AGNOMAKHOS
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 25
Alex didn't know exactly what Jaina was planning, but he knew that he trusted her completely. He felt hope flood his mind, and a nervous grin crossed his face. And a nasty snarl crossed Phenax's.
"Stand down, wench," the god of deception snapped. He lashed out Perisiophia's right fist at Jaina, infusing it with sizzling blue and black mana.
Just in time, Jaina stepped back and materialized a blinding rod of white mana between her hands. The mana coalesced into a miniature version of Khrusor, Heliod's spear, and Jaina used the spear block Phenax's heavy punch. The collision threw intense waves of blue, black, and white mana through the whole room, and Alex winced at the pressure. He felt like he was being pressed into the marble floor, and his body screamed for release.
"Hang on, Alex!" Jaina twirled her spear like a baton and suddenly jabbed at Phenax's face. Phenax ducked the blow and countered with a short-range blast of mana from his left hand, catching Jaina in the stomach with a thud.
Jaina griamced from the blow's pressure but didn't yield. She snapped down her spear, and the spearhead whacked Perisophia right on the head. For just a moment, Phenax was stunned as he fought to regain control of his host's body. Jaina took this chance to swing her spear like a bat and knock him aside. Perisophia's body tumbled across the council chamber's floor.
Jaina dashed over to Alex and offered a hand, her spear's light painful to the eyes from this close. Still, Alex didn't look away. He took Jaina's hand and shakily got to his feet, swaying on the spot. He panicked as his head grew light, his vision fuzzy.
"Alex, Heliod gave me this strength because I was ready to lay down my life for Meletis and its people," Jaina explained quickly as Phenax got to his feet across the room. "And you know what? I've seen the same in you today. You risked a lot to come here and find the truth, including your life. Heliod approves, and so do I. Are you ready to accept my gift and keep fighting?"
Alex was stunned. Him, equal to the Sun Champion? No way. "Jaina, I failed. I was too weak!"
"On your own, yes. But Heliod helps those who stand up for what's right," Jaina hurried to explain. "If you empty yourself, and become a conduit for the people's will to endure, you may receive Heliod's gift. Now, will you take it?"
There was nothing else for it. Alex nodded. "Yes."
"Then hold still." With oen swift motion, Jaina impaled Alex's forehead with her spear.
Indescribable energy blasted through Alex's mind, combined with... joy? Pleasure? Alex didn't know what it was, but he felt detached from his body, like his mind floated in a pearly void. Somehow, he could feel Heliod watching him, but Alex couldn't see him in return.
It didn't matter.
Alex was snapped back to reality as a jet of hard blue and black mana plowed into him. Alex shouted as he realized that Phenax had flung him across the room with an attack, and he crashed into the opppsite wall with enough force to crack it, not unlike Kulla earlier. He slid to the floor, but oddly, there was no pain...
Jaina was still standing there, spear in hand. "Alex! You got your gift. Are you gonna waste it, soldier?" she snapped, less the Sun Champion and more like her military self.
Alex was quick to obey his former platoon captain. "No, sir!" He bolted to his feet, suddenly giddy. Heliod's favor soaked into his skin like a balm, and he felt his depleted red mana surge back up like a volcano's eruption, enhanced by the favor. The air around him shimmered and distorted with the intense heat, and with ease, Alex conjured a torrent of flames around himself like a protective aura. More fire burst to life in his hands as he clenched his fists. "Whoa... I feel... alive!"
"Good. 'Cause you're going to need it, soldier. Now fight with me!" Jaina barked. She lowered her spear so its point faced Phenax. And she charged.
This is it. Be ready to lay down your life to kill this asshole, Alex thought, eyes on Phenax. Your life doesn't matter anymore. Only your duty! And he, too, charged.
Phenax howled in frustration as Jaina's spear and Alex's flaming fists crashed down on him from both sides. He crouched and raised Perisophia's arms to shield himself, throwing up hardened barriers of blue mana streaked with black. For a few seconds, Alex's fiery fists trembled against Phenax's barriers. Then, with another push, he shattered the barrier like glass and landed a terrific punch to Perisophia's jaw. Yes!
