I could feel my divinity surge through my veins, divine energy flickering black and purple around my body. It coiled and licked at the air like sentient flame, seething in anticipation. My sword materialized in my grip, the weight of it familiar, comforting, but tonight, it felt different—heavier, as if it knew the battle before me would not be easy.
Phaegon stood watching me with amusement. The bastard was prepared. More than prepared. He was eager.
"Come now, King of the Dead," he rumbled, rolling his massive shoulders as though limbering up for sport. "Do not hesitate. Or are you afraid?"
Afraid? Me?
No.
I moved first. My body became a shadow, twisting through the air in a blur of darkness. My blade came down in a deadly arc, aimed straight for his throat.
With terrifying speed, Phaegon raised his cleaver. The sound of metal striking metal echoed through the land, deafening, unnatural. Sparks erupted between us, a burst of golden light clashing against the abyssal void of my power. I pushed harder, pouring my strength into the strike, but his monstrous arms didn't waver.
Phaegon grinned. "Not bad. But not enough."
He shoved me back with sheer brute force. I flipped through the air, landing smoothly on my feet, but before I could react, he was already on me, swinging that monstrous weapon. I barely managed to weave around the strike, the wind pressure alone tearing through the ground where I had stood.
This wasn't just strength. This wasn't just size. This was something more. Something unnatural.
I summoned my shadows, black tendrils of darkness spiraling from beneath my feet. They lashed out, wrapping around Phaegon's limbs, tightening like unbreakable chains forged in the depths of the underworld itself. He snarled, attempting to wrench free. I used the moment to strike, hurling a wave of primordial flames, blue and violet fire roaring toward his body.
The flames should have devoured him, should have burned through anything, and yet—
Phaegon smirked.
Scales.
His body darkened as thick, impenetrable scales grew instantly, shielding him from my attack. The fire licked at him, but it barely scorched.
He flexed. The shadows shattered as though they were nothing more than brittle threads.
Then he struck.
The cleaver met my blade again, but this time, the force was monstrous. It sent me flying backward, my body tearing through trees, shattering stone as I tumbled through the earth. I rolled to a stop, pushing myself up just in time to see him walking toward me, dragging his weapon lazily through the dirt.
I called upon my dominion over riches, summoning the very essence of the earth beneath us. Gold, silver, and obsidian surged upward, twisting into jagged spires with razor-sharp points, all converging toward his massive chest. The battlefield trembled under my command, the earth splitting apart as raw minerals burst from below, forming a shimmering, deadly tide.
They moved faster than a mortal eye could perceive—faster than even he should have been able to react to.
And yet, the bastard leaped.
Not just a desperate dodge, but a movement so precise, so impossibly fast for a creature his size, that it defied all logic. His colossal form twisted midair, his sheer bulk a blur as he spun away from the lethal barrage. The spires of gold and stone impaled nothing but empty space, piercing skyward before crumbling under their own weight.
I had only a fraction of a second to process the failure before I felt it—
The air shifting. The pressure behind me changed.
Instinct screamed at me to move, but before I could fully react, I felt the presence looming behind me, closer than it had any right to be.
Phaegon landed with a force that cracked the ground beneath us, his massive cleaver already raised high above his head. I barely had time to twist, bringing my sword up in a desperate block—
CRASH!
The impact sent me skidding backward, my feet digging trenches into the shattered earth. A tremor rolled through my arms as the sheer force of the blow rattled my bones. My knees buckled.
But Phaegon didn't relent.
He came at me like a beast scenting weakness, his strikes fast, unyielding, merciless. His cleaver was a force of destruction, each swing carrying enough power to cleave through mountains.
I blocked. I parried. I dodged.
But I was losing ground.
Every clash of our weapons sent shockwaves through the battlefield, splitting stone, sending debris flying. The very air around us howled under the force of our exchange. Each of his swings forced me back, his attacks relentless, like an executioner dragging out the inevitable.
And worse—
He was playing with me.
I saw it in the way he moved. He could have ended this already. Instead, he was testing me, measuring my limits, watching me struggle with the kind of sick amusement only true monsters possessed.
He knew it.
I knew it.
Then his next blow struck true.
The cleaver smashed into my side, and I was launched off my feet. The world spun. My back hit the ground with such force that the very earth crumbled beneath me.
Pain flared through every nerve in my body.
I gasped, trying to rise—
But Phaegon was already there.
