Here I am!
Surprised at the much shorter length? Yeah, so am I.
Asgore: Decisions have been made, and what would have been yet another super long chapter has been cut in half. Four events that would have happened in this chap have been reduced to two.
Sans: it was a rough call to make.
Papyrus: THOUGH WE BELIEVE IT MAY WORK OUT FOR THE BEST!
Decided to take it easy on the super long chapters, at least for this one and the next. I kinda made it easier for me this way. Hopefully you don't mind too much for the time being. I just really wanted to get this out.
Also, Happy Halloween to those who celebrate it! This chapter has no spooks of that nature though. Maybe Toxin's nature can help pick up that aspect!
Chapter Start!
Foul.
That's the aura that Toxin gave off with his very presence. Completely, utterly, foul. It was like the very air was tainted with his very presence, and getting too close to him would make someone gag, then cough from the sheer amount of malevolence that tainted his already putrid magic that made everyone around him incredibly hesitant to approach him, let alone speak or even look at him.
Yet he still had the gall to stare them all down with a stupid grin on his face, as if nothing was wrong and he didn't just impale Sans on the end of his tail and toss him aside as if he were a bag of trash. Normally him being the size of a trash can would be a pretty funny jab at him in terms of pure banter, but it definitely wasn't funny right now.
Mostly because of the whole being impaled by a poisoned tail kind of thing. Were it normal poison, it might not have done very much against a skeleton monster like Sans. Too bad it was magic, and he felt like he was falling apart from the inside, hence why he was tightly clenching his chest where the tail impaled him.
s-such pain..pain pulsing through my entire body...feeling so weak..weaker than ever. can't even...push myself up...to try attacking this jerk... Sans grits his teeth as he tries to continue fighting, only to fall flat on his face. He swore he heard that poisonous reptile laugh at his expense when that happened, and grew even more frustrated with him.
Darkness was gazing at his old ally now enemy with fear apparent in his eyes. But accompanying that intense fear, was even more intense anger. For all of his fear of Toxin and what he might do, the fact that he went after one of his friends first was enough to ignite a fierce fire in his soul. Yes, he sould resist Toxin no matter how scared he was of him, because things were much different now than they were back then. But even now, a small voice in Darkness's mind expressed very clear relief in the fact that he was targeted first, and not either of his cousins.
What worries him is that Toxin might go after them regardless if he happens to fall against him. Which means he wasn't allowed to fall. That is, if that was truly Toxin's intention. The only thing he knew for sure was that he was the poison dragon's target. Either way, that was definitely a bad sign. No one should ever be the focus of a person like him.
The poison dragon smiled cruelly at his old ally, head tilted in childlike friendly wonder. Darkness saw right through it, and didn't buy it for a moment.
"Come now, Darkness. We're old friends. We should greet each other as such, shouldn't we?" Toxin asked with a casual open armed pose, almost as if he sought a hug. It was pretty obvious how much of a bad idea it was.
"Toxin...what are you really doing here...?" Darkness asked cautiously, still very much worried as other fights were were going on around them. He knew so long as Toxin was currently in front of him, he couldn't help the others.
"Hmm...good question." Toxin tilted his head and rubbed his chin. "I was kinda here to see the sights and enjoy the scenery. But Karma is looking to wreck that, so that's soon going to be not very possible for long. Unless tou and your friends happen to stop them. Or you don't. I'm honestly good with either outcome, so long as I get quite a bit of intel on several things. Oh, also to give you and your cousins your comeuppance for your betrayal. The guys at the top ordered that one, which I was willing to do for free."
"Toxin, you all were the ones who cast us out!"
"Indeed. And then you go and join who is shaping up to be one of their biggest and most dangerous enemies. Truly, Darkness. You should have known this was coming." Toxin explained with a sigh and shake of his head. "You could have stayed by my side, and have avoided all of your suffering. But you chose the worst of times to regain your conscience. It only makes your suffering worse."
"Do you even hear yourself?!"
"My ears are fully functional, so I'll say yes." Toxin replied with a clinical tone, one that made Darkness flinch. He remembered s time when he sounded exactly like that. It was a time he never wanted to go back to. "Buuut...that's neither here or there. I know what I want to do and why I want to do it. So try not to stall anymore, Darkness."
That warning was all Darkness needed, as he suddenly ducks backwards th th av the claws tainted with poison that Toxin tried to clash his face with. He barely managed to dodge it in time.
