The moment the Black Sand Knight had fully formed, the air around the corridor changed. It wasn't just "a monster" anymore as it stood like a warrior—still, patient, ready—the red jewel in its chest pulsing like a heart as fine black sand streamed from its joints and cape, then spiraled back into place as if the armor were breathing.
Natsu rolled his shoulders, flames licking up his forearms in deep, heavy coils as the Dragon Slaying King Fire returned. His eyes stayed locked on the Knight and that glowing jewel.
Happy hovered a little behind him, wings beating carefully, his fur still singed from the previous fight. "Natsu… that thing's different."
Natsu spit a bit of soot to the side and grinned anyway. "Good." His grin sharpened into something feral. "I like it when my enemies are stronger."
Inside his head, Igneel's voice rumbled, low and stern. (Do not underestimate it. That "jewel" won't and will probably change its approach.)
Natsu's grin didn't fade, but his stance lowered, weight shifting, and his muscles tightened. "Yeah," he muttered. "I noticed."
The Black Sand Knight moved first as it blurred forward, a sand vortex wrapping its fist like a miniature storm. Natsu met it head-on, his own fist roaring with Dragon King fire.
The moment they met their punches collided like thunder as the shockwave rippled outward, cracking the corridor walls and blasting loose stone into the air. Heat hissed against the swirling sand as the two forces fought for dominance with Natsu's fire trying to devour and the sand trying to grind and suffocate.
For a heartbeat they were even.
Natsu's eyes narrowed. 'So it can handle this, now. Fine.'
Then the knight's other hand snapped to its weapon. The double-bladed greatsword swung out in a brutal arc, black steel humming as sand streamed along the edge.
"WHOA—!" Happy yelped.
Natsu leaned back, the blade passing so close it shaved heat from his cheek. He pivoted and drove a flaming punch toward the jewel—
But the knight disintegrated as Natsu's fist hit nothing but drifting sand. His eyes twitched in annoyance. "—Tch!"
The sand reassembled behind him, much faster than before. A killing intent slammed into Natsu's spine.
"Behind—!" Happy shouted.
The greatsword came down, aimed to split him cleanly in two. Natsu twisted but he was too late to dodge fully. So instead he kicked up. A rising, flaming heel snapped up like a comet and met the blade head-on. Fire Dragon King flames erupted along his leg, scorching the sword's edge as the impact stopped it cold. Sparks and black sand sprayed in every direction.
Natsu's muscles screamed, but he gritted his teeth and forced the blade upward, shoving it aside. "Not happening!" he snarled. He repositioned himself and immediately launched into a barrage of punch after punch after punch, each strike leaving red trails in the air.
And the knight letting go of the sword answered as it didn't retreat and instead matched him. Its fists became black sand hammers, each blow grinding against Natsu's flames with brutal precision. Metal and fire and sand slammed together in rapid succession, the sound like a forge being smashed by a hurricane.
Happy's eyes darted around wildly as the floor beneath them began to spiderweb. "Natsu—! The floor—!"
The stone gave up and it collapsed under the combined violence as the ground dropped out from beneath them.
For a split second, Natsu felt weightless. Then he started falling.
"HAPPY!" he barked.
"Aye!" Happy swooped in, grabbing Natsu by the back of his vest and yanking him upward mid-fall. Wind tore across Natsu's back as Happy pulled hard, flapping with everything he had.
Below them, the Black Sand Knight landed on the broken floor with a heavy thud—then immediately dissolved again, sand scattering outward like it was trying to vanish into the rubble.
Natsu's eyes flashed. "You're not getting away—!" He inhaled sharply as heat compressed in his chest. "Fire Dragon King's ROAR!" A red inferno blasted downward, wide and crushing, filling the open space like a furnace explosion. The flames washed over the scattering sand—
The knight's sand mass paused and the Black Sand Knight snapped its greatsword up and blocked it by cutting the flames. The blade carved a line through the fire, the sand streaming along it like a shield, parting the Dragon King flames just enough for the knight to endure the blast without being erased.
Natsu's eyes widened. 'It blocked my roar… with its sword.'
Happy swallowed afraid. "Is it learning?"
The knight surged forward out of the fire, its fist twisting into a spiraling sand vortex—like a drill made of black grit and pressure. It punched and Natsu answered with his own vortex of flame and force, muscles tightening as he drove his fist forward.
