God of Nothing

Aleph stayed with his friend until the end. 

He shed no tears, though it was with great difficulty. Here lay man’s champion, the one who inherited his position in this world. He was a powerful man of unique ability, and the heart to match. He stared at the headstone he made, briefly contemplating this young king’s fate. He certainly had the ability to fight back against the demon army. Could he have succeeded if the second demon king hadn’t come? Even after facing the full brunt of Lost’s power, he thought Vaynard could have managed it. Five years in and he had cornered a herald, after all. Considering Lost’s apparent reticence to genocide he thought that maybe the two could have brokered an understanding.

Aleph had to look away, tears finally dropping down. Yes, ultimately, his choice to descend had doomed this young man to death. He brought with him more mages, artifacts and his own expertise, but Superbia as well. Through his tears, his eyes locked onto something.

He found the Rage blade, the sword he had fashioned for him. Its light had dimmed considerably, a testament to how fierce the battle must have been at the top. He picked it up, filling it with what little power he could spare. He carried the blade, along with the memory of his friend, as he continued his fight.

Aleph looked up once again, feeling the presence of malice in the air.

“!!”

Satanael looked a lot more monstrous, with her armor now looking like it overran her entire body. Even in the dark, she was starkly black, a sinister scar to show the world what darkness truly looked like. Spear and knife had completely gone from her, forming a tail and horn respectively. The shadows around her had converged into solid black wings, completing her draconic appearance.

Even at the height of his powers, Aleph felt even more of a crisis looking at the demon king’s current form. 

That was Satanael, the final demon king, the Avatar of the Abyss.

She flew around the area and seemed to be looking for something. Aleph remembered her warning mere moments before. 

The worst had come. Was Erebos about to descend? He had beelined towards Vaynard’s fight afterwards, sure that the demon he faced would be the vessel for the wicked god, only to find the demon dead.

At the same time he was contemplating these things, Satanael stopped her search. She turned with a purpose, and shot forward like a bullet. Aleph’s dread mounted up to the sky.

Whatever she found, it wasn’t good.

__________________________________

Rayse marveled at his body’s recovery. He sat there, manipulating Agony’s arsenal, as he felt the strength in him continue to mount. It was to the point that he felt he was being reborn. A couple of minutes sitting and he had never felt stronger. He felt he had to go soon, but was also looking forward to how much stronger he could get. That feeling only faded into the background once he felt the malicious energy coming his way.

He sensed two beings, both beyond a herald’s might, coming into range at an astonishing speed. He stood up and stretched, turning to meet the first of these.

“Huup.” He floated on Agony’s cage and met the foe head on. A large shadow blotted out the sky above him, a dark omen for what was to come.

Clash! A storm of metal intercepted the massive being, immediately creating a struggle for power. Rayse called on his spear and decided to go on the offensive.

“Valiant thrust.” 

His spear stopped mere inches from his target, 

Swppp. Rayse ducked his head just in time as he felt the wind whistle through. A massive blade split the sky as soon as he did so, as the newcomer’s spiked tail lashed out at him. Being almost beheaded in two exchanges tempered his confidence a bit, but he managed to recover. He summoned Agony’s cage and used it as a foothold, staring down the pair of demons that had come to fight him.

“ROARRRRR!” Betrayal had overcome the deluge of metal that was hindering him, floating abreast with its companion. Rayse kept his eye on the other one, the one that had almost killed him as soon as it arrived.

Its eyes burned through its armor, making it look more demonic than the dragon it imitated. He kept on almost losing it even as he stared at it directly, as it had perfectly assimilated to the dark sky. He found the source to be the familiar gem floating at her back. Noticing that, he began to see even more traces of the ‘person’ it once was, from her graceful, if brutal gait, to how its ‘tail’ flicked around similar to the moves she taught him with the spear. Her eyes now glowed with malice, but he thought he sensed something beyond it. 

“...Lost?”

“...” No response. Rayse didn’t expect there to be, but he still felt a bit down that his friend was now reduced to such a thing. He gripped Unbreakable tighter, preparing for a tandem attack.

Or maybe, he thought as he unslung the shield off his back. This is who you really were.

The pair dashed to either side of him as soon as he did so, pincering him with extreme coordination. Betrayal was a menace. It kept pace with Lost even with its massive size. All Rayse could see when he turned to intercept was a massive talon coming to crush him.

“Shield Charge!” He displaced the attack with his shield and immediately spun, narrowly dodging another attack from Lost’s tail. He let his momentum carry him through, aiming his spear at her in a sweeping motion.