"Oh, there's quite a good reason why I decided to come after you first. Sure I wanted to see how guilty you'd feel if I hurt Tempest and Lunar in your place." Toxin smiled oozed with malevolence. "But I figured, I'd have a much better time confronting you directly. Because of the three of you, you're still the worst when it comes to fighting someone head-on, aren't you?"
"Tch!"
Toxin slashed with his claws again, which Darkness ducked under, then rolled away when Toxin's tail stabbed into the ground he was just placed, which cracked and splintered it greatly. Toxin rubbed his chin as his tail returned to him, smiling.
"Ah, I was right. Still not very suited for combat like those two are. One of the key reasons why you in particular weren't very favored among dragons. The talent of fighting just didn't connect with you, it seems. More of a thinker and inventor, you are." Toxin lashed out again as several slashes of his claws attempted to gouge out of his eyes. "Fortunately I didn't fall far into that lull like you did."
"I can still hold my own!" Darkness shouted as he flicked his tail upwards, with a torrent of flames following right after, nearly getting Toxin in the chin.
"Oh! You weren't kidding!" Toxin beamed in surprise. "Looks like our catching up will be quite entertaining!" He grinned readily. "Unfortunately, Rebecca will still have to suffer an expression of heartbreak and despair before I leave. I've made it a requirement. I'll just be changing what causes it and what it leads to..."
Darkness certainly didn't like the sound of that, and aimed to stop it to the best of his ability.
Asgore bursts from the ground after the latest attack buried him briefly in the ground. He breathed heavily, with bits of blood running down his head, but he otherwise seemed to have shrugged a majority of the damage off. He mostly got up because he sensed that Sans was in critical danger.
He was correct, as the short skeleton was on the ground, clutching his chest with several struggling breaths. He was immediately by his side in a moment.
"Sans! What happened to you?!" Asgore asked with clear worry, hefting him into his arms.
"ah...got blindsided by a new dragon...seems to be one of the ones darkness would rather forget..." Sans struggled to explain while pushing away the urge to pass out. Which was funny in a way, for he'd like nothing more than to sleep off this current string of trouble. "impaled me through the tail. might have broken several of my ribs...not to mention the poison..."
"Poison?!"
"yeah. the guy has poison magic...and it works pretty well on skeletons, apparently. found that part out the hard way..." Sans grunted. "can barely...lift my fingers...without agonizin' pain coursin' through my bones..."
"Hold on, Sans, I'll get-"
Asgore was cut off as Keter bounced towards them off of another rune he formed, preparing to slash down on his back with his rune coated sword. Asgore narrowed his eyes as he turned halfway to parry the slash with his trident ignited in flames. The rune coated sword was coated with cold ice, causing the coldness and the heat to clash quite fiercely.
"Excuse me, Keter. I have no time for this, for my friend is gravely injured; I will have to ask you to cease your interruption." Asgore declared strongly. Though he knew the human man wouldn't truly heed id words, hence why he had the flames on his trident intensify even further, to the point that it melted through the ice runes and forced Ketee to retreat backwards. "Though, I'm quite certain you will ignore my plea regardless."
"If you're so certain of that, why do you bother requesting anyway?" Keter asked.
"I have to at least try. If for Rebecca's sake as well as yours." Asgore replied, keeping Sans close by. "Although, I do admit to having my patience being tested in such a manner when bystanders are at risk of getting caught in the crossfire. Something you clearly seem to ignore."
"Did someone say fire?"
Keter was barely able to block the fiery punch from Efreet that came from his right. And even then, it was forceful enough to knock him off his feet and send him tumbling across the ground. He recovered quickly as he landed on his feet, his sliding stopping to a halt. Efreet landed beside Asgore, timely followed by Gerson, and three of them glared at the man intensely. At the same time, Marid, Jinn, and Shaitan appeared by his side, still emotionlessly following his commands.
"Keter. You have clearly lost your way, with no desire to return. Thus, I see fit to burn you into nothingness, for Rebecca's sake." Efreet says calmly while his flames intensified off of his body. "It will make Rebecca weep and grieve, as she clearly still treasures you in her heart. But I am willing to accept responsibility for that burden, if it ultimately means you cannot endanger her any further."
Efreet... Asgore thought quietly.
"You say that as if you could actually accomplish it." Keter said with a scoff.
"I have the ability to do so, and the will to prove it. I do not boast emptily." Efreet retorted strongly.
