Demon whipped his tail to kael this time kael was slow and the blow threw him few feets away the,hit was so hard that kael wasn't able to stand.Then Lucian lunged on to the demon,but demon grabbed lucian's throat and slamming Lucian down he hit the ice hard, ribs cracking ,Blood sprayed from his mouth as he came to rest at the demon's feet. His scythe - his precious weapon - lay shattered ten feet away.
Kael's vision swam as he struggled to rise. His body screamed in protest, every muscle burning. The demon turned its six milky eyes toward Lucian, raising one clawed fist for the killing blow.
Time seemed to slow.
Memories flooded Kael's mind - the last battle a thousand years ago. His soldiers screaming as demonic fire consumed them. The young recruit - barely more than a boy - reaching for him as a hellbeast tore out his throat. The way their hopeful eyes had looked to him for salvation right before the end.
"Pathetic," the demon gurgled, black drool spattering Lucian's face. "The Emperor will savor your bones."
Lucian spat blood, managing a weak smirk. "Tell him...he's got...shit taste...in subordinates..."
Kael's vision went red. His hands shook violently. Not again. NOT AGAIN. He couldn't fail. He WOULDN'T fail. Not this time. The air around him began to vibrate, snowflakes freezing mid-fall.
Deep in his core, something ancient stirred.
The demon's fist reared back-
"NO!"
The world exploded.
A shockwave detonated from Kael's body, shattering every window in Frostford. The lake ice cracked in perfect concentric circles radiating outward as Kael moved faster than sight - crossing the distance in less than a heartbeat.
THOOM
His fist connected with the demon's chest.
For one suspended moment, nothing happened.
Then the demon's body distorted - armor, flesh and bone compressing unnaturally around Kael's fist before erupting outward in a spray of black ice shards. The concussive force sent Lucian skidding back across the ice as the demon's remains vaporized midair.
Silence.
Kael collapsed to his knees, his entire arm smoking. The glow in his mismatched eyes faded as he stared at his trembling hand in disbelief.
Lucian crawled toward him, coughing blood. "What...the hell...was that?"
Before Kael could answer, the sound of furious hooves shattered the moment.
Dante came barreling in—without his skeletal flames, without his usual grace—just a very pissed-off horse galloping awkwardly across the ice. The speckled mare he'd been flirting with earlier was long gone, having bolted at the first sign of demons.
"YOU!" Dante skidded to a halt, nostrils flaring. "This is your fault!"
Kael blinked, still dazed. "My fault? I just saved your damn—"
"Marelia was finally warming up to me!" Dante's voice cracked with equine despair. "Three weeks of grooming! Two failed serenades! And then BOOM—demon apocalypse!" He stomped a hoof, cracking the ice. "Do you know how hard it is to find a lady who appreciates a talking, flaming skeleton horse?!"
Lucian stared. "...Is he serious?"
Kael groaned. "Unfortunately."
Dante wasn't done. "And you!" He rounded on Lucian. "Mr. Fancy-Scythe-No-Personality! Couldn't you have died quietly? Now I have to start all over!"
A low chuckle echoed across the ruins..
From the shadows of the shattered ice, a figure emerged—robes smoldering, face hidden behind a mask of blackened bone. The air around him warped with heat.
Ignatius raised a burning hand—ten flaming portals ripped open across the lake, each disgorging a demon armored in volcanic rock.
Dante's body erupted into blue hellfire as Kael and Lucian scrambled onto his back.
"Hold on, idiots!"
Kael glanced at his still-smoldering fist. The power was fading...but the memory remained.
Dante's voice cut through the wind: "And you!" He glared at Kael over his shoulder. "Next time you punch a demon into orbit, give me warning! Marelia probably thinks I'm bad luck now!"
Lucian, clinging for dear life, muttered: "I'd rather fight the fire demon..."
Kael just laughed—raw and real—as they vanished into the night.
Somewhere in his blood, the Emperor's strength still slept.
And the demons would soon learn fear.
(But first, Dante needed to find a new girlfriend.)
As all three of them left the village and the chaos ended people started to come out of their houses and hiding places feeling secure again.
But
A low chuckle echoed across the ruins..
From the shadows of the shattered ice, a figure emerged—robes smoldering, face hidden behind a mask of blackened bone. The air around him warped with heat.
Ignatius raised a burning hand—ten flaming portals ripped open across the lake, each disgorging a demon armored in volcanic rock. And within a few minutes the whole village was in dust, the lamp laughing children, happy people all gone with the first ray of dawn falling on the village.
Ignatius grunted "How long will you run, bastard…!"