Clutch. Lost plucked his attack right out of the air, stopping it with ease. Lost had wrapped her tail along the shaft, completely stopping the attack. Then, she gripped both his arms with hers, with a strength that even Rayse’s newfound power couldn’t easily break through. They locked gazes then, and despite himself Rayse tried to find any more remnants of his friend in this creature. Lost broke eye contact, lowering her head further to gore him with her horn. Rayse recognized it too, but this time his panic had given way to fear. Oblivion’s knife flew right straight to his heart. Rayse, desperate, kicked Lost in the chest, creating distance as he finally escaped her grip.

A spray of crystals shot from below at the same time, following a deluge of flames. Both struck Lost hard, allowing Rayse to create some distance.

“Hey, man. You alright?” He heard a voice call from his back. Rayse smiled, feeling at ease for the first time since the demons appeared.

“You guys are late. Weren’t you supposed to have killed these guys by now?”

“Shut up. Betrayal’s immune to magic. We were having a lot of trouble with him.” Brandon said lightly. Rayse turned to see his friend’s goofy smile, a stark contrast to his bloodied appearance.

An arm wrapped around him at this time, and he was glad to see another welcome face.

“Sorry we’re late, big guy.” Brig said, enveloped by the winds. “Had to get our men out from under the rubble back there. Betrayal really did a number on us.

“Had to leave a buncha mages back there, too. This bastard blew apart our walls so the entire section is crawling with demons. This was the fastest I could come with the least amount of people.” He jerked his head downwards, where Rayse found Lacey and Carrack waving at him. 

“Gyaaaak!”

Or so he thought, as a couple more fireballs and crystals shot past him, accompanied by a pained scream.

“Anyways, I gotta go. Iona’s swamped, and she’ll kill me if I dally.” He turned and immediately vanished in a gust of wind. His brief presence calmed Rayse immensely though, as that man’s refreshing personality only could.

“Say hi to Aleph for me!” He added as he exited.

“?” On cue, he sensed another being approaching fast.

“Master!” Rayse and Brandon dropped towards them just in time for Aleph to arrive. He was resplendent in his gold armorsuit, looking as divine as he had ever seen him. Lacey didn’t care, though, and was hugging him like, well, an old friend.

“Yes, yes, I am here.” 

“Lord Aleph, is His Majesty…” Carrack said suddenly, with a break in his voice Rayse had never heard from the man. Rayse followed his gaze, only now noticing the sword Aleph was holding. It was the one he had specifically made for Vaynard. If he held it, then…

“Lord Vaynard is dead. He defeated Superbia, losing his life in the process.”

Carrack fell to his knees.

“No… That can’t be…” 

“There will be time to grieve later, friend. Our opponents have regrouped.” Aleph warned, prying Lacey off of him to stand at the vanguard.

“This is it.” 

Aleph declared, pointing at the sky. The pair had recovered. The darkness completely enveloped them now, even Betrayal, looking even more monstrous by the second.

“I sense Erebos coming. Defeat his avatar here, and we are victorious. Are you ready?”

Rattle rattle rattle!

Rayse roused everything he had at his disposal, and Agony’s weapons responded. They lined up before them, a spectral array of masterless weapons, all pointing at the pair of demons in their midst. Aleph raised an eyebrow at that, seemingly wondering how he was able to manage that little trick.

“Let’s go.”

__________________________________

Rayse led the charge, intercepting both demons in mid air. He moved with such force that Aleph could believe he was back in peak shape.

Crash!!

A wall of steel banged against Betrayal’s colossal form, unbalancing the creature. “Skrree!!” It shrieked and snapped its jaws at him, but was met with an equally massive blade.

“Fortress cutter!” Brandon bellowed, meeting the dragon’s attack head on. The clashing forces entered a standstill, allowing Lacey and Carrack to shoot out some supporting fire. Aleph scanned the battlefield, though, looking for their objective. They could beat Betrayal ten times over, but if Satanael survives the day, then all would be lost.

There. He spotted Rayse exchanging blows with her at an even higher altitudes than the fight with the dragon. Aleph summoned his might, beelining it to that location.

When he arrived, he found that Rayse was actually doing pretty well. Aboard the claw-cage contraption that Agony had trapped him in in what seems like an eternity ago, the young man . He took his own blows and gave it back just as much. Satanael swiped her tail across his torso, but Rayse shifted his shield arm to deflect it before it could saw him in half. He then struck out with his spear, hitting the demon king with consecutive thrusts. That stunned her for a moment, before coming back with a two handed swipe that drew blood.

“Ack!” Rayse staggered. Satanael sought to push her advantage, thrusting with both her tail and a double knifehand, but his disciple was prepared. The cage he was standing on opened up, making the demon king lose her footing and stopping her movements. Aleph took that chance to enter the battle, aiming for a decisive attack while she was fully preoccupied.

