★230
THIRD POV
The moon in Elyvra turned without warning, its pale glow bleeding into a deep crimson that washed over the entire Domain. The shift was immediate, and every shadow stretched just a little too far, as if the world itself had taken notice.
"Save your energy for Elara. I'll take care of the rest." Magisa said, her voice calm, almost detached, as though what stood before her was already decided.
She stepped forward and activated her magic. A crimson circle formed above her head, its patterns moving with quiet precision. She raised her hand, then lowered it in one smooth motion.
"Black Scripture: Null Womb."
A transparent sphere spread outward, slipping through the part of the world without resistance. It moved cleanly, passing over everything in its path.
What followed wasn't spectacle or grandeur. It was ruin, plain and absolute. By the time the sphere faded, the space it had covered was gone, leaving behind a hollow absence where something had once been.
The sudden shift forced the Goddess of Life to appear, her presence cutting into the scene without warning. She hovered before them, her gaze fixed on the one person she never expected to see.
"That power… Lady Magisa?"
She asked, surprise clear in her voice.
"Her power is the only thing I have that can counter him."
The Crimson Lord replied from behind Magisa, his tone steady.
"Still with the habit of using others as pawns. You never change."
"This is war, my lady. I'll do anything to win. Besides, I know you are prepared for me but you surely weren't prepared for her. Black Scripture, a wound in reality. Anything it touches was never born, never thought, never was. Objects, magic, fate, and even Laws caught within it were never possible to begin with. Stuffs like your immortality offer no protection."
He said, explaining Magisa's Art. Something she's familiar with.
"You think this is a problem?"
She asked nonchalantly.
"I'm the Goddess of ..."
"Life not Creation."
Phoenix cut her off, highlighting the difference between the two figures.
"You currently don't have the power to bring back what's damaged, yes?"
"It's not entirely impossible, but I took that into account and got this guy for myself."
She said, snapping her fingers summoning a portal.
A kid dressed in white walked out calmly. His hair was white housing a thin tiara. His crimson eyes stared down on Magisa.
[[IMAGE]]
[[IMAGE]]
The expression on Phoenix's face changed for the first time.
"I love this look."
Elara said, a smirk forming on her lips.
"Yo, Magisa."
The boy said calmly.
"Long time no see, Cepheus."
That's right, it's the strongest Supergods in the entire Pond. The Sloth King, Cepheus.
"He's the only one who I believe can stop Magisa."
"You imbecile child. Magisa is beyond your reach now. It's evident since you haven't climbed the ranks yet."
"I don't care about that."
He brushed it off lazily.
"I love this spot. It gives me more freedom."
He snapped his finger and the wound in reality caused by Black Scripture was reforming. Time wasn't being reversed or any because such concepts perished during the annihilation.
Phoenix and Magisa watched as the destruction around them was reversed.
"Scantum Resurgence. Cepheus commands Order to restore what was lost. He rewrites the 'truth' of being, returning the fallen into memory and reality. A perfect counter don't you think?"
Elara explained, and when she finished, Phoenix having seen enough, closed his eyes and simply listened, a faint smile playing on his lips.
The fallen rose once more, bodies, ideas, memories were restored. Without wasting time, Elara teleported the weak to a safer place, summoning her mightiest warriors, the Archangels.
"But we all know power like that always demands its due," Magisa said, her gaze steady.
"Compared to losing my divinity, I'd call it a bargain," Cepheus replied.
A faint smile crossed the Crimson Lord's face.
"How delightful. I came here to kill you, yet somehow the script has shifted. Magisa, you understand what this means for our plan."
"Yes. I do."
"Then take care of Cepheus."
"I intended to kill and absorb him anyway."
She dragged her nails across her veins without hesitation. Blood spilled out, dark and heavy, seeping into the void at her feet. It did not fall; it spread, twisting into living strands that pulsed and coiled like something breathing.
"Blood–Void Fusion… Haemorrhage Eclipse."
The tendrils sharpened, stretching outward as though hungry.
The Crimson Lord let out a quiet hum of approval.
"Go on, then. Enjoy yourself."
Magisa did not wait. She surged forward, the void-blood lashing around her as she closed the distance with her twin.
"Back him up.".
Elara ordered.
At once, the Archangels moved, wings tearing through the air as they descended towards the clash.
"Now that the kids have gone to play, let's pick up where we left off, billions of years ago. Shall we?"
He said, summoning a hand mirror.
...
..
.
"Abyssal Reflection."
He used the hand mirror to counter the beam heading towards him.
Abyssal Reflection doesn't just reflect any magical or physical attacks, it corrupts them with the chaotic mirror energy Phoenix controls before sending them back.
"Oh, I was expecting that."
She said, raising her hand purifying the chaotic beam heading towards her.
He snapped.
"Mirror Art: Reflection Fang."