A second later, Jaina broke the rest of Phenax's barriers and swatted him across the room with her spear. Shouting in agony, Phenax smashed into the wall and crumpled to the floor like Alex had done. But he didn't get up as easily; shaking, he only barely got to his feet.
"Such a tag team," Phenax tried to sneer, but for the first time he looked worried. "Looks like you got a little helper, Sun Champion."
"You're done, freak." Jaina pointed her spear at Phenax, charged her white mana, and released a devastating mana beam.
Alex preapred to see only smoking ruins when the dust settled, but he was shocked to see Phenax still standing, his host body smoking and trembling. Blue and black mana leaked from the body. "Hit him again!" Alex urged Jaina.
Before Jaina could make another move, Phenax stood to his full height. "I'm not done yet, mortals," he growled. "This whole civil war was by my design, and it gives me strength. Didn't think I'd need it, but what can I do?"
And with that, Phenax extended Perisophia's left arm toward the outside battle, clawing the fingers as though to grasp something. Thin tendrils of blue and black mana wafted from outside and collected at Perisophia's fingers.
"No!" Alex pounced, swinging down a flaming fist to bash Perisophia's head in. A bubble of blue mana popped up at the last second, completely encasing Phenax. Alex's fire fist bounced uselessly off the smooth blue surface and he backed away, suddenly wary.
The thin mana tendrils thickened, and Phenax's mana aura began to rise. It climbed higher and higher, more than Alex thought possible. Already, it towered over anything that Kulla could have mustered, and the floor and walls cracked and buckled under the aura's weight. The air shuddered and twisted in protest.
"That's impossible!" Alex stared, aghast. "So much mana..."
Jaina nodded grimly. "Every soldier in that battle outside is fighting under Phenax's influence, warped and confused by his constant deception. He has the whole battle to draw upon."
Now the glittering stars of Nyx shone on Perisophia's body as a cloak of misty, blue-black mana encased it. A stern gold mask materialized over Perisophia's face, with small gold wings extending from either side. Alex recognized it as Phenax's mask-face from the mosiacs dedicated to the gods. He's holding nothing back!
Phenax finished collecting mana and lowered his barrier. He clenched his right fist, examining the Nyx stars on his fingers. "You may be the first and last mortals to ever see this," he commented. "Consider that an honor."
And he vanished.
No, wait. He just ran really fast! He's got cushions of blue mana under his feet. But this realization didn't help Alex much. In an instant, Phenax had placed himself between Jaina and Alex, and each hand released a powerful, whirling vortex of blue-black mana.
Alex yelped as one vortex smashed into him, and only by focusing his mana aura on his front did he avoid total destruction. Instead, Phenax's vortex chewed through Alex's mana and tossed him to the floor like a rag doll, and from here, he saw the same happen to Jaina. Not even a surge of white mana could save her; she crashed to the floor just like Alex.
Phenax glanced back and forth between both mortals, then pounced on Alex with a fist drawn back for the killing blow. The sight of impending death galvanized Alex's will and, with Heliod's borrowed favor boosting him, he sprang to his feet. He threw out a flaming fist to meet Phenax's.
Blinding sheets of blue, black, and red mana issued from the clashing fists, and Alex winced at the horrible pressure of Phenax's punch. His arm trembled, but he refused to yield, not to someone as foul as Phenax. He felt like his bones would snap, but he bared his teeth and kept resisting.
"Raaaaah!" Phenax broke off and tried to land another punch, this time at Alex's gut.
With the pressure lifted, Alex marshaled his mana and sprang away from Phenax's punch. Furious, he unleashed a flurry of fiery punches at Phenax's head and chest, pouring as much mana into the barrage as possible. Caught by surprise, the god of deception reeled from repeated strikes all over, and bits of his gold mask chipped off from the force of Alex's blows. Alex's flames also burned off pieces of Phenax's star-studded cloak, slowly wearing it thin.
"That's enough!" Phenax snapped up a foot and knocked aside Alex's arms with surprising athleticism. Then, he retaliated with an equal barrage of punches, his hardened blue and black mana hammering Alex's body. Patches of armor-like white mana conjured themselves to take the brunt of the impacts, but Alex could still feel himself getting beaten to a pulp. He cried out as Phenax connected with a final, harder punch and sent Alex sprawling again.