BOOOOM!
The collision detonated and a shockwave blasted outward so violently that the remaining walls on that floor burst, stone, metal and dust exploding into open air.
Natsu skidded back, his shoes carving lines into shattered rock.
The knight slid too, then planted its feet and then it changed again. Its armor was seen rippling as black sand surged outward forming jagged spikes along its shoulders, arms, and back like a hedgehog, aimed directly at Natsu's chest.
Natsu's eyes widened.
"Happy—MOVE!" Happy yanked him sideways just in time, the spikes ripping through the air where Natsu had been, shredding stone and leaving deep puncture marks.
Natsu landed hard, rolling once, coming up on one knee. 'This thing's not just strong… it's adapting. Every second it's alive, it becomes a better killer.'
Happy panted, wings trembling. "Natsu… it's getting harder…"
Natsu wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and grinned anyway—fierce, stubborn, unafraid. "Good." He pointed at the jewel in its chest. "It'll probably see this coming too." But that didn't stop Natsu from trying.
Happy blinked. "Huh?"
Natsu's flames flared. "Circle it!" he ordered.
Happy didn't question as he grabbed Natsu and spun into motion, flying in tight loops around the knight, forcing its head to track constantly. The Black Sand Knight shifted its stance, greatsword moving to follow. Its crimson eyes flickered—calculating.
Happy's circles tightened. Then, suddenly, he released Natsu. "Aye—!"
Natsu became a missile. He rocketed toward the knight from an angle that should've been a blind spot, fire roaring around his body. For a split second, Natsu thought 'I've got you.'
But the knight's head snapped with eerie precision as it did see it coming as it disintegrated with sand scattering to the side and reassembled directly in Natsu's path, greatsword already rising.
Natsu's eyes narrowed mid-flight and he twisted midair, barely avoiding the blade, landed hard, and launched another punch.
The knight met it with its steel. They clashed again, brutal and unrelenting—each impact sending cracks racing through the remaining floor and walls.
Happy hovered nearby, breathing hard, eyes wide as he watched the tower around them crumble. "Natsu… we're destroying the whole place!"
Natsu didn't look away from his opponent. "Then it shouldn't have started a fight with me in it!"
The Black Sand Knight attacked again, blade sweeping, sand spikes flaring, fists drilling forward with force.
But Natsu continued to answer with the Dragon King Fired kicks and punches and roars, refusing to give the knight even a second.
And with every exchange, more of the Tower of Heaven broke apart beneath them, stone screaming, walls collapsing, and the battle between fire and sand becoming so violent it felt like the tower itself was cracking under their feet.
—-------------------------------------
Lucy's lungs burned, the corridor around her looked like a war zone as stone walls were gouged, pillars were cracked, and the air full of dust. Every few seconds the tower shuddered, as if something enormous outside was squeezing it like a toy.
And right in the middle of that chaos, Vidaldus attacked, his pale face was split into a grin with his dark makeup smeared around his eyes and lips. His electric guitar hung across his chest and his long black hair whipped through the air. "Now… let's hear you scream!" Vidaldus cackled as his hair cracked forward.
Lucy threw herself sideways, keys clattering at her waist. The hair slammed into the wall where she'd been, pulverizing stone into rubble. Lucy rolled, came up on one knee, and felt her heart punching her ribs. 'That thing hits like a wrecking ball!'
Lucy glanced over at Juvia wondering how she was doing but was left in disbelief as Juvia just stood in the open, the long hair passing through her body like she wasn't even there. Water rippled across her form where the strike went through with her expression calm not feeling any danger.
"Juvia is water," She said with a proud little huff. "Your whip cannot hurt Juvia."
Lucy's relief was immediate as she believed that Juvia cold beat this weirdo by himself but then Vidaldus laughed harder. "Oh? So you can use your magic to convert your body into liquid. Lovely." He flicked his head and the hair snapped again, not toward Juvia this time, but toward Lucy.
Lucy barely managed to throw herself backward again. "Stop targeting me!" She snapped, voice shaking.
Vidaldus leaned in, eyes gleaming. "It's because you are the cutest when you panic."
Lucy's face went pale. "That's—gross!"
Juvia's eyes narrowed. "You will not speak to Lucy like that." She thrust both palms forward. "Water Slicer!"
A pressurized wave shot toward Vidaldus. But his hair moved before his body did as it swept across the wave and the water vanished, absorbed into the hair.
