Hello my dearest readers! Welcome back. Well, we've had Ryuu and Alise, the Zeus and Hera familias vs. Alfia, and Lefiya, Riveria, and Tiona vs. Filvis, so now it's time for the captains and commanders of the great familias of Orario to do battle with the "general" of the Evilus army! That's right, it's time for Finn and his comrades-in-arms to battle the new, improved, and terrifying, Demi-Reaper. So, let's jump into the battle and begin the slaughter!
I do not own Danmachi
With a roar so terrible there was no way the adventurers could not feel fear, the monster horde and the Evilus charged towards the Expedition, all with one goal in mind. The complete and utter annihilation of the adventurers and everything they fought to protect.
"Shit! Adventurers of Orario, for everything you hold dear, for all you hope to do, fight! Fight with everything you have!" Finn cried.
The Expedition cheered and charged to meet the Evilus and their monster army, meeting them with a great cry of anguish and fury as the ring of metal sang to Heaven their horrid ballad of turmoil.
"Shit," Finn cursed to himself as the bloodbath again.
His eyes turned when he saw Ryuu shooting off, straight towards Alise, the mind-controlled red-head moving to meet her. On the other side of the battlefield, Galadriel did the same with Alfia, but was quickly battered away by the power of the Monster of Talent.
This will be the fight of our lives.
"So you're the leader."
He spun around, his eyes going wide as the black armor, hidden eyes, and smiling lips of the Demi-Spirit Reaper filled his vision.
"You're quite cute," she complimented in a tone so sickenly sweet that the Braver could not move. "It's almost a pity, but," she raised her sword-arm, "I'm sure you'll be just as cute as a corpse."
She brought her sword down at speeds most level fours wouldn't have been able to even see, and it was only by instinct that Finn managed to raise his spear up to block the attack.
"Ugh," he grunted as the power of the Demi-Reaper forced down his spear, allowing her to carve through his armor and flesh. He was spared a lethal blow thanks to his instincts and the quality of his armor, but he could not feel his blood flowing down his chest in a steady stream.
"Ooh, you survived. Wonderful! I get to play with you more then!" the Demi-Reaper exclaimed before casually slashing at him again, this time knocking him off his feet and sending him flying.
Finn smashed into a boulder over a hundred feet away, his bones groaning under the shock of the blow. He managed to stop himself from falling to his knees, using his spear, but this mattered little as the Demi-Reaper reappeared and grabbed him by his throat, smashing him against the boulder once again.
"You are a tough one," she said before a long tongue parted from her mouth and slithered out, licking across the entirety of his torso wound.
"Aah," Finn hissed as her tongue and saliva burned his wound closed.
"I like my snacks to be juicy," she stated, "and you are going to be a wonderful snack."
She opened her mouth, revealing roars of sharp, flesh-tearing teeth, and moved to bite off his head.
"RAAAA!"
The Demi-Reaper turned just in time to have a face-full of ax meet her mouth, cutting into her jaw and sending her soaring over the battlefield.
Finn dropped and grabbed his throat.
That…was almost the end, he realized. His eyes turned down and found his hand shaking.
"You were caught off guard, Finn." The prum looked up and saw Gareth's strong, reassuring eyes looking down at him. "It happens to everyone. It's why having allies and friends is important. So that when those moments happen, you have someone there to help you back to your feet." He punctuated this by holding out his hand.
Finn's eyes turned to the hand and, after a moment, he smiled, his shaking ceased and he grabbed it, allowing Gareth to pull him back to his feet.
"Thanks Gareth."
"My pleasure. Now, it looks like the others are having some trouble, so let's get back to the fight."
Finn turned and found the Demi-Reaper currently engaged in a battle with Mia, Uriel, and Sif. The battle was quite something as the insane power of the ladies shook the Dungeon and sent shockwaves through the air. However, Gareth was correct, as even with their combined power and skill, the three captains could not defeat the Demi-Reaper, which readily dodged, blocked, and counter-attacked its opponents, often with terrible consequences.
"Right."
The two rushed into the fray.
"Raaaa!" Mia cried as she brought her huge greatsword down, aiming to crush the Demi-Reaper's skull under the weight of the titanic weapon or, failing that, to carve all the way into its spine. The monster simply raised her clawed hand and caught the blow and, as Mia's eyes widened, she smiled, transformed her other arm into a replica of Mia's weapon, which it then used to cut the former captain from hip to shoulder.
