Legacy of Travas Chapter 32: Wrath of the Phoenix, a Legacy of Kain + Extinctioners Crossover fanfic

Legacy of Travas

Chapter 32: Wrath of the Phoenix

A prolonged silence fills the air and two powerful warriors gaze at each other with serious eyes. As they gaze at each other, the male phoenix lands onto the muddy soil below and began walking towards the vulpin. However, the phoenix stops once he was about thirty feet in front of him, continuing to stare towards his vulpine opponent calmly.

"Ah, yes! I assume you must be the legendary Travas Starfox I heard many of the other warriors speak about… as well as you being the one who has been observing me since yesterday morning", the phoenix claimed as Travas continues to look towards the avian in a calm, but serious expression on his face.

"I guess the legend about me seems to be spreading like wildfire, don't you agree, Xenif", Travas replied, catching the avian's attention as a response to the vulpin knowing his name.

"How is it you know my name? I do not recall meeting someone such as yourself until yesterday", Xenif asked, looking towards the vampuric vulpin with a calm sense of surprise.

"Trust me, I'm a psychic, and I know a lot more about you than you realize", Travas answered. "Speaking of which, I also know you we're not originally a whole being, but merely half of another phoenix that lived a long time ago", he claimed, causing Xenif's eyes to slightly widen in surprise.

"And how is it that you discovered such information, young fox?" Xenif asked with a slightly annoyed tone. "Only a very few people know about me and what I originally was. There's no other possible way unless you've met with someone who does".

"As I said, Xenif, I'm a psychic, and I have the ability to not just read minds, but also see the future", Travas answered. "As a matter of fact, I've just got done with having a vision regarding your downfall by your female counterpart… or as you call her, your 'love'", he claimed with a slight mocking tone, softly smirking towards the phoenix as Xenif began to growl in response.

"You lie!" Xenif exclaimed, pointing his index finger towards the vulpin.

"Are you sure I'm lying? Because if you want to be sure, I'll show you the vision I had… and then, you'll be able to see it for yourself", Travas replied while giving a soft smirk towards the phoenix. And because of Travas' remark, the avian begins to grit his beak in anger while clenching his fists.

"Why you insolent little…" Xenif started while noticing Travas' smirk getting slightly wider with each passing second. "I've had enough of your lies! Let's drop the conversation and get this battle started!" he demanded before flying towards him with haste, preparing a couple of solar based energy spheres within his scaly hands. Likewise, Travas began to form a couple of fiery attacks in his hand-paws before preparing to fly towards Xenif. But before either one could attack, various bolts of lightning along with magical fire and green aura began forming around the area. And as a result, the two warriors stop on their tracks and started looking around their environment, noticing countless numbers of demons arriving onto the scene.

"Do you fools really think you're the only ones involved in this battle", the first fiery demon asked while smirking, brewing a couple of massive fire attacks within its hands. "I think not", the demon continued before suddenly firing his attacks towards them both. Before the impact, however, Asher suddenly teleports in front of the blasts and deflects them.

"I don't think so, you god damned demons! Your battle is with me and no one else", Asher exclaimed before turning to face his companion. "Travas, I'll take care of the demons! You take care of Xenif!" he yelled while preparing to battle against the bloodthirsty demons in front of him.

"Understood", Travas replied while turning to face the blood thirsty three yards in front of him. And within a sudden moment, the two eager warriors fly hastily towards the skies, where Travas strikes the first punch against the avian upon short notice. Xenif was thrown back violently towards a mountain as a response, but manages to recover before the impact could ever happen. Upon recovery, the avian flies towards the vulpin and starts striking him hastily, but Travas manages to catch and dodge each and every one of them.

"I have to hand it to you, young man. You're a lot faster than I expected you to be", Xenif admitted while continuing to strike his opponent at a great speed. "However, you are still no match against me", he claimed while flying backwards about fifteen feet, preparing two solar spheres in his hands. "Double Solar Strike!" the phoenix yelled while smirking, firing both of his blasts towards the vulpin in front of him, thus managing to strike him easily. However, the avian suddenly discovers that the vulpin was merely flying right through his attack and towards him. "What the kenal?!" he exclaimed just before he was suddenly knee-kicked on the beak by the vulpin, sending him flying several meters into the air.

"I guess you weren't expecting anything like this, huh", Travas spoke while flying after the vicious phoenix. But when he got close, Xenif makes a sudden aerial recovery and strikes the vulpin's head, sending him plummeting down towards the ground below. But before the impact could happen, however, Travas quickly manages to recover just a few feet above the ground. Suddenly, he was met with a painful kick in the stomach by Xenif himself, sending the vulpin flying about fifty feet into the air.

"Fight me all you want, Travas! But you will find that I am not such an easy opponent", Xenif claimed while teleporting directly above the vulpin, grasping his hands together before striking his opponent's back. In response, Travas crashes onto the dirt ground below violently, leaving a crater about ten feet in diameter and five feet deep as a result. But as he slowly recovers, Xenif descends down onto the ground with his arms crossed, grinning towards his opponent's injured state. "Had enough", he asked as Travas looks towards him with a smirk on his face.

"Nope, I'm just getting warmed up", Travas answered just before licking away the blood dripping down his lip, causing Xenif to look upon him in a disgusted manner.

"How disgusting", Xenif thought while slightly sticking his tongue out in disgust. But before he could say anything else, Travas suddenly flies towards the avian hastily while preparing two fiery blasts within his hand-paws. At the same time, the phoenix begins to summon two solar spheres within the palms of his scaly hands. But as he prepares to throw them, something suddenly strikes the avian from behind, hitting his back as Xenif crashes onto one of the boulders nearby. And when he recovers shortly after, he notices what seemed to be another warrior exactly identical to Travas himself.

"What's the matter? Didn't expect this to happen", both Travas and his clone asked with a mocking tone as Xenif was recovering. While recovering, the avian continues to look towards the two identical warriors in a confused manner, unsure of what to make of Travas' ability.

"What trickery is this?!" Xenif thought before getting back onto his feet. "How did he pull off such a trick? And did he somehow pull off this technique while plummeting towards the ground?" he continued wondering within his mind while dusting off his dark red skintight pants.

"Sorry, Xenif, but it looks like you're gonna have to find out for yourself", Travas claimed before getting back into battle position. And within a mere second or two, both warriors immediately fly towards each other and attempts to strike a punch at one another. Instead, however, both fists struck each other's and sent massive shockwaves within a fifty meter radius. Down below, Asher continues to battle against the growing demonic legions, yet nearly a third of the army was suddenly wiped out from the shockwave. At the same time, the Sarafan warrior was also thrown towards one of the nearby boulders, crashing onto the surface in a rather painful manner.

"Argh", Asher shouted painfully, gritting his teeth while trying to grasp the area where his back crashed upon. At the same time, the other demons start sprinting towards the fallen warrior, preparing to attack with their claws and bladed arms. But before they could attack, however, Asher manages to recover enough to avoid the attacks, dodging in a similar fashion to that of a street break dancer. And before he finishes dodging their attacks, he manages to severely strike one of the electrical demons with his feet, causing the demon to crash against the others like a bowling ball striking the pins at a Bowling Alley. Finally, the Sarafan warrior blasts the collapsed demons several yards away with a single sky blue colored energy blast, obliterating the demons into nothing but dust before turning to face the other legions behind him.

Up in the skies, Travas, his clone, and Xenif continue to wage battle against each other with furious strength. But within a matter of moments, the avian begins to gather solar energy and begins to form a massive solar sphere above him, with the attack being about forty feet in diameter. Travas merely looks towards the attack with widened, perhaps shocked eyes, as the phoenix looks down at him with a smirk on his face.

"Do you now realize how far I can push the extent of my true power, Travas", Xenif eagerly asked before finalizing the attack, causing it to send a pulsing shockwave around the area the warriors were in. "Now that you know, let's see if you can survive this one! SOLAR BOMB!" the avian shouted before suddenly firing the massive solar sphere towards the vampuric vulpin. However, Travas immediately raises his hand-paws in front of him and attempts to deflect the attack. And soon, the clone dissipates into energy and gives it back to the vulpin before the sphere makes contact with the palms of his hand-paws. This embarks the beginning of the struggle that shall determine who would overcome the other.