Juvia's eyes widened. "Eh…?"
Lucy's stomach dropped. 'It… absorbed it?'
Vidaldus smirked, stroking his hair like a beloved trophy. "My precious hair is very thirsty."
Juvia's confidence faltered. 'If water cannot harm him then what can Juvia do?'
Lucy forced herself to think through the panic. 'If his hair absorbs water then all we have to do is cut the hair. Her hand snapped to her key ring.
She raised it like a dagger. "Open, Gate of the Crab!" Lucy shouted. "Cancer!"
Light erupted and a magic circle shined, a man in a crab-themed outfit appeared with scissors already in hand, striking a dramatic pose. "Ready to cut~!" Cancer announced, voice full of flair.
Lucy pointed dramatically. "The HAIR. Cut the HAIR!"
"Aye aye!" Cancer blurred. He moved so fast Lucy's eyes struggled to follow. A storm of snipping sounds erupted—
SNIP-SNIP-SNIP-SNIP!
Black strands fell like severed ribbons causing Vidaldus' grin to freeze. His eyes widened in pure horror. "My… hair…" He stared at the chopped ends like someone had stabbed his soul. Then his face twisted into rage. "You—YOU—!"
He recoiled as Cancer zipped in again.
SNIP!
Vidaldus screeched like an animal. "STOP! STOP CUTTING MY HAIR!"
Lucy couldn't help it, she felt a savage little thrill. 'Yes. That's right. Cry about it.'
Vidaldus jerked his guitar up like a shield. His fingers smashed down on the strings.
SKRREEEEEE—!!
A sonic shriek exploded down the corridor like a physical удар. The sound hit Lucy in the bones. Her vision blurred, her stomach turned, and her ears rang so violently she thought they'd burst.
Cancer was thrown back like he'd been hit by a truck, slamming into the wall and left an imprint in the stone before collapsing in a dazed heap.
Lucy gasped. "Cancer!"
Vidaldus' chest heaved, eyes wild as he looked down at the severed ends of his hair. His voice trembled with outrage. "…I was going easy on you." He raised his head. His smile returned but now it was uglier and crueler. "I am going to make you suffer," He hissed, pointing his guitar toward Lucy. "Especially you."
Lucy swallowed hard.
The air around Vidaldus rippled. He strummed slowly and deliberately, before going harder each note thick with malicious magic. "Rock of Succubus."
It is then revealed that the music's target was Juvia, who froze. Her body shivered and her eyes widened in confusion as an unnatural heat rushed through her. Her outfit shimmered and magically changed to a torn top and leathered pants. Her posture shifted too, shoulders looser, her gaze dreamy and cheeks flushed.
Lucy's mouth fell open. "Juvia…?"
Juvia blinked… then smiled lazily. "Oh yeah!!" she screamed in a breathy tone that did not belong to her. "Vidaldus-sama is so cool…"
Lucy's heart stopped as she realized what just happened. 'No. No no no no—'
Vidaldus grinned, satisfied. "Attack her."
Juvia snapped her head toward Lucy and lunged. "Lucy~!" She sang, voice full of infuriating cheer. "Let's have fun together!"
Lucy yelped and sprinted backward as Juvia's water magic erupted with raw aggression as a water spear shot past Lucy's shoulder, exploding against the wall.
"JUVIA!" Lucy screamed. "Stop! That's me!"
Vidaldus joined in, laughing as he struck his guitar again. A second sonic blast ripped down the hall.
Lucy dove, barely avoiding it. The sound tore chunks out of stone and sent dust blasting into her face.
She came up coughing, eyes stinging. 'I can't fight both of them… I can't—' She then turned to the water mage. "Juvia!" Lucy shouted desperately. "Listen to me! You're being controlled!"
Juvia tilted her head, smiling dreamily. "Controlled? Lucy, you're so jealous~"
"I'M NOT JEALOUS!" Lucy shrieked, horrified that she even had to say that right now.
Cancer groaned, pushing himself up slowly, wobbling like a drunk man. "Lucy… I'm here to cut…." he mumbled.
"Yes!" Lucy snapped. "Help me! Please cut the guitar! That should get rid of the mind control."
Cancer saluted weakly. "Aye…"
Things were spiraling but then the tower's corridor wall to Lucy's left detonated inward as if a cannonball had punched through it. Stone and debris erupted everywhere. The shockwave threw Lucy off her feet and she hit the floor hard, ears ringing.