As Mia hissed in pain, the Demi-Reaper spun on her heel and kicked the hostess across the battlefield, smiling all the while.
The monster's glee was short-lived however, as Uriel suddenly appeared behind her and struck low, her beautiful longsword slashing the back of the monster's legs.
"Aaaaah!" the Demi-Reaper cried as she tumbled forward, only for Sif to appear in front of her and smash the bottom of her chin with a mountain-shaking upswing of her warhammer.
The Demi-Reaper was sent into the sky, but her torment was not over as Finn aimed his spear and threw it with all his strength straight into her gut, piercing her armor, and embedding itself in her stomach.
Uriel quickly followed this up by flying up to the monster and unleashing a flurry of attacks, slashing and cutting the monster in fly-by assaults, before diving back down to grab Gareth. She flew back up into the sky and passed the Demi-Reaper with her dwarven comrade. Finally, when she was high enough, she spun around in the air until she had gathered a great deal of momentum, then flung Gareth straight at the still falling Demi-Reaper.
The Elgarm roared as he shot towards the general of the monster horde. He raised his ax and then brought it down upon the beastial commander with such overwhelming strength that it was a wonder that the very air did not crack under the weight of his blow.
The Demi-Reaper's armor against its entire torso was shattered to pieces under the blow and the empowered Reaper herself was sent crashing into the Dungeon like a meteor.
Gareth landed gracefully alongside Uriel while the other regrouped around them.
For a time, there was nothing, and Sif even smiled before triumphantly placing her warhammer on her shoulder. But Finn knew this wasn't over. And he was right.
"Flash, rays of light. Tear through the darkness. Your envoy beseeches you, Lux," an eerie voice echoed from the rubble."
"Shit! Take cover!" Finn cried.
Everyone moved for cover, but it was too late.
"Incarnate of light. Queen of luminosity. Light Burst!"
A blast of light burst from the Demi-Reaper, crashing into the adventurers and scattering them.
This was just the beginning of the Demi-Reaper's vengeful counter-attack for, as the commanders picked themselves up, they suddenly found the entire area covered in thick pollen.
"Don't breathe!" Finn called.
This call proved unnecessary as poison wasn't what the monster general had in mind. Instead, to the adventurers' collective shock, the pollen suddenly exploded, sending them flying all around and completely breaking their formation.
"Ugh," Finn groaned as he picked himself up, only to find a clawed hand on his skull. Not a second later, he was being dragged across half the battlefield by the enraged Demi-Reaper.
The monster rushed over the broken terrain, getting as far away from the other commanders as she could before smashing Finn against yet another boulder.
"That wasn't very nice, handsome," she growled as she squeezed his skull. She lifted his spear and placed the tip just under his eye. "This thing has caused all sorts of trouble for me and my sisters," she moved the spear down and placed it against his stomach. "So I think it's time you get a taste of your own medicine."
She thrust his spear into his gut, making him grunt in agony.
"Feel that?" she asked as her smile returned, by now more vicious and sadistic. "That's what you did to me," she twisted the spear, making Finn groan. "You skewered me with this stick of yours, so now…" she leaned in and whispered into his ear, "I'm going to make you a shish kabob and eat you, piece…by little…piece."
The certainty of her voice and the pain of his own spear in his stomach convinced Finn that this was indeed what was about to happen. That his end had come and it would be a horrible, slow thing.
No! I can't die! Not when I've finally been able to be honest with her! He roared in his mind.
"Ra!" he bellowed as he punched the Demi-Reaper in the face, smacking its pleased smirk right off its face. "Raa!" he struck again, cracking the black visor over its eyes. "Raa-!" He shot a third punch towards its face, only for the monster to suddenly turn its head and bite off his right hand.
He didn't even feel the pain as shock overshadowed it all.
The Demi-Reaper chewed on his flesh and bone before audibly swallowing and turning back to him.
"A bit too crunchy for my tastes, but it did wet my appetite. So…what should I eat next?"
"EAT THIS YOU BITCH!"
This time, it was the tan fist of a beyond furious amazon that smashed the Demi-Reaper's face, shattering its visor and sending it flying.
Finn dropped to the ground and groaned as the spear, still in his stomach, smacked against his ribs.
"Finn!" Tione cried as she dropped to her knees and began to look over his wounds.
