Chapter LXVIII: The Crusaders
A glow pulses from the heart of the chapel. The air trembles. It's not just any light—it's divine, radiant, and alive.
From the ground level of the building, some altar servers who are sweeping the hallway near the entrance look up in awe. One of them squints through the high glass window.
"What is that?" a boy whispers, nudging his friend. The golden glow gleams through the old stained glass, forming colored beams that scatter across the floor below. "It's coming from the old chapel... but no one's supposed to be there, right?"
Back inside the chapel, Liz now stands upright, the flaming century sword beside her, the glowing aura around her pulsing like a heartbeat of heaven. Her breath is calm, her hands steady, her eyes fixed not in fear—but in purpose.
Ivan roars in fury, summoning dark magic with a shriek of hatred and jealousy. The shadows crawl beneath his feet as he charges at Liz with all his power, darkness spiraling around his sword.
But Liz is ready.
She raises her right hand, her eyes shut for a moment, whispering a quiet prayer: "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done…" The moment she opens her eyes, a sphere of holy light forms in her palm, bright and white-hot like a second sun.
Then—
She hurls it forward.
The ball of light smashes into Ivan mid-charge and surrounds him. The force halts him in place, the light crackling like lightning, swirling, shimmering, and slowing everything within it. Ivan's body becomes sluggish, trapped inside the sphere of slowed time.
"W-WHAT IS THIS?!" Ivan screams, his voice distorted inside the radiant prison.
At that very moment, all the officers who had been charging toward Adrian and Wyn stop mid-motion. Frozen. Paralyzed in the air like statues caught mid-run. The atmosphere shifts, now glowing with silence.
Wyn gasps, wide-eyed. "She did it… She stopped them!"
Adrian lowers his weapon, amazed. "She stopped time…"
Liz speaks, firm and clear, her voice echoing through the sanctuary like a commandment from above.
"Now! Adrian, when the signal comes, you must break the chapel key! There's something inside it we need! And Wyn—prepare to pour the palm oil on the statue!"
They both nod without hesitation.
"But until then," Liz continues, "we hold the line."
She steps forward, planting her sword into the ground with a loud clang. "Bennett entrusted this moment to us. And no fear will steal that away!"
Suddenly, the orb of light around Ivan begins to ripple. Inside, his hands tremble as he gathers every ounce of malice in his soul. His eyes darken into voids.
From within the sphere, he forms a dark energy. Black lightning coils in his palms like serpents.
"No… NOOO!!!" he screams as the orb begins to crack.
With a violent shatter, the ball of light explodes.
Ivan bursts forth with a scream, dark energy surging from his body, and as he does—so do the officers. Freed from the time trap, they spring back to life, growling with corrupted rage.
Adrian spins his incense weapon once more. "Looks like we're up!"
Wyn leaps to position, clutching the flask of sacred palm oil. "Let's give it everything we've got!"
The chapel erupts into battle once again.
Adrian charges toward two possessed officers, swiping his flaming incense staff across their torsos. The holy scent burns into their darkened skin, forcing them back.
Wyn dances between another group, her hollow rod spraying droplets of holy water with precision. Each splash causes sizzles of purification as corrupted flesh steams.
Meanwhile, Liz locks eyes with Ivan—again.
"You think you're powerful now, girl?" he growls, his dark sword vibrating with sinister energy. "That light will fade! You'll break!"
Liz doesn't flinch. "You've already broken, Ivan. You let envy consume your soul."
He snarls and rushes her.
Their swords clash—light against darkness, holy against cursed. The floor quakes under their power. Sparks and embers fly across the broken tiles of the chapel.
Liz parries, spins, and deflects. Ivan grits his teeth, swinging wildly. But Liz is quicker—graceful like a dancer, fierce like a soldier of faith.
"You fight with hate," she shouts, striking his sword with a holy clang. "But I fight with love!"
Ivan swings upward, barely missing her face. "Love? Hah! Where was love when I was left behind?! When HE got everything while I was nothing?!"
"Love was always there," Liz counters, ducking low. "But you refused it."
They circle each other. The shadows shriek around them, and the floor begins to crack under the pressure of their powers. Statues tremble. Debris falls.
Liz looks briefly to Adrian and Wyn—still fighting but holding on. Time is short.
"Ivan!" she yells, "You still have a choice!"
"I made my choice," he hisses.
He leaps toward her.
Liz slams her foot forward, charges, and the two swords collide again—this time causing a shockwave that knocks back every loose item in the chapel. Candles are thrown. Dust floods the air.
In the midst of it, Liz's voice rises.
"This is for Bennett… for everything he stood for!"
Ivan screams back, "Then DIE WITH HIM!"
Their swords clash once again in the center, light and dark bursting out like a star going nova.
Adrian, catching his breath, pulls the key from his bag, ready.
Wyn kneels beside the statue of St. Lorenzo Ruiz—Bennett's image—her fingers trembling near the flask.
They await the signal.
And Liz?