“Dragon’s ascent!” His mana wove a dragon’s afterimage into his attack, coming from below to lock Satanael within its mighty jaws. He caught Rayse’s eye as he passed, and together the pair simultaneously struck.

“Valiant thrust!” “Force slash!”

One aimed at the heart, and the other the head, but neither found purchase. Satanael melted into shadow, her intangible form invalidating both attacks.

“Shit!” Rayse swore, as Satanael reformed a distance away, seemingly unphased by the master and disciple’s tandem attack.

“Relax, son. We’ll find our chance.” Aleph encouraged. He spotted some nicks in several spots of Satanael’s gear, showing that their attacks were not in vain. Her dragon horn armor could withstand anything they could throw at it, but after repeated attacks, it was finally showing some wear.

What was more pressing was the complete absence of Lost’s mental transmissions. They had been coming less and less since transforming, but she’s been completely silent since they both exited the mountain. He would have let it go, too, if not for that ominous warning beforehand.

The worst… Aleph could think of nothing else other than Erebos’ descent, but that’s what unnerves him even more. Superbia was dead, hence there was only one other being able to be his avatar. Could Lost be on the verge of being taken over? The blackened skies only indicates His coming was imminent, and it made him eager to move.

“Dragon’s ascent!”

Aleph took the lead this time, crashing into Satanael with the fierceness of a dragon. He was on her nearly instantly, the dragon’s after image clamping down with authority.

“!!!” Or so he thought. Satanael melded into shadow once more, escaping through the spaces between his attacks like a gaseous liquid, before vanishing completely. It took him a second to react, but once he turned, Aleph saw that the trail of shadow led once again to his apprentice, who was once again exchanging blows with the demon king.

“Rrahhh!” Rayse bellowed, meeting her head on with a mighty spear thrust. His attack literally hit air. Like a mirage, Satanael’s body seemingly turned to mist at the moment of contact before reforming to grip the spear’s shaft.

Crack! She snapped Unbroken in her hands, before taking the broken blade and turning it towards its owner.

“No!” Aleph panicked, rushing to the aid of his student, but he wouldn’t reach in time. He brought out his full strength, moving even faster than the previous time, but all he could do was watch in horror as Unbroken cut a path straight through Rayse’s heart.

“Air prison.”

That was why it was such a surprise to see it stop in mid air.

“Are you hesitating, Ray?” A clear voice broke through the chaos of battle. It was Lacey, floating right beside Rayse all of a sudden. Her presence seemed to have stopped Satanael’s movements completely, looking equally domineering despite her blackened arm.

“Your spear is usually much quicker than this.” She scolded him, outright ignoring the ruler of the demons right beside her. Krrrk, krrrk. Satanael struggled to move. The broken blade she held inched closer and closer, until it stopped once again. This much movement seemed to have irritated Lacey even more, though, because she lashed out at once. 

“Orion.” She commanded, and a star shot out of her uninjured hand to strike Satanael squarely in the face. Her face once again dissolved into shadow, but the star stopped in place, hovering where her head should have been.

“Oh-hoooo no. Starfield!” Lacey said, before ducking for cover with Rayse.

A field of explosions erupted from the singular star, blanketing the skies in white. Aleph had to deliberately turn away from the explosions to land, spying his two students on the ground as they admired the continuous eruptions of magic power.

“Ah. Master!” Lacey waved in relief as he came down. They looked fine, far better than anybody who had clashed multiple times with a demon lord, let alone got the better of one. Rayse stood stoically, hands gripped tightly to his broken spear as if expecting Satanael to pop out and continue her assault. Lacey seemed shaken and pale, as consecutive massive spells had predictably left her drained. Still, there was no indication of her wanting to bow out of the fight. Her eyes twitched towards Rayse every once in a while, though, showing that she had something on her mind other than her condition. Aleph followed her gaze back towards her lover, taking a while to see what got her so unnerved.

Rayse stood there valiantly, eerily still. He looked forward, even though what he had his guard up against was somewhere above. It was like he stopped at some point in the battle, like were a robot that was stopped mid motion.

“Rayse? What’s wrong?”

No answer came. As his sense of foreboding heightened, Aleph tried to step towards his students. He felt it clearly now; The arrival of a power far beyond anyone in this world. 

Shhhhhh. But the abyss could no longer be held back. A burst of energy sprouted forth from his student, engulfing them in a blue light that rivalled the explosion of stars up above. Aleph tried braving the flow of power, desperate to get to his students, but was swept away in an explosion of black.