"You saved me," he said with a smile, though it was short-lived as he began spitting up blood.
"Don't talk, conserve your strength," she said before grabbing the spear. "This is going to hurt."
He nodded and she pulled it out as quickly as she could, sending out a fountain of blood and making him groan. Immediately she brought a potion to his lips and poured it down his throat before grabbing a second one. However, as she raised it up, he used his remaining hand to push it away.
"Save it. We'll need them."
"I am not saving a potion while the man I love is bleeding out before me, especially not when he's lost a hand."
Finn held Tione's gaze for a few moments, trying to reason her into submission, but it was entirely pointless. The passion and love in her eyes would never be defeated by simple logic and so, he soon nodded, allowing Tione to pour it into his mouth.
The moment he finished swallowing the potion, Finn found his lips claimed by his amazon paramour.
"I almost lost you," she said once she pulled back.
"No. No you didn't," he reassured her. "I can't die, remember? I have to make it back to the surface so you can have your way with me," he chuckled. It was a weak thing and even after two, high-grade potions, it hurt him, but he hoped it would ease her.
"That's right," she said, her voice darkly serious. "You are making it back to the surface. And no one is stopping me from claiming what's mine."
Tione rose and turned, her eyes burning with renewed rage and contempt. She found the Demi-Reaper approaching with eyes just as inflamed and contemptuous.
"You tried to take my captain, my man, my Finn from me you bitch!" She roared before charging the Demi-Reaper.
The assault came so quickly that even the Demi-Reaper found itself on the backfoot when Tione began her furious onslaught.
Blow after merciless blow rained down upon the monster general, smashing bone and armor, and turning the beast's flesh and insides to pulp.
"Die! Die! Die! DIE! Diediediediediediedie!" Tione screamed as she wailed on the creature that almost took her lover from her with the intent on murdering it in the most brutal fashion possible.
And then…she was stopped.
Faster than even Ais was capable of, the Demi-Reaper grabbed both of Tione's arms, ending the amazon's assault in its tracks.
"My turn," the creature hissed before snapping both of Tione's arms like twigs.
The Jormungand screamed as her blood spurted out everywhere.
"Tione!" Finn cried, rushing towards the two despite his injuries and missing hand.
The Demi-Reaper threw Tione to the ground then transformed her arms into two spears just like Finn's and thrust them directly into Tione's lungs.
"GAH!" the amazon cried as blood burst from her mouth.
"NOOOO!" Finn cried as he closed the distance, aiming his spear directly for the back of the Demi-Reaper's skull.
"...Undine. Incarnate of Water. Queen of aqua," the monster general finished.
Suddenly, a giant pillar of ice appeared beneath Finn, sending him soaring into the air.
"TIONE!" he cried as the Demi-Reaper turned to finish off its prey.
"Now," the creature licked her lips, "let's ruin that pretty face of yours."
Tione's spiritual tormentor raised her spears and cast them down at the defenseless woman's head.
WOOSH!
CRACK!
SQUISH!
"AAAAAAAAAAAH!" The Demi-Reaper cried as she fell back, a lance sticking out of her chest.
Suddenly, a dark-clad catman appeared before the monster and, his eyes cold as the ice of her spell, and grabbed his silver spear and used it to fling the creature through a series of boulders and rocks.
Allen turned to the wounded Tione and sneered.
"Pathetic."
"TIONE!"
Finn rushed towards his dear companion while the other captains and commanders, having finally arrived, quickly rushed to continue the battle with the Demi-Reaper.
The Braver threw his spear aside as he fell to his knees next to the amazon.
"F-Fin-" Tione tried, only to immediately cough up blood.
"Don't talk," he instructed before grabbing her left arm. "This will hurt."
She nodded and he quickly set the bone back in place, having to use his foot in place of his missing hand to keep her from moving, while she cried out in pain. He did the same with her right arm before immediately pulling out two potions. Just as he was about to give the first to her, she coughed up a mouth-full of blood. Thinking quickly, he poured it into his mouth and kissed her, forcing the potion down her throat. That done, he grabbed the second and did the same.
Not about to lose this opportunity, Tione grabbed the back of his head and held him in place, turning the kiss from one of necessity into a true one.
They pulled back and she smiled at him.
"You used two potions," she pointed out.
"I did," he readily conceded.
