Burning Light

The skies were gray as a single ship approached mountain peaks as majestic as the Himalayas. Captain Villareal had a skeptical look on his face, his eyes locked onto black screen monitors.

He had been assured that everything had been a mere misunderstanding after his kidnapper released him. However, they had ruthlessly smashed all the ship's cameras and disarmed them before getting on a lifeboat and setting out to sea.

Days had passed since that ordeal, and just a few hours ago, a radio message from the command base informed him that they had fired upon a lifeboat that had trespassed, yet no bodies were recovered.

Unbeknownst to him, Cesar and the rest of the crew remained concealed, covered by Ellie's mirror that rendered them invisible.

"That boy was able to take over our ship and subdue you two after killing 10 of our men. And to think our Archbishop, who, through the Light of the Holy Ghost, was able to take out 12 of his demon-possessed kind," the captain mentioned to one of the guardsmen who was helping him navigate the ship.

Meanwhile, the boy he spoke about and hist phantom seed pondered whether they had made the right move. The ship soon approached the port, and Al could see a yellow lighthouse piercing through the misty air.

"Captain Villareal, our Exarch wants to speak to you about the encounter you had with the enemy. Report to the church the moment you dock," the radio blared aloud, adding to the captain's visible anxiety.

Al and the rest exchanged curious glances but remained silent. A few hours later, the five of them trailed behind Captain Villareal, walking through a town that appeared recently built.

Despite its quaint homes and dirt roads, the town was brimming with military weaponry. Almost everyone carried a rifle and a pistol, but amid the bustling crowd, the invisible five cultivators followed Captain Villareal closely.

He only carried the pistol he had used on Cesar. A small, humble church came into view, and they trailed behind him as he stepped inside. The church appeared deserted, except for a lone man seated in front of the bench.

Upon spotting the captain, the man stood up, acknowledged him with a nod, and disappeared into a room adjacent to the altar.

Captain Villareal approached the altar, took a moment to say a prayer before settling into a seat in the front row. Ellie felt her strength waning, her A.R.C showing signs of strain.

They huddled in a corner close to the captain, carefully listening to the proceedings.

Suddenly, a different man exited from the room. He wore a yellow and white robe, immediately drawing the captain to his feet to pay his respects. "Good afternoon, Exarch. I'm reporting as told," the captain said.

The man referred to as 'Exarch,' aside from his elaborate robe, had an air of simplicity about him. "It's reassuring to see you healthy and well. Your unwavering faith has shielded you from harm, making you truly beloved by the light of the blessed one. Now, I want to know the words that spilled from their mouths before they released you," the Exarch inquired, directing his gaze towards the corner where the five hidden cultivators stood, making them involuntarily flinch.

He looked back at the captain who answered, "They said it was all a misunderstanding, that my men had taken themselves out, but we saw one of them grow to a monstrous size before destroying the five other ships in the vicinity."

The Exarch let out a booming, snapping laugh and declared, "They are hell-sent and desire the end of the world. Their magic is derived from a wicked heart. The reason those demons attacked our world was because they were summoned through the use of their evil magic. There's no reasoning with them; they have been driven mad by the spirit of lies. They are worse than the demons themselves, they have betrayed mankind."

As the Exarch's enthusiasm escalated, a radiant light began emanating from him, causing the captain to bow down on his knees in awe of the divine presence.

Meanwhile, Al and the rest of the team gazed in shock at the condensing light above the Exarch, witnessing a massive shining bird taking form, and releasing a heavenly cry.

Ellie, Cesar, and Jin almost fell to their knees, their etheric shells vibrating with excruciating pain from the cry, nearly shattering. The vibrations caused Ellie's mirror to revert back to its regular shape, leaving them exposed.

The Exarch was taken aback to see the five figures materialize before him, but his surprise quickly gave way to a smug expression.

Captain Villareal wasted no time, swiftly positioning himself behind the Exarch.

"You, the shame of mankind, dare to desecrate the house of the Lord?" he challenged, not waiting for a response. With an intense determination, he drew two pistols and unleashed a hail of bullets upon the five.

In a reflexive act, Al sprang to the forefront, shielding his comrades from the barrage of bullets. His body was filled with lead before slumping over and falling into a pool of his own blood.

Out of ammunition, the Exarch sneered, "So, you're capable of sacrifice. That only deepens the gravity of your sins!" He shouted, discarding the empty clips and reaching for two new, fully loaded clips concealed in his robe.