"It matters not what you can do." Keter declared as several more runes came into being around him, each having different colors and shapes to them. Several runes attached to the three monsters before him, and the ofthers could sense a rush if magic flaring through each of them. Marid was generating water while also coated in lightning. Shaitan was generating earth while being coated in lightning as well. And Jinn's wind seemed to be further empowered, as his wind grew even more intense than before.
"ah. of course. they're the ones who need a boost." Sans grumbled. He would have cursed this unfortunate event further, only for Rebecca to gently touch his forehead. He looked towards her in confusion. "becca?"
"Do hold still for a moment, Sans. This will be quick, I promise." She said gently as magic channeled into her hand. She then placed her other hand on a nearby rock. He questioned the point of this, before he suddenly felt much better, as if the poison coursing through his body never existed.
"what the...what happened? didja cure me? how? not that i'm not grateful, hut i don't think it should work that qu-" His eye sockets went dark as he saw the rock she was also touching. It was beginning to disintegrate with the color that the poison that afflicted him was. It had significantly less resistant than Sans did as he used magic to try and fight against it, so it crumbled very quickly. The entire exchange left Sans completely baffled.
did...did she just bind all of the poison in my body to some random lifeless rock? just how versatile is her magic?!
Rebecca turned towards Keter and lightly pressed her hands together. A glowing aura brightened around her, and several streams of light connected to Efreet, Asgore, Gerson, and Sans.
They were able to focus on the fight still, but also began to see things as well.
The events seemed to be summarized, but they were still progressing through Rebecca's eyes and experiences.
Little Rebecca was five years old and was happily following a much younger Keter around. Wearing a small turquoise dress with a cute yellow crown with a violet gem in the middle, Princess Rebecca spent a lot of time with Keter. With her father being busy and distant with his people, and her mother being not-so-friendly with the monster portion of the population, she was the main one of their entire family willing to mingle with the citizens, if not the only one.
Keter eased her into the whole thing, rather gently. Learning to speak with others outside of her family was rough, but she somehow managed it with small, gentle steps. And whenever things got too rough, Keter was always there for her. She felt safe with him.
So...why?
When Rebecca was eight, and would he becoming nine soon, there was meant to be a meeting of cooperation with Gustus, to try and improve relations. But it took a drastic turn for the worse when an assassin's attack ruined the escort. Her mother ended up dying from the attempt. And it wasn't even by the assassins hands, but from her own cowardice leading to getting herself killed when she had no one to save her.
Things went further downhill when her father unfairly, brutally punished Keter via his loved ones for this failure to save her. Rebecca found this to be far too harsh, but at the time she was too meek to speak out against it. And even if she did, it would go unheard.
The reaction was...less than pleasant. Not even a little bit.
The man she looked up to avenged his family's slaughter by doing the same to hers. She was fortunately spared of this fate by the Guardian's interference. The experience left her as the sole survivor.
It lead up to the current day, her ninth birthday. She was crowned Queen, since there was no one else left to take up the throne. This was nearly taken advantage of, but the Guardians did not allow it. Efreet and Undine least of all. But due to the actions of her family being least than benevolent, she was expected to follow in their malevolent footsteps, especially with her mother being an outsider.
It was difficult for her to reconnect with her people, for now she was despised due to her family's actions. She walked along the roads of Legatum, with most of her citizens refusing to reach out to her. Some actively rejected her.
One moment had someone with earth magic toss a stone right at her head. It was not gentle in the slightest. It wad surprisingly fortunate that she managed to walk it off with just a bleeding head and a headache. The other Guardians were highly critical of this, and Slyph was outright furious. She was fully willing to begin attacking the ones who dared attack Rebecca. And the others, aside from Efreet, were willing to let her go through with it.
But Rebecca refused this.
"It's okay. Please don't be angry at them. Don't hurt them...don't hate them..." She said this while laid on her bed with bandages around her head. Undine was the one responsible behind her gradual recovery at this time.
"B-But Milady! They went too far! WAY too far! Look at what they've done to you!" Slyph protested. "You're not just going to let them get away with that, are you?!"
"It will do us no good to retaliate against the people in such a manner." Efreet interjects silently, even though he was clearly furious with what happened as well. It was shown not through his expressions, but his flames flaring even angrier than usual. "We are Guardians, Slyph. We protect the people, not punish them. No matter how much frustration they awaken within us with actions like these.
"Efreet...!"