*Inside the Vampire Citadel, Nosgoth*

Anxiousness and silence fills the air as the vampires of Nosgoth, including Raziel, continue watch the intense battle within the Sacred Chamber's circular pool. And as they watch, they notice Travas beginning his struggle against the massive solar sphere attack that Xenif had apparently thrown towards him. As a response, the others watch closely as Travas continues to struggle against the massive attack. In fact, the attack was so massive, that it somehow causes the pool to fire a couple of sparks towards one of the windows, shattering it within a second's notice. Although no one was injured by the attack, the vixen toddler began crying massively and buries her face into Janos' left shin, grabbing the attention of the winged vampire as a result.

"Serenity, what's the matter", Janos asked while kneeling down towards her.

"Janos, I'm scared!" Serenity exclaimed while continuing to hold onto Janos' shin. As a response, the winged vampire picks her up and holds her gently into his arms.

"Serenity, everything's going to be alright", Janos reassured as the vixen toddler wraps her small arms around his neck.

"Really", Serenity asked while wiping her tears with her left arm and looking into the winged vampire's eyes.

"I promise, sweetie", Janos replied with a comforting tone. Then, he turns to face Raziel and Vorador, who were cleaning up the mess left behind as a result of the shockwave. "Raziel, Vorador, finish cleaning up the mess and check the other parts of the Citadel. I want to ensure the other parts of the Citadel have not been damaged by the shockwaves", he ordered, causing both the veteran vampire and demon to nod in response. Then, within a few moments, the two finishes cleaning and begin scattering out to ensure the other parts of the Citadel weren't damaged by the sudden shockwaves. At the same time, Janos and the other vampires encircle the pool as the winged vampire begins to cast a spell upon it. And within the next moment, the battle between Xenif and Travas became visible to them all, watching as the vulpin continues to struggle against the massive solar sphere.

"C'mon, Travas, send that avian straight to hell!" Doyle shouted, cheering his companion on while watching the ongoing struggle between the vulpin and the solar sphere attack Xenif summoned forth. As for Janos, however, he continues to eye the struggle closely, noticing that the attack and Travas were exactly equal in strength. As a result, suspicious and concerned feelings started to flow through the winged vampire's body, unsure of what to make of the struggle.

"Travas… hang in there", Janos thought, while closely eying the struggle with a concerned look despite him appearing to be calm. "I do not know who the phoenix is… but I know you can overcome his attack… just don't give up", he continued thinking before setting Serenity onto the ground, allowing the vixen toddler to grab a hold of his leg and watch the batter from behind him.

"Daddy… please don't die…", Serenity thought before closing her eyes with fear, frightened of what would happen if she lost her father. All she could do now was bury her face into Janos' pant leg, unwilling to watch the fate of her beloved father.

*The South-eastern Sky Island, inside the Dimensional Dome*

The ongoing battle between both Travas and Xenif continues to intensify greatly, almost as if the climax itself drew near. Up in the skies, Xenif continues to smirk towards his opponent before him, watching his attack beginning to overcome Travas. Although it appears that the solar sphere started to overcome the vulpin, the phoenix begins to notice Travas overcoming the attack itself, seeing him manipulating it towards his right in surprise. Just shortly after hurling it towards his right, the solar sphere suddenly explodes like various packs of dynamite going off at once. Xenif merely looks upon his dissipated attack with a calm sense of shock just before turning to face the vulpin angrily, seeing Travas whistle before he smirks towards the phoenix.

"Now that's some spicy attack you've got there, Xenif", Travas admitted, looking towards the avian before shaking his hands briefly, trying to cool them off after manipulating the attack. "But apparently, it seems that it wasn't enough to destroy me or cause any real damage", he continued. But despite this, he begins to notice the avian smirking towards him, so much so that the phoenix began to chuckle in delight.

"Well now, I have to admit that I am rather impressed with your ability to manipulate object despite the intensity of their power", Xenif admitted as his smirk begins to fade and uncrosses his arms. Then he clenches his fist while looking down towards the vulpin with serious eyes. "However, just because you have this ability on your side doesn't mean that you have the upper hand", he claimed before raising his right forearm upward, with his index finger pointing upward. "You've forgotten, Travas… you only saw a portion of what I'm truly capable of", the phoenix continued before both warriors got back into their battle positions. And then, within the next moment, the two opposing warriors instantly start flying towards each other with fists ready to fly.

Down below, Asher continues to battle against the continuously growing army of demons as much as he could. One after another, the Sarafan warrior continues to slaughter them like a wolf slaughtering hordes of sheep, thus reducing the number of demons around the area. Yet despite his efforts, however, more continue to teleport into area often, almost as if it were constant with each kill the warrior makes.

"Jesus…! Every time I slaughter a pack of demons, another pack comes in almost immediately after the other is annihilated", Asher thought while continuing to slaughter the demons in front of him with his energetic blades. "I don't know how much longer I can do this… but I will keep on going as long as I can, even if I have to go beyond my limits to get the job done", he continued thinking while slaughtering a medium sized group of green bladed demons in front of him with his energy blade, leaving nothing behind but a bloody mess of his own making. But despite his work, a massive group of giant brown colored fiery demons suddenly appear before him as they start blowing fire out of their mouths. Asher jumps about fifteen feet into the air and manages to dodge their attacks, landing about a few seconds later as the demons look towards the lone warrior in front of them.

"There is no escape from you, vile human! Your fight is with us now", the leading brown fiery demon shouted while preparing a couple of intense fire balls within its hands.

"Never planned on escaping", Asher claimed. "In fact, I was expecting you fellas to arrive".

"Oh really, now", a second brown fiery demon asked doubtfully.

"Yes", Asher said with confidence while getting into battle position. "And I promise you all that I won't be an easy opponent for you".

"Very well", the leading brown fiery demon started before getting into battle position, with the others doing the same thing, and almost in a military fashion. "Then let us continue this battle at once!"

"With pleasure", Asher agreed as he suddenly darts towards the demons by flight. And as he did, he summons a pair of green energetic blades from the palms of his hands. Like the Sarafan warrior, the leader of the fiery demons turns his fiery spheres into two fiery blades, gripping onto the hefts of both blades and prepares to strike the human.

In the skies above, Travas and Xenif continue to battle with great intensity, striking each other with fierce physical and energy attacks. The intensity was at such a high level, that it started to send shockwaves throughout the region, perhaps through the entire Sky Island. But despite the avian being stronger than the vulpin expected, Travas continues to fight against Xenif as much as he could, showing no signs of giving up. As a result, Xenif began to eye the vulpin in a suspicious manner.

"It's strange… I may be stronger than him…" Xenif thought while fighting the vulpin continuously, but eyes him in a suspicious manner. "But something tells me that there's more to him than I realize. I better keep my guard up if I want to successfully defeat him", he continued while taking the fight towards a stronger level, causing Travas to do the same as well. However, Xenif began to notice the vulpin smirking towards him in a satisfactory manner.

"Most definitely, Xenif, and I don't intend on losing to the likes of you, ya bastard", Travas shouted before landing a serious of vicious punches towards the avian. Xenif manages to block most of them, but the last three manage to strike him, two hitting his stomach, and the last one striking him violently onto his face. Almost immediately, the phoenix was suddenly knocked back towards the fiery demons below, the same ones Asher was currently battling against, and crashes onto them. But within a few seconds, Xenif recovers and instantly darts towards the vulpin above, firing a telekinetic projectile towards him as Travas uses his left hand-paw to deflect it with ease.

