Antrim City, along with the whole of Anbord, watched in awe and fear as a massive blue portal shimmered into existence in the sky. The figures standing before it struck both dread and fleeting hope into the hearts of the people. They knew the war was upon them. Though they were all awakened, it didn't mean they could all fight. Any savior, no matter how uncertain, was accepted.
They had seen the chaos in Veryan City—how people were slaughtered like livestock, how the Blade Clan killed without a shred of remorse. They had seen it all.
Now, the entire nation was gripped in silence. People refused to leave their homes, fearing the unpredictability of the Blade Clan. No one knew when or where they would strike next. The tension was suffocating, a pressure that could be felt miles away.
Ethan hovered in the air, wings still unseen, but his true form was on full display. His golden eyes glowed with authority as his long red hair, streaked with silver and gold, swayed behind him. In front of him, Jerry and Reginald floated, their expressions grim yet determined. Jerry's dark silver bat-like wings flapped steadily, the red symbols at the tips pulsing with energy. Reginald's body was wreathed in a dull red glow, his spirit magic quietly thrumming with power.
Behind them loomed the mythical beasts that had stunned the world—Angitia and Galeno. Angitia's massive form stretched across the skyline, now an immense 80 feet in length, the size of an eight-story building. Her crimson scales shimmered under the sun, her serpentine body coiled in readiness.
Galeno's sheer size cast a shadow over the city. His immense golden shell, now inscribed with strange, glowing sigils, gleamed under the daylight. A blue aura surrounded him, keeping him aloft—without it, he would have crushed entire buildings with his weight alone.
Ethan's voice carried across the air, his words firm and commanding.
'You know what to do. Prioritize your safety and the safety of those you save. If necessary, go all out. We can't afford to lose, or all this power will be for nothing.'
"Don't worry, boss man. Thanks to you, we finally have the strength to be heroes. We won't let you down," Reginald said with a smirk, his eyes glowing with determination.
"Have faith in us, my king. We will do as you wish," Jerry added, his tone cold yet resolute.
'Leave it to us, master. We are mythical beasts, after all,' Angitia said, amusement lacing her tone.
'I just want to sleep,' Galeno muttered lazily.
'I didn't know you could crack jokes, Angi. And you better save more than a thousand people, Gal, or else...' Ethan's lips twitched in faint amusement before his gaze settled on the massive tortoise, whose lazy eyes drifted around.
A golden dot appeared on Ethan's forehead, shimmering with an otherworldly glow. Half of his hair turned golden as his aura deepened, ancient and vast.
A glowing sigil of a compass materialized in the sky, its intricate design pulsing with power. Fourteen hands pointed in different directions, each radiating a unique color. Two stood out—one pointing northwest, glowing with a faint ethereal red light, and the other pointing southwest, pulsing with a dark silver streaked in red. At the heart of the compass lay a golden circle, identical to the dot on Ethan's forehead.
Ethan finally spoke aloud, and only then did everyone realize that, though they had heard his voice before, they had never seen his lips move. The revelation sent a ripple of awe and unease through the gathered onlookers.
"For this mission, I grant you my blessing. You are my eyes, my feet, my hands—an extension of me, and so shall it be. Use this power to save, to purge, to bring order to chaos. Go forth, my Ancestor of Order and Chaos, and let balance reign."
His voice rumbled like distant thunder, deep, ancient, filled with power.
Jerry and Reginald's bodies pulsed with golden light as the subordinate symbols on them glowed. They felt something within them break—an unseen shackle shattering, a restriction lifting.
They bowed low, their figures illuminated against the backdrop of the portal.
"Your wish is our command, my king," they said before turning toward the portal. Angitia and Galeno followed without hesitation.
'See you later, master,' Angitia said.
'Don't burn my pillow, master,' Galeno added, his tone only slightly more serious than before.
'See you later,' Ethan waved as they disappeared into the portal. It flickered once before vanishing completely.
The air felt heavier in their absence.
Ethan exhaled, rolling his shoulders slightly. 'That took more out of me than I expected... time to go meet the family. So tiresome.'
'No one asked you to be king,' Zark's voice echoed in his mind.
'I'm not old, you brat.'
The massive blue portal shimmered in the ruined skies of Veryan City, its energy crackling like a living storm. As the vortex twisted and pulsed, four figures emerged, their presence altering the very air around them.
Reginald was the first to step through. His boots landed lightly on the shattered remains of a bridge, his body wrapped in a dull red glow. His fiery blue eyes swept across the ruined cityscape, taking in the destruction—the collapsed buildings, the corpses lining the streets, and the distant screams that pierced the otherwise eerie silence. The stench of death and burning rubble filled the air.