I barely had time to register the shadow looming over me before his cleaver came down, aiming to carve me in two. I tried to roll away, but I was too slow, too battered—
And then—
AGONY.
The sheer force of the impact wasn't just physical—it tore through my very essence. I felt something inside me break, something vital, something that shouldn't be touched.
A deafening boom split the air as the ground beneath me shattered, caving inward from the sheer force of the blow. I felt the earth give way beneath me, felt the battlefield rupture, felt myself sink into the crater forming around me.
The world blurred. The sounds of destruction—crumbling rock, the howling wind, the distant cries of the battlefield—became distant, like echoes from another reality.
I lay there, barely breathing, my limbs unresponsive. My divine power flickered weakly around me, struggling to keep me together.
I could do nothing.
Nothing.
Me. The King of the Underworld. The god who ruled over death itself.
I was losing.
And for the first time in a long, long time—
I felt helpless.
Phaegon's laughter rumbled through the battlefield, a deep, mocking sound that reverberated through my skull.
"Is this all the King of the Gods can muster?" he sneered, standing over me like a victorious titan. His cleaver rested on his shoulder, its edge gleaming with my own divine blood. "How disappointing. I expected more from you, Hades. I expected a fight."
I gritted my teeth, rage boiling beneath my skin, but my body refused to obey. Every inch of me screamed in agony, my divine power faltering under the sheer force of the wounds I had sustained.
For the first time in centuries, I felt something close to fear.
Then, without warning—
A meteor crashed into Phaegon.
No—
Not a meteor.
A person.
The force of the impact sent the giant flying, his massive body careening through the battlefield. He smashed through stone and earth, tearing through the landscape as though he weighed nothing. Dust and debris erupted into the air, shrouding everything in chaos.
For a moment, silence.
Then—
"WHOA! Did you see that?! That was so cool!"
A voice. Loud. Excited. Absolutely thrilled.
I blinked through the dust and pain, my vision still swimming. Hovering above me—well, attempting to hover—was Machaelus. His golden wings flapped unevenly, struggling to keep him afloat. His eyes burned with an almost childlike glee, and his face was split into a grin so wide it nearly looked painful.
I could only stare.
"What in the name of the Styx are you doing here?!" I barked, my voice rough, pushing myself onto my elbows.
"Helping!" he answered brightly, descending with all the grace of a drunken bird. He landed with a clumsy thud, his wings twitching. "Man, you were getting your ass kicked! Had to step in."
I clenched my fists, barely suppressing the urge to strangle him. "That's not what I meant! Why and how are you in the Nephilim body?! It shouldn't even be active yet!"
Machaelus blinked, as if only just now realizing the problem. He looked down at himself, flexing his hands. "Huh. Oh, yeah. That's weird, isn't it?"
He then grinned. "Welp, guess I'm just awesome."
I groaned. "I am going to kill you."
Another thunderous boom in the distance cut our argument short. Phaegon was rising from the wreckage, his eyes burning brighter than ever. His once-confident smirk was gone, replaced by pure, seething rage.
I pushed myself to my feet, my strength returning in small increments. Machaelus cracked his knuckles, grinning like an idiot.
"Round two?" he asked.
I exhaled sharply, gripping my sword.
"Let's end this."
The battle resumed in an instant. Phaegon swung his cleaver, the sheer force of his strike splitting the ground in two. I barely managed to dodge, shadows coiling around my body as I surged forward. Machaelus, still adjusting to his newfound strength, took to the skies, golden light forming around his hands.
"Gotta say," Machaelus called out, dodging a boulder-sized fist, "this body's kinda fun, This is so much better than my previous body!"
I didn't bother responding, focusing on my own assault. My sword clashed against Phaegon's cleaver, divine energy igniting upon impact. The ground cracked beneath us, shockwaves rolling outward. Machaelus, taking advantage of the opening, hurled a spear of pure light at the giant's exposed side. The projectile exploded on impact, sending Phaegon stumbling.
The giant snarled, black scales forming over his wounds instantly. "Persistent little insects," he spat, then lunged for Machaelus, his massive hand swiping through the air.
"Whoa!" Machaelus yelped, barely dodging the strike. "Okay, that was close."
I seized the opportunity, shadows forming into chains that wrapped around Phaegon's arm. With a flick of my wrist, they constricted, sinking into his flesh. The giant roared, but before he could react, Machaelus followed up with another spear of light, this time aimed for the giant's face.
Phaegon staggered, blinded for a brief moment. That moment was all I needed.