"I've had enough of your troublesome games, damned vulpine!" Xenif shouted while raising his arms into the air, forming what appears to be another, yet more powerful, solar based sphere of energy. Because of this, the phoenix begins to smirk towards the vulpin as he spreads his scaly fingers as much as he could. "Solar SPHERE", he shouted, throwing the solar attack towards Travas. Almost immediately, the vulpin raises his hand-paws in front of him as an attempt to block the attack. This time, however, Xenif telekinetically shoves the solar sphere towards his opponent, causing Travas to be hurled back towards the ground as Asher catches this almost immediately.

"Oh shit! TRAVAS", Asher shouted before sprinting towards his partner as he begins to hear the agonizing screams of Travas. Suddenly, however, the leading brown fiery demon cuts him off by forming another fire barrier in front of him. "What the hell", he said with surprise before turning to face the demon.

"You shall not pass, vile human!" the leading brown fiery demon stated before teleporting in front of him, thus engaging into battle against the Sarafan warrior.

"Jesus Christ, don't you fools ever learn when to quit", Asher shouted before getting back into battle position, eying the demon with an annoyed pair of eyes.

"We demons do not give up that easily, and I sure as hell will not give up without a fight", the leading brown fiery demon claimed before getting into battle position one again. "Now then, no more questions! It's time to continue the battle! It's time for you to die!" the demon shouted before instantly darting towards the Sarafan warrior, with its claws ready to strike against him. But as Asher starts darting towards the demon, he continues to hear the agonizing screams of his companion not too far from his position. "Travas, hand in there. I'll take care of this final bastard and I'll come to your aid soon", he thought before summoning his energetic blades within the palms of his hands.

As the Sarafan warrior and the leading demon begin the next part of the battle, Travas continues to scream in agony while trying to deflect the attack away from him. But despite his efforts, Xenif continues to use his telekinetic energy to hold the solar sphere in place. And as a response to his work, the avian begins to smirk with satisfaction, watching his attack continuing to consume his opponent.

"Damnit…! I can't get his attack off of me", Travas thought while screaming in agony, trying to push the solar attack off of his body. "C'mon… I can do this! I have to", he exclaimed within his mind. "ARGH!" the vulpin screamed in pain as Xenif starts laughing hysterically towards the vulpin's painful cries.

"HA! HA! What's the matter, Travas? Has the power of the sun incapacitated you", Xenif asked mockingly while pushing the solar attack down harder onto the vulpin. But as Travas continued to try and push the attack away from him, he begins to notice burn marks forming on his hand-paws as a result of the solar sphere's burning touch. At the same time, Xenif notices as his grin widens in an evil-like manner.

"No… I can't let this happen", Travas exclaimed within his mind, closing his eyes while continuing to push the solar attack away from his body. But with every effort he makes, his body starts to become weaker as the attack continues to consume him. And with this, the vulpin grits his teeth and tilts his head downward, unsure of how he would escape from his upcoming fate.

*Inside the Sacred Chamber, the Vampire Citadel, Nosgoth*

As the ongoing struggle between Travas and Xenif's deadlier solar sphere continues on, the demonic and vampuric members of the Cabal continue to watch the battle with serious, but slightly widened eyes. But as they did, the vixen toddler, Serenity, continues to look down upon the image of her father starting to be consumed by the attack, causing her to bury her face into Janos Audron's pant leg. This causes winged vampire to turn his sights towards the saddened child, kneeling down while placing both of his hands onto her shoulders.

"Serenity, what's wrong", Janos asked while Serenity was wiping away her tears.

"Janos…" Serenity started before chocking back a sob. "Something bad's about to happen to him", she finished before covering her face with her toddler hand-paws. As a response, Janos hugs the vixen child gently and tries to comfort her in any way possible.

"Serenity, it's going to be alright. Your father will defeat him… I just know it", Janos reassured while holding Serenity into his arms. But when he turns to face the circular pool bearing the image of the battle, he discovers Travas' forearms being consumed by the solar sphere, causing his eyes to widen in shock. "My god…" he spoke softly, but was apparently enough to grab the attention of the vixen child. In that instant, Serenity realized that something was wrong. In that instant, she turns to face the circular pool once again, seeing her father's forearms being consumed by the attack, causing her to gasp in shock as her eyes widen in response.

"Oh no… DADDY", Serenity screamed before closing her eyes quickly and burying her face into Janos' white robe. With this, she also begins to start crying, unwilling to watch what appears to be her father's upcoming demise.

*Back at the South-eastern Sky Island, the Dimensional Dome*

In the skies above, Xenif continues to push the solar sphere towards Travas forcefully as an attempt to engulf the vulpin to his death. As he did, the vulpin's agonizing screams of pain continue to get louder, almost to the point where Travas could no longer hear his own thoughts. But as the solar attack continues to consume him, he begins to hear a faint sound within his mind as he closes his eyes in response.

"DADDY", the feminine, but familiar voice shouted within Travas' mind, causing his eyes to widen upon recognition.

"Serenity…?" Travas wondered within his mind while opening his eyes slowly. But soon, his eyes shoot wide open at the moment he begins to hear the vixen child sobbing uncontrollably. "SERENITY!" he shouted as a sudden surge of energy flows through his body. And then, within a mere second, the rush of energy explodes like wildfire, engulfing his body with a familiar purple-red colored aura as Xenif looks upon this in total surprise. Within a few moments, Travas destroys the solar sphere with a blast of his own, causing the avian's eyes to widen with sudden shock.

"What the kenal", Xenif exclaimed within his mind as Travas begins to look towards the phoenix, with his eyes now bearing a blood red color instead of their usual emerald green color. "How was he able to summon that much energy… and how was he able to stop the solar sphere from consuming him", he wondered while looking towards the vulpin in shock.

"It's that simple, Xenif", Travas started while looking towards him with serious eyes. "I'm a hell of a lot stronger than you think I am", he claimed just before the avian starts changing his shocked expression into a calmer, more serious one.

"Really now…?" Xenif asked doubtfully. "I admit that I was surprised by your sudden surge of energy, perhaps even shocked by its intensity. But don't you dare think that this will be enough to stop me, Travas", he spoke with seriousness in his tone as the vulpin continues to look towards him with serious eyes. Within a moment, the avian begins to summon forth an energy based spear within the palm of his right hand, clutching onto it and prepares to attack. Then, within a sudden second, the avian darts towards the vulpin as Travas began doing the same. Alas, they continue to battle against each other with fierce strength, leaving the outcome of the battle in fate's hand.

*Within the Tower*

As the battle between Travas and Xenif begins to climb towards the peak, the kitsune champion continues to watch the ongoing match from within his room. Unlike moments before, however, Aerocrothe looks towards Travas with widened, perhaps intrigued eyes. And as a result of his discovery, he begins to softly smirk in delight while clutching both sides of the sacred bowl. But before he could say anything regarding the vulpin's ascended form, he begins to hear some knocking on the door, causing him to turn and face the room entrance behind him.

"You may enter", Aerocrothe said softly as two female kitsune servants open the door and enter the room, bowing before their master.

"Thank you, Lord Aerocrothe", both female kitsune servants thanked before leaning upward to face their beloved master.

"Sire, there is something we need to have a few words regarding the avian identified as Xenif", the first female kitsune servant said with a calm tone, causing Aerocrothe to turn and face her.

"Very well, madam. You may speak", Aerocrothe replied while the first kitsune servant briefly clears her throat.

"After we discovered the identity of the avian, we began examining some of his features closely and discovered something rather interesting", the first female kitsune servant started. "While we were looking upon his features, we discovered something odd about that golden belt of his".

"His belt, you say", Aerocrothe asked in a curious tone.

"Yes…" the first female kitsune servant answered. "Apparently, it looks as if it wasn't just a belt, but something more than what it appears to be".

"What do you think his belt might also be, young woman?" Aerocrothe asked.

"We're not one hundred percent sure just yet… but we will take a closer look at it right away, my lord", the first female kitsune replied. "Now then, we must depart from your room and continue our examination upon Xenif's belt. We will come back and notify you if we discover anything that's against the tournament's regulations", she reassured as the two female kitsune servants bow briefly before their master.