"I do not like these current events either. And I too would like to see the citizens learn that this is not something to be approved of." Undine supported reluctantly. "Despite our own disapproval of their actions, our duty is to protect them. We cannot surrender our dignity to this role for the sake of vengeance."
"Seriously, Undine?" Sylph questioned in aggravation. She then turned to Gnome. "Gnome?"
"We...need...to...respect...Lady Rebecca's...decision..." Gnome decided, in which Slyph groaned irritably. "It...really is...very bad...what they did...but...we don't gain...anything...from retaliation...except their...hatred...and...that...shouldn't be...a feeling...to perpetuate." Gnome shook his head. "I...understand...how you...feel...but...we must...remain...strong..."
"B-But..." Slyph stuttered again, losing momentum.
"It really is nice that you care so much to feel this passionate, Slyph." Rebecca said slowly, reaching out a hand, which the monster held with both of her own. "It really is okay. I...never expected this to be easy. I knew what I was getting into. And I know I can get through it with you and the others supporting me, and vice versa."
"Rebecca..." Slyph lightly patted her hand, while Undine's own hand glowed above the young girl's head.
"That's enough for now. You need rest, and time to heal. We'll take on the major duties until you've fully recovered." Efreet declared.
"Okay..." Rebecca agreed reluctantly, laying down on her bed. As Efreet and the other Guardians began turning to leave, she turned her head towards them and smiled tiredly. "All of you...thank you for your support...and hard work..."
Efreet stopped for a moment at her sincere tone. He then nodded to her and continued on. He had a feeling, just a small one, that she always wanted to say something along those lines to Keter. But then she found out who the true supporters were. And it definitely wasn't Keter. And it obviously hurt her that she couldn't say those words to him and mean them anymore, not with his betrayal of her family, her kingdom, and her heart.
By his own hand or someone else's, Efreet swore that he would pay for it.
It took a moment for everyone affected by the spell to comprehend what just happened. And when they finally did, it hit them quite hard. Aside from Efreet himself, who experienced the events already. It wasn't just that, however. It was the very feeling of what Rebecca just did.
She created a bind between us and shared her memories and emotions?! Asgore noted in slight awe. Just how much was Rebecca able to bind?!
His awe turned to worry when she slowly turned towards Asgore and Sans, with tears running down her cheeks. They both wondered why, until they remembered that the binds that she makes can be a two-way street if that's what she chose. Though it also had to be subconsciously approved of, which is why Asgore and Sans didn't seem bothered by the memory share, just surprised.
that means...she saw our memories? that why she's cryin' right now?
I can feel her empathy for our past plights back in the Underground...she saw it all in such a short moment that felt like forever...is that why she weeps?
Sans and Asgore thought respectively, as Rebecca returned her attention to Keter. She looked troubled looking at him, though he didn't seem to return the sentiment. "Keter...your allies. They're in other areas of the Kingdom, causing mayhem as well, right?" She asked quietly, not surprised that Keter refused to answer. "It's true, then..."
"This is the only path for us, Rebecca."
"It doesn't HAVE to be!" Asgore called out to him. "Grief and anger has a strong grip on you, but you can break free! It isn't too late to do so!" Asgore felt the need to to least try once more. Many decisions Keter have made regarding Legatum and it's people were born from those two emotions. And he could see why. It felt dangerously familiar, even.
Which is why he wanted to try and see if it wasn't too late for him to be pulled out of the abyss he sunk into, and have now chosen to stay in. If it was indeed too late...
"I've already told you all that we're all well past that." Keter declared as more runes glowed around his head. "Legatum has been damaged far enough already. Better to just help along it's destruction and start again from scratch."
"Keter, I don't want things to end like this." Rebecca muttered.
"Unfortunately, what you want is of no consequence to me." Keter said with a raised hand, and the three gathered monsters charged up their attacks and fired them off directly towards her. Sans, Gerson, and Asgore moved to deflect the attacks away from her. They were caught off guard by the monsters themselves charging at them and distracting them with physical tackles. Efreet attempted to interfere as well, yet was intercepted by Keter himself via his sword.
"REBECCA!" Efreet called out in panic, attempting to force himself past Keter, but the human wouldn't allow it, his runes empowering him and assisting him in keeping the elemental away.
Rebecca's eyes widened as the attacks reached her...
The resulting explosion picked up numerous amounts of debris and devastated nearby buildings, causing them to collapse and fall to the ground in a heap. Efreet's eyes widened in terror, having thought that Rebecca was hit head on with the tri-attack and would be mortally wounded.