I exhaled, my form shifting. My body stretched, bones cracking and reshaping, my wings growing in size. In an instant, I had taken my divine beast form—a massive raven-dragon hybrid with six wings, my body wreathed in darkness and primordial flames.
Phaegon blinked. "What in Tartarus—?"
I struck before he could finish his sentence. Claws raked across his torso, tearing through armor and flesh alike. Machaelus, adapting quickly, charged forward, his fists glowing with golden light.
The fight was brutal, each of us pushing beyond our limits. Machaelus struggled to fully control his newfound power, but his enthusiasm and raw strength made up for it. Blow by blow, we drove Phaegon back.
Then, finally, the moment arrived.
Phaegon, battered and exhausted, dropped to one knee, his breath ragged. "Impossible," he rasped, blood trickling from his lips. "I am a giant… a warrior of the Abyss… I cannot fall…"
I loomed over him in my divine beast form, eyes burning with power. "You already have."
Machaelus wiped a streak of blood from his lip, his breathing ragged but his eyes still burning with that same reckless excitement. He raised a hand, golden energy crackling around his fingers as he formed one last spear of light. The weapon hummed with raw power, its form shifting and refining itself into a perfect, radiant weapon. The sheer pressure of it made the air vibrate.
"Hey, Lord Hades," he called out, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Wanna do the honors together?"
I exhaled, steadying myself, feeling the weight of exhaustion settle into my bones. This battle had pushed me past my limits, forced me to tap into every ounce of my power, and even then, I had barely held my ground. But now, with the Nephilim at my side, victory was within reach.
I gave a slight nod, my divine energy flaring to life once more. "Let's end this."
Phaegon, still reeling from the onslaught we had delivered, staggered to his feet, his body barely holding itself together. His once-impenetrable scales were cracked and charred, his massive frame trembling under the weight of his wounds. Yet, even in his final moments, the giant gritted his teeth, his molten eyes burning with rage and defiance.
"You think… this is the end?" he growled, his voice laced with both agony and conviction. "You think killing me stops what's coming?" Blood dripped from his lips as he let out a wheezing chuckle. "You gods… so blind… so arrogant."
I tightened my grip on my sword, shadows curling around the blade like living tendrils. "Then let me show you what a god's arrogance truly looks like."
With a single motion, I unleashed a torrent of primordial flames, the deep blue and violet fire roaring to life as it surged forward. The moment the flames touched Phaegon's wounded form, they ignited with unnatural ferocity, spreading over his body like wildfire. He let out a final, thunderous roar, his massive hands clawing at the sky as if grasping for something—anything—to hold onto.
At the same time, Machaelus shot forward, his wings propelling him at blinding speed. He lifted his radiant spear high above his head, the sheer brilliance of its light illuminating the battlefield. Then, with all his strength, he drove the weapon straight into Phaegon's heart.
The impact sent out a shockwave, the energy from the attack surging through the giant's body like an unstoppable force. Phaegon's roar turned into a strangled gasp as the light consumed him from the inside out. His body convulsed, golden cracks spreading across his darkened scales as if he were a vessel no longer able to contain the immense energy. Then, all at once, his massive form collapsed inward, his very essence breaking apart into embers and ash.
And just like that, it was over.
Silence followed. The battlefield, which had been filled with the deafening sounds of war, was now eerily still. The lingering heat from my flames cast an eerie glow over the ruined landscape, but all that remained of Phaegon was a pile of smoldering remains.
Machaelus landed beside me, exhaling sharply as he dusted himself off. He glanced at the spot where the giant had once stood, then back at me, a wild grin spreading across his face. "Damn. That was awesome."
I let out a slow breath before rolling my shoulders, feeling the soreness settle in now that the battle's adrenaline was fading. "Reckless. Stupid. But… effective."
Machaelus laughed, stretching his arms. "So you're saying I did good?"
I ran a hand through my hair, shaking my head. "I'm saying you're lucky you didn't die." My eyes flickered toward the horizon, scanning for any sign of another threat. "Let's just get out of here before something else shows up."
Machaelus groaned. "Aw, come on, can't we at least bask in the glory for a minute? We just took down a giant!"
I shot him a look. "Which means we just made a lot of enemies very angry."
As if on cue, a distant rumble echoed through the sky, the kind that made my gut twist with unease. The battle may have ended, but the war was far from over.
Machaelus blinked, glancing up. "…Okay, fair point. Let's go."