissipated, leaving behind a smaller figure—Kyle's humanoid body, hurtling downwards in free fall. Despite the dramatic descent, it wasn't enough to bring the deranged lunatic's existence to an end.

As Elumina and I landed on the ground, my immediate concern was for my former best friend, now trapped in a pitiful state. Kyle had already lost his limbs, leaving only his battered torso and head intact, albeit in a grotesque manner. Blood saturated the spot where he had crashed, while the right side of his face had been stripped of skin, exposing the horrifying extent of his injuries. His left eye had vanished.

With tears in his eyes, Kyle gazed at me, his amputated right arm raised weakly in an attempt to reach out. "Estoff... Before... I... die... Please forgive me..." He coughed, blood staining his lips. "Please forgive me for my sins..."

I stared at him, my heart heavy with pity. "I forgive you, my former best friend," I whispered. However, my words were soon followed by an action that contradicted them. Drawing a colt pistol from its holster on my back, I cocked it and aimed it directly at his forehead. "But Gilliard's pistol doesn't."

A barrage of gunshots resonated, the sound filling the air as I relentlessly discharged round after round into his lifeless body. I reloaded the weapon twice, mercilessly unloading my anger and hatred as if there were no tomorrow.

After venting my pent-up emotions, I returned to Elumina. She stood there, clutching her chest as if she had finally freed herself from the confines of barbed wire that had constricted her heart for an entire decade. As she caught sight of me, she rushed forward, enveloping me in a tight embrace, and let out a loud, tearful cry. I held her tightly in response, clinging to her like a koala, until a sense of unease crept over me.

Her skin felt cold against mine, and I couldn't detect the reassuring beats of her heart beneath my touch. A chill ran down my spine.

"I'm sorry, Estoff. I know you kept your promise to me, but I can't fulfill mine for you. I am so pathetic, you know," she said, her words accompanied by a smile.

And then, she collapsed onto the ground.