That section of the cave now resembled a horrifying graveyard. Dev lay on the ground, the demon's (Prana-Jivi's) fleshy, blood-red sword still driven clean through his shoulder. His body convulsed in agony. His eyes were half-open, and a dark pool of blood was steadily spreading across the rocky floor.
And that skinless, blood-drenched Prana-Jivi? Leaving Dev writhing in pain, it began dragging its long, dagger-like nails across the ground, slowly advancing toward Rudra
Screeeech... Screeeech... The sound of its nails scraping against the stone felt like needles piercing the eardrums. The metallic stench of Dev's fresh blood mixed with the putrid, rotting odor of the demon's flesh made the very act of breathing feel like a torment.
Rudra sat on his knees on the hard dirt. His head hung low.
Rudra clenched his fists and slammed them into the cave's cold, jagged floor with every ounce of his strength! Thud! Thud! The sharp edges of the rocks tore his skin, stripping the flesh from his knuckles until they bled, but he felt absolutely no physical pain. A bitter, astringent taste filled his mouth—a foul mixture of dirt, sweat, and his own blood.
"What's the point..." A violent storm was brewing inside Rudra. "All this raw power... all those big talks... and when it came to my friends, I couldn't do a damn thing! I can't even save my friend!" He was burning in the fires of his own helplessness. The demon was now right in front of him. Its terrifying shadow completely enveloped Rudra's kneeling figure.
But then... something strange happened.
In both of Rudra's bleeding hands, a sudden, searing heat flared up. This was no ordinary warmth; it felt as if boiling lava had replaced the blood racing through his veins.
Fisssss! Suddenly, sparks began to violently erupt from his palms. Before his very eyes, those sparks ignited into a terrifying blaze!
The flames were so intense that a deafening 'VWOOSH!' echoed through the air, sounding like a jet engine combusting. Rudra, his head still bowed, began to scream like a madman. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"
His agonizing roar merged flawlessly with the roaring thunder of the flames. Rudra himself had no idea what was clawing its way out of him. He didn't even realize that literally two massive, blazing spheres of fire had formed in his hands!
The fire rapidly condensed, taking the shape of a colossal, pulsating sphere. The inferno grew so massive and terrifying that Rudra's entire body was swallowed by the vortex of flames. Now, all that could be seen was a gigantic sphere of raging fire, from within which Rudra's screams of pain and pure rage echoed.
The cave's thick, suffocating darkness vanished in a single heartbeat. It looked as if a miniature sun had detonated underground. An intense, blinding yellow and crimson light washed over everything. The oxygen in the air was instantly incinerated, and the suffocating stench of burning coal and sulfur flooded the cavern.
Maya and Dev, both clinging to the very edge of consciousness, were blinded by the terrifying brilliance.
"Wh... what is that?!" Maya squinted, staring in disbelief at the colossal sphere of fire.
And then... the explosion hit.
The uncontrollable inferno within Rudra erupted! The massive fire spheres forged in his hands shot forward like a devastating, concentrated beam of pure heat, crashing squarely into the Prana-Jivi's chest!
BOOOOOOOM!!! The blast was so cataclysmic that the entire cave violently quaked like an earthquake. The demon didn't even get a chance to scream. It took the full, devastating brunt of the fiery attack head-on. The flames engulfed it in a microsecond, and the demon literally blew apart in a horrific explosion! Chunks of charred meat and black ash rained down through the air.
The shockwave of the flames was so intense that Maya, lying on the ground behind them, instinctively threw her hand up to protect her face. Even so, the sheer, blistering heat severely scorched her left hand.
Dev miraculously survived untouched, as he had collapsed behind a large boulder that shielded him from the blast.
After the blast, a deathly silence instantly reclaimed the cave. The only remnants were small, flickering patches of fire scattered across the ground and a thick cloud of ash drifting through the air.
Rudra, whose body had been completely drained of every last drop of Prana-shakti in that single attack, knelt limply on the ground. His eyes rolled back, turning completely white. "Knocked... out..." was the only word that escaped his lips before he slumped forward, hitting the dirt face-first, out cold.
Maya panted heavily, looking down at her burnt hand. [Touch] Her skin had turned an angry, blistered red, radiating an unbearable, searing agony as if boiling oil had been poured over it. Tears of pure pain welled up and spilled from her eyes.
But she gritted her teeth. 'This isn't the time to cry!' Maya gathered whatever courage she had left. With trembling, unsteady steps, she rushed over to Rudra. Summoning all her remaining physical strength, she grabbed his heavy body and dragged him across the rocky floor, laying him right next to Dev.
Now, both Dev and Rudra lay unconscious and critically injured on the ground.
Maya dropped to her knees between them. Forcing herself to ignore her own agonizing pain, she extended both her hands outward. A soothing, cooling 'green light' (Healing Power) began to glow from her palms. She focused her energy, desperately trying to heal both Rudra and Dev simultaneously.
She was hyperventilating. The throbbing agony radiating from her severely burned hand was tearing her apart from the inside, but she endured every ounce of it for the sake of her friends. "Just a little longer... you both will be okay..." she whispered, trying to reassure herself as much as them.
Everything felt quiet. For a fleeting moment, it seemed as though the nightmare was finally over.
But then...
Suddenly... all the residual fires, all the faint light scattered across the cave... were extinguished in a single heartbeat!
For exactly three agonizing seconds... the cave plunged into a darkness so absolute and terrifying that Maya couldn't even see the hand directly in front of her face. Even the soft green glow of her healing magic seemed to be swallowed by the void.
Her heartbeat flatlined.
One... two... three... And then...
THUD! The heavy, distinct sound of something massive dropping onto the stone floor echoed. The noise came from right behind Maya.
Goosebumps violently erupted all over Maya's body. An icy chill shot straight down her spine. The air was instantly saturated with that exact same stench of rotting flesh... but this time, the putrid odor was three times stronger than before!
Trembling uncontrollably, Maya slowly craned her neck to look over her shoulder.
Filtering through the cave entrance, bathed in a sickly, pale moonlight...
Stood not one...
But three colossal, terrifying shadows! Their grotesque, undersized wings fluttered slightly, and their glowing, blood-red eyes stared unblinkingly at Maya, Dev, and Rudra.
Maya's eyes widened in sheer, paralyzing horror. The breath hitched and died in her throat. One demon of death had fallen... only for three new ones to rise and take its place!