Before Phenax could finish Alex off, Jaina was on her feet again. She raised her spear and brought it down on Phenax's head from behind, but before the blow could land, Phenax reached out and caught the spearhead bare-handed. He wrenched the weapon from Jaina's hands and kicked her aside.
He's so strong! I heard legends about how powerful that Rafael man was, back in the first invasion of Meletis, but Phenax may be even better than that! Alex stared in dismay as Phenax approached him. He felt Heliod's favor wavering inside him, agitated by Alex's doubts.
"You're a tough one," Phenax commented. "Such willpower and passion. It would be a shame to just kill you. No, I'll make an example of you. I'll reduce you to madness." And with that, he reached out a hand and enveloped Alex's head in a mist of blue-black mana.
"We... lost?"
Alex was suddenly standing in the main street, watching as the Reverent Army slew the last of the Agnomakhos rebellion. The machine lay in pieces while the Army's hoplites finished off any wounded rebel soldiers. Nearby, several Army hoplites dragged Valerie and Elsa into the street, ignoring both women's protests.
"We caught the leaders," a hoplite boasted. "Found 'em hiding in a warehouse in the abandoned district."
"Great work, men," grinned Mulos, the brutish Colonel of Fifth Battalion. He approached Valerie and Elsa, drawing a knife from his belt. "Looks like the war's won! We'll make an example of these bitches and crack down on any other dissidents we find."
"No!" Alex shouted, running over to intercept. "Leave them alone!" But he realized that no one could hear him, and his fire magic failed to manifest. He was only an observer, and he watched in horror as Mulos stuck his knife in Elsa's throat. The pale, psychic woman slumped to the street in a bloody pool.
"Hey, you're a pretty one," Mulos said piggishly, running a finger down Valerie's jaw. "Be a shame to just kill you."
Valerie glared at Mulos, then spat right on his face. Suddenly furious, Mulos slapped her across the cheek, then tore off her red robe and threw her to the street. "Hey, guys," he huffed. "Want to have a little fun first?"
Valerie scrambled to her feet, but Army hoplites were already surrounding her, tearing off her clothes, and Alex watched with his hands balled into fists. "No," he growled. "Stop it. Stop it!"
But no one could hear him. "Stop it! STOP IT! STOP IT NOW!"
Then Alex realized that he was underwater. How had he gotten there? It didn't matter; the war was already lost, and hoplites were having their way with Valerie. Rage filled him; he had to go help her! Desperately, he fought to swim upwards to the sunlit surface, but something dragged him back down.
Alex's lungs burned and his head spun as he started to suffocate, thrashing deep underwater. He couldn't reach air in time. He made an involunatary gasp, and cold water flooded his mouth, seeping into his lungs, choking him -
"AAAAAAARGH!"
Knives and swords impaled Alex all over as he lay in a dungeon, masked men carving him into bloody pieces with their weapons. Alex knew that he was dead; who cared about drowning? He just prayed for the blades to take his life quickly and end it -
Hot, foul breath washed over Alex's face as a hydra dragged him closer with its huge, clawed foot out in the wilds beyond Meletis' protective wall. Three of the hydra's heads lowered toward him, jaws open to devour him. Alex shouted as banana-sized teeth shredded him -
In a sickening montage, Alex saw himself die again and again. Water filled his lungs, torturers sliced him apart, a hydra devoured him... and then, he hung himself from a rope in shame, unwilling to face his life... he froze solid in the mountainous wastelands to the west, parasitic horrors exploded from his body...
No, I can't just die, Alex thought as he now found himself falling from a great height to rocky ground below. Don't I have to do something? Something very important? His mind fought through a numbing haze as the ground drew nearer, the wind whistling in his ears...
Madness threatened to set in as the ground approached, so very close... he had died so many times, and he grew weary of the struggle to resist. Why bother? Just let death come. It would be so easy...
Jaina.
What?
The ground was only a few feet away...
Phenax.
Of course!
The primal will to live fueled Alex's body, burning in him like fire. He was a fire mage, and he'd use that power to fight back! Was this even happening? Was that the real ground? He was inches from it -
No. I'm in the council chamber!