She smiled and kissed him again.
"In case you two forgot, we still have a battle to fight." They both turned to Allen who glared at them with disgust and contempt.
"Thank yo-" Finn tried
"I didn't save her out of kindness, Deimne," Allen immediately cut him off. "Personally, I would have preferred to leave her for death," he spat, glaring at the amazon who slowly began to pick herself up so she could glare back. "You are rivals of my familia and my lady and thus deserve to be destroyed. However," he made a noise that was a mix of a growl and a sigh, "it is likely that we won't survive if we don't work together and, more importantly, I promised my lady that I would help your Expedition, and that promise is as good as law. But make no mistake. Once we're back on the surface, our alliance is finished."
With that, he rushed back into the fight.
"Fair enough," Finn said out loud before turning back to Tione. "Will you be alright?"
"After three kisses from you? I'll be more than alright!" she cried, however it was clear from the way her hands shook that what she had just endured had had an effect on her.
"Tione," he took her hand, "it's alright to be scared. In fact, it would be kind of crazy if you weren't after what you went through."
Her smile and eyes dropped.
"I don't want you to think I'm weak."
A soft hand turned her head so that even softer lips could kiss her.
Finn pulled back and smiled gently at her.
"I would never think that. The woman I love is the strongest people I know, which is really saying something given who I know."
They chuckled and Tione, feeling the warmth in her heart turn to strength, smiled genuinely and kissed him again.
"Then what are we waiting for? We've got a monster bitch to beat to a pulp."
His smile dropped, but he nodded.
"Let's go."
The two rushed back into battle and not a moment too soon for, despite the damage it had endured, the Demi-Reaper was far from done and was managing to hold off Allen, Mia, Gareth, Uriel, and Sif with remarkable skill.
Gareth smashed his ax against the ground, cracking the area around the Demi-Reaper and knocking her off her footing. As she struggled to regain herself, Allen jumped in, aiming his spear at her skull, only for her to jump over him, spin, and slash his shoulder with a newly made sword-arm.
"Aah!" The Vana Freya hissed.
The Demi-Reaper landed and twirled on her heels, aiming to cut off the catman's head, only for Uriel to block its attack with her angelic longsword while Mia, with a roar, appeared to the Demi-Reaper's side and set her flying with an Dungeon-shaking upper swing of her sword.
"Keep pushing it! Don't let it regain its footing!" Finn called.
The others quickly followed his orders, even Allen, and pressed the attack. Finn was about to do the same when he heard a voice in the distance.
"Finn!"
He turned and found Imilce looking terrified in the distance, but more importantly he found and heard what Alfia was doing.
"There is no purification," the Silence continued chanting.
That's…
"FUCK! Everyone! Get off the floor! Get off-!"
"Don't get distracted now, handsome," the Demi-Reaper said, suddenly appearing before him, with a smile, having discovered her prey distracted and open for attack.
She slashed at him with her sword-arm and he barely managed to block it before her power overwhelmed him and sent him into the air.
The others quickly jumped on the Demi-Reaper and the battle continued.
Shit, Finn inwardly cursed as he landed. We have to finish this now or we're all dead!
He rushed back into the battle, knowing that if he couldn't destroy the Demi-Reaper and free themselves from their battle, that they would all die.
The Demi-Reaper was busy fighting Gareth and Allen when Finn rushed in, eyes ablaze and hand tight around his spear.
The monster general knocked away the two familia executives and turned to him with a smile, before attempting to cut him in half longways. The Braver gracefully twirled around the attack before getting behind the creature and using his spear like a bat and cracking it against the Demi-Reaper's spine, sending her flying with a cry.
"We have to finish it off now! Alfia's about to use Junos Angelos!"
The others, eyes wide and filled with alarm, turned to Alfia and found this to be true. Not a second later, they and Finn all rushed towards the Demi-Reaper all with the knowledge that failure was not an option.
The smiling beast landed and turned to her foes, only for Uriel to shoot past her, cutting open the monster's stomach with a fly-by slash of her sword.
"Aaah!"
Next was Finn who battered away an attempted counter-attack with his spear, opening the Demi-Reaper up to Tione's knives, which she promptly threw into the monster's torso.
As the Evilus general cried out again, Allen rushed her, slitting her throat with his spear before promptly cutting off her sword-arm.