With the beam converting into neutral particles, four mirrors appeared, one taking in the beam the other absorbing the neutral force.
It happened almost instantaneously as the other two mirrors released another beam simultaneously. They moved far faster than light, slicing through every conventional defence to strike their target
Elara conjured barrier after barrier, each one shredded in an instant but with every layer, the beams slowed, their momentum gradually fading.
Noticing this, she struck, shattering the mirrors into countless shards. One shard, no larger than a fingernail, flew past her unnoticed, until the ricocheted beam erupted from it, far more devastating than the previous ones, striking her squarely
"I'll end this as soon as possible. Activate, Mirror Song: Resonance of the Broken Glass."
Every shard glowed red until the entire space was glowing that same colour, sealing Elara.
"Each shard is a distinct fragmented memory or an alternate reality. You'll have to go through every one of them face their struggles, face a fractured version of oneself or whatever the case may be in order to break free. It won't be enough to stop you but it'll buy time."
(This isn't a timeline, it's alternate versions created by Phoenix. As he said, it will only slow her down not take care of her.)
As he explained, the air was filled with the relentless sound of shards breaking to dust, Elara was carving her way out.
Phoenix smiled at the sight of the shards breaking one after another, then turned his gaze skyward, ignoring it all to watch the twins clash in the heavens.
"Elara's gone and you'll be next."
Magisa said, lashing out tendrils. Cepheus flipped back and ran, thin marks from the tendrils still visible across his body.
'Those Archangels died the moment a tendril landed on them. But thanks to their sacrifice and her babbling, I was able to figure out how it works. The Blood-Void Fusion not only steals one's vitality before erasing their reason to exist, but I also lost the names & memories of some of my Arts.
In short, it can erase one's abilities and identity. I have to be extremely careful when attacking. I can't risk revealing too much, not now. If I lose my potential Arts, it's over.'
"The longer you run the more you wear out from keeping yourself within the Null Womb."
Cepheus didn't answer. He simply pointed upward, and suddenly, light flooded the area.
Above them, a sun burned fiercely. He snapped his fingers, and the brilliance intensified, erupting like an attack. Yet it wasn't fire or light, it was the Law of Order itself.
"Solar Mandate."
"How dare you!"
She exclaimed, lashing out her tendrils to destroy the sun but the effect had already been triggered. The tendrils faded, along with the Null Womb itself.
Rather than letting the Judgment Art strike her, he redirected its full power to nullify the Black Scripture entirely, disabling her Art.
"Congratulations, but I'm far from falling yet."
An unnatural darkness, snuff out light, sound and magical detection replaced the battlefield.
Anyone trapped will be forced to go blind, deaf and lose all their sense of self they're alive but can't move except the caster who's completely immune & untouchable within their space.
'This is bad. What should I counter with...'
As he was about to decide what to do next, a warm bloodied palm rested on his shoulder staining his white robe. He recoiled but it's already too late.
With the veil lifted and hopefully Cepheus didn't lose everything completely, he swung his fist sideways but missed. A counterpunch followed, sending him flying.
He crashed on the far end of the skies, his heartbeat increasing by the second.
'Strength multiplied.'
He noted, spitting blood.
He stood up, slowly, almost forgetting that this was a battlefield, Magisa appeared in front of him, her palm bleeding from a self-inflicted wound and a rune was also drawn on her palm.
"Enhanced abilities in exchange for shortening my lifespan as well as my memories being burned."
"Not a risk worth the price."
He said.
"Here's the best part, those with who I've formed the Crimson Pact will have their fate linked to mine. If I die, you're coming with me. If you kill me, you're also coming with me."
Her lips curved into a wicked smile but Cepheus' expression didn't change, he kept his cool and was still smiling.
'Elaine, wherever you are. Come back home, we need you. I need you.'
Elara cried out before all the shards were destroyed to dust. Her aura was burning, she's charged now.
"Errai is about to lose right there."
Phoenix, who was seated in space, informs her of the current situation, his finger pointing to where the twins are.
'Law of Immortal Flesh: Breath Undying.'
She blew a kiss towards the twin but rather than directing it to Cepheus, she gave it to Magisa instead.
"'Magisa shall not die from self-harm.'"
She granted her immortality with a condition.
As the Goddess of Life, Magisa isn't strong enough to break free and even if she does, Elara's higher form will take over. This is a being who created the Ontic Layers. There's literally zero chance Magisa can ever break free completely. This is a Divine Bestowal as well as a remover.
"That's unexpected."
"It's best to roll that way."
She noted a radiant flower bloom beneath her feet releasing small waves.
"I've heard your summons and I've responded."
As the two were about to engage, a voice called out and all eyes turned towards it.
Everything about her was completely different. She grew taller, and her hair was long enough to fall to her long legs. Her broad yellow wings curved as she landed, a golden halo radiating over her, it was Elaine.
To be continued..