Chapter 63: Weapons of Destruction Acquired

Ash was floating in the sky. Ling and Dusk were squinting their eyes at him. The sisters knew he was out of the two's league. He beat their eldest brother along with Nian and another Feranmut.

But their special skills are exactly that, special. Chongyue and Nian might be great in mass destruction, but Ling and Dusk's powers are unique.

Dusk took a sword from a painting and the tensions rose.

"What are you doing here stranger?" Ling bought time for Dusk to think up something.

"Isn't that obvious? And you trying to distract me won't work. You control space with that little mist of yours. While that girl has to do something with paintings." Ash smirked.

"Tch, observant bastard. Dusk, we're at a disadvantage here. Cooperate with all you've got." Ling prepared as she brandished her lantern, a melodic bell ringing.

"Don't need to tell me the obvious." Dusk channeled her powers in her sword and swung the red blade with ornate and detail engravings.

Ash suddenly got hit by an explosion of ink and he was sent to the ground. He wiped some of it from his face and got annoyed.

But that was quickly dissipated as he saw a construct of energy attacking him. It looked weird, like a better drawn version of that SpongeBob that was made using a pencil.

"Interesting... How can you bring life to something? Even if it's technically not alive." Dusk received his interest and Ling also made her move.

A blue dragon formed as she wrote in the air like the banshees. "Paint the dragon, dot the eyes." Ling finished as another construct attacked him too.

"I've seen weird things, but a dragon wielding a sword?" Ash snorted as he kicked Dusk's summon and it exploded into ink.

Ling's dragon then got intercepted as he blocked its sword and snatched it out of its mouth. He stabbed right onto its head and it fizzled out. Wisps of light coming from it.

"Hmmm, interesting... Interesting indeed." Ash was just standing there, deep in thought.

The siblings shook their heads and thought he was mocking them. "Ever learn that you shouldn't take your eyes off your enemies?" Ling created more of her dragons and she swung her lantern.

Mist came out of it and Ash blinked. He couldn't move his limbs. The space around him is distorting to lock him down.

Ash bursted with energy and the ground cracked. Ling sweated and continued to lock him down. But it was a fruitless endeavor.

"Dusk! Now!" Ling shouted and the younger sibling that was speed painting went towards Ash and she spread the paper in front of him.

He resisted the pulling sensation and Dusk frowned, but Ling's dragons swung their swords at him. Distracting him enough even though they didn't do any damage.

Ash lost his vision for a split second and he took in the surroundings.

The air is stagnant, the light coming from the skies was dull. "An illusion? No... Everything here is real." Ash put a hand on the ground and examined the soil.

It was definitely real, but there's something wrong with it. Ash tried to dematerialize the soil by manipulating its atomic bonds, but instead of the matter destabilizing. It just disappeared into nothing.

"So this is her own pocket dimension. How intriguing." He smirked and was about to release his powers to break it forcibly.

But he was suddenly met with something he had a vague recollection of. A pure white sphere that was filled to the brim with Kjera's energy.

Ash surrounded himself with a dome of his own violet flames and the painting's world turned white.

Without him having enough time to counter the apocalyptic sphere of energy. The whole world painting of Dusk began to crumble.

The temperatures dropped to absolute zero. Everything froze and Dusk's creation cracked like glass.

"Did we get him?" Chongyue asked and he received a smack from Ling. "You idiot! You shouldn't say things like that!" His younger sister got angry at him and he was confused.

And rightfully so, as Ash appeared. His left arm along with a leg was crumbling into dust due to Kjera's attack that can even destroy Dusk's pocket dimension.

He whistled and they winced, glaring at Chongyue. "That was quite vicious Kjera. Anyone else would've died against that." Ash smirked and he concentrated a bit.

His limbs returned and he stretched a bit, checking if they were functioning as they should. "I guess I should end this now." He tensed up and they got nervous.

Ash's muscles that were like ropes of steel rippled. He raised his arm and his eerie sword flew right to his hand.

