Dragonfall. (Eris | Elyx | Hera | Ardere - 100y)

For a few moments, the world went blank. Ardere did not notice the giant reveal of Eris being present, nor did he hear Elyx's words. Instead, his hair began to flicker as the power build up in his body was released. Each individual magic seal formed into one massive energy surge. After the beast's attack, the swirling wind and death magic dissipated. Acnologia turned around, only to be met with a gargantuan blast of swirling black flames. The attack unleashed was so powerful, that it would shake the ground beneath them, causing the waves to crash even more erratically than before. The Dragon King attempted to counter the blast with a roar of his own, but the two beams only clashed for a mere moment, boiling the water under the mages. As some of the water turned to steam, the fire mage combined his attack with crash magic, turning the flames into a bright gold, sparkling and crackling as it overpowered the dragon's attack, smashing into his zombie-like body. His already rotten flesh began to wither away, as the cartilage between his wings was incinerated. The dragon's eyes went white as the attack legitimately sent him tumbling backwards. For once, the dragon did not stand still, but fell like the demon he was. Take that you son of a bitch! Unfortunately, as the attack fired, Ardere's arm was utterly destroyed. Falling towards the sea, he crashed like a meteor, causing water to disperse around him. The two kings floating in the ocean, it took several moments before either arose, maimed and half out of breath.

As the Golden Phoenix guild master battled with the army of skeletons Eris left in her wake, the Fire King engaged the zombie-like Acnologia. Ardere knew the dragon was already done for, but he could still cause damage even as a zombie. He had to be stopped, and soon. Sadly, the samurai only had a few more minutes of energy left, and he was without the use of his dominant arm. While he was very dexterous, it was going to be quite strange fighting without the use of his right arm. Standing up in the now shallow water, he gripped his sword tight. Holding it out to the side, it was engulfed in flames as he summoned his flame blade over it. Ifrit's blade! Come forth! I command you! Clarent was now engulfed in black flames as the runes engraved into the blade began to glow. He was very low on mana, but enough remained to do what he needed to. I'll show you the power of the Hydra, Dragon King. Hydra's Fang! Summoning forth his guild's sword over the flaming Clarent, a bright light flashed for a moment, blinding the zombie dragon, prompting him to screech in pain and thrash. Now, in the Fire King's hand, was a white blade, made of pure holy energy, one of his three guild spells. But around the blade, was two swirling black flames. This would drain his magic, but he still had some energy left. Just drawing the blade back unleashed a powerful amount of energy that would cause some of the most experienced mages to tremble. It's time to end this, beast. Not only did he have massive power boosts, the sword in his hand specifically was made to slay undead and demons, or anything dark of the like. Today, the Dragon King was going to fall, and at his hands, at least physically.

The two forces clashed, as Ardere and Acnologia stared one another in the eye, before dashing at each other. The dragon struck several blows against the samurai, but they were countered by the holy and unholy blade. Slashing open the beast's chest, light began to pour out of his body as his flesh began to shed and fall apart. The beast appeared to be done for, and a smile crossed the brown haired man's lips. But then, the truth became apparent. Acnologia still stood, as a member of the undead, but instead, in his human form. His long white hair had begun to fall out, and his eyes were a soulless white. And the tattoos that littered his body began to glow a bright blue, as his power and speed increased. Trembling for a moment, the guild master quickly regained his strength and clutched the blade he now would refer to as Finis, which meant The End. And god-willing, his sword would be the end of the fight. Taking a deep breath, he took a fighting stance, as the humanoid Acnologia charged him.

