Chapter 86: To Protect

"Alegria, huh?" Kiora inquired as she hopped down from her perched position. "It's a shame. I didn't think that takeover woman would beat Sayla, let alone take her from me... if Daityas thinks that's a failure on my part, he's sadly mistaken. Besides, Marde should be enough for the hungry bastard anyways." She began walking through the now empty halls until Marde's voice rung through like an echo. "Speak of the demon." She said, still wandering the lonely halls. She made an annoyed face, having Marde in her mind unwillingly. But, the ultimatum he made caused her to raise a brow and hesitate for a second. "Kyuukimon, huh? Become one of the nine gates? Tempting, but I have my own motives in case Daityas fails us, or worse... I wonder if anyone of ours would actually take that bait? If it was anyone to do so...I would say..."

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She gripped her Claymore Sword tightly in her left hand, and in her right, a surge of blue lightning resonated. Launching her hand forward, Skye fired off a surging line of that blue lightning directly for the Dimensional Demon, Rugal. That was for naught however, as a simple swipe of his blade erased the Magic attack effortlessly. "Tch!" Skye sucked her teeth, skidding to a halt past Rugal before launching herself forward once more. Once again, that blue surge of lightning became present. This time as she charged forward, the Blade Requip Mage kept both hand and blade by side, yet to reveal which she would attack with as she ever drew closer.

"You can't dodge my Dimensional blade forever." Rugal boasted. "One by one, I'll be painfully splitting your limbs into pieces, and sending them to random locations...leaving nothing but your head for Marde-Sama to hang upon the guild's entrance!"

Upon his exclamation, Rugal swung at the close ranged Skye Ravenwood — a horizontal swing with his deadly sword. Just in time, Skye quickly evaded, eyes now focusing on the wide open Rugal as she launched her lighting infused hand forward, straight for his sternum. It seemed like a direct line to his chest, but Skye pulled back at the last second thanks to her quick reflexes and reaction time, for just as fast, Rugal's sword reappeared before him, held in front of him in an attempt to parry the incoming strike. Skye pulled back at the very last second, eyes widened as she came to a desperate skidding to halt her momentum and to keep herself from touching they forsaken blade.

"But..how did he recover so fast!?" She asked, rolling off to the side to regain distance between herself and Rugal. By demonstration, Rugal answered her question by causing the Dimensional Blade to disappear yet reappear in his hands in a flash. It caused her to bare her teeth in frustration as Rugal looked on with a condescending drawl. "You use that lightning for paralysis, correct?" He asked, already knowing the answer. "That won't work against me. You don't have the ability to get that close to me. But you are wasting my time, and I have to finish you before anyone else comes to make the claim of your head. I will become Kyuukimon, and you're my ticket to."

This caused Skye to raise a brow as she slowly raised herself to a readied stance. "That Marde person? You want to be one of them? What happened to Daityas?"

"Nothing at all." Rugal replied. "But it's obvious that no one knows the outcome of this battle between demons. Either side could win, so why not claim both sides just in case? Once I bring you and that boy's corpse to Marde, I'll have the insurance I need to make sure I survive this war, and Rugal the Dimensional Demon shall walk Earthland for eternity."

At the mention of the "boy" behind her, Skye looked back to remember that she was also protecting Kuro during this fight with Rugal. "I can beat him..." She thought to herself. "I can...but his curse makes it hard to land a hit. His sword just lets him transport me or my magic anywhere he pleases and I can't risk that.. Can Claymore take that? I can't risk it...I mean, Claymore did survive the demon's rejuvenation chamber but..."

"Now, let's finish this!" Rugal shouted, rushing towards Skye at breakneck pace. She took a step back, gulping once as she gripped the hilt of her sword tightly. "Only one way to find out!" She said aloud. "I'm sorry, Claymore!" Upon her exclamation, Skye unsheathed her blade to collide with Rugal's own, and the outcome was unforeseeable yet a positive in Skye's favor. The grin on Rugal's face was apparent, but it then disappeared within an instant upon realizing that her blade still remained intact despite his own weapon's cursed properties. "What!? How!? My Dimensional Blade should have erased your sword!"