Juvia stumbled back, her hair whipping wildly.
Vidaldus staggered, guitar screeching unintentionally as his fingers slipped. Something, someone, came flying through the breach and slammed into the opposite wall.
BOOM!
Rubble then cascaded down, partially burying the figure.
Everyone froze with Lucy's heart hammered as she forced herself onto her knees. 'Who—?' She dreaded it was another enemy.
As the dust began to settle and a foot stepped out opening where the wall should be. A figure emerged, Natsu Dragneel.
But not the Natsu, Lucy was used to. His body was wreathed in deep red flames that didn't flicker like normal fire, they rolled, heavy and dense. His eyes were serious, his face set in a hard, focused line. Happy hovered behind him, battered and wide-eyed.
Lucy's breath caught. "Natsu…?" Relief hit her so hard it almost hurt. But then she saw his eyes and a chill ran down her spine. 'Natsu… what happened to you…?'
It is then that Natsu's gaze snapped to her and his expression shifted instantly. Because he instantly saw the bruises on her arms. The cuts on her cheek. The grime and blood on her clothes. His flames quickly surged out, heating the room. "Lucy, what happened to you," He demanded, voice low and dangerous. "Who did this?"
Lucy opened her mouth but nothing came out as her throat tightened.
Vidaldus recovered first, licking his lips like a man seeing a new toy. "Oh," he purred. "That would be me."
Lucy felt the air around Natsu turn violent.
Vidaldus' grin widened. "And I was going to do so much worse—"
But he never finished as Natsu vanished and a fist smashed into Vidaldus so hard the impact shattered his guitar into pieces and the blow landed in Vidaldus' stomach with brutal finality, folding him in half. Vidaldus' eyes bulged as incredible pain came from that single punch. Bur that wasn't all as Natsu opened his palm against him and the red flames compressed in his palm and then detonated.
BOOOOOM!!
A massive explosion of Dragon King fire ripped through the corridor, blasting everything outward in a wave of heat and light. Stone vaporized, dust became ash and the air screamed.
Lucy shielded her face, eyes watering as the heat rolled past her, yet the flames didn't burn her. They curved around her like they recognized her.
When the fire finally died down, there was nothing in front of Natsu. Just a giant open hole where the wall had been and beyond it, the ocean, roiling far below.
Cancer stood frozen, trembling, scissors shaking in his claws. Juvia stood shaking too, except her terror was so intense that the mind control snapped like a thread. Her clothes shimmered back to normal. Her eyes blinked rapidly, confused and horrified. "…Juvia…?" She whispered, voice small. "What… did Juvia do…?"
Lucy stared at the empty space where Vidaldus had been, breathing hard. 'Did Natsu just… delete him?'
Natsu's flames flickered once more, then softened, then faded. He blinked, the red aura peeling away until he looked like himself again. And instantly, the dangerous edge in his expression vanished too, replaced by frantic concern. "Lucy!" he said, stepping closer. "Are you okay?"
Lucy blinked, still trying to process whiplash from "dragon inferno execution" to "worried friend." "I—" she started.
Natsu grabbed her shoulders gently, turning her slightly to check bruises like he was trying to confirm she was okay. "You're hurt."
Lucy felt her cheeks heat. "Natsu, it's fine! I'm tough, okay? This is, this is normal for us!"
Natsu frowned. "Yeah, I know you're strong." His voice softened, quieter. "But if something happened to you…" He swallowed hard, looking away for half a second. "…I'd feel terrible."
Lucy's heart did something stupid. Her face went completely red. "N-Natsu…" She mumbled, suddenly unable to meet his eyes. Before she could spiral any further, something landed on her head.
"Pwah!" Happy plopped down like a hat, wobbly but alive.
Lucy gasped and grabbed him carefully. "Happy!"
Happy purred weakly. "Lucy…! I'm okay…"
Lucy hugged him tighter than she meant to. "I'm so glad you're fine."
Happy smiled. "Aye…"
For a moment, despite the tower shaking and the ocean screaming outside, the world felt… safe. But then the air shifted once again as a familiar, gritty pressure rolled in. Black sand swirled from the rubble pile near where the mysterious figure had crashed through earlier and a vortex of sand formed.
Lucy's eyes widened. "What… is that?"