However, Cesar had regained his strength and, with a mighty swing of his spear, summoned a destructive force aimed straight at the Exarch.

Unperturbed, the man continued to reload his weapons, all while the massive bird of light above him spread its glowing wings, shielding him from the impact of Cesar's attack.

The wind immediately dissipated under the overwhelming presence of the radiant bird wings. Without hesitation, Cesar swiftly lifted Al, and the group sprinted toward the exit as the Exarch unloaded his pistol luckily Ellie had recovered from the scream and reflected the shots back at the Exarch.

The bird continued to block any attacks towards the Exarch, after it opened its wings before closing them creating a destructive wind mirroring Cesar's attack nut much stronger. Cesar took jumped got in front of his phantom seed, spinning his spear to create a suction force, attempting to draw the destructive wind toward him.

The force proved too formidable for Cesar to contain, and he was hurled backward, sent flying as the wind exploded in front of him.

The bird extended its wings again, its luminosity intensifying, and unleashed a concentrated beam of light as thick as an arm. In response, Ellie summoned her mirror and managed to block the attack, but the impact resulted in a colossal explosion, sending the five cultivators hurtling outside of the church, while the church was destroyed. Yet, the bird effortlessly withstood the damage.

The Exarch wore a triumphant smirk before he turned away and headed toward the undamaged room adjacent to the altar, ignoring the five cultivators.

The heavenly bird disappeared, its attention no longer on them. However, the situation took a a strange turn as the five found themselves encircled by dozens of armed men, rifles aimed directly at them.

Just as the armed men prepared to fire, Agnethe rapidly expanded, growing to an astounding 90 feet in mere moments, causing a powerful surge of mass like an explosion that sent the armed men flying before they could take a proper shot.

She clutched the rest of her team tightly and took an enormous step, crossing half of the small town.

The town erupted in chaos, with shots fired from almost every direction at the colossal titan who had seemingly materialized out of thin air. Despite her incredible speed, Agnethe couldn't avoid every bullet, and some managed to strike her back and lower legs.

Meanwhile, back in the ruins of the church, Captain Villareal lay on the ground, taking his final breaths as a giant wooden beam crushed him under its weight.

In the adjacent room, the Exarch sat, calmly writing a letter, while his assistant entered through a man-sized hole. Minutes later, five Dawn-keepers emerged from the hole, ready to carry out their master's orders.

A few miles away, Agnethe continued to run, covering vast distances. The pressure of her immense size and swift movement pushed the bullets out of her body.

Exhausted, she returned to her normal size, almost stumbling, and released the rest of the phantom seed, including Al, who had regained consciousness as his Stubborn Will healed his injuries.

Al gently lifted Agnethe, but she winced in pain, "My back! Don't touch my back! Just carry me on your shoulder!" Al complied, hoisting her onto his shoulder as she requested. The four of them then sprinted at inhuman speeds, though slower than 90 ft Agnethe.

"What now?" Al asked, glancing at Cesar, who turned to Ellie. Her mirror had been cracked by the intense light of the bird during the explosive battle.

"We need to get the fuck out of here, as far from here as possible!" Cesar declared, taking the lead as they sprinted directly towards the towering mountains. The ground beneath them was brown, the lifeless grass of the planes flew by as they ran.

After a few minutes Agnethe pointed to the sky behind them, "Look what is that?" they all slowed down, their hearts sinking as they saw five figures soaring toward them.

They were Dawn-keepers, angelic beings of immense power. Fear gripped their hearts as the once-gray sky turned a fiery red, and the five Dawn-keepers merged their flame spell to summon a colossal pillar of fire, descending from the heavens and consuming everything in its path.

With urgency driving them, they increased their pace, but they couldn't escape the oncoming inferno.

In a desperate move, Cesar retrieved a powerful item from his robe they had acquired months ago in the 15th mortal Blood Ring—a scroll filled which he pours his Wind Will into activating the costly item.

He unfurled it, summoning an enormous river of water that swiftly inundated the entire field, submerging them under dozens of feet of water. The torrential downpour quenched the fire and generated an immense cloud of steam, momentarily obscuring their pursuers.

Once the water had spread, they found themselves a short distance apart, except for Al, who never let go of Agnethe.

Now at the foot of the mountain range, they resumed their frantic escape, darting into the jagged valley formed by two massive mountains that had seemingly sprung up overnight.

Rays of blinding light began descending upon them, causing the ground to erupt in explosions behind their hurried steps. The relentless Dawn-keepers were closing in, unleashing a relentless hailstorm of light spells upon the fleeing group.