He was filled with both confusion and relief as he could sense her soul, and it was nowhere near in mortal danger. Which means she mostly managed to get away from the blast without being heavily harmed.
"IS THAT HOW IT IS, MR. KETER? IS THAT YOUR TRUE FEELINGS REGARDING YOURSELF AND REBECCA?"
"papy...?" Sans whispered, lowering his arms as they've helped shield him from most of the debris picked up from the blast, if barely.
"IT'S RATHER CLEAR TO ME THAT SHE LOOKED UP TO YOU, APPRECIATED THE POSITIVE IMPACTS THAT YOU'VE MADE ON HER LIFE AND HOW SHE GREW UP. AND YET HERE YOU ARE, FULLY INTENT ON DESTROYING WHAT SHE WORKED SO HARD TO BUILD UP."
Keter narrowed his eyes, seeing that his attempt on Rebecca's life has been once again thwarted. Especially by the one he discarded as the least threatening of the bunch.
"IF THAT IS TRULY THE COURSE YOU WISH TO STAY ON, THEN YOU LEAVE ME NO CHOICE. I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO TEAR DOWN THE RESULTS OF HARD-EARNED EFFORTS. I WILL STOP YOU."
The smoke finally clears, and Papyrus was revealed to be in the middle of it, the incredibly durable bone walls he created around him slowly lowering. His clothes were tattered, there were bruises all over him, and his scarf was slightly torn. But he had a resolved look on his face. Efreet sighed in relief as Rebecca was seen safely in Papyrus' arms. Her eyes were wide with surprise as they brimmed and shined with tears.
"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL PROTECT THE RESULTS OF HER FULFILLING HER HOPES AND DREAMS!"
"...Papyrus...?" Rebecca could only blink in surprise once her mind caught up to everything that happened.
"Nicely done, Papyrus! You came through for us there!" Gerson called out heartily.
"This is our chance to turn the tides." Asgore declared as he lifted his trident and gripped it with both paws.
Efreet sighed as he prepared for battle again, fully intent on a full victory. "Papyrus recovered quickly. And what's more, he's making a stand for Rebecca, despite having met her fairly recently."
"hehe...yeah. stoppin' a bad dude while savin' a queen, then decidin' that the fruits of her hard work is worth protecting." Sans says with a small, genuine smile as he readies himself as well, willing his fatigue away if only for the remainder of this battle.
Darkness suddenly appeared by their side, while Toxin was by Keter's.
"Well well! Look at this lineup! Seems like we're in for quite a battle here, everyone!" Toxin clapped with childish glee, before it gave way for a respectful bow to Asgore, who seemed confused yet alert. "Alas, I must apologize for my rudeness. Asgore Dreemurr, King of Monsters! Such an honor to meet you!"
"I'm afraid I can't say the same for you." Asgore narrowed his eyes, immediately identifying Toxin as an enemy due to how warily Darkness looked at him.
"Ah, you break my heart! Such harsh words!" Toxin mock gasped, a paw resting on his forehead. He then blinked and placed a claws on his lip. "By the way, your sons do see doctors regularly, right? You have a doctor among you, so I'm going to assume that's a yes."
"...What is this?" Asgore muttered slowly, suddenly not liking the casual, yet taunting tone in Toxin's voice. Toxin gazed towards Asgore with an ever growing smile. Waving his paw around and snapping his fingers, a bit of poison magic emitting off of his paw.
"For you see, I'm kind of a doctor myself. So I thought I'd take the liberty of doing a quick check-up on your eldest son, Chara. You know, to make sure he's all fine and dandy! And I'm afraid...he's uh, not looking too good. Kinda got hit with a severely bad case of buttercup poisoning." Toxin's smile widens further as he sees the horror on Asgore's face. "Oh? My goodness, the look on your face makes it seem like you're quite familiar with it! Does it remind you of anything?~"
...he did not. Sans mentally muttered, practically seeing the horror in Asgore's eyes and the memories that were likely flashing before them. He actually wanted to step away in terror when Asgore's horror slowly shifted into rage, the fire in his eyes intensifying along with the actual flames gathering around him. He pointed his trident towards Toxin, who only gazed at him in twisted amusement. The others felt nearly crushed under the atmosphere placed by Asgore's following question:
"What did you do to my child?"
