The silence was deafening.
Only the rattle of what remained of a black chain broke this delicate quiet.
A black chain that had bound the left arm of a god.
Well. No more.
The world swayed beneath my feet. I felt like I was standing on a rocking ship, my sense of balance way off, the floor tilting with every breath.
Losing an ear is quite difficult.
Unfortunately, I had bigger problems.
One of them was a very pissed off Elariax.
"What have you done?" Her words were inlaid with a voice of barely contained rage, her star-like eyes flickering dangerously.
Not just with anger, but with something far deeper and sinister.
Fear.
Her black cloth strips riled up and writhed like live serpents.
But before she even made a move, an immense wave of ardor swept over us, freezing my blood and reverberating deep in my bones.
Then, she spoke.
"Elariax,"
The words echoed, rippling through reality itself. The air distorted, and the ardor shook.
Looking back, I saw Phoebe standing up.
The surrounding air shimmered, heavy and still, her slender figure towering over me as the remains of the chain on her left wrist crumbled into black dust.
Goodness. She must be the same height as Naberiax.
Her crystalline eyes were still hollow, yet they glowed with power.
She stretched out her delicate arm, silver blood flowing down from the deep wounds around her wrist, holes created by her accursed shackles.
Phoebe's expression was calm and devoid of any emotion.
Pointing a slender finger at Elariax, her voice soft and mechanical, yet sonorous, she spoke.
"Kneel."
It was a command from the divine.
Faster than the blink of an eye, the daemon was on her knees, crushed by an immense aura that shook the air and caused the silver floor to cave in, cracking the solidified blood.
I let out a low whistle. "One arm free, and you brought an X ranker to her knees."
"Not for long," Phoebe murmured, the ethereal glow in her eyes flickering. "This is a temporary measure."
Her gaze met mine. "I need time to free myself."
Her mouth and eyes twitched. I saw a strain ripple across her calm face as the Agony Thorns flared to life, with an eerie purple light that spread across her glowing skin.
"Lilith knows," she whispered, her voice cracking from what I imagine would be the immense pain ravaging all over her body at the moment.
Her hands trembled a bit as she pointed it at something on the floor. My severed ear, lying nearby in a pool of blood.
It rose in the air, and a gentle gravity pulled me closer to the Incarnus.
Phoebe reached out and gently placed the ear against the side of my head.
Her touch was as cold as ice, even colder than Lilith's.
Then, slowly, that frigid chill was replaced by a gentle warmth that spread all over the side of my face.
I felt my skin reattaching to my ear, along with the rush of blood as broken blood vessels re-knitted and healed.
I was taken aback. "This is…"
"The power of Restoration," Phoebe said softly, her empty gaze flickering. The warm feeling spread throughout my body, relieving all pain, energizing me, and clearing my head.
"I have temporarily removed Elariax's power that was binding your abilities," she explained calmly. "For a short while, you will be able to fight her while I free myself."
"How long?" I asked, feeling empowered.
Her lips curved to resemble a hollow, brittle smile. "That, I do not know."
"Buy me some time, Master."
I frowned. "Well, this seems rather wrong."
Before I could add anything, Phoebe's divine aura wavered. Elariax's body shuddered as the pressure pinning her vanished.
Immediately, I entered my Triquetra state.
"Whoa!" I ducked low as multiple black ribbons of death sliced the air above me, slicing apart the white stone of the chamber along with the silver floor like paper.
Even with Transcendence, Elariax was very quick.
Quicker than before.
I activated Haema, and my blood surged, forming multiple scarlet appendages with long serrated tips of crystallized blood.
The tips split in the middle, forming jagged crystal claws.
Like lizard tongues, they acted instantaneously, snatching several black ribbons out of the air.
They yanked at the ribbons, pulling me like a sling towards the daemon.
Blood swirled over my palm, forming a Blood Grenade, and I immediately detonated it in her face.
The force of the explosion blew me back, but I immediately surrounded myself in a cocoon of blood.
I would have to go all out against this threat.
{Haema: Advent of the Scarlet Prince}
The air shook as I burst out of the cocoon with the sound of shattering glass.
The black lines along my glass-like arms writhed like serpents as I pointed a crimson finger at Elariax.
A red glow condensed at the tip before unleashing a powerful crimson beam that tore through the air towards Alisax faster than the blink of an eye.
Her form flickered, reality warping as she moved slightly to the side, enough to avoid the deadly beam by an inch.
Narrowing my eyes, I twisted my wrist, curving the trajectory of the beam. But she flickered again, disappearing into the shadows and narrowly avoiding the beam.
Many crimson feathers detached from my wings, their delicate structures glowing with Bloodfire.
They turned in unison, locking onto the daemon, and released a storm of crimson and black beams at her, burning the air and melting the silver blood.
Elariax avoided all of them, shimmering in and out of existence in quick succession.
She weaved through them with a maddening grace.
However, this barrage of lasers did not impede her ability to attack. Each flicker brought her closer to me.
Clicking my tongue, I stopped firing and rushed forward, and so did she.
Her black cloth strips twisted and converged to form a massive fist studded with serrated spikes.
It descended on me faster than the blink of an eye.
Well, for me, it was slower.
My right wing folded over my head, deflecting the powerful punch that bit me like a meteor. Even with the parrying, the impact rattled my bones.
I noticed another blur, and by instinct, used my other wing. A spear made of black ribbons struck violently against the crimson wing.
The force pinned me in place. My wings trembled under the strain of the immense strength.
I gritted my teeth. This was my most powerful form, and yet, Elariax was pushing me back.
My complex Blood Loop spun faster, making the crystal running through my chest glow brightly.
With a grunt, I pushed back the fist and spear, the shockwave ripping through the air.