Upon hearing his words, a desperate Skye Ravenwood opened her eyes, noticing that not only was she and Rugal in a stalemate, and not only was her Claymore Sword still intact, she and the demon then noticed the black marking swirling around her sword — from its hilt to the tip of her blade.

"Etherious?!" Rugal questioned, and it was just that. Skye looked on in awe for a few seconds before finally regaining her confidence with a grin upon her features. Her Sword Requip gained Etherious properties from the rejuvenation tanks; there was no doubt about it. As Rugal swung again just to make sure, Skye parried once more by holding her blade in a vertical manner by her left side. The two weapons would collide, creating the same action as before.

"Impossible!" He shouted, held within the stalemate between himself and Skye. "You're still Claymore..." She said, eyeing her blade as if it was a person. "But...I guess you're Claymore: Etherious Mode now! Does this make me the strongest weapon wielder now!?" She shouted the question aloud, causing Rugal to show visible anger. "Don't disregard the opponent right before you! This doesn't change the outcome!"

"You're right!" Skye shouted back as she pushed against Rugal's Dimensional Blade, causing him to stumble back a couple of steps. "Because I was always going to win this fight! This upgrade just made it that much easier!" And upon her boastful exclamation, Skye was lightfooted, sprinting directly towards an unbalanced demon in her path.

"You brat!" Rugal shouted, swinging his Dimensional Blade in a downward motion, only for Skye to slide off to the side in order to avoid it cleanly. Without losing any momentum, Skye then side flipped into the air, feet pressing hard against the ceiling before launching herself towards Rugal like a rocket with her right hand clutched tightly against the hilt of her Claymore Sword. Her left hand began sparking a familiar blue hue. Rugal's eyes widened, but unfortunately he has yet to retrieve his bearings ever since Skye reveled the ability to wield the Etherious. "I told you! That stunt won't work on me!" He shouted, swinging his blade once more for Skye's left arm. Just as the former assassin expected, Skye now twisting her body to avoid the incoming blade without losing any momentum. Landing on her feet, Skye quickly turned, swinging her own blade for Rugal's side. The demon used his curse ability to cause his sword to appear just in time for the parry, but again this is exactly what Skye predicted, and the grin on her features signified that.

The second two bounds of blades clashed, Skye slipped under, and with that raging, sparking bundle of blue within her left hand, she slammed it against Rugal's chest. The demon cried out in pain, unable to move just long enough for the assassin to leap up before him with her blade held over her head. "Goodbye Demon!" She shouted, swinging the Claymore Sword downward at an angle. It was a direct hit, slicing right against Rugal's chest and creating a large gash as the demon cried out hysterically.

"A direct hit!" Skye shouted, but as Rugal continuously stumbled backwards, the White Eclipse faithful dropped her positive manner and kept a vigilante expression as the demon's screams of pain turned into vicious howls of anger. The entire vicinity began to rumble, and soon after, portal after portal began opening, devouring, sucking in everything in their radiuses. "H-Hey!? What are you doing!? You're destroying everything!" Skye shouted, but upon a second look, she could see that Rugal was now in a blind rage, attempting to take the entire place with him apparently. Skye's gradually began sliding towards him against her will, noticing yet another portal opening before her. The pull became stronger with each portal, and even with her blade stabbed into the ground, she was losing distance and ground when it came to saving herself from the voids Rugal was creating.

"I can beat this! I can, but I have to hurry before the portals become too strong! I'm losing time, but if I stay here any longer."

Upon the realization of her own words. Skye began running towards the screaming Rugal, both hands tightly wrapped around the hilt of her blade. "Full speed, Skye! Don't look down! Don't look back! Don't!" She chanted to herself, keeping her eyes on Rugal and Rugal only as she ran forward — despite her speed slowing each time she passed a portal. "Almost there...!" She said, nearing Rugal. Once she reached melee range, Skye leapt towards the blindly raged demon, but as she held her sword over her head, Rugal grinned as another portal opened up just before himself and Skye.

"You idiot! Did you really think I went into a blind rage!? Your overconfidence is now your downfall! Fall into despair and darkness!" Rugal laughed viciously, and with widened eyes, Skye quickly came to the realization that she was in fact helpless. "I messed up..." She whimpered in her mind, inches away from falling into Rugal's portal until..it disappeared. Or rather, it was burned away.

