The unfinished castle trembled and fell.
Stone cracked along the walls as Indura's titanic form fully materialized above the ruins. Five thousand feet of lean, crimson-scaled fury blotted out the afternoon sun, casting a shadow that stretched for miles across the remote lands. His obsidian horns gleamed like blades. Golden eyes burned with calm, intelligent focus.
He opened his jaws.
Energy crackled violently around his maw — red and yellow-hot arcs of annihilation power snapping and hissing like chained lightning as they turned into white compressed energy. The air itself warped and screamed as the blast built, brighter than the sun itself.
Juriel's eyes widened. "Scatter!"
Indura fired.
Annihilation Breath.
A roaring pillar of pure white void-flame erupted from his throat, so intense it looked like a newborn star falling to earth. The beam tore through the sky with a deafening howl, erasing everything in its path. Mountains in the distance simply vanished — vaporized into glass and ash before the beam even fully connected. The shockwave alone flattened forests for ten miles in every direction.
Juriel and Noriel blurred away at blinding speed, divine wings flaring. Duriel remained hovering behind them, massive hammer resting on his shoulder, watching silently.
The breath slammed into the ground where the warriors had stood. The explosion that followed was catastrophic — a blooming sphere of white fire that carved a new canyon miles wide. The blast wave rolled outward like the wrath of an angry god, shattering distant peaks and sending tremors that rattled the Vartas capital itself.
Smoke and superheated dust billowed into the sky.
From within the cloud, two streaks of silver-gold light shot upward.
Juriel reappeared first, sword drawn, his voice still composed but edged with caution. "Impressive. That single breath could erase a kingdom."
Noriel materialized beside him, blade humming with celestial energy. "He's faster than his size suggests."
Indura's massive head turned slowly, tracking them. Despite his colossal frame, his movements carried a lean, predatory grace. He lunged forward with shocking speed, one enormous claw sweeping down like a falling mountain range.
The strike was heavy — devastatingly so. The air howled as the claw descended.
Juriel and Noriel moved in perfect sync.
"Heavenly Severance," Juriel called.
A clean horizontal slash of pure white light erupted from his blade, stretching hundreds of feet wide. It met Indura's claw mid-swing and carved a deep glowing line across the scales, forcing the massive limb to deflect slightly.
Noriel followed instantly. "Eclipse Divide."
He spun in a blazing circle, blade trailing darkness before exploding into a blinding burst of light. The technique disoriented Indura for a fraction of a second, forcing the dragon to shake his head as the light seared his vision.
Indura felt the impacts — sharp shocks traveling through his scales, even though the divine blades barely scratched the surface. The force still rattled his bones.
Not bad, he thought, a low rumble of amusement echoing in his chest. They're testing me.
He retaliated with brutal efficiency, swinging his tail like a continent-sized whip. The air detonated as it cut toward the two swordsmen.
Juriel dodged with graceful precision, wings flaring. "He's predictable in his power, but the raw strength is monstrous."
Noriel barely evaded, the tail's passing wind, nearly knocking him out of the sky. "We can't take those hits head-on."
Duriel remained in the background, hammer resting calmly on his shoulder, observing every exchange without moving.
Indura pressed the attack. He lunged again, claws raking downward in heavy, powerful strikes. Each swing created shockwaves that uprooted entire hills. The warriors danced around him — fast, coordinated, never staying in one place long enough for the claws to connect cleanly.
Juriel thrust his blade forward. "Starfall Edge!"
Multiple rapid thrusts summoned pillars of divine light that rained down like falling meteors. They slammed into Indura's side and back, each impact sending visible ripples across his scales and jolting his massive body.
The dragon roared — not in pain, but in irritation. The shocks stung, traveling deep into his frame, but his scales held firm.
They're good at avoiding the obvious, Indura thought, golden eyes narrowing. But let's see how they handle this.
His jaws cracked open again. Energy gathered even faster this time, the air around his mouth igniting with white fire.
Juriel's eyes widened. "Incoming!"
The second annihilation breath roared out — wider and hotter than the first. It swept across the battlefield like a solar flare given form. Juriel and Noriel blurred away at maximum speed, but a glancing edge of the beam caught Noriel's wing.
The divine warrior cried out as the crimson flames seared through his armor, burning a deep gash along his side. He spiraled momentarily before stabilizing.
Juriel caught him mid-air. "Do not take the flames head-on! They burn hotter than divine light!"
Noriel gritted his teeth, smoke rising from the wound. "Understood."
Indura's massive maw curved into a fanged grin as he watched the warriors adjust. They learn fast.
He pressed forward again, lean and brutal despite his size. Claws hammered down in heavy arcs, each strike predictable but carrying enough force to level cities. The Sky Warriors weaved between them with surgical grace — Juriel's elegant slashes carving glowing lines across Indura's scales, Noriel's rapid thrusts targeting joints and weaker points.
Every hit landed with a thunderous clang that echoed for miles. Indura felt every shock, but his scales barely yielded. The warriors, however, were clearly holding back, probing, testing how much power they truly needed.
Duriel still hadn't moved, his enormous divine hammer resting casually on his shoulder as he observed from above.
The battlefield had become unrecognizable — new canyons carved by breath attacks, hills flattened by claw strikes, the sky itself scarred with trails of divine light and crimson fire.
