CHAPTER 38: MADE A LITTLE HIGHER THAN ANGELS

"GAAAHHHHH!" Libra shrieked in a high-pitched cry as the scales he carried rattled violently.

The spells that he summoned weakened, and Thane broke away at the last moment to dodge the swing by allowing himself to stumble.

FWIP!

[ENEMIES DETECTED.]

[Celestial TV shutting down...]

[5]

[4]

Thane took one of the Choppy Brothers and hurled it at the Goblin!

SPLAT!

The Celestial TV’s effect vanished from Thane’s forced, quick, and drastic motions.

With the Goblin slain, Thane turned towards Libra.

Thane’s eyes widened as he saw the gigantic arm that had emerged from the ground below.

It was grasping and flailing as it was slowly pulling itself back.

"Man! What an idiot! He didn’t close the portal! The Cyclops punched him!" Thane couldn’t help but chuckle.

"Argh! The distortion!" Libra cursed as it had stumbled down. In its weakened state, a blow from a Cyclops really struck pain in him.

Libra’s attempt to breach into the mortal plane had already created a portal, but he never used it as Thane’s attack also began!

"Distortion, you say?" Thane had a malicious plan.

He began to bring out his Items, and he noticed that the world was cracking and revealing small tears in the areas around them!

The distorting and disrupting spatial powers of Thane had also ensured that the crack that Libra made remained open!

In that moment, Thane’s allies had redirected the Cyclops’ massive swing, sending its fist crashing into this very dimension. Libra doubled over in shock, his scales momentarily unbalanced.

Back in the real world, the Cyclops staggered. What was meant to be a ground-shaking punch had left its arm half-buried in the dimensional crack. It stumbled, losing balance, its massive frame faltering. The opening gave Thane’s allies the chance they had prayed for.

"Now!" Stratus bellowed.

The mages, knights, and Seraphina herself unleashed their strongest attacks in unison. Elemental blasts, spirit strikes, and holy flames engulfed the Cyclops as it struggled, its arm trapped between worlds.

The Cyclops quickly pulled itself back up, but its body had taken in the damage from the three.

ROAR!

It howled angrily as its eyes continued to regenerate. As the Cyclops pulled its hand away to chase the rest, Seraphina saw the portal and rushed at it.

Libra was still on the ground. The impact had caught him off guard, and the bones in his torso seemed crushed.

"Did it hit the angel?!" Seraphina’s voice could be heard through the portal.

"Yes!" Thane shouted back.

"Thane!" Seraphina cried in relief, and footsteps from the other side began to draw closer to the portal.

All of a sudden, Seraphina’s head and hands emerged, and she saw the strange world.

The shrieking of Libra could be heard.

"He’s right in front of you!" Thane shouted.

Unable to see the distorted and misty world, Seraphina trusted Thane.

"Ray!" Seraphina shouted as rays of light shot from her free hand and zapped towards Libra!

ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!

The ray of holy light proved fatal to the fallen angel as it cursed and quickly swung the scales on its shoulders.

"RAAAA!" Libra howled.

With the swing of the scales, the holy light was somehow deflected, as it did not damage the scales!

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

"You!"

Thane rushed close by with the Holy Arrow ready at hand, and his other hand was throwing even more weapons to Libra, and would store others to keep the dimensional region unstable.

With a swift movement, the gigantic Libra rushed towards the portal with the whirling scales around him. And he swung it towards Seraphina!

"Now!" Seraphina shouted.

At the last moment, Seraphina’s head and hand were pulled back very quickly, and the scale swung and struck with a massive fist!

The cyclops was led back to the portal and made its enraged attack at Vayne, who managed to dodge again.

BOOM!

The fist of the cyclops was crushed and broken from striking the large scale of Libra, but though it cursed the bones, it was strong enough to deflect the attack.

Libra’s body was swayed as the fist managed to repel the scale, and at that moment, a small figure rushed at it as the dimension trembled.

With the Holy arrow from the ground, and summoning it to his hands, Thane prepared his strike.

With a cry, Thane leapt. Spirit energy coursed through his body, his strike weaving Spirit Deflection into Spirit Piercing, dispersing Libra’s defenses. He aimed with Supreme Perception, his senses narrowing onto the deepest fracture in Libra’s form, the gap in its bones that pulsed with corruption.

"Disappear!" Thane roared, driving the holy arrow straight into Libra’s core.

The arrow had strangely not dispersed its holy energy. The enchantment of the holy energy was somehow sealed when Libra retreated into the dimension pocket. Its radiance pulsed, like a heartbeat that did not belong in that forsaken void.

But how could he have guessed that this arrow would strike his very core?

Since the start, Thane could see the magic gathering in Libra’s heart. It was faint at first, but the longer he fought, the more certain he became. His Supreme Perception showed him where all of Libra’s twisted energies converged. That was the weakness. That was the place he had to strike.

The arrow’s holy energy now fought violently within the darkness of Libra’s heart. Light and shadow clashed, and sparks of sacred fire scattered out from the wound. The oppressive atmosphere of the dimension quivered as though the very fabric of the place could not withstand the clash of these two opposing forces.

A powerful burst of dark energy shot out from Libra, crashing into Thane like a torrent of fire. His flesh blistered instantly. The searing heat left black streaks across his arms, his cheek, and even his chest. The stench of his own burning skin filled his nostrils, but he did not let go.

Thane ignored them all. His hands gripped the shaft of the arrow tighter, even as the sacred wood burned and seared his palms. He screamed, but his scream was not one of surrender. It was a defiance. He forced the arrow deeper, inch by inch, until it pierced further into the gaps of Libra’s ribcage.

"Ahhhhh! You... insect!" Libra’s voice broke into a shrill, agonized roar. The pain was so immense that his skeletal form shook uncontrollably. His arm trembled as he reached for Thane, the mighty Scales rattling uselessly at his side. For the first time, the judgment angel’s hand faltered.

"Insect?!" Thane barked, his voice cracking with pain yet alive with fire.

"We were made a little higher than angels, you unbiblical skeleton! [Item Storage]!"

With a furious glare, Thane summoned his cheat ability. The Item Storage of Thane began to open and close violently in rapid succession. Each flicker of inventory tore at the walls of the dimension like claws raking through glass. Libra’s eyes widened in horror.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!