She stares straight into evil with holy fire in her eyes.
The next moment… could decide everything.
Smoke curls in the air, thick and fragrant with incense. Adrian leaps into the air, his cloak trailing behind him like a banner of light. He lands right in front of the charging officers, gripping his sacred staff.
He twirls it, and holy incense bursts from the swinging burner—smoke ignites like fire on contact with the corrupted flesh. The officers scream and stumble backward.
"In Jesus' name," Adrian roars, "BEGONE!"
The air trembles as his words echo like thunder.
The officers convulse, their red eyes rolling upward, their mouths gaping as if an unseen force is being pulled from their bodies. The dark smoke begins to seep from their pores.
That's when Wyn steps forward with conviction.
She uncorks the flask of palm oil and, with firm resolve, flings the blessed liquid onto the writhing bodies.
The palm oil sizzles upon touching them.
One by one, the cursed officers drop to their knees. Their eyes flicker, red turning back to brown. Their breaths return to normal. The blackness of their skin fades, the veins of darkness crawling back into nothingness.
"They're… they're back," Wyn whispers, astonished. "We did it…"
The officers, now fully conscious, blink in confusion. "What… what happened?" one murmurs.
But there's no time to explain.
Ivan sees everything.
His face twists in fury, veins glowing black, teeth clenched in utter rage.
"You DARE… take MY warriors from me?!" he snarls from across the chapel.
Liz tightens her grip on her flaming sword. "They were never yours to begin with."
Ivan slams his foot down, and a shockwave of shadow explodes outward. His power surges—his body now veined with red and black lightning. His eyes burn like twin infernos of hatred.
"You pathetic insects! You cling to hope, to prayers, to FAITH! But what has it brought you? NOTHING!" he roars.
Adrian and Wyn don't flinch.
"We're with Liz," Adrian declares.
"We stand with the light," Wyn adds.
The officers, still recovering, retreat and run down the chapel stairs, seeking refuge as the final battle begins to stir.
Liz stands tall between Ivan and her friends.
Adrian and Wyn flank her—one on each side.
Together, they face the beast.
"You ready?" Adrian says, glancing sideways.
Liz nods. "Let's end this."
With a burst of light, Liz charges at Ivan, her flaming sword trailing arcs of fire behind her.
Ivan smirks. "Still think you can save this place?" He meets her halfway, and their swords clash once again with explosive force.
The chapel trembles.
Stone cracks beneath their feet. Dust rains from the ceiling.
Ivan grins maniacally as they lock blades. "Your faith is a weakness, Liz! You'll see—it's only pain that's real!"
Liz pushes back, gritting her teeth. "Then maybe you've never truly felt love."
He screams in response and leaps backward.
And then—it happens.
Ivan raises both hands. Dark portals tear through the very air of the chapel, one after another. The shadows twist and curl from within, and then—
They emerge.
Demons.
Real ones. Red-skinned, horned, skeletal, with long claws and hollow eyes. They shriek and crawl, latching onto the pews, climbing the walls, howling with hunger.
Adrian and Wyn step forward without hesitation.
"I got the left!" Adrian yells, spinning his staff again.
Wyn raises her palm oil flask. "Take the right!"
The devils launch at them like wild animals. Adrian spins, swinging the burner—fire and incense coat one of the demons, and it vanishes into smoke. Wyn splashes palm oil on two others; they shriek and evaporate in a puff of darkness.
But Ivan just laughs.
More portals open. More demons crawl out.
He keeps summoning them, endless and relentless.
Adrian pants, shoulders tensing. "He won't stop!"
Wyn kicks a crawling demon and splashes holy water in its face. "How long do we fight?!"
She turns to Liz. "Liz! Is it the go signal now?!"
Liz parries a heavy blow from Ivan and leaps back, panting. "Not yet!"
She grits her teeth, sweat on her brow, sword burning in her hand.
"I have to weaken him more—he's still too strong! We need to drain him before I break the key!"
Ivan snarls, "Oh, so you're hiding secrets now too?"
He lifts his sword, summoning shadows to swirl like a typhoon behind him.
"You're nothing but a little girl clinging to the words of a DEAD man!"
Liz roars and charges again. Their swords collide mid-air. Sparks fly.
"You don't know what Bennett gave me!" she shouts.
Their blades grind against each other. Neither backing down. Neither surrendering.
"I KNOW WHAT HE TOOK FROM ME!" Ivan howls, pushing her back with brute force.
Liz slides across the floor, but she holds steady, adjusting her grip.
Around them, Adrian and Wyn continue battling, stepping over broken wood and shattered glass. Each demon they slay leaves behind burning black ash.
Liz and Ivan circle once more.
"I won't let you win," Liz says, chest heaving. "Not here. Not in this sacred place."
Ivan smirks. "Then die tired."
He lunges again, and the battle continues.
The flames, the smoke, the cries of the damned—it all builds into a symphony of war.
But Liz knows…
It's almost time.
And when it is…
She'll be ready.