"Very well… now be gone and continue with your duties at once", Aerocrothe said calmly. "Just be sure to return to me immediately if you discover what the belt is cloaking within", he continued as the female kitsunes nod before turning to face the exit

"Very well, and goodbye", both female kitsune servants said before walking hastily out of the room, leaving Aerocrothe alone in his room as he turns to face the sacred bowl once more. And as he did, he looks upon the projection of the ongoing battle between Travas and Xenif, who were striking each other fiercely with their energy based weapons. This time, however, he begins to examine the phoenix's golden metal belt for himself, seeing a turquoise gem acting as the base in which holds the belt together.

"What secrets are you hiding from me, Xenif?" Aerocrothe wondered within his mind. "What is the true nature of that peculiar belt of yours…? What is it concealing within", he continued while watching the battle being projected into the bowl, curious about what Xenif's true intentions are.

*At the South-eastern Sky Island within the Dimensional Dome*

The two battles continue to progress within the South-eastern Sky Island, and it soon begins to start raining heavily once again. On the ground below, Asher continues to battle against the leading and surviving brown fiery demon with great strength. In the skies, Travas and Xenif continue to strike each other heavily, with the vulpin using his hand-paws, and the avian using his energy based spear. Suddenly, however, the phoenix teleports about fifty feet backwards and begins aiming the spear towards the vulpin.

"I've had enough of your bothersome games, vulpine! I'm putting an end to this damned battle at once!" Xenif shouted before gritting his beak out of anger and annoyance. But as he aims his spear, Travas begins to softly smirk towards the avian and refrains from his battle position, getting into a stance that was rather calmer than before. "Take this, YOU BASTARD!" the avian shouted before hastily throwing the spear towards the vulpin.

Within the same moment, the vulpin raises his right hand-paw as if he were prepared to catch the energy spear itself. But within the last second, Xenif uses his telekinesis to manipulate the energy weapon by dissipating it, causing the vulpin to look upon Xenif with surprise. The phoenix then resummons the energy spear behind the vulpin, knowing that Travas himself was unaware of the avian's plans. Although unsure of what Xenif's plans are, Travas continues to keep his guard up, suspecting that the phoenix may be up to something.

"Excellent…! Just a little more…" Xenif thought while readjusting where the spear would reappear. And once he finds the right spot, the avian smirks and clenches his hands as if he were about to pull on a rope in a tug-of-war game. "Excellent", the phoenix thought as Travas looks towards him curiously. But before he could ask the avian anything, Xenif suddenly pulls his clenched hands back towards him, causing the energy spear to reappear behind Travas and dart straight towards the back of his head. At first, Xenif grins as if he manages to finally kill his prey… but within a second, it fades into a more surprised one as his opponent manages to catch the spear by the head.

"Do you really think that shit's gonna work against me, Xenif?" Travas asked before dissipating the avian's attack, causing Xenif to grunt in an annoyed tone.

"Damn…!" Xenif calmly exclaimed within his mind, but then calms down enough for him to focus on the battle at hand. "Again, you surprise me, Travas. Usually, my enemies would have died by the technique… but you're definitely the first one that was able to grab the head of the spear despite its speed", the avian claimed before softly smirking towards the vulpin. "However, there is one question I wish to ask you. Are you sure you managed to stop the right one?" he asked, causing the vulpin to look towards him with a slight confused, but calm expression.

"What do you mean…?" Travas asked, suspecting that Xenif has something formulating within his mind. And then, within a sudden moment, he feels something pierce right through the right side of this his rib cage, causing him to look upon the energy spear with widened, shocked eyes. "Ugh… fuck…" the vulpin thought as the spear dissipates, leaving behind nothing but a hole within Travas' right side. He couldn't keep himself up in the air for long, and as such, he plummets to the ground at a haste pace. However, he does use his telekinesis to slow the impact down, allowing him to land somewhat safer than he expected to.

"Although you merely destroyed the one energy spear, I had actually summoned two while cloaking the second within the same one", Xenif explained while descending towards the vulpin, landing just within a yard from his position. The phoenix begins to smirk towards the injured vulpin as he watches him cover his wound with his right hand-paw. "And as a result, the second one was able to strike you without being destroyed by your hand. But I must say, you're bleeding rather badly", the phoenix continued while grinning evilly towards the vulpin. Travas tilts his head upward and looks towards the grinning phoenix, holding onto his now bloody wound while trying to stand back up.

"Damn… how didn't I see this happening" Travas thought while managing to get back onto his feet-paws. But as he did, he suddenly feels a jolt go through his body, mainly his bleeding injury. "Ugh… what the hell did you do to me? What materials did you put on the spear?!" he asked furiously, but painfully as the phoenix begins to chuckle evilly.

"Sacred poison… one of the finest weapons in all of Eden", Xenif answered in a rather evil tone while beginning to chuckle evilly. As he did Travas begins growling furiously while starting to summon energy within his right hand-paw. But before he could form any energetic attack, however, his right side suddenly starts jolting painfully, causing the vulpin to scream out in agonizing pain. As his painful cries grew louder, Asher begins to hear the sound of his partner's agonizing cries, causing him to turn and face the direction of the two warriors.

"Oh, shit…! Travas hang on", Asher shouted while firing a powerful enough energy blast towards the leading fiery demon, knocking him towards a pile of boulders nearby. Though he was unsure if the blast killed the demon or not, it was enough to dispel the barrier it formed. The Sarafan warrior takes this opportunity and teleports towards the phoenix, landing a vicious punch towards the powerful avian. Xenif was knocked back about a hundred meters away, crashing onto one of the mountains violently. However, the avian makes a quick recovery and teleports towards the Sarafan warrior, striking him endlessly using his bare hands.

"HOW DARE YOU GET INVOLVED WITH OUR BATTLE", Xenif shouted before punching him furiously in the face, knocking him towards some trees near the demon. "Do not interfere with our match any further, you vile bastard", he continued shouting as Travas looks upon the avian's actions in shock. Then, the vulpin begins to growl in anger and prepares to summon forth a fiery based bow and arrow, aiming it towards the avian despite his agonizing pain.

"Xenif, you get the hell away from Asher!" Travas shouted while looking towards the avian with eyes filled with nothing other than a fiery aura. He pulls the arrow back as far as he could and aims the tip of it at the avian's body. Within a mere fraction of a second, he fires the arrow towards the phoenix's body and hits Xenif right through his right shoulder, causing the avian to scream in pain and grasp the wound as hard as he could. Unlike the arrow he used against Infernum, however, this one explodes and blasts the avian towards a nearby pine tree, crashing onto the root rather violently. But despite the damage he took, Xenif gets back up and looks towards the vulpin angrily while placing his scaly hand onto his now bleeding injury.

"You bastard…" Xenif spoke softly before raising his right arm up into the air, forming what seems to be a spinning, solar based disc above his hand. "You're gonna pay for what you've just done to me!" He exclaimed while shifting his arm as far back as he could, aiming directly towards the vulpin himself. "SOLAR DISC", the phoenix shouted, throwing the disc towards the vulpin as hastily as he could. Travas manages to deflect the attack using his right hand-paw, but suddenly grunts in pain shortly afterwards as a result of the poison spreading through his body. Xenif, on the other hand, sought this as an opportunity to strike the vulpin. Thus, he flies towards the vulpin and strikes him countless number of times using his clenched fists, hitting his face and stomach as the main targets.

Somewhere not too far from their location, Asher begins to recover from the sudden attack the avian struck him with moments before, managing to get back onto his feet despite his injured state. In that instant, he looks towards the avian striking Travas endlessly with widened, shocked eyes. As a response, he raises his right hand slightly upwards and moves it to where it was in front of him, beginning to summon forth a bright blue colored energy sphere within the palm of his hand.

"I don't think so, you heartless mother fucker", Asher thought before pulling his arm backwards, aiming the sphere towards the phoenix within the distance. But when he tries to throw it, however, he was suddenly attacked by the leading brown fiery demon, causing him to strike a small group of trees behind Xenif. And as a result, the trees crash upon the avian and knock him to the ground; freeing Travas from the phoenix's wrath. But within a short moment, Asher recovers and faces the bloodied leader of the fiery demons, seeing it prepare a pair of fiery blades within its hands.