Indura's golden eyes gleamed with growing excitement.
Finally… something fun.
He opened his jaws once more, energy crackling violently as another annihilation breath began to charge.
The three divine warriors tensed, preparing for the next exchange.
The remote lands trembled under the weight of divine warriors and a dragon clashing.
Across the remote lands, the battle between dragon and heaven had already begun to reshape the world.
In the distant capital of Vartas, panic erupted like wildfire.
The empire walls shook violently as the first shockwaves rolled in. Towers swayed. Cobblestones cracked and jumped. Citizens screamed as the ground rumbled beneath their feet, windows shattering across the city. Horses reared in terror. Mothers clutched children while merchants abandoned their stalls, running for cover.
Inside the palace, the shaking was even worse.
Julius held Historia tightly in his arms, bracing against a pillar as the entire structure trembled. Chandeliers swung wildly. Dust rained from the ceiling. Historia clutched her swollen belly, eyes wide with fear.
"What is happening?" she whispered, voice shaking.
Julius stared out the window toward the remote lands, where flashes of white and crimson light lit up the horizon like a second sun. "It's him… the dragon."
The palace shook again — harder this time — as a distant explosion sent a visible ripple across the sky.
In the Great Forest, the elf kingdom felt it too.
Ancient trees swayed as if caught in a storm. The ground groaned and bucked. Alarms rang through the hidden city as elves rushed to defensive positions.
Syphon and Drune were already moving.
Syphon hovered high above the kingdom, silver hair whipping in the unnatural wind. Her emerald eyes narrowed as she stared at the distant explosions lighting up the horizon — massive pillars of white flame and shockwaves that carved new scars into the land.
"Indura…" she murmured, voice tight with concern. "Why are you going all out like this?"
Drune appeared beside her in a ripple of spatial magic, six verdant rings spinning rapidly behind his back. "I'm raising the barrier now."
With a sweep of his hands, a shimmering dome of emerald light expanded over the entire elf kingdom, folding space itself to reinforce it. The barrier hummed with ancient power, absorbing the distant tremors before they could reach the city.
Both grandmasters felt it at the same moment — a cold, divine pressure blooming in the distance.
Asterdolf, standing on a high balcony in the Vartas palace, felt it too. His eyes glowed yellow as he extended his perception toward the remote lands.
"Divine power…" he whispered, jaw tightening. "I see...so three of them have come."
Syphon's expression hardened. "The Sky Palace has come for him."
Drune's rings spun faster. "We cannot interfere directly… but we must be ready."
Back on the shattered battlefield, Indura suddenly stopped his relentless assault.
His massive golden eyes narrowed. This size… It's slowing me down. Too predictable to tell where I'll swing next.
The brief pause was all the Sky Warriors needed.
Juriel and Noriel seized the moment, surging forward with greater power.
"Heavenly Severance — Ascendant Form!" Juriel shouted.
His blade blazed with intensified light. A colossal crescent slash, wider than a mountain range, tore through the sky toward Indura's neck. The attack carried the weight of heavenly judgment, cutting through the air with a screech that split clouds.
Noriel followed instantly, wings blazing. "Eclipse Divide — Eternal Night!"
He spun into a vortex of darkness and light, creating a disorienting zone around Indura's head. The technique exploded into a blinding storm of alternating black and white bursts, aiming to overwhelm the dragon's senses and expose blind spots.
Indura roared and countered with another annihilation breath. The sun-like beam roared outward, forcing both swordsmen to dodge desperately. Juriel barely evaded, the edge of the flame singing his armor and drawing a hiss of pain. Noriel took a glancing hit, his left wing smoking as the crimson fire burned hotter than divine light.
"They burn…" Noriel growled, adjusting mid-air. "Do not take the flames directly!"
Juriel nodded, eyes sharp. "He's adapting. Look for weaknesses — joints, eyes, the gaps between scales."
They pressed the attack with increased ferocity.
Juriel unleashed rapid Starfall Edge thrusts — dozens of meteor-like pillars of light raining down on Indura's back and shoulders. Each impact sent powerful shocks through the dragon's body, rattling even his incredibly tough scales.
Noriel darted in close, blade flashing with Thunder Seraphim — lightning-infused strikes that chained across Indura's side like divine whips, seeking any soft point or blind spot.
Indura snarled, the shocks stinging deeply despite the minimal visible damage. He swung his claws in heavy, lean arcs, trying to crush the agile warriors, but they danced around him with infuriating precision.
They're fast… and learning, Indura thought, a spark of excitement mixing with frustration. Fine. Let's make this interesting.
He opened his jaws again, energy crackling violently as he prepared another breath while simultaneously lashing out with his tail and wings, turning the battlefield into a storm of claws, flame, and raw draconic fury.
Juriel and Noriel weaved through the chaos, their divine blades flashing brighter as they pushed more power into their strikes, searching for any opening in the crimson titan's defense.
Duriel still watched from above, hammer resting on his shoulder, waiting for the perfect moment.
The land itself screamed under the weight of the battle.
Mountains cracked. Forests burned. The sky itself seemed to fracture under the clash of dragon and heaven.
And the fight was only beginning to escalate.