★243
THIRD POV
The black aura took the form of long, spiky scales and horns. Its eyes were violet, as were the flames that were poised to burst.
"Is this how low you've fallen, Achernar?"
Without a reply, a single spark ignited from its mouth and that's all it took to release the dark violet flame at Alnath.
The space fractured, sucking in the flames as it scorched itself. Alnath's doing.
"Release."
A crack formed above the Violet Vortex, showering flames on him.
"You think my attacks affect me? What a joke"
He spoke completely unaffected by his attacks.
"But this does. Devil Class: Alnath's Sword."
In his hand a golden blade emerged, its steel replaced by black flames. He swung high, causing catastrophic damage even though the assault was invisible. Diavolos' shielding wings were severed in two. It opens its wings and unleashes a roar that shakes and flattens everything.
Red flames danced between its jaws, and just before the release, Alnath struck, cleaving it in two as he rose above with another precise blow.
"Gotcha."
Their eyes locked. Alnath sensed the imminent danger and tried to flee, but it was too late.
"Azure Bomb."
His horns flared, releasing a surge of azure energy that instantly evaporated the Drop.
Alnath kept his distance, buying precious moments as his body began to regenerate.
'This is bad… his Azure Arts are still active.'
Diavolos struck with impossible speed, his form flickering across countless positions simultaneously, hurling Alnath like a mere toy.
"Can't keep up with the speed?"
He jeered, his voice echoing from every direction.
With a final, crushing strike, Alnath froze midair, suspended in the wake of Diavolos's relentless assault.
"I know what you're thinking, how can I use Azure Art after discarding it? It's simple: Azure Art isn't a Mega Art. It isn't something you can erase. It's the very fabric of my being."
"But it has a link that can be severed."
Alnath replied calmly, wounds knitting slowly.
The Dragon absorbed azure energy from the surrounding atmosphere, focusing all the chaos on Alnath. Pitch-black specks appeared within the blue flames.
Alnath's sword manifested, slicing through the blue inferno and cutting Diavolos's left jaw. The flames erupted violently as Diavolos roared, only to be struck again.
'I know his immunities… time for one more.'
"Chains of Orasy."
Six black chains coalesced around Alnath's arm.
"Godsever Binding."
The chains lashed outward at his command, seizing whatever they touched, magic, body, willpower, and wrapped around Diavolos.
"Feel the wrath."
The chains constricted, igniting a surge of anguish through the dragon. Diavolos answered with a thunderous roar, shaking the air itself.
Seizing the temporary advantage, Alnath moved to prevent Diavolos from escaping.
"Yurei."
A ghostly sword appeared, capable of severing any connection, magic, skill, energy, even immortality. Cut off Diavolos's link to Azure, and the battle could be turned.
"Cursebind Grimoire."
A floating book, chained to his wrist, appeared. With it, Alnath could summon the exact weapon needed to counter any immunity.
Above Diavolos, a hammer materialised, flanked by a scythe on the left and a colossal spear on the right.
Diavolos, however, refused to yield. Exuding his full aura, he shattered the Chains of Orasy, forcing Alnath to raise a shield to avoid annihilation. Infuriated, he prepared to unleash his most devastating draconic breath.
'Natural transcendent and immunity characteristics of a Dark Nebula? I don't know but I'll have to guess. Transcending time, immunity, instantly regenerating divinely, and...I can not guess, so I will go with unfathomable durability.'
Alnath remained calm and deliberate before deciding to launch an attack.
He swiped his hand, launching an attack. All of the weapons struck Diavolos fatally, and his Dragon-like body was useless against them.
Ignoring his durability, the spear went through his scales, and then the scythe delivered strikes that made his regeneration ineffective. It all happened as the hammer wielded time to the degree where a time transcendent like him could not comprehend, before the hammer itself crashed down on him.
"Now, Yurei!"
The katana made its move, striking the metaphysical link from his Azure influence. His tools faded and so did the Grimoire, but he did not flee. Instead, he waited to see what would happen.
Diavolos was up ahead, his body and clothes had been burned. His wings were fading, as if they had lost their worth. Now that the scythe had been removed, his injuries began to heal gradually. He was breathing heavily as he spoke.
"To think you had something other than death to deal with me. Unacceptable!"
He roared, pulling forth the Azure energy from Azyrion, an Azure Sphere manifested instantly, producing an immeasurable amount of Azure energy before absorbing the sphere itself.
As his body glowed, a celestial Azure light started to form. Despite having the upper hand, Alnath's eyes widened with fear.
"How?"
Diavolos asked his question, chuckling.
"You thought I'd let you sever my link with Azure? Pathetic. I waited for the perfect opportunity to ignite my dark essence and completely suppress my Azure. I reversed their relationship and allowed the connection between my dark essence to be severed instead."
'He already figured out how Yurei works? This is bad...'
"You did well against Diavolos, but can you handle the old Achernar?"
He asked with a smile on his face.
'Impossible...not now.'
The name Achernar was respected even among the Omnis. As an adversary, he's not someone to mess with. It's relatable for Alnath to feel such dread.
"Death Space!"
He conjured up a 3D black-and-white space that seemed to have an almost limitless range. It quickly shrank, erasing everything physical and non-physical that comprised the world and creating a void in its place.
Death Space was about to collapse on Diavolos when he opened his eyes, which were no longer violet but instead, glowing Azure.
"Azure Radiance."
He murmured, the Death Space was repelled by the light he cast. The instant Diavolos launched his attack, a one-sided battle between the Death Space and Azure Radiance came to an end.
By purifying the Death Space, the lost energy was restored and given a lovely light blue hue. As his dark wings began to slowly reverse to their Supreme state, Diavolos' scream became more intense. His Divinity was blooming once again.
It was unheard of that a Star fell from Grace and ascended back, but Achernar was an anomaly in his own way.
Alnath inhaled deeply; he had no choice but to wait because nothing in his arsenal could defeat his master, Achernar.
He remained motionless as he watched his mentor return. He closed his eyes and thought back to their time together before everything changed.
...
..
.
To be continued...