Chapter 393: The Price of Light

Seraphina’s wings snapped open in a wide arc, light blooming from the feathers until the air itself seemed to catch fire. The gathered radiance condensed along her sword until it took the form of nothing but a vertical scar of white-hot judgment.

She drove it into the ground.

The moment her fingers left the hilt, a sphere of flame shot outward in all directions, faster than most present could follow. Stones vaporized in its path. Nephilim caught in the leading edge simply ceased to be. Those who stood too close to the explosion found themselves hurled backward in smoldering heaps. Cain ’s front line was shattered, his thralls turned to ash by the shockwave.

Cain himself took the light in the chest and across his arms, his flesh peeling in places as a bestial snarl tore from his throat. He planted his feet and charged forward regardless, claws carving trenches in the scorched earth. Seth stumbled but did not fall, raising his uninjured arm to shield his face from the flying debris. The curse branded across his soul flared to life in response, as did the crimson magic shielding Mabel ’s body. Her nose and eyes bled freely as she held the barrier up for long enough for the brunt of the attack to pass over her.

When the light finally faded, the center of the plain resembled a pitted wasteland.

Seraphina stood at its middle, gasping, her wings twitching feebly in her grip. The price had been high but she paid it willingly. The enemy formation had been broken and she intended to exploit the weakness while it lasted.

"Now!" she barked to the few of her host that had survived the blast, pressing forward while the enemy reorganized. "Press them while they are vulnerable!"

Cain was the first to meet her charge.

The elder progeny threw himself at her through the crater, his claws slicing the air. Seraphina met his attack with a vertical slash, cutting neatly across his abdomen. Black blood sprayed from the wound but he paid it no mind, ramming into her with enough force that the two of them skidded across the scorched earth. Seth brought his own attack to bear from the opposite direction, his silver blade flashing in tight, efficient arcs. Mabel was right behind him, her hands already wreathed in blood-red energy when Seraphina barely had time to raise her wings before the combined force of her three attackers bowled her over.

Cain ’s claws raked across her left wing, his weight driving her downward. Seth ’s blade found the gap in her side armor, tearing through her ribs with frightening ease. Mabel ’s beam struck her square in the chest, lifting her off the ground for a brief moment before she landed heavily on her backside. Seraphina rolled with the force, coming up on one knee before retaliating with a burst of light that sent all three of her attackers skidding back.

Her enemies wasted no time in exploiting the opening.

The silver-haired elder who had nearly transformed during the earlier fight threw himself at the nearest nephilim, completing the transformation this time. His body lengthened and thickened, muscles bunching beneath his skin until his fangs were visible over a wide, brutish muzzle. He drove into the nearest group, his bare hands tearing through their formation with frightening ease, decapitating one and wrenching off another’s wings. One of the enemy warriors managed to drive a spear of light into the creature’s side but he simply grabbed the weapon, snapping it in half before crushing the would-be assassin’s skull in his massive fist.

A lithe, quick progeny, younger and female, darted between the combatants, her short black weapons gleaming. Every wound she delivered resisted healing, the magical energy in her blades keeping the light from mending the torn flesh. She slashed one opponent’s hamstring and barely had time to roll aside before the next tried to run her through. She came up behind him and drove both of her blades up under his chin, lifting him clean off his feet before dropping him to the ground.

One of the medium-ranked progenies, bulkier and less elegant than his counterparts but just as determined, pushed forward too far. Two of the surviving nephilim managed to drive their spears of light into him at the same time, the magical energy in them burning through his lesser body. He collapsed to his knees but was still alive, his eyes wide with determination. Another spear of light drove into his shoulder, pinning him to the ground. He gave a final, gurgling cry before going still, his dark blood flowing freely over the earth. Cain ’s head snapped toward the sound of his death cry but he could not follow through, his efforts stalled by Seraphina .

Even the realm itself seemed to push back against the combatants.

Eamon stood near the edge of the battlefield, his hands outstretched. Lines of power flared from his palms, etching erratic patterns across the false sky before vanishing. Sweat clung to his forehead, his fingers twitching as he fed more of his power into the construct. The very air vibrated with the effort, the ground itself shifting uneasily beneath the combatants. The realm was not built to last, to withstand such constant pressure.

Seraphina knew this as well.

She could feel the strain in the very air around her and it made her hesitate, even as Cain ’, Seth ’, and Mabel renewed their assault. Every blow sent her reeling, her body slowing with each passing moment. Golden blood slicked her arms, her wings, one of them bent at an odd angle. Mabel ’s voice cut through the fray, steady and unyielding.

"You wanted the old world back so badly you were willing to burn this one for it. Look at the cost."

Seraphina forced herself to her feet, answering with a final blast of light that sent all three of her attackers skidding back.

"I will not suffer corruption," she said, her voice hoarse. "Not from you. Not from him. Not from the Rebel who takes his throne on stolen bones."

Cain wiped the blood from his mouth, a wicked grin splitting his face. "Then you die here. Just as everyone else who could not adapt will."

The enemy advance stalled, their formation broken. Seraphina ’s remaining host pushed forward, their initial numbers overwhelming but their losses telling. The progenies continued to carve through the nephilim ranks, their efforts slowed only by the combined power of their foes. Eamon ’s realm groaned and shuddered, the false sky cracking.

The entire battlefield paused for the briefest of moments.

Far outside the confines of the artificial realm, in a place of ancient stone and older shadows, a man who had long since ceased to be anything but a shadow himself opened his eyes.

Azazel .

He felt the strain in the realm like a distant earthquake, the pulse of fading light from Seraphina and the determination in Cain ’s attacks. He felt the hesitation in the new god’s efforts to keep the realm intact. He smiled, a slow, satisfied expression.

Some wars were far too interesting to be left to the current participants.

He rose to his feet.

Back in the center of the battlefield, Seraphina straightened, her sword still in hand. Golden blood ran from the weapon’s tip as she stood, her wings folding tightly against her back. Cain , Seth , and Mabel surged forward, weapons raised. Their progenies circled the fray, their efforts undiminished. Eamon ’s realm trembled and cracked.

The price of light had been paid in full.

And Azazel was most decidedly not satisfied with the terms.