The Second Elder emerged from the shadows like a wraith born of nightmares, his form flickering with each step, as if reality itself couldn't decide whether to accept his existence. His body was draped in a cloak of sentient darkness, tendrils of black mist writhing and twisting around him like starving serpents. Beneath the cloak, glimpses of armor forged from an alien black metal pulsed with dull crimson veins, as though the armor itself was alive and feeding off his presence.
His face was half-hidden behind a bone-like mask etched with ancient, infernal runes—runes that bled a faint red glow, as if remembering every soul they had devoured. What little of his skin was visible appeared charred and cracked, leaking wisps of voidlight—something not of this world. His eyes were twin voids, endless and depthless, pulling at the sanity of any who dared meet his gaze.
In each hand, he wielded a blade wrought from condensed darkness—blades that hummed with a soundless vibration, their edges rippling like shadows in water. They didn't reflect light. They consumed it.
His presence was suffocating.
The air around him bent and twisted with unnatural weight, as if gravity itself bowed to his will. His aura distorted space in slow, undulating waves, and even the laws of nature faltered in his wake. The very ground beneath him recoiled at his touch, corroding into pools of tar-like blackness that hissed and bubbled, as if the earth was screaming.
Where he walked, the world itself seemed to wither.
And then, he moved.
A blur of malice and speed, his shadow-forged blades carving through the space where warriors once stood. Those caught in his path never had a chance. They were erased from existence, their bodies swallowed by the abyss he wielded.
But Akari Fujiwara was faster.
Before the Elder could advance further, she struck.
Akari Fujiwara, the assassin, met him in a deadly dance, her movements swift and precise as she darted through the shifting shadows. Her twin daggers flashed, slicing through tendrils of darkness.
She was a ghost among shadows, her twin daggers flashing like streaks of moonlight. Dodge. Step. Strike. Each movement was a whisper of death, a silent language spoken in the art of assassination. The Elder's darkness lashed out—only to meet empty air.
Akari was already behind him.
Her blade sliced clean across his back, but before she could capitalize on the opening, the Elder's form shattered.
An illusion.
"Tch—!" Akari's instincts screamed. She pivoted just in time—
—But not fast enough.
A black blade slashed across her side, narrowly missing her heart. A split-second late, and it would've been the end. Pain flared, hot and sharp, but she didn't falter.
The Elder materialized before her, his smirk cold, his crimson eyes glinting with amusement.
"Impressive. Most would be dead already." His voice was an echo, as if spoken from a void beyond existence.
"But this is fu–."
A streak of silver and shadow cut him off.
Sora Nakamura.
He struck from behind, twin daggers aiming for the Elder's neck. The Elder barely twisted in time, deflecting one blade with his dark sword—but the second cut deep into his shoulder.
The Elder hissed, more annoyed than injured.
"Ah… another insect."
"Then I guess I'll just have to sting you to death," Sora retorted, disappearing into the shadows again.
Akari wasted no time, pressing forward.
"If Sora could keep him busy—"
But the Elder's shadow exploded outward, warping the battlefield into a nightmarish abyss.
Akari and Sora both leapt back just as a golden light pierced the darkness.
"Enough of your tricks."
Ryo Takeda stood firm, his holy blade glowing, pushing back the void itself. His presence was unwavering, a beacon against the Elder's abyss.
Akari gritted her teeth.
"Ryo—"
"I'll hold him off. You and Sora—find an opening," Ryo ordered.
The Elder clicked his tongue.
"Tiresome."
With a flick of his wrist, shadowy spears materialized above him, dozens forming in an instant.
He thrust his hand forward. The spears rained down like a storm of death.
"Yuna!" Tatsuo's voice rang across the battlefield.
"On it!"
A surge of divine light erupted behind them. Yuna Okamoto, standing at the heart of the battlefield, raised her staff high.
"Divine Aegis!"
A golden barrier expanded outward, deflecting most of the spears, but some broke through. Ryo dodged, but Akari—
Pain.
A spear tore through her shoulder.
Another through her thigh.
She gasped, stumbling. Blood poured from the wounds, staining the battlefield beneath her.
The Elder's grin widened. More came.
Akari braced herself—
Tatsuo moved.
In a flash, he was beside her, his scythe intercepting the spears. His scythe pulsed with cyan energy, slicing the projectiles apart before they could reach her.
"You're not dying here," Tatsuo growled, positioning himself in front of her.
But Akari shoved him aside.
"I don't need you to save me."
Their eyes met for a split second—his filled with desperation, hers with unyielding resolve.