Asriel glares strongly towards the specialist of wind, Zephyr. Tempest was fighting off various mages and monsters that would attempt to interrupt him, while MK and Red stood by his side. Zephyr himself looked like he couldn't care less, but it was becoming apparent that their interference was beginning to grate his nerves a little bit.
If there was any way for the annoyance of dealing with a Dreemurr to come out, it's when their flames provide a light for others to gather around and follow. He really didn't like the fact that they were so incredibly difficult to blow out, either. No matter how strong his wind was.
"I can't believe you're actually standing up for this guy." Zephyr began with clear disbelief, shaking his head. "An assassin who's responsible for quite a sum of Legatum's darker troubles, and yet you're standing up for him and talking him out of despair. I just don't get you people."
"You don't know a thing about who Tempest is or what he's all about, nor what he wants to be." Asriel rebuked with a young yet regal tone of voice that resonated with nearby monsters, enough to distract a few stragglers. "If you think I'm just going to stand by and listen to you speak horrible things about him, then you're wrong. What happened in the past happened. This is a time to continue onwards, not be stuck by the past. Tempest made a choice to change for the batter, and that is a choice that I will support."
Zephyr narrowed his eyes as wind surrounded him, becoming more fierce. "Tch, I should have expected as much. You're incredibly naive if you think it's that easy for him to suddenly turn away from that life." He swipes his hand as a gust of wind hurtles towards Asriel.
Asriel's eyes became overshadowed as the gust of wind heads towards him. Red's eyes flashed as she moves forward in a dash, magic coursing through sword as she slashes the gush of wind diagonally, clearing a path for Asriel. He takes a great bound forward towards Zephyr, closing the distance between them quickly. His fist ignited in a coat of flames and lightning, and he pulls it back.
"Turns out, you don't know much about me, either." Asriel declared before punching Zephyr with his ignited fist, which he tried to defend against with a brief shield made up of wind. The impact was explosive, as he was sent hurtling back from said explosion with little control over himself.
"Yoooo!" MK bounds even further and quicker, enough to catch up in a matter of seconds. His legs were truly strong this way. "Sorry dude, but you've been too much of a jerk to our friend!" He says while swiftly dealing an axe kick to the human wind mage, which he again tried to block, only to be sent flying by the sheer force behind the kick.
"Not to mention the chaos your helping cause around the Kingdom! That won't stand!" Red calls out as she slashes the wind mage in the back as he was falling, leaving a mark. She was caught off-guard as he merely grunted before doing a wind-enhanced spin kick. "Egh!"
"We do have different ideas of what we're willing to stand for, don't we?" Zephyr says with a shrug as he regains his footing. Asriel throws a trio of fireballs towards him, which were each dispelled with several slices of wind. The slices kept going and lightly sliced into Asriel's sweater and nicking his cheek, getting a brief flinch out of him. He soon yelped as another strong whirlwind spammed down on him from above, strong enough to crack the ground beneath him.
"Ugh..."
"Come on, Mr. Prince! You seemed so much more fiery earlier!" Zephyr shouted as he sped towards Asriel, boosted by wind, with a readied punch enhanced by the same wind. Gritting his teeth, Asriel pushes his paws forward and shielded himself with stellar magic. The wind devastated the ground around them, as well as knocking down several pillars. Asriel had a feeling that the windmill tower wouldn't last much longer if attacks of this scale continued. "You're a versatile little brat, you know that? Fire, Lightning, and Stars? Do you really need all of that?"
"...Star...Blazing..."
Zephyr only had a second to react before he was assaulted by a storm of glowing stars generated from Asriel's paws, blasting him upwards until he crashed into the ceiling back-first.
"Don't think I forgot about you!" Slyph shouted as her hands were aimed towards them. Zephyr knew that she was doing; a beam of compressed air suddenly shot from her two hands, hurtling towards him in a bright green glow. The impact caused the ceiling to shatter outright and to batter Zephyr and force him upwards, into the very top of the tower.
That really hurt...guess she IS the superior air master...
"But wait, there's MORE!" Slyph grinned. "Have at it, you crazy kids!"
"Ready?" Asriel asked Red, taking hold of her paw.
"Just like we practiced." Red grinned, nodding affirmatively. Asriel smiled as he gripped tightly onto her paw, before he began spinning around with her, lifting her in the air. They became a blurring spinning top in a matter of moments.
Zephyr didn't like the look of that.