Spinning out of the way to allow Mia through, the powerful hostess swung with all her strength and cut off the Demi-Reapers legs, sending the beast tumbling forward where Gareth's ax was waiting to send her shooting up like a rocket.
As the Demi-Reaper flew, Uriel reappeared and took off her other arm before Sif, warhammer raised high above her head, bellowed like thunder and sent the monster commander shooting right back down to the earth.
"Ha…ha…ha," Finn huffed, along with the others who were all exhausted, "we need to go. Alfia's about to-"
"HAHAHAHA! Take this!"
They all turned back to Alfia, but found, to their shock, that Galadriel was now battling her like a mad woman, Junos Angelos having successfully been stopped.
"Looks like we're saved," Gareth noted.
"Thank Heaven for that," Mia stated as she rested her sword on her shoulder.
Finn sighed in relief, letting some of the stress leave him.
His relief was short-lived however, as Allen's ears twitched.
"Why won't this thing die?!"
They all shot back around to the Demi-Reaper who was now climbing out of the crater with newly formed limbs, eyes full of rage.
"...May the axes of the ether rain down and bring about calamity's ruin. Your envoy beseeches you, Gnome."
"Don't let her finish!" Finn commanded.
The commanders all rushed towards the beast, but it was too late.
"Incarnate of the land. Queen of the earth. Meteor Swarm!"
"Damnit! Take cover!" Finn roared.
The adventurers sought cover wherever they could as the barrage of molten rock fell down upon them. Finn and Tione hid together in one of the craters, the latter wrapping her arms around her captain protectively. Gareth, meanwhile, raised his axes up to defend against the fiery onslaught, covering Sif as he did so. Allen, too proud to accept such help, was nearly turned into mulch before finding a crater of his own. Uriel gracefully dodged around the meteors, though one of her wings was scorched and she nearly tumbled to the earth before she managed to save herself and land. Finally was Mia who, eyes even more ablaze than the meteors, took a stance.
"Sweet guardian mother. Bestow me your life-giving milk so that I may have the strength to overcome those who seek to take home and life. Domina Incorruptibilis!"
Violet energy surrounded her and her greatsword and with a roar that shook the Dungeon, she swung her sword, sending a wave of blue-purple energy at the meteor headed straight her way. A moment later, the attack cut the molten rock in half, sending its two pieces falling harmlessly on either side of the hostess.
The Demi-Reaper looked at the destruction she had wrought with pleasure. Though she had yet to sate her rage with the blood of those who had so grievously injured her, she took delight in their misfortune.
She was about to restart her attack with her regenerated limbs when she heard the call of her creator and master.
I see, she replied to his order, turning her eyes to her now defeated ally in the distance. I wonder how she'll taste.
"Filvis…please," Lefiya pleaded
"I already told you, Lefiya, I will not betray Dionysus, even for you. I will continue to fight for him and, if need be, I will die for him."
"How sweet."
Her ally-turned-prey shot around to face her, the monster-adventurer's eyes widening as they saw the Demi-Reaper's smile.
"Well, if you're okay with dying, then let's get to it~" the Demi-Reaper sang before swinging a blade at Filvis.
However, instead of killing the dark-haired elf, a new body suddenly pushed her prey out of the way as a cry rang in the creature's ears.
Squelch!
Surprised though the beast was, she still delighted in the blood that now poured down her weaponized limb.
"Oh? Did you want to die too, little girl?" the Demi-Reaper asked, laughing in delight as she took in Lefiya's pain.
"LEFIYA!" two voices cried in the distance, but she paid them no mind. She did, however, take note of the third voice that appeared behind her.
"You bitch!"
Suddenly, her arm was ripped off once again, this time by the prum's spear.
"AAAAAH!" the Demi-Reaper cried before she was silenced by the adventurer smashing her in the face with the weapon that had just, literally, disarmed her.
"Riveria! Save her!" Finn ordered before turning back to the flying Reaper. "I'm going to tear you apart for this."
He rushed after his foe and began to chant.
"Magic spear, penetrate my forehead offering blood."
Hell Finegas burned through his veins, taking away his mind, but filling him with new power.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" he roared in wrath as he closed the distance between him and the Demi-Reaper.
The monster general turned to her foe, but it had no chance to muster a defense as Finn's body crashed into hers, plunging his spear into her gut and out her back.
"GAH!"