And then, she moved.
A final gamble.
Akari vanished, a blur of silver cutting through the abyss. The Elder's eyes widened—
Her dagger pierced his chest.
For the first time, he bled.
A perfect strike. Fatal.
Or… it should have been.
The Elder laughed.
"Not bad," he whispered.
And then, his body shattered into darkness.
Akari's eyes widened. Another illusion—
A blade tore through her abdomen.
Her breath hitched. Her knees buckled. The pain was numbing, cold, as if her very existence was being swallowed by the abyss.
The Elder stood behind her, his shadow blade buried deep.
Tatsuo, Sora, Ryo—too far away to stop it.
Yuna screamed.
Akari… smiled.
Her blood dripped onto the battlefield. Her gaze found Tatsuo.
Her voice—weak, trembling, but defiant—was barely a whisper:
"Tatsuo… Don't look back. Just keep moving."
And with those final words, her body slumped, the light in her eyes flickering out as the shadows consumed her.
Silence.
I froze for a heartbeat yet again, anguish tightening his chest.
"Akari, no!" I shouted, my voice cracking. But the battle pressed on, merciless and unrelenting.
The Second Elder turned his soulless gaze toward me.
His smile stretched wide, a grotesque parody of joy, but his eyes... his eyes were dead. They held nothing, reflected nothing.
"Such fragile things, you humans."
He wiped Akari's blood from his blade.
"But don't worry. You'll join her soon."
They were simply empty sockets, staring through me. A void that devoured all light, all hope.
Before the Elder could strike, Sora and Ryo streaked through the battlefield, their movements sharp and unrelenting.
Sora, ever the sharp-witted assassin, moved first. He vanished into the darkness, reappearing behind the Elder in an instant. His dagger slashed through the Elder's back, drawing dark, inky blood that sizzled as it hit the ground.
The Elder hissed, twisting unnaturally as his tendrils of darkness lashed out—
But Sora was faster.
He flipped back, narrowly avoiding the attack, his movements fluid and relentless. His daggers flashed, striking again and again, each cut precise, carving into the Elder's shifting form.
Ryo, the noble paladin, charged in next. His sword gleamed with holy energy, cutting through the suffocating abyss like a beacon of defiance. With a roar, he brought his blade down in a powerful arc, forcing the Elder to parry with his own dark weapons.
The clash sent shockwaves across the battlefield. Sparks erupted, shadows recoiling as light met darkness.
But Ryo didn't let up. Each strike came heavier, each step forward unyielding.
The Second Elder met him head-on, his shadow-forged blade clashing violently against Ryo's steel. Sparks erupted as their weapons met, the sheer force of the impact shaking the battlefield.
But the Elder wasn't just attacking with his blade.
His free hand conjured shadowy spears in an instant, launching them at Ryo mid-clash.
Ryo's instincts kicked in.
A golden barrier flared around him.
"Sanctuary Shield!"
He raised his shield, intercepting the deadly projectiles. The spears shattered against its surface, tendrils of darkness licking at the edges as Ryo pushed forward.
From a distance, Yuna Okamoto raised her staff, divine energy radiating from her fingertips. The holy barrier intercepted the deadly projectiles, the dark spears shattering against its surface.
Ryo used the momentum—his shield slammed into the Elder, staggering him back. With a swift pivot, Ryo brought his sword down in a brutal counterstrike, forcing the Elder onto the defensive.
The battlefield crackled with tension.
Sora took advantage of the moment.
With precise footwork, he shifted around the Elder's blind spot, gripping his light sword tightly.
He lunged forward, slashing at the Elder's exposed side.
The blade struck true, slicing deep.
The Elder hissed in pain, shadows leaking from his wound like a dying flame.
The Elder snarled, retreating into the darkness—
But Tatsuo was already there.
With a single step, Tatsuo swung his scythe, cutting through the abyss, severing the Elder's escape.
"Not this time!" Sora growled, throwing one of his daggers straight at the Elder's shifting form.
The blade pierced through his shoulder, pinning him in place.
That moment of hesitation was all Ryo needed.
With a fierce shout, Ryo drove his sword forward, piercing straight through the Elder's chest.
The Elder let out a twisted, inhuman shriek as cracks of golden energy splintered across his body. His form convulsed, the shadows around him writhing in agony before his entire body erupted into fading wisps of darkness.
The battlefield fell silent.
And then—Tatsuo's grip on his scythe tightened.
"…Another one down," he muttered.
But they all knew—this was far from over.