Skadi's reign over the winds was relentless to Falkone's abomination of blood.
Green sparks formed above the heavens, winds gathered inside the barrel of her gun, and the clouds itself became a gigantic titan of fear that struck anyone's hearts with its trembling appearance.
She held her gun up high, gathering more lightning, clouds, and winds inside. Simultaneously, the cumulative stockpile formed a cyclone of darkclouds that made their way above Skadi.
To a normal bystander, the sheer size of this cyclone would've been enough to make them vacate the premises.
Falkone continued to ascend upwards while utilizing blood from the ground to propel himself upward. The flesh of his body propagated due to this, increasing tremendously in size!
They continuously climbed their own body just to reach Skadi's awe-striking presence.
Now, that abomination made of flesh, blood, and tissues, turned into a tower of obscenity!
None dared to gaze at its high stature, directing their vision at the ground or somewhere far away!
All except for a few.
One of which included the golden-haired, faerie-like, Skadi.
The cyclone above solvated into a crackling mess of green sparks inside of Skadi's gun. With this done, she slowly pointed it downwards, aiming directly at the tower of flesh!
The gale seemed to spin around her, the lightning coalesced into a single ray of light.
Upon pulling the trigger, a stream of green lightning discharged downwards. Its circumference looked wider than the tower of obscenity, even larger than the dome below it!
It flowed down from Skadi's gun for 4 seconds. Then, as it dissipated, burning flesh could be smelled several meters away!
But Skadi didn't feel satisfied.
Looking at Falkone with her Gale Eyes, she uttered a silent breath:
"...still alive?"
The tower was almost upon her, albeit being burned, it continued to form into a filthy sight that surged up towards the sky.
So, Skadi casted numerous thunderbolts downwards. Light streaked down from the dark clouds and a thunderous clap followed soon after.
Half of humans down below covered their ears as a result, their eyes closed while focusing on maintaining their sense of self intact.
Skadi flew away to gain distance between them. She realized that if even one droplet of blood touched her, then it would be fatal to her body.
Perhaps it wouldn't be that instant, but she still had to be wary of Falkone's abilities.
Still, this kind of power was not something that she expected. The Historian's information was always vague but he gave important hints for them to absorb.
This time, she severely underestimated the enemy.
Her carelessness and overestimation of her power led her to believe that they would be bereft of any danger. Oh, how wrong she was. Skadi put her crewmembers in danger and even now, she did not know where they were.
It was only that someone had used her Windslinger, that was as far as she knew.
I'd have to thank them later..
As she traversed through the raging gale, she shot continuous lightning bolts at Falkone, weakening his growth and mudding his pace.
Once every 5 lightning bolts, Skadi gathered large amounts of winds, and clouds inside Windslinger and shot a lightning bolt with tremendous power towards Falkone.
This would drastically stop Falkone's advance, however, he would disregard this damage and heal instantly!
Even with one of Skadi's strongest moves, her attack could not deal enough damage to fell Falkone in one swoop!
She needed to strategize!
Perhaps there was a weak spot of some sort, something that she'd never noticed before. But alas, the pressure put upon her kept her Zeal raging outside and manipulated the Winds. She could not utilize her mind-racing ability, so she decided to keep her focus on the battle right now.
However, once Falkone reveals an opening, she would immediately hasten her thoughts.
Just then, she heard screams of the people below - screams that seemed that their very souls were being sucked out of their body.
With a concerned gaze, Skadi shifted her head downwards and saw that the individuals were getting blood sucked out of them!
This second of distraction caused Skadi to almost falter. The tower of blood pounded towards her but she remained vigilant and flew to the side, gaining more distance to study the situation below.
It seems that the people were connected to Falkone's long pool of blood. He utilized the civilians to leverage himself and become more powerful.
Skadi's eyes widened, realizing what he was trying to do..
"No..", she shot a bolt of lightning to stop the tower of blood's advancement to her, "..He's trying to ascend! He's performing a ritual!"
She gathered the dark clouds above, and the raging gale, turning them into a single spark of green lightning.
And then, she released it towards Falkone, basking him in 4 seconds of scorching lightning!
Skadi's mind suddenly raced as the world slowed down around her.
All of this blood! All of this massacre! This is why he needed me and why he is so desperate to chase me! He needs blood, especially of someone with my status - my power! A blood equal to the level of his!
Her face slowly turned into a frown.
A blood belonging to that of uniqueness - someone of royal blood or..
"A mythical race!"
The world returned to normal, she utilized her Gale Eyes to study the streets below her, gazing upon the barren and blood-sunken pathways.
"Falkone.. why has luck sided with you!"
3 seconds passed in an instant and in the last second, she chanced upon a boy with dark-blue hair, soaked in a river of blood.
He looked normal and mundane. It was as if he seemed like a normal boy that lived within the locality of Seyil's town.
Yet, Skadi knew that her mind played games on her. It is only due to the spell of the Historian that Cetas seemed that way!
To Falkone's perspective, Cetas would've looked like that too!
She had to hide him, but how?!
Then, Skadi noticed an auburn-haired girl wading towards the blood and heading to Cetas' direction.
Skadi's eyes shone.
Elishia! Attagirl!
She trusted the girl's capabilities, especially since she knew that Elishia's heart was as pure as hers.
