2301 Glimmer of Hope (Part 1)

Theseus clenched his fists in frustration, but he didn't move.

Meanwhile, Lith was paralyzed by uncertainty as well.

He knew that getting away from the Shadow Dragon was the smartest thing he could do but his body refused to obey.

Even though they didn't know each other very well, Zoreth was the closest thing to an older sibling Lith had ever had. She had protected him ever since their first meeting, when the Council had put him on trial just for existing.

Back then she knew nothing but his name and that he carried Dragon blood, but it had been enough for Zoreth to call him little brother and stand by his side. She had helped him to protect his family from Night.

She had shared with Lith all the knowledge about Chaos and Origin Flames she had.

Zoreth had introduced him to Sinmara and accompanied him in Verendi. During the trip, she had always looked after Lith and taught him the customs of the unknown continent.

She had helped him to retrieve the Mouth of Menadion from the local Awakened Council and even fought for him against her fellow members of the Organization. When the rest of his so-called siblings from the Dragon and Phoenix bloodlines had turned their back on him, Zoreth had volunteered to help him rescue Phloria.

Even then, she had put him first, warning Lith of the dangers that associating himself in public with an Eldritch would imply. The only reason Zoreth was there that day was him.

'This isn't her battle but mine.' Lith's hand clenched Double Edge's hilt. 'The Unwavering Loyalty array is ravaging her mind yet the only thing Zoreth is worried about is my safety.

'She didn't beg me to save her but to save myself. I'll be damned before I let Thrud take someone else from me. I'll save Zoreth now and then Phloria. I'm not going to lose someone ever again.'

The Shadow Dragon roared her challenge and charged at the Tiamat, her Sky Piercer brimming with Chaos energy.

The Tiamat stood still until the last second before stepping aside with a small flap of his wings and using War to bind the enchanted claws.

Zoreth was over 35 meters (115') tall whereas he was just 25 meters (82') tall.

The weight gap between them measured tons and she had two cores instead of one. Her lips curled in annoyance at his hubris while her mind inwardly screamed in an attempt to stop her own arm.

Sky Piercer clashed against Double Edge, the Chaos eating at the Adamant as the claws extended forward, aiming at Lith's head, lungs, and heart at the same time.

Much to Zoreth's surprise, Chaos was met by light which turned it into darkness and by darkness of Lith's own. The two energies fought on par, just like their arms. Lith let Sky Piercer extend, keeping War close to the claws' tips to maximize the leverage.

Then, he pushed the claws aside and plunged the angry blade right into her chest.

'Thank the gods! I had forgotten that Lith hasn't used Nelia's Life Maelstrom.' Zoreth inwardly sighed in relief. 'It should be enough to fight me on equal footing yet it's still stupid of him. What does he hope to achieve?'

"Wake up, big sister! Fight the array with me." Lith knew that killing a troll was hard just like he knew War's powers like the back of his hand.

The Counter Flow ability hijacked the mana of the Golden Griffon, fighting its effect in a tug of war.

"Nice trick." Zoreth managed to say while keeping herself still. "Yet I don't think it will work."

"Can you move away?" Lith asked.

"No. It's taking sheer willpower just to disobey. Watch out!" Zoreth pushed Lith away before a blast of energy turned him into dust.

"That's not nice." Hystar said. "I felt a disturbance in my array, but it's nothing much. Your flimsy sword can't compare to an academy, Verhen!"

Lith inwardly cursed and smiled at the same time.

On the one hand, Hystar was right. The difference in output between the two artifacts was like heaven and earth. On the other hand, the fact that War's abilities worked gave him hope to rescue Phloria after luring her away from the academy.

Unbeknownst to him, it also gave his allies the final piece of the puzzle they needed.

"Did you see that?" Nandi said.

"Yeah, the biggest problem is solved. The main problem still remains, though. How do we pull them out of there?" Theseus asked.

"Leave that to me." The Minotaur started to keep the world energy he collected to himself. "Just make sure that no one dies until I'm ready."

'Run, Solus. Run!' Bytra moved so fast that even with Life Maelstrom, all Solus could see was a black-and-white blur.

She used Full Guard to perceive the Raiju the moment she entered the spell's area of effect and activate the Spirit Barrier of the Voidwalker armor, yet it wasn't enough.

The barrier didn't have the time to fully form when the Davross' coated horn pierced through and hit Solus with the energy of a freight train. Despite her superior mass Solus was sent spinning and a deep gash opened in her armor.

The next strike would come before she managed to readjust her footing, making her feel like a pinball stuck between bumpers. The only time she managed to block, Solus lost her grip on the Fury.

Only thanks to the spell that bound it to her did she manage to keep the hammer from flying away.

'Why didn't you run when I begged you?' Bytra asked amid tears.

'Because I'm a snail compared to you and I didn't want to be impaled in the back again!' Solus was too torn between worry and fear to worry about the Raiju's feelings.

Those words struck a chord deep inside Bytra that allowed her to make one of her muscles spasm. It was supposed to be just a twitch, but at her speed, it was enough to make her miss her footing and tumble like an avalanche.

Solus realized what had happened and inwardly thanked the Raiju before flying away as fast as she could.

'No matter how strong the Golden Griffon is, the array must have a limited range. If I manage to escape it, the effects of the slave spell should fade as fast as they took root.' She thought while focusing the Life Maelstrom in her flight spell.

Alas, the Eldritch's body recovered quickly and she resumed the chase even more quickly. Bytra's cores exceeded the bright violet whereas Solus had just a blue core. Even with its power increased tenfold by the silver lightning, the gap was still abyssal.

The Raiju caught her less than a second later, slamming her out of the sky with a single blow of the Absolution. Solus had just crashed onto the ground when Full Guard warned her of the impending threat.

The horn was coming down fast and it was aimed at her heart.

Panic gave both of them strength, allowing Bytra to wrestle against the slave spell and slow herself while giving Solus the time to react and grab the horn with both hands.