Blood dripped down Ardere's arm, trickling down to the handle of his blade. The swirling black flames flickered around his glowing white sword of justice. The fire mage breathed heavily, as he stared Acnologia in the eyes. The Dragon King growled, his flesh rotten and his skin glowing a deep blue. The ground beneath the two mages slowly withered away, from the sheer destructive power they wielded. Only one word was uttered from the zombie's mouth, and it was only audible to the samurai. Death! It was gargled and drawn out, but the brown haired man knew the word that had been spoken to him. Energy began to swirl around into a small sphere, inside the beast's mouth. The magica being charged was so powerful, that the shallow water around them began to crash and break, even causing the mage's hair to flicker. His eyes widened, as the dragon moved so fast, that it appeared he was teleporting. Behind the samurai, he expelled a roar large enough to decimate a town. Turning quickly, he mustered the last bit of strength he possessed, to lift the sword upwards, slicing the attack in half. The combined power of his three blades was enough to slash straight through the attack, splitting it into two pieces. The beam that blew right past him was hot enough to break most of his armor, as it shattered, falling into what remained of the sea they stood in. The skeleton army was also shattered, as Elyx attacked them as well. It was an odd feeling. Ardere did not quite know what people truly meant by life flashing by one's eyes. But now, he knew. His entire life flashed in a mere moment. Then, the crown above his head comprised of flames began to aggressively flicker, as the fire in his eyes burst like a volcano.

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU'RE FUCKING WITH, YOU FALSE KING?! Lifting his blade up, among the smoke and energy, he sliced off one of Acnologia's arms, the power from the blade incinerating the fallen arm, turning it to ash. He could not regenerate this wound, as the sword was anti-undead. Take that. This is for my friends, and for all of Earthland. I will rid this world of you. Unleashing a barrage of strikes, the zombie dragon proceeded to deflect them with his remaining hand, covered in a thick bright blue energy, like a dragon's claw. It's gonna take more than that. The men and women had been fighting for so long, that the sun had begun to fall without them even noticing, and the moon began to show. Holding up the moon amulet he possessed to the sky, his magic power regenerated to one hundred percent, as a bright light blinded the dragon. Letting out a battle cry, Ardere screamed at the top of his lungs. He was covered in bruises and cuts, his elemental body so drained that he could not even utilize it. The two stood, drained and angered. As the moon began to shine brighter, the darker it got, they continued to exchange blows. The Fire King was fighting with his last movements. Barely possessing any health, it was imperative he continued the good fight, and fought as hard as he could. Slamming the tip of his blade into the chest of his enemy, a massive black fire drill ripped apart the rotten flesh, and sent the undead beast tumbling backwards. Running forward, using the smoke and flame to his advantage, he slammed his fist into the dragon, utilizing his crash and flame god slaying magic, the ground beneath them shattered, forming a gargantuan crater, as chunks of earth raised and scattered. The samurai was unleashing a barrage of attacks onto the dragon, but the zombie would not die. He was missing an arm, and suffered a rather large hole in his chest, but still stood, scratching the samurai every change he got. WHY WONT YOU DIE! Slashing and punching, tears and blood dripped down onto the shattered ground, as the dragon merely smiled and coughed up black liquids. Lifting up the blade known as Finis, he charged up a massive amount of flaming energy within the blade, utilizing another ability that heated up Clarent, but left it vulnerable to damage. Bringing down his blade, it appeared as if he would strike the final blow, but the undead dragon king caught the blade between his hands. The ground beneath them continued to break, as their strength clashed. Two titans fought, but if the Fire King did not finish him, both would die here today.

The two forces continued to clash, as the ground and the water beneath them was withering away. Ardere groaned heavily as he used all of his strength, but it was not enough. Acnologia outclassed him in sheer strength, but one thing that no one outclassed the samurai in, was fire power. He used up all of the remaining magic he gained from the moon amulet, and blasted it from his back and feet. His eyes were a pure black, just like the flickering flames that his body summoned. The dragon and the samurai were both locked in the final move of the fight, this would decide it all. It appeared as if the beast would win, but the fire propelling the brown haired mage began to overtake his enemy. Normally, he would have had thoughts of his daughter, or his guild that fueled his strength. But today, there was no friendship or family cliche that caused him to win this battle, it was his resolve as a warrior. The so called Dragon King was not a warrior, or even a soldier, but a murderer. And when a murderer was face to face with one of the most well trained warriors, it was obvious who would win when it came down to it. The last Kasai was one of the most powerful warriors that Ishval had ever seen. He did not know this himself, but he may have been one of the most pure that existed. Regardless of what he knew, it was what caused him to win. His love for his family and guild gave him power, but his resolve was what made him who he was today. Every time he was beat down, he got back up. He did not run, he did not hide. Ardere Kasai was still alive because when it came down to it; he survived. And today, he survived. Acnologia was sliced clean in half with a blade fueled by sheer honor and resolve, two things he knew nothing of. Hate and evil lost, and for once, the Fire King had won completely, no strings attached. None of his loved ones died, his enemy did not rise up again to combat him, he merely won.