He did not stop there and continued charging forward, crashing through several pillars and hills of stone before pining her against a wall of stone.
"RAWR!"
Fists and feet flew at the Evilus general, destroying the rest of her armor and shattering bone, both the monster's and Finn's. However, the Loki captain, in his wrath and bloodlust, did not stop, but continued to break the Demi-Reaper until its bones were more dust that proper skeleton.
Finn then pulled out his spear, a burst of blood spurting from the monster as he did so, than began to cut, stab, and batter the monster even more. The spirit commander attempt to counter-attack and nearly took his left eye, but Finn dodged and received only a cut on his cheek. In revenge for the attempt though, he plunged his spear back into the monster, pinning it again, before grabbing its skull and smashing it against the stone over and over again, all while crying out in fury.
Intent on finishing his prey, Finn pulled the Demi-Reaper from the wall before swinging it around and flinging the monster across the battlefield towards his allies.
The commanders of the Expedition rushed in to continue the onslaught, Uriel and Mia severing her remaining limbs with a flurry of skill and blood, before Sif cracked the Demi-Reapers skull with her warhammer, shooting her off towards Gareth, who cut the monster in half with his ax. Still, they were not done as Allen, from high above, threw his spear down at the torso of the beastial leader, pinning it to ground. Finally came Tione who loomed over the pinned monster general, eyes dark with cruel determination.
"RAAAA!"
The amazon began to wail on the beast even more terribly than she had before, smashing the monster's face and turning any bones that were not already dust into fine powder.
"NO! ONE! GETS! TO! TAKE! MY! MAN! FROM! ME!" she bellowed before she sent one final punch into the Demi-Reaper's face, creating a massive crater as she did so.
As the dust settled around the formerly great and powerful monster, Tione took out her knives.
"Consider this payback," she stated, before plunging the two weapons into the Demi-Reaper's eye sockets.
And then…there was silence.
The commanders, knowing that their enemy was finally defeated, sighed in relief and, in Uriel and Sif's case, fell to her knees.
"I like a good fight, but that was ridiculous," the Thor captain stated.
"Indeed," Uriel agreed.
"Well, you'd best perk up quick, because we still have plenty of enemies left," Mia pointed out.
Indeed, the battle was still raging and the cries of their allies still rang through the air.
"She's right, catch your breath and take a potion or two, we still have plenty of enemies left," Finn said as he slowly approached them, his wrath having dispersed upon the Demi-Reapers defeat.
"Finn!" Tione rushed over to him. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, just a little-" he fell forward, right into her arms.
"Tired," she finished for him with a small smile.
He chuckled and nodded into her torso.
"Finn!"
They all turned and found Riveria, Lefiya, Tiona, and surprisingly of all, Filvis headed their way, the monster-elf supporting her fellow elf.
"Thank goodness," Finn said quietly as he saw Lefiya looking worn out, but very much alive.
"Are you all, alright?" Riveria asked.
"We're pretty beat up and exhausted, but alright," Finn answered.
Riveria nodded, but did not fail to see his now missing hand.
"I'll be alright," he said with a weak smile. "I'm actually surprised it's taken this long for me to lose a limb," he joked.
"Well, let's not make a habit of it, shall we?" Riveria replied, smiling as best as she could.
"I can agree to that. Now, we need to get back into the fight."
She nodded, then took out some antidotes and handed one to Finn.
"Before you do, drink these," the High Elf instructed.
"What's this?" he inquired.
"The Demi-Reaper's weapon is apparently poisoned. Luckily, Filvis had antidotes on her."
Finn turned to the former Evilus elf, who simply held his eyes, before he nodded and took the antidote, quickly downing it.
They passed out more antidotes to the commanders who all quickly drank them.
"Alright, now we need to decide how best to proceed with this battle," Finn stated.
"Still the little general as always, I see."
Finn, Riveria, Gareth, and Mia all froze as the voice reached their ears and slowly turned to it.
"Alfia."
The Silence now stood alongside the rest of the Hera familia as well as the Zeus familia. They all looked worse for wear, but ready for battle.
"Hello to you too, Finn. Riveria. Gareth, and the rest of you," she acknowledged. "Don't worry, I'm not under control anymore," she pointed to her forehead. "Now, where is my nephew?"
After taking a moment to get over their shock at having a dead woman before them again, Finn answered.