"Their battle is of no concern to you, wretched human", the leading brown fiery demon said while looking towards the Sarafan warrior with serious eyes, but softly smirks as it prepares to attack him. "In fact, you should be concerning yourself with the current battle at hand!" the demon exclaimed before sprinting towards him hastily. Asher himself summons one bright blue energy blade within his hand and sprints towards the demon with haste as well. Within a few seconds notice, both Asher and the demon's energy blades come into contact, thus igniting the next part of the battle.

As Asher and the leading fiery demon engage into battle, Xenif continues to exert his wrath against the vampuric vulpin by using his fists to strike him endlessly. Although Travas was able to block a good chunk of the attacks, he was greatly damaged by many of the avian's attacks and continues receiving damage. But within a sudden moment, however, he viciously strikes the phoenix underneath his beak using an uppercut attack, sending the avian about thirty meters higher in the sky. Almost immediately, the vulpin darts towards the phoenix up above, preparing to strike the ferocious phoenix with ravenous hand-paws. But when he got close, Xenif smirks and makes a sudden aerial recovery, thus striking the vulpin violently with his scaly feet.

"I cannot believe you've fallen for a trick like this so easily", Xenif shouted while laughing evilly, watching his opponent plummeting towards the ground at a rather haste speed. Within a short moment, Travas crashes onto the ground below, just as the phoenix had planned. As a result, a crater that was about fifteen feet deep and nearly forty-five feet in diameter was formed, with the vulpin also managing to get back onto his feet-paws. Despite the vulpin recovering, however, Travas holds onto his injured left arm and looks towards the avian descending onto the ground before him. "I mean, really… you've already shown to be stronger than this. But if that seems to be the case, then why must this crap go on?" he asked with a smirk on his face.

"Good… right on schedule", Travas thought while softly smirking towards his opponent, despite his slightly heavy breathing. This also causes the avian to look towards him with a rather serious, but suspicious look on his face.

"What is he thinking right now…?" Xenif wondered while looking towards the vampuric vulpin closely. "Despite his injuries, I best be on my guard", he continued thinking before getting into battle position. But as he did, he notices the vulpin's smirk widen with satisfaction while he was raising his left arm upward.

"Excellent… just stay right where you're at, Xenif", Travas thought while looking towards the phoenix with a smirk on his face. Xenif, on the other hand, continues to look towards the vulpin with a suspicious look on his face, trying to figure out what his opponent was intending to do.

"Travas, why are you just standing there and staring at me", Xenif yelled with calm anger. All he got in response from the vulpin was merely a simple, yet confident chuckle and nothing more. "Answer me, Damnit!" he shouted while pointing the finger towards him at the same time.

"I guess you're just gonna have to wait and find out", Travas answered, angering the avian a lot more than he was before. Then, the vulpin moves his eyes slightly upward, eying what appears to be an electrical sphere floating nearly half a mile diagonally above and behind the avian. But to avoid further suspicion from the phoenix he calmly, but quickly shifts his eyes towards his opponent once again. Suddenly, however, Xenif growls angrily and jumps up about thirty-five feet in the air. Then, he raises his arms upward and begins to summon another massive solar sphere just a few feet above him

"Very well then…! If you wish for me to beat an answer out of you, then I shall do so with dignity", Xenif shouted before quickly finalizing the attack. However, Travas pulls his arms downward and looks back up towards his attack, noticing that Xenif was unaware of his electrical sphere within the distance behind him. "SOLAR BO-" the phoenix tried to finish before suddenly sensing some sort of intense energy behind him. He turns around slowly and discovers the massive sphere of energy behind him, seeing it spark uncontrollably like a generator overloading with electrical power. "What in the kenal?!" the phoenix shouted, eying the deadly and much bigger electrical sphere, seeing towards him as his own attack dissipates like the wind blowing out a candle flame.

"You're not the only one who has tricks up his sleeve, Xenif!" Travas yelled. "Now face the power of my LIGHTNING BOMB", the vulpin shouted while pulling back slightly father, intensifying the pull of the sphere and increasing its speed.

Somewhere close by, Asher continues to fight against the leading brown fiery demon with great strength. But just as he was about to fire the finishing attack towards the demon, he suddenly stops and looks towards the massive electrical sphere, eying with shock and amazement at the same time. The demon, too, looks towards the sphere with shock as well, unable to comprehend the capabilities of Travas himself.

"My god… how was Travas able to summon forth such an attack", Asher thought, looking towards the deadly sphere with wide eyes. And as he did, he notices Xenif place his hands in front of him quickly; preparing to fend against the bomb Travas had created. Then, within a moment, the lightning bomb comes into contact within the palms of the avian's hands.

"By the maker…" Xenif thought while trying to push the attack away from him, but has shown to be too much for him. "How is it possible for Travas to summon such an attack", he thought as he notices the attack starting to consume his hands.

"Finally… it looks like Travas finally managed to get him", Asher thought while watching the ongoing struggle between Xenif and Travas' ravenous attack. But before he could continue watching any further, the Sarafan warrior turns to face the surviving fiery demon several meters in front of him. "Now then, let us finish this battle once and for all!" he said calmly before he and the demon quickly get into their battle positions. "Only one of us will be getting out of this alive", the warrior claimed while beginning to summon forth a bright blue colored energy sphere within the palm of his right hand.

"I couldn't agree with you more, young warrior", the leading brown fiery demon agreed before summoning two fiery spheres within its hands. Then, within the next moment, the two warriors shoot their blasts towards each other, clashing against each other like fire colliding against fire.

Within a short distance, Travas continues to smirk while watching his opponent getting consumed by his lightning bomb. But as the vulpin continues to watch, he continues to watch Xenif struggle against the attack as best as he could; watching the avian being consumed more by his attack. Suddenly, however, the vulpin discovers that the avian was summoning an attack within the palms of his scaly hands, even inside of his electrical bomb. As a response, the vulpin's smirk fades into a more calm, but serious expression on his face.

"I am no fool, you damned vulpin! Don't ever underestimate what your enemy is truly capable of ", Xenif yelled before overcoming the lightning bomb with his solar sphere, thus turning around to face the vulpin down below. Along with that, he also raises his arms upward slightly, causing the sphere to rise about fifteen feet above him. "And because of your earlier assumption, Travas… your life is about to run its course", he claimed while chuckling in an evil manner and preparing to throw the deadly attack towards the vulpin. However, he discovers the vulpin beginning to smirk once again, wondering what he has coursing in his mind. But before he could think anything else, Travas tightens his grip on the palms of his hands, causing the solar attack to explode like a case of dynamite.

"Got him", Travas thought while smirking softly, watching the avian get consumed by the electrifying attack. But within a moment, yet according to the vulpin's plans, the electrifying avian crashes into the ground some twenty-five meters away from him, creating another crater after crashing onto the ground violently. After the avian crashed, Travas walks up to the top of the fifteen foot deep crater and walks towards it calmly, eying the avian with calm satisfaction upon seeing his unconscious state. "Looks like the match is over", he thought while slowly approaching the unconscious avian below. But all of the sudden, however, the phoenix awakens and jumps upward into the sky, managing to jump about fifty-five feet high with a solar based disc forming just above his grasp.

"YOU VILE BASTARD, HOW DARE YOU PULL SUCH A TRICK AGAINST ME", Xenif shouted furiously before pulling his arm that corresponded to the solar disc backwards. "IF THAT'S HOW YOU WANT TO FIGHT, THEN ALLOW ME TO GRANT YOU THAT WISH", he continued shouting before suddenly throwing the sharp solar disc towards the vulpin, causing him to get into his martial arts battle position. But when Travas was about to deflect the disc, Xenif smirks and pulls it away from the vulpin, turning his sights towards the Sarafan warrior battling against the demon not too far from their location.