Jerry followed closely behind him, his cold mismatched eyes narrowing at the carnage. His grey hair fluttered despite the stillness of the air, his body exuding an aura of something unnatural—wind laced with the essence of blood and a mysterious silver energy that made the very air around him hum.
Then came Angitia. The moment she slithered through the portal, the ground trembled beneath her sheer size. Her crimson scales shimmered in the dim light as her piercing black eyes surveyed the devastation below. The city's twisted metal and shattered buildings reflected off her crystalline horns.
Finally, Galeno emerged, and the world seemed to still. The sheer weight of his massive form sent a tremor rippling through the ground. His golden shell, now engraved with glowing sigils, shone like a beacon of divine might. The air around him thickened as if the world itself acknowledged his presence.
The portal behind them snapped shut.
A cold wind blew through the devastated city. The fires that raged in the distance flickered under its touch.
Then, the first figures emerged.
A group of Blade Clan warriors stood atop a crumbling high-rise, their black and crimson armor smeared with the blood of innocents. Their soulless eyes glowed eerily, watching the newcomers with predatory hunger.
One of them stepped forward, a man draped in tattered robes with glowing red tattoos running up his arms. His expression was twisted in amusement.
"Well, well," he sneered. "It seems we have some self-righteous heroes walking into their own deaths."
Reginald cracked his neck, rolling his shoulders. "Talk, talk, talk. You people do nothing but talk." He raised his hand, and the air around him shifted—heat coalescing into an ominous red glow. His spirit fire flickered into existence, dancing across his fingertips like a living entity. It was no ordinary flame. It held no warmth, only hunger, devouring even the oxygen around it.
Jerry merely tilted his head, his gaze unwavering. He lifted a single hand, and a gentle breeze passed through the battlefield. It was soft, barely noticeable—yet in that instant, the nearest Blade Clan warrior clutched his throat, his body convulsing violently.
Blood suddenly erupted from his skin in dozens of thin, precise cuts. His eyes widened in silent horror as the wind itself shredded him apart from the inside.
Jerry lowered his hand. "The wind carries whispers of death." His voice was eerily calm. "And you are nothing but leaves in a storm."
The remaining warriors hesitated for a split second, but the man in tattered robes barked an order. "Kill them!"
Reginald smirked. "Gladly."
He clenched his fist, and the air ignited. Pillars of spirit fire burst into existence, spiraling toward the enemies. The Blade Clan warriors barely had time to scream before they were consumed. Unlike normal flames, these did not burn—they erased. Their bodies disintegrated into nothingness, their souls ripped away by the fire's unnatural hunger.
One warrior managed to dodge, his body flickering with shadow energy as he tried to escape through the ruins. He barely got two steps before something massive coiled around him.
Her massive form struck like a lightning bolt, her crimson scales shifting as she constricted around the enemy. The warrior thrashed, his blade cutting into her, but it was useless. Her body was harder than steel, and his blade snapped like brittle glass.
Her black eyes gleamed with cold amusement as she opened her mouth. A strange, red mist poured from her fangs, enveloping the warrior. He let out a single choked gasp before his body began to dissolve, his very essence devoured by the mist.
Angitia tilted her head. 'I thought they would struggle more.'
Galeno finally moved. The ground trembled as he took a single step forward. The remaining Blade Clan warriors, realizing the overwhelming disparity in power, turned to flee.
A deep, low vibration pulsed from his massive form, rippling through the city like a silent quake. The fleeing warriors froze mid-step. Their bodies shuddered violently as the sigils on Galeno's shell pulsed with golden light.
Then, one by one, they crumbled.
Not as bodies. Not as corpses.
They simply turned to dust, their very existence wiped away in the wake of Galeno's presence.
Reginald whistled. "Damn, big guy. You didn't even let them scream."
Galeno yawned. 'Too much noise.'
Angitia coiled herself back, flicking her tail. 'This was hardly a challenge.'
Jerry's gaze drifted past the battlefield, toward the ruined cityscape beyond. The real fight was waiting for them deeper inside.
Reginald turned to Jerry. "We splitting up, or sticking together?"
Jerry narrowed his eyes. "We stick together. We're here to rescue civilians, not hunt stragglers."
Reginald sighed. "Fine, fine." He turned to the devastation before them. "Let's move."
The four of them advanced, their presence undeniable, their purpose unwavering.
And the city trembled in their wake.