"Red..." Asriel began with a resolved look in his eyes. Red growled, her grip tightening on his paw. "Comet...!" He finally released with a strong throw upwards, her towards Zephyr. Her momentum was boosted as she used multiple explosions from her magic bombs to propel herself farther and faster.
"EXPLOOOSSSIIIOOONNN!"
A magic bomb placed at the rip her sword and lunged it towards Zephyr. The resulting explosion blasted him on impact, in which he barely had time to surround himself with a wind barrier to counter it. Grunting, he stopped spinning and shot a fearsome blast of wind towards the still airborne Red. It slammed into her, and slammed her into the ground, breaking it and throwing rubble upwards. The pained puppy yelp she let out spoke for how painful the impact was.
"You've got bite, pup. Though it's unfortunately not enough to take me down." Zephyr declared by laying on further with the wind barrage, crushing her beneath the buffet of whirlwinds.
"Graagh...!"
"Not yet!" MK called out as he and Asriel had jumped high in the air, courtesy of Slyph. "There's another one just for you, ya jerk!"
"What...?"
Asriel applied fire to MK's feet, while Slyph launched him with a burst of wind. The wind intensified the flames on MK's feet, which would enhance the spinning kick that he was winding up.
"MK CANNON!"
Zephyr found a flame-infused kick into his chest, which ended up stopping his attack on Red and slamming into the wall behind him. He then fell onto his knees, held up by both that and his hands. He noticed MK landing in front of him, while Asriel was occupied helping Red up after she's been buffeted by wind attacks.
"Are you okay, Red?" Asriel asked gently.
"I'm...I'm alright. Just a little bit rattled..." Red panted while leaning on Asriel's shoulder for support. "I hope you don't mind...but that attack really battered me...I'm gonna need to borrow your shoulder for a bit..." She turned towards Zephyr, eyes narrowed. "We...can't let our guard down, though. He's still not defeated yet..."
Zephyr sighed as the gang approached him, each of them hurt in some way or form. The only ones who weren't that injured were the wind master Slyph, and the incredibly durable MK.
"Damn...you actually got me pretty good..." Zephyr chuckled, before spitting out a bit of blood from MK's fire-infused kick. It was honestly a bit hard to breathe, the strength behind that kick was ridiculous.
"Stay down. You're not getting away again." Slyph said with an edge to her voice as the wind intensified and sharpened around her. "Accept that you're finished, Zephyr. Don't make it worse for yourself."
"Listen to her, Zephyr. We don't have to keep fighting like this." Asriel added with lowered eyes. "It's not too late to just surrender."
Zephyr looked at each of them deeply. They were all still raring to go, while he was likely on his last legs, barely able to stand. In a case like that, there was only one real thing he could do.
"...So you say." He says quietly.
All of a sudden, the others were buffeted by yet another onslaught of wind. Aside from Slyph, and Tempest to a lesser extent, everything was blown backwards. The wind grew stronger and stronger, until the walls began to come apart and lift into the air. The entire tower was beginning to fall apart from the sudden onslaught of wind, and they were beginning to understand why, as Zephyr began to float in the air with wind assistance.
He was generating a large vortex around them. Slyph could sense that he was summoning multiple vortexes all around them. She could sense four of them and counting.
Is this a desperate final move?! He's pushing himself to the very limit! At this rate, he'll not only devastate this territory, but the entire Kingdom will be torn apart! Slyph thought, genuinely panicked with wide eyes of fear. Not for herself, but for all the innocent people around them.
"ZEPHYR! STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Asriel shouted as he held his arms in front of his face, the winds causing his ears and scarf to flap about rapidly.
"I can't turn my back on this assignment, kid. Sorry, but I tend to have an iron grip on things like this." Zephyr said as the winds intensified even further. "Even if you manage to survive this, I can't say the same for the people around you."
"This is crazy! Are you really willing to go through with something like this?!" Red shouted over the lashes of wind. They were beginning to cut into her skin, if only slightly.
"Yo! This isn't a cool thing to do at all! Please, stop it!" MK shouted over the winds pushing him back. His hardened skin kept the winds from cutting him, but the chipping was hinting at a limit to this.
"Ain't no turning back. Don't want to." Zephyr grins as the winds intensified even further. "Legatum will pay for it's apathetic practices, and start over from there. Or it won't and will be completely crushed. Either way, Karma would collect their debt."
He's really going through with it...! Asriel thought with wide eyes and tried to think of what to do. It was far too difficult to move due to the force of multiple vortexes beating down on everyone, making it aggravatingly difficult to move. "Golly gosh darn it, what do we do...?!"