After he struck down the former Dragon King, his crown disappeared, and the blade in his hands returned to normal. Standing there for a moment, he basked in the moonlight before collapsing and falling into unconsciousness. The zombie's body disintegrated, as the wind carried the ashes away, scattering them across the sea. Ardere won. His arm was destroyed, his mana drained, and he was out of all energy. It would likely take weeks to recover from his injured, but the Fire King fell into unconsciousness with a wide smile on his face. He could return home and make his daughter as well as his guild proud to be led by him. Everything he did, he did for those he cared about. And for the first time in a while, he had truly succeeded in making a safer world for them. But as he lay there unconscious, in the distance a bird soared towards his location. It had taken this bird all day to figure out his whereabouts, but she had accomplished such. The large phoenix landed around the samurai, and let out a sigh. Why are you always finding new ways to hurt yourself? It was Ember Celica, his companion. She had been his phoenix for years, trying to repay his life debt that she owed him for what he did at Mt Hakobe all those years ago. And today, she had repaid that debt in full by picking him up, and carrying him home to see his family. She took to the skies, alerting Elyx of her goal, and picked up the young Hera along the way. Dropping the young dragon slayer at her guild, she took to the sky once again. Every now and then, Ardere faded to consciousness, feeling the air flow across his skin. He could not feel anything other than air rushing past him, and it felt good. Blood and sweat dripped down from his body, and he went back to sleep.

During his sleep, he had a dream about being with Malva and Sayrn once again, as a family. It was a good dream, and as he lay there in the infirmary, a smile crossed his pale lips the entire time. When he awoke, he was surrounded by several of his guild mates, as well as his phoenix companion and his pet red panda. The small panda curled up across his neck, and the guild members embraced him. Hey guys, easy with the hugs. I'm still sore. How long was I out? Rubbing his head, the phoenix promptly answered his question. Three days. His eyes widened, and he attempted to get up, but pain shot through his entire body, prompting him to lay back down. Might not wanna do that, you're gonna be here a couple of weeks. Damn, the fire mage though. Sighing heavily, he nodded. It appeared he was bed ridden for the time being, and that would make him quite antsy, but if it meant he would heal, then it was worth it. Looking at his right arm, it had grown back some, but his hand was not even slightly regenerated. The Incineration Cannon was truly a powerful spell for him to have done such extensive damage to himself. It was unfortunate that he had to do so, but he had accomplished wonders with it. Letting out another sigh, he let himself get some rest, surrounded by those he loved. It had been a long day the day he fought Acnologia, and he needed rest for weeks. Chuckling a bit, he slowly faded into a deep sleep once again. His guild members let him be, to get some rest, and they even left some rice pudding, which they knew he loved. A bottle of warm sake was also left. Even roses from some were left. It took slaying the Dragon King to be reminded how much his people actually loved him, but it was worth it. He had forgotten how lucky he was to have so many people who cared about him, but from now on he would not take that for granted. The guild of Infinity Hydra was going to know he loved them, and Fiore was going to know how hard he fought for them. The fame did not matter, but it was important the people knew they could count on him, for he was the Fire King. And in his unconscious state, Hephaestus watched over him, shaking his head at how battered he had made himself, but had proved even false gods would be slain by him.