Juvia's body tensed instinctively. "It feels… dangerous."
The sand condensed, armor formed and crimson eyes ignited. The Black Sand Knight emerged, greatsword in hand, standing like a silent executioner.
Natsu stepped forward immediately, placing himself between it and the girls with his eyes narrowed. "…There you are."
Lucy's voice shook. "Natsu, what is that thing?!"
Natsu didn't take his eyes off the knight. "It's my opponent. Watch Happy for me," Natsu said quietly. "And get out of here."
Lucy had a hundred questions. But she looked at Natsu's back and remembered something simple: Natsu can handle this.
She nodded. "Okay," she whispered.
It is then that Juvia finally spoke up. "We should go help Gray-sama."
Lucy swallowed. "Right… Gray—!" She turned to Juvia, who was still pale but regaining herself. Lucy raised her key and dismissed Cancer in a flash of light. "Thank you, Cancer."
Cancer gave a woozy thumbs-up before disappearing.
Lucy adjusted her grip on Happy and looked back one last time. "Natsu…"
He didn't turn. But his voice softened just a little. "I've got this."
Lucy nodded and ran with Juvia beside her. Behind them, the sound of steel meeting fire echoed as Natsu faced the Black Sand Knight alone.
—-----------------------------------------
On the medium floors of the tower had become a frozen war zone.
Gray's breath came out in sharp white bursts as ice magic surged from his hands again and again, shaping the battlefield to his will. Shards, spears, walls, chains, each one formed and shattered in rapid succession as he fought to keep pace with Fukuro.
Fukuro moved with his jet pack as he zig-zagged across the broken chamber, his owl eyes locked onto Gray with predatory focus. Using Simon's darkness magic to coil around his fists like gauntlets.
"HOO! JUSTICE WILL ALWAYS PREVAILS!" Fukuro screeched as he dropped down with a spinning kick that he covered in darkness magic.
Gray crossed his forearms, conjuring a thick shield of ice just in time. The shield cracked, with darkness drilling through it.
Gray slid back across the frozen floor, boots carving grooves. "Spit him out!" Gray roared, launching forward. "Ice-Make: Lance Barrage!"
A storm of ice spears shot toward Fukuro from every direction. The owl-man twisted midair, jets flaring, and punching through several of them while others stabbed the floor.
Gray didn't let up as he aimed straight for Fukuro's stomach. 'If I could land a strong enough impact. It may free him' He quickly created a canon and shot an ice cannonball
But Fukuro vanished upward as the jets screamed, barely dodging the rising blow. "HOO! TOO SLOW, EVILDOER!" He then appeared in front of Gray and darkness erupted from Fukuro's palm, he then slammed into Gray's chest and sent him skidding back.
Gray coughed in pain, tasting iron. 'Damn it… he's too mobile.' His eyes flicked to the jet pack. 'I just have to get rid of that thing.' Gray slammed both palms to the floor. "Ice-Make: Flash Freeze!" Frost exploded outward in a sudden, violent bloom—racing up the walls, over debris.
Fukuro desperately tried to escape but the ice kept trying to reach him until his jet pack sputtered as ice encased them in thick, cracking layers.
Fukuro's wings were cut out mid-flight. "HOO—?!" He then dropped to the floor, hard, with the impact shaking the chamber.
Gray was already moving. He rushed in, his fists covered in hardened ice gauntlets. "You're grounded now!" Gray quickly released a barrage of punches, elbows, and kicks. Each strike carried precise weight, cracking bone.
Without his speed advantage, Fukuro was forced into direct combat. But Gray didn't give him room to even breathe. Fukuro swung with darkness-coated fists, but Gray countered, blocked, and then drove ice spikes into the floor to limit his movement further.
As Fukuro staggered back. He quickly noticed that he was losing with his owl eyes widened slightly. But then his jaw unhinged wide and Fukuro lunged forward, mouth stretching unnaturally as he attempted to swallow Gray whole.
Gray's eyes sharpened. 'Not happening.' He shot his arms forward and grabbed Fukuro's beak, one hand on each edge, stopping the maw inches from his face. The heat of Fukuro's breath hit him.
Gray snarled. "You think I'm that easy?!" Ice surged from his palms. Frost crawled rapidly across Fukuro's face and neck, freezing his body and locking his jaw in place.
Fukuro thrashed violently."MMMPH—!"