"What the hell!" Travas exclaimed while turning to face the solar disc hurling towards his companion. "ASHER, LOOK OUT!"

"Huh", Asher exclaimed in a confused tone before spotting the solar disc not too far from his location. "What the fuck?!" he shouted before suddenly dodging the deadly attack, seeing it slice the demon in half like lumber. As the demon's severed body lands on the ground, the Sarafan warrior turns to face the ferocious phoenix in the skies above, eying him with a rather annoyed look on his face. "Hey, what the hell's the big deal here?! I was already dealing with that demonic prick and now you're interfering with my battle!" he continued shouted as Xenif looks towards the warrior with an evil grin on his face

"I'm glad to be the one to relieve you of your duties, young warrior", Xenif replied before turning his evil satisfactory expression into a more serious one. "However, I think it is time to shift my battle towards you, young warrior", the avian said while turning to face Travas, who was looking towards the phoenix with serious eyes. "As for you, Travas… I do not want you to interfere with our battle", he continued as he raises his right hand towards the vulpin below. "In fact, I think it might be best if you keep yourself 'contained' for this one", the phoenix spoke with a soft smirk on his face, forming what appeared to be four bright yellow rings with traces of solar energy in them. And within a couple seconds' notice, the avian throws the rings towards him, binding Travas from the chest down to his feet-paws and knocking him down onto the ground as a response.

"Argh…! Shit", Travas exclaimed with a loud, painful tone as he starts trying to break free from his binds. But while he was trying, he was forced to watch the battle commence between Asher and Xenif, unable to do anything about it. As for the other two warriors, they continue to battle against each other with great strength, using only their fists and feet as their weapons of choice.

As the fight continues to progress, the vulpin continues trying to break free from his binds. But as he did, he notices Asher giving Xenif a run for his money by cancelling out the avian's attacks with his own. This brings the vulpin some comforting hope and fighting spirit while allowing him to focus on trying to break his constraints. While he did, Asher summons two energy spheres on the palms of his hands, turning them into energy blades once they formed completely. Xenif, on the other hand, merely clenches his hands and looks towards him with serious eyes.

"We've had enough of your games, Xenif! It's time that we finish this once and for all! Just you and me", Asher shouted before darting towards the avian hastily, striking him with his energy blades as Xenif dodges his attacks effortlessly.

"I couldn't agree with you more, young man", Xenif replied before grabbing both of Asher's energy blades, causing the warrior to look towards him with surprise. Then, the avian suddenly and ferociously strikes his opponent's chest with his left foot, knocking the warrior back towards some trees nearly fifty meters away from Travas' position. The vulpin's eyes widen as a response and starts struggling against his constraints, putting in as much of his strength as he could to try and break free. Xenif, however, manages to discover this and aims his hand towards the imprisoned vulpin, clutching it and causes the constraints to tighten around Travas' body.

"AAARRRGGHHHH", Travas screamed out painfully, which continues to grow louder as each constraint around his body tightens. But despite this, the vulpin continues to struggle against his binds, with adding the extra effort as a cost to keep him alive. The phoenix smirks towards his constrained enemy as he continues to hear his agonizing cries. But before the avian could say anything else, Asher darts towards him and prepares to strike the vicious phoenix.

"Hey, get the hell away from him!" Asher shouted before striking him in the face, knocking the avian towards the forest nearby. Almost immediately after the avian crashes, the Sarafan warrior prepares two electrifying globes within the palms of his hands, which bolts of lightning began sparking about the area. "It's over, Xenif! Now prepare to have a taste of my-" he started until the avian suddenly starts darting towards him with something in his hands. And before the Sarafan warrior could say anything else, he feels something sharp impale him right through his abdomen. The attack he formed moments before dissipates into the air as he starts coughing up blood, with some of it splattering onto the avian's face.

"You lose", Xenif said calmly while smirking rather evilly towards the Sarafan warrior, where he wipes the blood off of his face with his left forearm. Then, the phoenix pulls what seems to be a golden spear out of Asher's abdomen, with the golden blade and part of the pole being covered in his blood. When Asher looks down upon the blade, he notices a turquoise colored gem, now covered in his blood, at the point where the blade and pole meet. It was then, that he realized what the avian was hiding, or wearing all along. Thus, he looks upon the phoenix with shocked eyes as he starts plummeting towards the ground.

"Shit… how … could he… have…"Asher softly spoke before coughing up a small, but heavy portion of his blood. Then, within a sudden moment, he crashes onto the grassland within a forest nearby. And as he did, Travas looks towards his fallen ally with shocked and widened eyes.

"Oh no…" Travas spoke calmly, but with some despair in his tone. But his shocked expression soon turns into one filled with pure anger, thus causing him to growl loudly in rage and put more effort into breaking his constraints. And within a few short moments, the vulpin breaks free from his binds and begins summoning his purple-red colored energy, with its aura engulfing his body outline like wildfire. Alas, the vulpin looks towards the phoenix with his now blood red eyes, eying him with only one thing coursing his mind. "You're gonna pay for what you've done, Xenif!" he shouted before getting into battle position.

"Is that so?" Xenif asked with a rather doubtful tone, but nonetheless smirks towards the vulpin down below, eying him while preparing to engage in battle against him. "Very well then, let's finish this! Once and for all!" he shouted before darting towards the vulpin hastily, with his mysterious spear prepared for the final battle. Again, Travas darts towards the avian up in the skies above, leaving the outcome of the final struggle to the hand of fate.

*Inside the Tower*

The halls within the tower were silent, and the only light source available were the rows of dimly lit candles lighting the way. Soon, however, the sounds of running footsteps start to overcome the silence within, with two female kitsunes being responsible for the sound. Within a few moments though, the two kitsunes arrive towards the entrance of their master's room, knocking on it with a rather urgent manner.

"Master Aerocrothe, are you there", the first female kitsune asked urgently. And within a moment, the male kitsune opens the door and looks towards them with a serious, but calm look on his face.

"You're on time, that's good", Aerocrothe said with a calm tone, despite his calmly serious look. "Come in", he continued as both female kitsunes quickly enter their master's room. "Tell me, what did you discover regarding the phoenix?"

"Our lord, we discovered the avian was in possession of a physical weapon he disguised as his belt… and it may be powerful enough to defeat you!" the second female kitsune answered.

"She's right", the first female kitsune also spoke. "The weapon itself is in shape of a spear, also being a golden color with a turquoise gem attached near the blade", she continued as Aerocrothe looks towards her curiously.

"A spear shaped weapon, you say?" Aerocrothe asked calmly, but with some slight curiousness in it. "It appears I need to examine this", he continued just before he turns to face the Magical bowl nearby. "Come, my ladies. It is time I saw this weapon for myself", the kitsune champion ordered calmly, causing the two female kitsunes to follow him as he demanded.

As soon as they got to the water bowl nearby, Aerocrothe uses a spell that displays the battle between Travas and Xenif. While watching, he notices the vulpin being in his ascended form along with the avian in possession of the suspecting physical weapon. But as he looks at the weapon closer, his eyes widen upon recognition of what it truly was, thus causing the female kitsunes to worry about their beloved master.

"Sire, what ails you", the first female kitsune asked.

"Do you recognize the weapon, my lord", the second one asked as Aerocrothe looks toward them both with widened, serious eyes. But before he tries to speak, he closes his eyes and sighs calmly.

"Unfortunately, I do, my ladies", Aerocrothe answered, thus opening his eyes and turns to face the projection of the battle before him. "That weapon he bares is, without a doubt, a magical weapon known as the Star Blade".

"The… Star Blade?" both female kitsunes asked in a confused tone.

"Yes", Aerocrothe started before turning to face them both. "It has been said to possess great power since it was encrusted with a phoenix's sunstone, allowing the wielder to change the blade into a different form with a mere thought", he explained while the two kitsunes continue to look towards their master with curious eyes.

"Whoa… how is it that you know so much information, my lord", the first female kitsune asked.

"Can you tell us what you know about the phoenix?" the second one asked curiously, causing Aerocrothe to nod in response.