"Al, watch out!" Agnethe's urgent shout prompted Al to turn around to meet one of the rays with his twisted knife. As his blade touched the light it swallowed it consuming the light, he sprinted back, and raced to catch up with the rest, who were a few dozen feet ahead.

Crossing the treacherous valley, the skies darkened to a foreboding gray, and nothing lay ahead except endless peaks of mountains.

Their only option was to start ascending the steep slope, which significantly slowed their progress. Seizing the opportunity, the Dawn-keepers flew past them, landing directly in their path.

Cesar and the others came to a halt, except for Al, who felt the heat emanating from his blade with Agnethe on his shoulder. He swung his weapon, unleashing a slash of light that dwarfed any attack they had witnessed before.

With astonishing speed, the massive slash of light consumed the Dawn-keeper directly in front of Al, sending its brethren scattering in confusion. A gap opened up, and Al, followed by Cesar and the rest.

They continued running, now with four Dawn-keepers following ominously above them. Realizing the potency of Al's ability, the winged beings resorted to pick them off one by one , only to be met with Jin's formidable lightning blasts from his Lightning Will and Cesar's powerful gusts of wind.

The relentless pursuit pushed the limits of their A.R.C and physical abilities, but they pressed on, determined to escape their pursuers.

"They are toying with us. At this rate, we'll die from exhaustion before they even land a fatal blow," Jin remarked, his words heavy with weariness. Yet, no one responded, they had no choice but to press on.

Hours passed, and the night enshrouded them. The four were reaching their limits, though Agnethe had somewhat recovered and now slowly sprinted alongside them.

Surprisingly, the relentless attacks ceased, and the Dawn-keepers simply hovered overhead like vultures, waiting for them to collapse from fatigue.

Drenched in sweat, they crossed numerous treacherous mountains, their bodies pushed to the brink.

One of the Dawn-keepers finally made its move and swooped down, targeting Agnethe, who was the slowest of the group due to her incomplete recovery.

Reacting quickly, Al threw himself in front of the attack, and a its pike like hand stabbed into his body, taking him into the air.

Cesar and the others could only watch in horror as the four Angelic beings descended upon Al, tearing his body into pieces, leaving only his torso and head.

"Nooooooo!" Agnethe's heart-wrenching scream pierced the air as tears streamed down her face. Everyone halted their desperate escape, frozen in shock and grief.

Even though Cesar believed Al could endure such brutality, tears welled up in his eyes as he witnessed the devastating scene.

Finally, one of the Dawn-keepers tossed Al's head and torso into the air, and the four beings merged their black flame spell, incinerating Al into ashes before their eyes.

In the grip of grief and rage, Agnethe grew to a towering 90 feet, ignoring her own injuries, and tried to clap her hands together to crush the four enemies. However, searing pain engulfed her hands as they burst into flames, stopping her attempt.

Cesar summoned every ounce of power he could muster, aiming to disperse the four Dawn-keepers, while Jin blasted them with his formidable Lightning Will.

Ellie, however unable to utilize her Reflective Will, sprinted to the spot where Al's remains had been ripped apart. She was searching for any piece of him when she found his twisted knife and chain.

One of the Dawn-keepers noticed her and created a small sun before blasting it in her direction, leaving Ellie no choice but to flee as fast as she could, expecting to be incinerated.

As Ellie continued surprisingly not burned to a crisp, she found Cesar and the others standing still, their attention fixated on something behind her.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she turned to look, and there, moving through the air, was a man clad in a dark robe. He held a Dawn-keeper by its head, and in an instant, the angelic creature detonated like a grenade.

The man's descent followed, as he lacked the ability to fly, but his prowess was evident.

The remaining three Dawn-keepers retaliated, releasing a relentless barrage of fire and light spells that painted the night sky with an otherworldly glow.

Undeterred, the man crouched down and gathered a handful of small stones, tossing them at the incoming spells with incredible precision. Upon impact, the stones erupted with tremendous power, nullifying the magical onslaught.

With deftness, the man drew a small dagger and the ground beneath him propelled him upward, intercepting one of the airborne Dawn-keepers. In a swift motion, he flung the dagger, driving it deep into another Dawn-keepers abdomen.

Upon contact, the Dawn-keeper he was holding exploded, and shortly after, the small blade that had impaled the other one erupted as well.

Only one Dawn-keeper remained, and it promptly fled into the shrouded night.

The man stood amidst the aftermath, seemingly unharmed, his presence leaving Ellie and the others in awe.