But Gray tightened his grip. Then drove his fist upward. "ICE-MAKE: JACKHAMMER!" The uppercut detonated under Fukuro's chin.
The impact shattered the ice around his mouth and launched him upward slightly—
And then caused Fukuro to gag and a dark mass shot out of his mouth and slammed into the floor. Simon rolled across the stone, gasping for air.
Gray didn't even look back to confirm. "You're done." Gray extended both arms and ice blades jutted back from his forearms, forming twin, jagged edges that glinted cold blue in the broken light. "Ice Blade: Seven Slice Dance."
Gray stepped in and moved like a swordsman.
One slash, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven slashes total, each cut precise and deliberate. Ice trails followed the blades like cold afterimages.
By the end of the seventh strike, Fukuro stood frozen in place for a single heartbeat. Then blood erupted across his chest and shoulders as the delayed damage hit all at once.
The owl-man staggered and his knees buckled. Until finally he crashed to the ground in a heavy heap, feathers stained red.
Gray stood over him, chest heaving, his ice blades dissolving into mist.
He looked at Fukuro for a moment longer making sure he wouldn't get up and as soon as he was sure Gray turned away.
Simon, now awake was pushing himself up on shaky arms, his iron jaw cracked, body bruised but alive.
Gray moved to him quickly. "You good?" He asked, kneeling.
Simon nodded weakly. "Next time… don't let me get eaten."
Gray huffed out a short laugh. "Try not to be swallowable." He helped him stand and hooked Simon's arm over his shoulder. "Come on. We need to—"
Soon footsteps echoed down the corridor with Gray tensed instantly. Ice gathered at his fingertips. But then he saw them.
Yuuka in front, revolvers ready. Akitsu beside her, frost already creeping up the walls. Uzume came with her veil swirling. Yashima with her hammer in hand, and Ruby clinging behind her.
Yuuka seeing Gray and Simon blinked at the scene. "Guess we miss all the fun?"
Gray exhaled. "Trust me, you should be glad to not have fought this freak."
Akitsu hurried over to Simon. "You're hurt."
"I've had worse," Simon muttered.
Uzume glanced at Fukuro's body and whistled softly. "You really don't play around, huh?"
Gray shrugged, though exhaustion tugged at his limbs now that the fight was over. "He swallowed my friend."
Yashima nodded once in approval. "Sounds reasonable."
Ruby peeked out. "Is it safe now?"
Gray looked back at the unconscious guardian. "For this floor? Yeah."
Yuuka holstered one revolver. "Good. Because the lower floors are too dangerous. Damn Kraken."
Gray blinked. "A what?"
"Don't worry Tamamo is dealing with it." Uzume replied.
Another tremor rolled through the structure and Gray wondered what all that was about. He tightened his grip on Simon. "Let's keep moving and try to find the others. On the way I'll explain what happened after we split up."
"You mean after you guys ditched us." Yuuka annoyingly scolded, to which Gray had the decency to look away. "And yeah, let's go, we'll tell you about what's happening below us."
Together they began to climb the tower again, leaving behind a frozen battlefield and an owl-headed guardian.
—--------------------------------------------
Down on the lower floors, where the Tower of Heaven's broken walls opened directly to the raging sea, Tamamo-no-Mae stood alone at the edge of a giant breach in the tower. Wind tore through her hair. Sea spray misted across her cheeks.
Beyond the opening, the Kraken terrifying form was seen in the ocean. Its bioluminescent cyan markings pulsed brighter, painting the waves in ghostly light. Blue magic circles rotated around its tentacles in slow, deliberate patterns.
Tamamo's eyes narrowed as she noticed the buildup of magic coming from the monster. "So its going to attack with magic." She murmured, amused.
The Kraken's glowing turquoise eye locked onto her. Then the circles flared and activated as Pressurized water bullets erupted in a rapid barrage, tearing through the air like cannon fire.
Tamamo lifted her hand calmly and purple cursed flames surged outward in a sweeping wave. Water and cursed flames collided midair, detonating into hissing explosions. The surrounding area was filled with hot mist and the sound of a storm.
Even with the massive explosions happening around her, Tamamo didn't move as her tails swayed behind her. 'It's pretty persistent.' She thought, watching the water bullets chew through the air. 'But it's not very clever.'