With a start, Alex shook his head and his fuzzy vision started to clear. He was in a kneeling position with Phenax standing a few feet in front of him, magic pouring from his hand. But the god of deception recoiled, shocked by Alex's recovery. "You wretch!" Phenax cursed.
Alex sprang to his feet, renewed flames raging around him. How dare he even think about giving up when he had a duty to Meletis and its people? Jaina and Heliod were counting on him!
Phenax crossed his arms to defend himself as Alex shouted and released a fiery kick. But Alex didn't stop there; he backed up and released a volley of seething fireballs, each stronger than the last. He'd give it his all to defeat Phenax, even if he gave his life! Kulla had died in the line of duty, and Alex knew that he was just one person compared to the thousands in Meletis who counted on him.
"Use my power well, Alex," Heliod's deep voice told him.
Phenax shuddered as fireballs blasted him all over, tearing off sheets of his protective mana. His mask warped and cracked under the strain, and although the face didn't change, Alex could sense Phenax's frustration.
Then, once again, Jaina sprang. She had recovered her spear, and brought it down right onto Phenax's head. The god of deception sank to his knees under the pressure, desperately throwing his hands into the air.
A chilling wave of black mana radiated from Phenax, throwing both Jaina and Alex against the walls. His chest heaving, Phenax got to his feet. "That's it," he growled. "You're both too dangerous to let live." And with that, he flashed across the room again, gliding on blue mana under his feet.
Now Phenax confronted Jaina and released a point-blank mana vortex. Jaina countered with a blast of white mana from her spear, flooding the whole room with mingled blue, black, and white mana. Then, in that ethereal haze, Alex saw Jaina and Phenax trading vicious blows, each scoring grievous wounds on the other. No doubt that Phenax was really aiming for the kill this time.
As Alex hurried over to help, he saw Jaina knock aside Phenax's fists and impale him with her spear. Alex faltered; had Jaina just won? Phenax seized up as Jaina started to flood his body with white mana, intending to blast him apart -
Then, Phenax raked his claw-like fingers across Jaina's right shoulder, nearly severing it. Blood sprayed into the air and Jaina dropped her spear, stunned. She backed up a few steps, her face going pale and her eyes wide.
Phenax wrenched Jaina's spear from his chest and threw it aside with a snarl. "You upstart mortal," he leered at Jaina. He stomped over and drew back a fist to finish her.
"Hey! Asshole!" Alex leaped into the air on a cushion of hot air, fierce flames encasing both of his fists. He brought down his left fist, then his right.
Phenax whirled around and knocked aside Alex's left fist with a blast of black mana, but he was too slow to stop Alex's right hand. The flaming fist caved in Phenax's gold mask, completely shattering it. Perisophia's blank face stared back at him, her eyes glassy. Alex hesitated at the sight.
"A-Alex," Jaina gasped. "Do it! Now!"
Alex winced as Phenax swiped his claws across his chest, and he felt the last of Heliod's favor shatter under the strain. But Phenax had left himself open.
His heart racing, Alex summoned the largest and hottest fireball he had ever managed. His muscles ached with the strain and he suddenly felt lightheaded, but it didn't matter. Duty came first, he reminded himself.
The whole council chamber glowed orange as Alex swallowed Phenax in flames. The god of deception let out an unearthly howl as his injured vessel body succumbed to Alex's flames. Perisophia disintigrated to ashes as Phenax's spirit leaped out of its mortal shell, vanishing from sight.
Alex sustained the flames for a few more seconds, then released the spell. Gasping for breath, he fell to his hands and knees, sweating and shaking. The air cooled as Alex's flames died down, and a ringing silence fell. Was it really over?
"It's really over," Jaina said faintly, as though reading Alex's mind. She settled to a sitting position and dispelled her spear with a quick gesture. She broke into a smile. "Well done!"
"Hey, you helped," Alex said quickly. He felt his face warm. "You hurt him. If it weren't for that..."
"Then let's share the credit." Jaina sighed and focused her white mana onto her wound, which slowly began to meld. She clamped a hand to the injury. "Anyway, the civil war should end right away, now that Phenax's influence is gone. I'm ready for a little peace and quiet."
"Me too."