He threw it right towards Ling who was their greatest support in locking him down. The blue haired dragon panicked and summoned her mist right in front of her in a hurry.

But it tore through it and the sword nailed her right on her abdomen. Making her cry out in pain and spiral down to the ground.

"Ling!" Chongyue shouted, but he didn't have enough time to worry about his sister. Ash appeared right above his head and he had his arms raised for a hammer fist.

With a deafening shockwave, the dragon fell down to the ground like a meteor. Ash's fists were filled with potential energy and he increased the kinetic energy upon impact.

He didn't stop there and he clapped. Kjera and Nian felt an irresistible force smack them together. Like a crack of thunder, their heads smashed against each other and his spectral hand reached for their tails.

Ash spun them around and he threw them towards Chongyue. Dusk then saw him disappear and looked around anxiously.

"Looking for me?" Ash whispered behind her and she felt his giant fingers reach for her dainty, fragile neck.

"Kgh!" Dusk tried to stab him with her sword. He slapped it away and he grinned at the dragon as her vision slowly darkened.

"You won't be returning to Yan." Ash gave her a toothy smile and Dusk went limp against him.

Ling watched him dispatch them like children and she glared daggers at him. Ash landed right in front of her.

"Whatever you're planning... We won't yield." Ling coughed, feeling her energy get siphoned by his demonic sword. It was all too happy to drain her of her powers.

"Kekeke~ Is that so? Look around you, I don't think you need to. By right of conquest, all of you are my prisoners of war." Ash put a hand on his sword's handle.

Ling then gasped as she felt her energy flow towards him. He absorbed her essence along with Chongyue's.

Ash hummed and was getting a feel of what they could do. "Hmmm, so you are like the banshees. You can write poetry and impose your will upon reality. Only much more potent." Ash licked his lips.

Chongyue's meanwhile, is the ability to send earthquake like shockwaves through his body. A destructive ability for sure, but nothing that he can't do.

"You're an abberation..." Ling's eyes trembled. He was unstoppable, she could already see him trample the world.

"You're going to make me blush." Ash chuckled and he calmed down his sword, taking it out off her abdomen, making Ling spit out blood.

"I also have another nifty ability." Ash lifted her up and Ling winced. Ash licked her wound and sucked on her blood.

She then shaked like a leaf after seeing what happened. He started to grow silvery blue scales just like hers. A tail appeared behind his back just above his butt.

"Hmmm, interesting indeed." Ash smirked and Ling was losing hope.

'How can we defeat someone like this?' Her mind was shaken. He could consume his enemies and adapt.

She feared for her siblings. They would fall and would fuel his desire for conquest. "You'll doom us all!" Ling shouted out.

"Maybe, but is that so bad? This world is cruel, filled with so much hate and death. Humans treating others like trash. Give me one reason why I shouldn't purge this world." Ash squinted his eyes and Ling went quiet.

"Because this is our home... You already said it before. It's fascinating, the world is both cruel and beautiful. We're Deliverance, will you throw it all away and spit on her dream?" Margaret appeared behind him and looked at him with squinted eyes.

Ash craned his neck and met Margaret's golden eyes. The woman who supported his endeavors for their dream. To change Terra into a better place.

Something that Adele desired ever since they were young children all those years ago.

He snorted and put a mental block on Ling in order for her to unable to use her powers. He scanned the part of her brain that has the memories of her powers and put it into stasis.

Ash gingerly made his way to the other Feranmuts except Kjera and Nian. Doing the exact same for them.

Kjera and Nian were just doing their jobs. They do not want him to cause unnecessary mayhem. It wasn't their goal.

"We are leaving Margaret, Yan is crippled with this. Paradiso broke through two lines of defense and unrest is among their midst. Civil war will slowly begin. We also got three of the Sui siblings, an overall success." Ash went back to Paradiso.

Margaret sighed and she was quickly joined by Enciades, Degenbrecher, and Shining.