"I won't be living up to my name, this time." Zephyr declared as he prepared to up the vortex's intensity to the very max, slowing Slyph's attempts to dissipate them all safely. "It's all over. You're fin...ished...?" Zephyr's speech slowed as he suddenly felt something fill up in his throat. It dribbled out of his mouth, and he realized that it was his blood. "Y...You..."
Tempest had pushed through the buffet of winds, and ran Zephyr through with a golden katana he summoned. Right through his heart. Zephyr coughed a spittle of blood again as Tempest gazed into his eyes dispassionately.
"You're right about one thing. I am an assassin. And in some ways, I always will be. It's not something I can get rid of." He spoke calmly, coldly, yet it was completely of his own will. "At the very least, I won't be their assassin anymore."
With his focus destroyed, Zephyr could no longer maintain his vortexes very well. Slyph took a deep breath and swiped her arms apart, dispelling all of the vortex's at once in a bright green glitter of light. The skies were slowly becoming clearer again, and the sunlight shined on the areas that the vortexes destroyed. She sighed in shame as she felt that quite a bit of innocent lives have been lost from the vortexes brief attack. She could hear the voices of grief on the winds around her from those that lost their loved ones from the short-lived yet devastating attack. It was only through her own intervention and Tempest's killing blow that the results weren't worse than they ended up being.
I wasn't fast enough. This is disgraceful...
Tempest released his blade from Zephyr's chest, and watched him fall to the ground. Tempest slowly descended to the ground, as the fierce wind gave way to a natural gentle breeze all around them. Asriel slowly made his way up to Tempest, his eyes sadly placed on Zephyr's corpse.
"...You saved people, Tempest. Thank you for your help." Asriel focused on that aspect more than the others. This wasn't done out of callousness, but to prevent more lives from being lost when Zephyr made it clear he wouldn't be swayed.
"I know you don't fully approve of this action, Prince Asriel." Tempest said as his weapon dissipated into golden light. "He needed to be stopped, right then and there."
"I know. I understand." Asriel genuinely admitted, even though it still brought quite a bit of sadness to him. "Zephyr, as casual as he was about it verbally, he was fully dedicated to his mission. Nothing we could have said would have been able to stop him..." If anything, Asriel could respect an enemy's dedication to his mission. He simply wished that Tempest wasn't forced to take his life because of it.
Red could feel how much Asriel didn't want this to be the outcome. She walked up to his side and gently held his paw. He noticed, and lightly tightened his grip on it. She rested her head on his shoulder, both to comfort him and due to her own exhaustion. MK was the same way, except he simply placed his prosthetic hand on Asriel's shoulder. The gesture from both of his bodyguards was appreciated, and he made it very apparent by making himself a bit warmer for the both of them to cuddle closer to. He needed a moment to collect himself, taking a deep breath and sighing.
Alas, the Princely side of him reminded him that he cannot remain idle for long, for there was still work to do, people still needed help. Thus, he needed to collect himself and continue onwards.
"I'm fine. I'm alright." Asriel says to everyone, before adjusting his scarf and narrowing his eyes. "We still have work to do. We have to help the civilians of this area recover as soon as possible,.and protect them in case more enemies show up."
"Right!" Both of them nodded as they followed their Prince, intent on continuing with their current momentum. Asriel turned his head and noticed that both Tempest and Slyph were placing a sheet on Zephyr's corpse, covering it for the time being. They seemed intent on a proper burial later. Asriel wasn't against that, but it still left him with a somber feeling in his soul. He understood why it had to happen, but it still hurt him to a degree.
He couldn't worry about that now, though. He had to keep going, for the people needed help. Almost instinctively, he held his Rainbow Locket in his paw for a moment. He hoped that his family and friends in different areas were faring a bit better in their own objectives. He already knew that the struggles were not yet over.
Everyone...please be alright.
There! That chap's over and done with!
Geez, it's really rough sometimes. I stand by my decision to halve this chapter's events into this one and the next one, though I still feel kinda bad about it. Not that I have anything against writing long chapters, this just felt like the proper call to me, at least this time.
Hopefully you understand. I do enjoy writing this, but pushing myself so hard makes it really rough for the muse to breath, which ends up delaying me quite a lot, which sucks. Hopefully I can keep working myself out of the funk I put myself in. And I do intend to pull myself out and hopefully return a bit stronger than before.
Until next time!