"We don't know where Bell is right now. It's likely he's being held captive deeper in the Dungeon, but we won't be able to get to him until we defeat the Evilus."
"Very well, then we shall destroy them," she said matter-of-factly. "Where would you like all of us?"
"I'll go help Achilles on the floor below us," Riveria immediately stated.
"Achilles is here too?" Alfia asked, surprised.
"Yes, and something took him right before the fight began, pulling him to the level below," Riveria stated.
"I'm sure he can handle it was Riveria. He's a level eight now, and we need you here to help clear the monsters and heal the wounded."
"How can we possibly know if he needs help if we don't even know what took him?" Riveria countered.
"A Lesser Black Dragon."
They all turned to Filvis.
"That's what he's fighting," she former Evilus stated. "We made it using one of the Black Dragon's scales that was knocked off during its fight with the Zeus and Hera familia. Dionysus-sa… Dionysus thought it would be 'wonderful' if Achilles was forced to face a replica of his old foe."
"You…you bastards," Patroclus cursed.
"I make no excuses for myself or the rest of the Evilus," Filvis replied.
"If he's fighting a weaker version of the Black Dragon then I need to be down there!" Riveria cried.
"Whatever we do, we must decide quickly, before more lives are lost," Uriel stated.
Filvis fell silent again as the others continued to discuss. As she listened, she turned her eyes towards the body of the Demi-Reaper.
Why hasn't it turned to dust?
Her eyes widened.
"It's not-!"
A howl suddenly shook the Dungeon, cutting her off and making them all freeze.
Wait…I know that howl, Finn thought, turning to a black figure in the distance, running straight into the horde of monsters, weapon and horns raised.
"It's not dead!" Filvis cried.
Everyone turned to her then, realizing what she meant, shot back towards the Demi-Reaper.
"~Too late~" the monster stated as her body began to glow.
"She's going to self-destruct! With her power, she'll be able to destroy the entire floor!" Filvis screamed.
"Stop her!" Finn cried as everyone who could rushed at the creature's glowing body.
One after another they attempted to kill the monster general, using every attack and spell in their arsenal, only to find, to their horror, that all the power of their blows and magic were simply absorbed into the corpse, making it glow with ever greater power.
"Fall back! Fall back!" Finn ordered.
Everyone ran while, in the distance, Dionysus smiled.
"~Goodbye~" the Demi-Reaper sang as her power was unleashed.
"Mausoleum of Halicarnassus!"
Imilce held out her hands as she poured everything she had into her spell.
The explosion crashed against her dome of magic with terrible force and Imilce felt her strength being sapped at an alarming rate.
No! I will hold! I will not lose anyone else! I WILL HOLD!
She managed to pour even more into the spell, holding the Demi-Reaper's terrible last card at bay. This did not come without cost though, as blood began to pour from her nose, eyes, and ears and pain wracked every inch of her body.
"AAAAAAAAAH!" the healer of the Hera familia cried as the Demi-Reaper's final act finally dissipated.
The moment it did, Imilce's eyes rolled up into her head and she collapsed, with Alfia immediately catching.
"Well done Imilce. You've grown so much."
Riveria rushed over and began healing their savior.
"Will she be alright?" Galadriel asked.
"Yes, but I'm not sure she'll be able to fight anymore today. That took everything out of her," Riveria said, before turning to Finn. "I'll stay."
He nodded.
"Thank you. I'm sure he'll be alright Riveria. He is Achilles Caesar. More importantly, he's not about to leave and Bell behind."
Just then, as if Fate wished to toy with them, a terrible roar from far below shook the Dungeon and filled them all with dread.
Please…please be alright, Achilles, Riveria thought.
The end.
Alright, that's another chapter done! What did you guys think? I rather liked this one myself, but I'd love to hear what you think.
I hope you're all excited for next chapter. Despite my semi-cliffhanger at the end, it is actually not Achilles's chapter, you'll have to wait a bit longer for that one. Instead, we get a battle that's remained mysteriously out of the story, the battle between Ais and Revis. But why has this battle remained so out of the spotlight? Are they simply far away, or…has something happened to our dear Sword Princess? Could it be that she is our first casualty? Or am I just an uncreative idiot who couldn't think of a way to include her and the battle with Revis in the most recent chapters? Well, you're going to have to tune in next time to find out. :P
With that, I bid you all a fine farewell and a lovely week. Bye for now. :)