"What!?" Rugal shouted, and from the corner of her eye, they both could see him.

Black markings crawled up his exposed left bicep and forearm, all the way to his hand as he slowly panted. Now grinning towards Skye, the awakened Kuro who was once slumbering within the rejuvenation tank stood again, leaving them both in awe.

"You burned through my portal!? I-impossible!" Rugal shouted. "You have Etherious too!? It's all over you! You shouldn't be able to breathe with that much contaminating you! How!?"

"Skye, finish!" Kuro shouted, and with a firm nod and smile the assassin turned back to Rugal with one mighty swing of her demonic blade. "NOOOO!" Rugal shouted the entire way through until yet another gash appeared. This time with Rugal's blood gushing out like a faucet, the demon fell over nearly lifeless.

With a smile on his face, as Skye landed on the other side of the fallen demon, Kuro kept himself up against the wall next to him. He gave her a thumbs up, but suddenly their post victory gestures ended as Rugal mysteriously caught fire. "Huh? Kuro, that's overkill!" Skye shouted, wrongfully accusing Kuro as the demon shouted out in immense pain. "That's not me!" Kuro shouted back, but the second it did, his eyes widened as he realized exactly who it was, and there he was, creeping around the corner with that partner grin upon his face. His attention however remained on Rugal and no one else despite the fact he was in the same room with Kuro and Skye.

"Playing both sides, are we, Rugal?" Daityas asked, standing over him as he continued to burn his lackey to a crisp. Rugal couldn't answer, too busy in irrational pain to form a coherent word let alone an explanation for his actions. That's when Daityas grabbed him by the collar, lifting him from the Hell's Flames he created. "Do you not have faith, Rugal? Did you really think that Marde stands a chance against me? That hurts...that hurts a lot. To know that my own camp just doesn't believe in me anymore. Are you the only one? Or are there more, Rugal?" The question lingered in the air with a dead silence until Daityas released a yell that startled everyone who was conscious. "ANSWER ME!" He shouted, knowing damn well Rugal didn't have the ability to answer him. That's when he started laughing that demonic laugh of his, and Rugal's body not only began to disappear, but became merely the raw form of Etherious, flowing into Daityas as he savored the euphoric feeling.

"Wh-What are you doing?!" Kuro asked, half scared, and half angry at the demon before him, who betrayed his trust so long ago. "I'm tired of explaining it already." Daityas replied. "Just know that Rugal is no longer with us."

Laughter continued, and as seconds passed, Rugal completely disappeared, and the thickness in the air grew. Daityas flexed his right arm a few times before holding it extended. From his open palm, he created the one thing Rugal excelled at...a portal. "It seems my crew is really letting me down. It doesn't seem like they were ready for this battle. Good thing I had a contingency for such a thing anyways. Now, if you'll excuse me you brand new demon slayers.."

The comment caused brows to raise as Kuro looked at his body and Skye at her sword. "...I have a few more subordinates and traitors to collect...and a King of Hades to destroy."

"We have to stop him!" Kuro shouted, immediately running after him in hopes to find Daityas, only for Skye to call his name while running after him.

{ E}

Lucy found herself in a flooded area, surfing on a wooden board as she, Loke and Virgo fought off Jackal and Torafusa of the Demon Gates along with Lamy. It seemed close to a done deal, the power of the Kyuukimon proving to be too much for Lucy and her spirits until.. just before Torafusa could land a decisive blow on Loke, a dark arrow slammed into his chest. One then hit Jackal and Lamy as well, causing them to fall into the raging water below.

"What was that..!?" She asked, but as she turned to see who was the culprit for apparently saving her life, her eyes widened once more as they met another pair. One red, and one blue, those eyes shared space with a sly smirk as she spun her cursed keys within her hand. Standing next to her was a Celestial spirit of her own. A warrior with three stars on his belt, a bow and arrow in his hands and a sword sheathed against his hip. "Lucy Heartfilia. I've waited so long for this."

"You're a part of Tartarus!" Lucy shouted as she unwillingly neared her. "But, who are you?"

The question caused her to chuckle a bit, holding up another key as it began to glow a dark illumination. "My name is Ruika. I'm the Celestial demon from Daityas's camp. And I'm here to settle a score between our spirits. Prepare yourself...

Lucy Heartfilia!"