"It's simple, young lads", Aerocrothe answered. "In my youth, my grandfather had often told me about a battle that took place within the Gardens of Eden over a century and a half ago", he started. "It was rumored that another phoenix named Phionix went into madness after his beloved passed away and losing against Pharobus in an attempt to reclaim her soul. But because of this, he lashed out his fury against those who were able to live out their lives with their mates", the kitsune champion explained before turning to face the water bowl next to him, looking down towards the projection of the ongoing battle before him. Both female kitsunes, in response, cover their mouths as a response to what they've heard regarding the avian

"My god… that's horrible…" the first female kitsune spoke softly while shaking her head softly.

"Why would he take it out on them?" the second one asked curiously, but with a slight shocked tone despite her attempts in being calm.

"As I said, it was because of his madness over losing the love of his life", Aerocrothe answered while turning to face his servants once more. "As his madness began to reach its peak, a unicorn king by the name of Alicore challenged Phionix against him in a great battle. The king was rather fortunate, however, for he used the same weapon you saw moments ago against Phionix, impaling him on his chest to end the battle", he explained before turning to face the ongoing battle projected within the water bowl. "Rumor has it, however, that Phionix fled to his deceased mate out of remorse for what he's done to the townsfolk… though I do not know what he did afterwards".

"I see…" The second female kitsune replied calmly.

"It may be possible it could explain how he may have split into two other phoenixes?" the first one asked curiously as Aerocrothe looks at her with a rather intrigued, but calm look on his face.

"That may be possible, young lass", Aerocrothe replied before facing the water bowl once more. "How ironic… the one who currently wields the Star Blade is actually half of another phoenix who was destroyed by his own weapon", he thought before tilting his head slightly upward. "However, I have no intention of Xenif using the Star Blade against me in the final match. Something must be done… and quickly", he continued thinking before looking towards his female servants once more.

"Master…?" both female kitsunes asked while looking towards him with curious eyes.

"Ladies…you know what must be done… and I suggest that you get Xenif out of the tournament immediately before he causes any further damage with the Star Blade", Aerocrothe spoke calmly, but with seriousness in his tone.

"Understood", both female kitsunes replied in unison before bowing respectfully before their master.

"We'll get right on to it", the first one said before the two female kitsunes teleport out of the room within a second's notice, leaving Aerocrothe to look upon the battle with serious eyes.

"Did you really think you could fool me that easily with such a lousy disguise, Xenif", Aerocrothe thought within his mind seriousness in his tone. "Well think again, you fool… your time here in the tournament has finally run its course".

*At the South-eastern Sky Island*

The battle continues to rage on and storm clouds begin to take over the skies above. And as Travas and Xenif continue to fight against each other, the rain begins to pour down upon the Sky Island and the two warriors. However, the phoenix manages to fire a series of electrical bolts towards the vulpin, paralyzing him briefly enough to cause him to crash onto the ground below. And while Travas was recovering, Xenif descends onto the ground in which his opponent was located, thus smirking in delight as the vulpin holds onto his now bloodied left arm.

"I've had enough of your games, young warrior!" Xenif yelled while raising his right arm upward, aiming his Star Blade towards the vulpin. But while he was aiming, however, Travas releases his hold of the injury on the upper part of his left arm and begins summoning a powerful, softball sized electrical sphere of energy just above the palm of his hand-paw. "Alright, Travas, times up!" the phoenix shouted before summoning solar energy and cloaking it around the spear. "It's time to DIE", the avian shouted before throwing the spear towards the injured vulpin. But within a fraction of a second after throwing the weapon, a spark of light suddenly bursts at the area, thus blinding the two warriors as a result. When they recover moments later, however, they realized that two female kitsunes had appeared before them, with the first one having the spear in her hands.

"Whoa…" Travas thought with a small, but sudden sense of shock, looking towards the two female kitsunes appearing out of nowhere.

The first one was an arctic kitsune, who wore a dark gray kimono with black linings and a black belt. She also had dark brown colored hair that was about shoulder length. The second one had orange colored fur with black colored forearms and legs. The same one also contained light brown hair that almost reached the end of her shoulder blades. Now, they stand before the ferocious phoenix, looking towards him with serious eyes as Xenif begins growling in anger.

"You pestilent wenches, get out of my damn way now before I kill you with my bare hands!" Xenif shouted before he suddenly darts hastily towards the two female kitsunes. But before he could strike either one of them, however, the second one performs a spell that constrains the avian with four circular binds, thus causing him to crash onto the ground roughly.

"You shall not do any further harm against your opponent with the Star Blade, Xenif!" the first female kitsune stated while raising him higher into the sky slightly, causing the avian to float about a couple of feet off the ground. She also tightens the constraints around him as Travas looks towards the spear with curious eyes.

"The… Star Blade…?" Travas wondered within his mind for a moment. But then, his eyes widen as he looks upon the weapon's features, recognizing every exact detail on the spear. "Wait a second, that's right! That's the same weapon Pandora will obtain while she's at the Gardens of Eden", he thought while eying the Star Blade with widened eyes. "But if the original phoenix lost his during another battle, how did he get his hands on it", the vulpin wondered, watching the entire event take place.

"Damn you, vile kitsunes! I demand you to release me from these constraints at once!" Xenif shouted furiously while trying to break free from his binds. But instead of breaking free like he planned, the constraints around him continue to tighten as the second kitsune begins growling with a rather annoyed tone.

"If I recall the rules correctly, Master Aerocrothe said physical weapons were prohibited in the Tournament", the second female kitsune yelled with seriousness in her tone.

"And since you disobeyed our master's rule, you are hereby disqualified from the Tournament", the first one yelled angrily while summoning a portal behind the angered avian. Afterwards, the second one starts pushing the phoenix towards the portal. But when she gets him to the opening, the avian manages to free his wings and opens them completely, thus allowing him to stop the second female kitsune from bushing him into the portal. He also uses his scaly talons to grip onto the bottom part of the portal opening, allowing him to buy a bit more time and looks towards his opponent nearby.

"This isn't over, Travas! You hear me! THIS ISN'T OVER", Xenif shouted furiously before the second female kitsune telekinetically pushes the phoenix into the portal, booting him out of the tournament and allowing the first kitsune to close the portal. Then, both kitsunes walk towards the injured vulpin and grab a hold of his arms gently, thus supporting him in his weakened state.

"Travas, are you alright?" the first female kitsune asked while the second one starts summoning forth healing magic, engulfing the vulpin's body outline and slowly restoring his body like new.

"Yeah… I'm alright", Travas answered. "But what about Asher…? He's the one that needs medical attention", he asked, causing both female kitsunes to close their eyes and tilt their heads slightly downward.

"What we had to do in order to boot Xenif out of the tournament took a lot of energy out of us", the first female kitsune answered before she and the other one open their eyes and face Travas.

"Although we want to heal your friend, since he was also affected by the weapon, we cannot heal him since we won't have enough to close the wound", the second one added. "At this point, he may have lost too much blood for us to do anything about it", she explained before the two kitsunes cease their healing magic, managing to restore most of Travas' injuries. "I'm sorry…" she apologized before closing her eyes sympathetically.

"Now that you are healed, it is time for us to return to the tower at once", the first female kitsune said before they start summoning their teleportation magic. "We wish you the best of luck in the tournament", she added before both kitsunes were engulfed in a bright light. And within a sudden moment, a spark of light shoots out as Travas covers his eyes with his right arm. Then, the vulpin uncovers his eyes and looks at the spot where the two kitsunes once stood, only to see them no longer there. Travas shakes his head only briefly before turning to face the forest nearby, thus starts running towards it in hopes of finding Asher alive.

When he arrives, he begins to look around the forest for the spot where his partner might have crashed. But as the vulpin was surveying his surroundings, he could only see countless number of demonic bodies lying about the woods. Within a few moments, however, he manages to spot Asher lying at a field about ten meters away from his position.