"So? What do we do next?" Degenbrecher sighed and looked at the dragons who were unconscious. Beaten to a pulp by Ash. They've definitely seen better days.

"We leave, come on. Let's get them back to Paradiso." Shining rubbed her temples and was thankful that he listened to Margaret.

They carried the unconscious combatants and returned to their mobile city.

Meanwhile, Ash who flew back to the city saw a memorial stone. He held his breath for a quick second and slowly landed in front of it.

He just sat down in front of it and looked at the name engraved on it.

Ash went back to his office and he retrieved something. He returned to the memorial and put the arts unit down in front of her grave.

"Belated happy birthday Adele. You're 17 now, you would have gloated that I'm supposed to be your little brother." He manipulated the very matter of the ground and turned it into soil.

In the old mythologies, there exists a miraculous plant that helps those who cannot face their memories to be brave and courageous.

Rosemary plants bloomed with their beautiful purple flowers. Ash snorted and sneered at the silly legend. They called it Rosmontis.

A piny and minty smell wafted in the air. It wasn't really the smell of Adele. She smelled of old books and her pet sheeps. But he thought it was just right.

He avoided thinking of her, of his sister. But it was a fact that she was gone. And he can't do anything about it. He gritted his teeth, his anger skyrocketing once again.

But the pleasant smell grounded him. He left the premises and went to visit someone.

__Paradiso's Prison__

At the maximum security areas that have anti arts cells that the banshees prepared especially. One Talulah Artorius who was missing two limbs just sat on her bed with a lost expression.

Her once cold and hollow look was back to what it once were. Her hair that received orange highlights was all gunmetal gray again. And the sharp look on her face softened.

She just stewed in her thoughts, slowly succumbing to depression and guilt. She hasn't slept for days, nightmares robbing her of peace.

Talulah could remember it all, she struggled to fight against Kaschey for her body. But the deathless black snake just mocked her every time and even talked to her with an amused tone whenever he would commit unspeakable crimes.

Somebody entered her cell and she didn't had the energy to look at them. But once Talulah felt the overwhelming presence, she quickly looked up.

"A-Ash..." Her breath hitched and her pupils dilated. Among her crimes against humanity. He was the most unfortunate of her victims.

She betrayed him, he was their immovable anchor. Reunion could soldier on in comfort knowing they had his support. Her dreams to give the infected a better place could be possible due to him.

Yet, she succumbed to her hate and Kaschey took advantage of it just like he planned. Shame, guilt, self loathing, anger.

Talulah was feeling a slew of emotions and she didn't dare look at him in the eyes.

She remembered his energy signature. It was warm, playful, and steady like a rock. But now, she shivered at its biting cold. It is sharp like honed steel.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" She heard him speak, his deep voice made her insides rumble.

Talulah opened her mouth, trying to form words. But nothing came out. She couldn't, she shouldn't. She has no words, apologies won't bring back anything.

She gritted her teeth so hard it almost shattered. Her hands balled into fists until her knuckles turned white, paler than her pasty complexion. Her palms bled as her nails bit into them.

Her nose began to run and her vision blurred due to her tears. Yet she refused to sniffle or make a noise. She doesn't deserve pity, she was irredeemable.

Ash suddenly stabbed her with a stim and Talulah couldn't help but groan in pain. She couldn't breathe and she felt like her limbs were on fire.

Her missing arm and leg slowly began to reform and she was a mess on her bed. "I expect you to lead a force towards Ursus. Failure is not an option. You will live for me, do anything I say, obey every command, until your body and spirit cannot go on." He left her cell and Talulah started to breathe.

"I will..." She said silently and her eyes glowed. "Ursus will pay. My mission is clear, my eyes have been opened." Everything seemed to be crystal clear.

Her strength has uses. And she will be pushing them to the limit. He has spoken, her flames will be pointed at Ursus. And she will burn their armies to the ground in a glorious blaze.

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Thanks for reading everyone, ciao.