CHAPTER 1129: VISUALS

The sky trembled as Zerathul’s scream deepened into a soundless pulse that seemed to shake the fabric of existence. His torn flesh writhed and then reforming itself into grotesque shapes as streams of silver-black essence seeped from his wounds.

The necrotic veins beneath his surface pulsed violently and spread through his body. Then, his body convulsed and the space around him cracked.

From the fissures of time and void, dark portals burst open one by one. Countless abominations spilled forth from them.

Some of them were winged beasts with skin like corroded metal and eyes glowing with souls that Zerathul had trapped there long ago. The others slithered in the air in their long serpentine body that formed from shadow and bone. The creatures howled with an echo that defied the natural world.

They flooded the sky in every direction.

Eccar’s jaw tightened as he saw the tide forming.

"You bastard!" he roared, his voice shaking the air as he beat his wings. Then he ascended higher and unleashing a torrent of molten rock.

The rocks poured to the front lines of abominations and hitting through dozens before they even reached him. But for every one that died, two more appeared from the void.

Aesa’s expression hardened.

"It looked like he is pulling them from different timelines. These creatures should’ve perished long ago." Her voice was somehow still steady, but there was also fear beneath it.

Aesa raised her hand, the air around her freezing in an instant as another set of runes flared to life. The temperature suddenly dropped so sharply around her that even the abominations slowed for a brief moment.

She exhaled slowly, her breath turning to mist before it erupted into a storm of jagged ice spears.

Thousands of them materialized from the air and launched forward in perfect formation then raining down.

The slowed creatures screamed as the frost pierced through their bodies, their corrupted flesh freezing solid before shattering into black fragments.

Without pause, Aesa spun and tracing a circle with her arm. A spiral of frost runes followed her motion, glowing bright blue before bursting outward.

A massive ring of frost expanded around her, and from it, countless chains of ice shot outward, coiling around the flying monsters and crushing them until they turned into brittle sparkling dust.

The sky flickered with blue light as she spread her wings and called forth a cold gale that swept through the battlefield in her area. The wind itself became sharp frozen blades that cut through hundreds of abominations at once.

Erend was also already fighting through the thickest swarm. The air around him cracked with the sound of clashing elements as lightning and fire killed anything that came too close to him.

A hulking winged beast with two heads lunged from behind, but Erend twisted and slammed his flaming fist into its chest, blowing it apart in a burst of heat and molten ash in an instant.

Then a second wave of shadow monsters came from above raining down like arrows. He raised his arm and unleashed a wave of water energy that turned into a spiraling vortex that consumed the incoming projectiles and threw them back as burning steam.

But his eyes locked onto Zerathul again. The Gravebinger being had shrouded himself in a cocoon of swirling shadows now. He was drifting backward through a tear in space.

His form pulsed as the necrotic light beneath his skin grew brighter. He was healing himself.

Erend’s jaw clenched, anger burning through his chest. "If I let him recover again, all this will be for nothing!"

His aura flared wildly, lightning crawling across his body, ready to strike the creatures to move toward Zerathul as fast as possible.

But before he could act, a golden light broke through the chaos.

Krono descended from the higher sky. His enormous form radiating brilliance that tore the darkness apart.

The golden Dragon’s wings spread wide, each beat sending waves of energy that killed the abominations.

His claws slashed one time and hundreds of them vanished into gore of flesh torn in the air. The air rippled with the sheer force of his presence as he roared.

"Erend!" Krono’s voice echoed directly into his mind through the telepathic link. "I will hold them off and clear your path! Go and attack him down before he escapes again!"

Erend gritted his teeth and nodded. "Understood. I’ll finish this." His reply was firm, his determination burning.

Krono didn’t hesitate. His massive body dove into the thickest cluster of enemies. He swung his claws and it shattered hundreds of abominations, the golden aura around him dispersing the shadows that tried to cling to him as he carved a path straight toward Zerathul.

Erend took the chance. He surged forward through the gore corridor Krono had carved open, wings flaring as trails of lightning burst behind him.

The remaining creatures tried to intercept him, but he disintegrated them on contact.

Flames and thunder intertwined around his body, propelling him faster through the broken sky until he can see Zerathul’s dark form in his cocoon loomed before him once more.

The Gravebinger was still retreating. But Erend’s eyes narrowed. "You’re not going anywhere!"

He clenched his fists, fire, lightning, and water surging together into an overwhelming storm as he closed in for the next strike.

—

Adrien squinted against the torrential rain as the thunder rolled across the blackened sky. The storm clouds churned above, streaked with flashes of lightning that twisted unnaturally through the air.

Beside him, Billy adjusted his rifle strap and looked over the assembled troops.

"We have seven soldiers with Magic power now," he muttered under his breath. "This is pretty good."

Adrien turned slightly, glancing back toward the seven soldiers that stood in front of other soldiers inside the base.

Jessica had said that General Lennard, her father, had confirmed the convoy is now on the move. They’ve mobilized all ground units. But it will take a long time for them to arrive.

The helicopters still won’t be able to move right now because of the storm. So they expect the reinforcement to take a long time to arrive.

Adrien’s gaze drifted to the swirling skyline where the storm seemed to pulse. Lightning streaked downward in strange patterns, forming spirals instead of bolts.

A moment later, a distorted voice came through his comms. "I got visuals on something ahead, Captain. You’ll want to see this."

—