"Asher!" Travas shouted before sprinting towards the injured Sarafan warrior. When he got close, the vulpin slides onto his knees and kneels down towards the fallen warrior, using his left arm to lift the back of his neck and shoulders up a bit. But before he could say anything, he spots the fatal wound the warrior had suffered and looks towards it with shock. "Oh my god…" he uttered softly before turning to face his fatally injured partner. "Asher… are you alright", the vulpin asked worryingly just before the Sarafan warrior coughs up another porting of his blood.

"I've… been better…" Asher answered while breathing heavily.

"Asher, don't talk…" Travas spoke before tilting his head upward, looking around various directions in hopes of finding someone that could help. "HELLO! IS ANYONE OUT THERE! WE NEED HELP!" he shouted urgently. But despite his loud cries of help, no one arrived on the scene, leaving Travas alone with his dying partner. But suddenly, however, Travas comes up with an idea that could possibly help save the Sarafan warrior. "Hang on, Asher, I'm gonna help you! Just hang in there", the vulpin spoke with a reassuring tone before carefully placing his hand-paws on the warrior's bloody wound. But before he could try to summon healing magic, however, Asher places his right hand onto the vulpin's left shoulder, causing him to turn and face him curiously.

"Travas…" Asher started while breathing rather heavily and coughing another porting of his blood. "I've already lost too much blood… it's already too late for me", he claimed, causing Travas to close his eyes and shake his head in denial.

"Asher, don't say that!" Travas yelled, but all he got in response was a chuckle from a dying Sarafan warrior.

"Look… you need to continue your journey towards the tower… and defeat Aerocrothe once and for all", Asher said before coughing yet another small portion of his blood.

"Asher…" Travas spoke softly while looking down upon him with a worrying expression on his face. Before he could say anything, however, he notices Asher grabbing something out of his side pouch. "Asher, what are you doing", the vulpin asked until he discovers the warrior pulling a combat knife out of his side pouch.

"Travas… there's one last thing… I want to give you… before I pass on", Asher spoke softly, but hoarsely while raising the combat knife towards his partner's left cheek. Travas looks down towards the Sarafan warrior curiously before Asher presses the blade against the vulpin's cheek. Within a moment, he pulls down slowly and forms a long, slightly tilted line on his cheek. Again, he pulls the blade off of the vulpin's cheek and rotates the blade ninety degrees horizontally from the original cut. Thus, he presses the blade against Travas' cheek and cuts another line on it, but with this one being shorter than the other. All Travas could do in that moment was look down upon the Sarafan warrior with curious eyes.

"What is this…?" Travas asked as the blood slowly drips down from the new formed, cross shaped scar on his left cheek.

"It's my gift to you… a token of my trust", Asher answered hoarsely before coughing up blood once again. "With this scar… you shall not be harmed… by the Sarafan armies in Nosgoth", the warrior explained as Travas looks down upon him with curious eyes. "Once they see the scar on your face… they will know… it was from me…" he continued before grunting in pain slightly. "Now go… defeat Aerocrothe… and finish the tournament…! Tell the rest… of the Sarafan… what truly… happened… to… me…" the warrior said in his last breath before his body finally gives up on him, leaving nothing but a lifeless corpse lying on the ground before the vulpin.

After the vulpin stands back up onto his feet, he begins to head towards the location in which they set their belongings down. Within a matter of seconds, he spots their bags and lands before them, picking them up and carrying them over his shoulders before flying back towards Asher's body. Upon arrival, the vulpin sets their belongings about five meters away from the Sarafan warrior's body and walks towards around the area. All he could do in that moment was gather various amounts of flowers around the area, thus preparing a memorial for the fallen warrior.

*Inside the Sacred Chamber, Nosgoth*

After the battle met its conclusion by the two female kitsunes, the vampires, including Raziel, continue to watch Travas make memorial preparations within the Dimensional Dome. While a few may have mixed emotions about what he was doing, Janos merely looks towards the displayed image of the vulpin's preparations in a calm manner. Serenity, on the other hand, looks down towards the watery projection of her father with a saddened, but curious look on her face, seeing him grab a sword from the fallen Sarafan warrior's bag. As a response, she turns to face Janos with curious eyes, grabbing the attention of the winged vampire himself.

"Janos, what's daddy doing", Serenity asked.

"I'm not entirely sure… but it appears that your father is making a memorial for the fallen warrior", Janos answered before turning to face the sacred pool below. "And this may perhaps be the right thing for him to do at this very moment…" he thought as Serenity turns to face the pool as well, looking towards her father grabbing a sword from Asher's bag. And within that moment, she watches her father place the sword's heft on the deceased warrior's hands. Thus, she notices him adjusting the blade to where Asher was holding it like a knight on guard, making it the only thing that deemed right to memorialize the fallen warrior.

*Inside the Sarafan Keep, Meridian, Nosgoth*

The Main Quarters was packed with nothing but various modern spell casters and knights of every rank. But inside, however, they continue watching the projection of the memorial through their rectangular fountain, seeing Travas placing Asher swords within the fallen warrior's hands. As they watch, some of the Knights and guards begin to question if whether or not he was their enemy, or if he merely did it to avoid further persecution from the Sarafan.

"He's merely a blood sucking fiend! Why is he providing one of our own a proper memorial", one of the Sarafan knights yelled angrily, taking the memorial as something rather offensive than a tribute to the fallen warrior.

"How dare he… he has no right!" another Sarafan knight shouted as one of the guards suddenly turns to face him.

"What the hell is the matter with you fools?! He wasn't able to help him because of the damned binds the phoenix created! And right now, it's the best and only thing he could do for Asher at this very moment", one of the Sarafan guards shouted towards the two knights, causing them to draw their blades and face him.

"You dare speak to us about what we think about that vulpin's actions?!" the first Sarafan knight shouted angrily as the guard draws his sword out.

"I suggest you keep that damn mouth of yours shut! Or otherwise, we'll shove our blades right down your damn throat!" the second knight shouted. But before either one of them could attack, their leader, Miles Sullivan, stands from his throne and begins growling furiously towards the three warriors.

"Alright, THAT'S EHOUGH!" Miles shouted furiously, causing every warrior of various ranks inside the room to look towards him in a surprised manner. "We don't have any time to argue over what to make of the memorial!"

"When what do you make of this, Sire?" the Sarafan guard asked while putting his sword back into his sheathe. But before he could speak, Miles gives out a sigh of frustration before facing the guard once again.

"To be honest, I don't know what to make of it…" Miles answered. "But based upon what I see, he's memorializing one of my finest students that I've ever had. And right now, this may be the best thing for him to do at this time", he continued before many of the guards and knights turn to face the projection in the rectangular pool once again. "Travas… now you bear the same scar as Asher… the same one I gave him a few years ago as a token of my trust", he thought before softly smiling towards the vulpin. "Only you can win this tournament now".

*Within the South-eastern Sky Island*

Once the Memorial was made, Travas gets onto his knees and sits on his heels similar to that of a Japanese tradition. He gives a silent prayer into the deceased warrior, closing his eyes and clenching his hands together. And within a moment, he opens his eyes and gets back up on his feet-paws, then grabs his and the remainder of Asher's belongings with his right hand-paw. Thus, he turns to face the path in which leads to the Tower's location, setting his mind with nothing but one mere thought.

"I'm coming for you, Aerocrothe. It's time to end this once and for all", Travas thought while walking towards the dirt path nearby, thus embarking on the journey for the final battle of the tournament.

It appears Xenif has been disqualified from the tournament after using his legendary Star Blade against Travas. Although Travas managed to win by default, it came at such high a cost. Asher loses his life during the battle after being stabbed by the legendary Star Blade. However, he manages to give the vulpin one last gift before he passes on into the afterlife: the same cross-shaped scar on his left cheek. But with Asher now deceased, Travas creates a memorial for the fallen warrior and journeys towards the tower where Aerocrothe is located. Will Travas be able to defeat the powerful kitsune, or will he be another one of his victims. Find out in the next installment of 'Legacy of Travas'.