If Skadi descended down the streets herself, then it would make suspicions arise in Falkone's contorted mind.
He was not stupid!
Indeed, he was cunning and manipulative, who knew that he had already taken over a small town and had prepared for a ritual to ascend to a Sage - a low-level Acumen.
If he does succeed, the entirety of Seyil's population would vanish!
And Skadi did not agree to that at all!
Thus, she harnessed all of her willpower to stop this madman at all costs!
After the 4 seconds of lightning vanished, Skadi opened her mouth to speak to Falkone:
"To think that you'd even absorb your own crewmates.. For what? For power!?"
Falkone did not answer, but remained building himself to head directly towards Skadi. Arms and hands climbed upon one another, and flesh remade itself above the tower's peak.
"Shameless wretch! Foolish and despicable! Your Soul wavers uncontrollably. In your state, do you think that you have the capabilities to ascend?!"
Skadi's tone was enraged. Falkone reached closer to Skadi but she did not fly away this time. Instead, she dodged his pity attacks and spoke to the multitude of ears that Falkone had formed.
"You would only wreak havoc for the innocent people in the world! This attempt to ascend would only turn you into a Dreadspawn. However, Dreadspawn or not, you no longer deserve any right to living."
Now.. Falkone replied, his voice shrill and breaking as blood seemed to fill his contorted throat:
"WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE THE LIVING?"
Skadi smirked for the very first time in their bout. Then, she flew upwards, vanishing in the dark clouds above.
In response, Falkone followed her and stretched all the way to the skies above.
Hands on hands grabbing each other to form a convulsed mound of flesh, blood rained down below - a residual of Falkone's utilization, heads screamed as they tried to escape Falkone's bodily prison, brain matter wrapped around the tower, and a large mouth formed above.
Once Falkone reached the insides of the dark clouds, thunder rumbled around him.
Then, a distinct echo of a soft voice resounded.
"That's right.. I have no right to judge who lives nor dies. I am no individual in servitude of the God of Balance, nor am I a priest of the God of Endings. I do not seek power like the deacons of Helios' church and I am not a slave of Verdisis.."
The green lightning's rumbles got stronger, deafening to the point of bursting a normal civilian's eardrums.
"I am but a mere pirate - a bounty hunter, if you may say."
Suddenly, all the dark clouds vanished.
Light permeated the skies, revealing Falkone's disgusting figure. It basked in the coldness of the moon's rise, its serenity reflecting on the flowing blood on its tower.
Above it, a formulation of a woman with golden-hair, clad in black appeared.
Her figure looked hazy and covered with green winds cycling around her. She looked illusory, as if her entire appearance was made out of air itself.
In her hand, she held a corporeal gun with a cannon-sized barrel and inside that very barrel, a sphere of lightning spun quickly.
The illusory woman suddenly spoke:
"I've been wondering.. What was that ball of flesh that you showed me?"
Only silence came from Falkone's gigantic mouth. It persevered to tread upwards, attempting to feast on Skadi's blood.
"That thing.. that sun-like symbolism, the tentacles acting as rays of the sun, and.. the peculiarity of the manifestation of my Soul.."
Skadi closed her lips for a second then parted them once more, its softness radiating with the moonlight in the distance.
"You.. you inherited these didn't you? And that sun-like symbol of yours, it serves as your core. As long as you possess it and keep it safe, your physical body would remain.. intangible or rather.. invincible."
Falkone raged, his movements became more desperate as he tried to reach Skadi above.
But Skadi was significantly faster, she slapped her left hand in the air and pushed a gale towards Falkone's tower.
Falkone staggered for half a second.
"That core, where is it now?"
She pulled the trigger of Windslinger.
The ball of lightning came slowly, flowing through the winds and carefully pacing downward to Falkone.
The serendipity of such looked quite peaceful especially since they were basking in the moonlight's gaze.
It flowed slowly.. and slowly.. and warily, looking almost anxious to traverse its path.
But then, it made contact with Falkone's disgusting mouth and entered it.
Falkone's advance stopped, almost like the entire tower was stunned in place!
Burning flesh penetrated the air and made Skadi pinch her nose.
The ball of lightning radiated inside of Falkone's tower as it made its way down to the middle of it.
Once it arrived, it pushed further and went down slowly.
Within a minute or so.. the ball of lightning had made its way to the base of the tower - the red dome.
Then, it glowed luminously, brightening the dark escapade of the nightly streets covered in blood.
Atop the skies, Skadi spoke once more, addressing the stunned Falkone.
"There it is.."
Instantaneously, the green ball of lightning vanished..
Silence ensued in the serene night sky, but it was then broken by the sound of shattering flesh.
Falkone... dissolved.
Or rather, his tower of flesh dissolved into thin air..
Blood particles rained down from the sky, flowing down as the air carried it softly.
As the tower dissolved, Skadi flew down with it and headed towards the Red Dome; it too had begun to dissolve, slowly shattering and releasing soft particles of crimson.
When Skadi arrived at the ground, he noticed a figure of a man in nude. His right eye was stitched, his hand held a long thread of red, and his face looked to be shrivelled.
Furthermore, a crest was painted on his back - a symbol resembling that of Falkone's sun-like core.
Skadi kneeled down and gazed upon Falkone's unconscious eyes.
After 2 seconds, they began to twitch and slowly open.