But then the Kraken changed tactics as the sea beneath it churned violently, and a deep rumble rolled through the ocean, low enough that Tamamo felt it in her skin as the temperature got colder. Then the sky above the tower darkened as clouds formed unnaturally fast, spiraling into place as if dragged there by invisible hands. Rain began to fall in hard, cold sheets with harsh wind.
The weather had completely changed and Tamamo's lips parted slightly as her hair and clothes got wet. "…How dramatic."
Lightning flickered over the ocean and from the rising storm waters, Dozens of serpents emerged, long, twisting water dragons coiling out of the sea, their bodies made of compressed currents, jaws snapping as they surged toward the breach in the tower and at the same time, tentacles lashed upward, trying to crush the entire floor Tamamo stood on.
Tamamo, seeing the incoming attacks, exhaled slowly. "Very well." A fifth tail unfurled with a soft, heavy pulse and the air pressure dropped as cursed energy around her deepened, turning the purple flames near her hands into something thicker and darker. Tamamo's smile turned sharp. "Let us stop playing." She then snapped her fingers and talismans burst from her sleeves in a swirling arc, glowing with crimson script as they spun like thrown knives. "Go." The talismans then ignited midair and soon transformed into gigantic foxfire beasts, spectral foxes made of fire with blazing purple bodies. They leapt outward like hunting hounds released from their leash.
The serpents lunged toward the breach but the firefoxes pounced on them with their jaws clamping down. As they collided they caused explosions of steam and cursed flame erupting across the ocean surface. The firefoxes tore through serpent bodies, burning the water constructs from the inside and turning them into evaporating mist.
Tamamo watched the exchange with calm eyes and then her gaze shifted to the incoming tentacles. They were closer now, about to slam into the opening. But Tamamo quickly raised her palm outward and several magic circles formed around her in layered glowing sigils that hummed with spiritual authority. "Heavenly Binding Curse."
Soon Spiritual chains erupted from the magic circles, made of glowing, pale energy, each one snapping forward like a living whip and wrapping around the Kraken's tentacles.
The tentacles jerked violently as the chains tightened, locking them in place and the Kraken shrieked and yanked trying to free himself but the chains didn't break. It tried pulling harder, with its muscles bulging beneath those armored ridges. But the chains tightened further.
Tamamo simply smiled at the struggling monster."You may struggle all you want but you will not leave."
The Kraken's eyes narrowed. Then it did something different as its mouth opened wide and a deep blue light gathered at the back of its throat, condensing and intensifying into a singular point, the surrounding rainwater and sea was being pulled inward like a vortex.
Tamamo tilted her head. "A beam of energy?" She asked, almost disappointed. "How unoriginal."
The light reached critical mass and the Kraken fired. A blue laser screamed across the ocean, ripping through rain and mist, aimed directly at Tamamo's location.
But Tamamo didn't dodge. She simply stayed in place and waited for it to come closer. With a flick of her wrist, her mirror appeared in front of her. The laser struck the mirror and then vanished as it was absorbed. The mirror's surface glowed bright blue, swallowing the Kraken's power.
Tamamo's eyes gleamed. "Oh? That's a lovely gift." She turned the mirror slightly, angling it back toward the monster. The glow intensified, as it was then mixed now with her own energy, purple bleeding into blue "Return to sender," She whispered and the mirror flared. The beam shot back out, faster and heavier, now carrying both the Kraken's energy and Tamamo's magic.
The Kraken tried to move to dive back to the sea. But the Chains held. Its turquoise eye widened as the beam hit it dead-on.
BOOOOOM—!!
The ocean erupted. A massive explosion of light swallowed the Kraken's entire upper body. The shockwave rolled outward in a ring that slapped the island and rattled the tower's remaining walls. For a moment, the world was nothing but blinding white light.
Then the light faded, the rain fell again and where the Kraken had been, there was only churning water and drifting mist.
Tamamo lowered her mirror slowly, lips curling into a satisfied smirk. "…And stay gone." She released a breath, tails settling behind her as she turned toward the stairwell. 'Now then… to assist the others.' She took one step.
Then stopped because the sea below… moved again and enormous pressure crushed everything in its path. Causing the tower of heaven to groan under the weight.A deep rumble rose up from the abyss and an undersea quake that made the entire ocean look like it was shivering with massive waves rolling through the sea.
Tamamo's smirk faded and her eyes narrowed. "…Ara." She quickly looked towards the sea and waited for her opponent to show itself.