My wings unfurled and splintered into numerous crimson appendages glowing with Bloodfire. Their serrated edges matched the speed of the daemon's black ribbons.
But I wasn't done.
Numerous crimson portals formed behind me; each birthing huge obsidian spears surrounded by blood-red mist.
In this form, I can freely use my other codes without activation.
The black spears hurtled towards Alisax like streaks of dark lightning.
Elariax's cloth twisted again, transforming into monstrous spears anchored by cloth strips to her body. They met my spears in an intense flurry of shockwaves that cracked the floor.
Soon, the two of us were in the eye of a maelstrom of blood and shadow, a storm of battle between a human and a daemon.
Unfortunately, I'm still getting pushed back.
Her ribbons are more numerous than my appendages, each ribbon having enough striking power to break through the dracium panels of the Shield, and they seem to multiply continuously.
I don't know how long I can use this code. Phoebe said that she had lifted Elariax's restrictions but couldn't say how long it would last.
Blood floated around me, condensing and crystallizing into the familiar shape of a weapon that was dear to me, one that aided me every time in my past life.
The sword that pierced the chest of my father in the old world.
"I will call you Blood Clarent," I muttered, gripping the crimson sword that took the shape of my old companion.
No time to waste then.
Taking a deep breath, I streaked toward Elariax, splitting the air with a sonic boom.
Stretching Transcendence to its utmost limit, I deftly avoided her attacks and black ribbons to close in on her.
Even with my incredible speed, she noticed me.
"You wish to pierce me?" Her voice echoed in my ears as my blade met one of her ribbons in an explosion of sparks.
Just a single ribbon against the full might of my blade, and the impact sent tremors down my arm.
"You have done a truly foolish thing, human," her regal voice, trembling with a venomous pride, growled at me, parrying and deflecting my attacks effortlessly.
One of her ribbons swept past me, almost missing my neck.
"Releasing Queen Phoebe is the same as releasing a disaster on this land!" She spat, emphasizing her words with a well-placed palm strike on my torso, almost missing the blood crystal embedded through my chest, but the impact forced all the air from my lungs.
I winced and swung my blade in a downward crescent, forcing her to pull her hand away.
Only for her to grab my throat with that same hand.
Reacting immediately, I coiled my legs around her long arm and twisted, breaking out of her grip. My blade slashed upwards, making her take a casual step back.
"You betrayed her," I said, my voice low and cold. "And you still call her your queen?"
"How hypocritical can you be?"
Her gaze flared, and her ribbons struck faster
I stepped forward and continued my assault, my blade flowing continuously like a river of crimson, and the air screamed with every impact.
Elariax weaved away from my attacks as easily as breathing, all the while her ribbons of black engaged in constant clashes with my blood appendages.
The force of each confrontation traveled down my body, rattling my very bones, even with the immense ardor physical enhancement on my body.
Bloodfire crackled beneath my skin, and my lungs burned, like I just inhaled hot ash.
And so I tried one more thing. It was something that was gnawing at me the moment I encountered Elariax.
"Hey Elariax!" I called her out and flickered before her. My gaze met her bright, stellar eyes.
"You.." My lips parted into a grin. "Your acting is quite good."
She faltered, just for a moment.
And a moment was all I needed.
Blood swirled all around us, coalescing into numerous glowing Blood Grenades.
I stuck out my tongue. "Boom."
The explosions shook the chamber, filling it with a storm of crimson fireballs and smoke.
I rushed out of the thick smoke. Those explosions wouldn't even scratch Elariax.
My eyes narrowed as I located her in the thick smoke and locked my finger onto her.
A bright beam of crimson and black burst out of my fingertip, slicing apart the scarlet smoke and hitting her right in the torso.
Jackpot.
A hollow grunt echoed all around me before her figure flickered, vanishing into thin air and reappearing a small distance away.
Clicking my tongue, I moved my finger towards her, but she had already recovered.
And just in time for Phoebe's blessing to wear off.
My crimson beam dimmed, flickering before dying out like a flashlight.
The crystal layer over my limbs shattered like glass. My wings disintegrated, the crimson feathers shedding away all at once. My complex Blood Loop and helical crown dissipated like the vines that weaved all over my body.
And last but not least, the main crystal liquified, leaving a gaping hole in my chest, overflowing with blood.
I collapsed to the floor, heaving in a pool of my blood.
Activating Haema, I forced it to knit the wound together, though my vision blurred with pain.
Elariax's shadow loomed over me. Her bright gaze, brilliant and cold, pierced into me.
"Is that all?" She asked, a slight tremble in her distorted voice.
I managed a smile. "Unfortunately, yeah."
"But it should be enough time," My lips widened further as a wave of ardor passed over me. "Right, Phoebe?"
The air trembled, and an ancient and powerful aura descended on us, freezing Elariax in her place.
The sound of broken chains hitting the pillars and the falling of the Agony Thorns echoed all around us.
"No…" the daemon's voice trembled, filled with a primal fear and awe.
But deep beneath, I felt something else, something buried deep beneath
Relief.
Pain racked all over my body as my strand worked to heal it. With a shuddering breath, I looked back.
I couldn't help but smile.
She stood there, between the pillars.
Her skin glowed bright from the light within, like she was the source of it all.
Her tall, slender frame, clad in a tattered white battledress with pure silver armor seamlessly woven into the fabric, stood still, like a third pillar, but made of pure light.
Her face was pure beauty. Her crystalline irises shifted between light blue and silver, glowing from her light within.
Yet her visage was void of any emotion, just a blank gaze directed at Elariax, and I could feel it piercing into the daemon.
The Incarnus of Lux, Phoebe of the Restoration, has been freed.
And I wasn't sure if it was a good idea.