A pile of bodies lay littered around the crystal field while the sound of fighting rang out.

“We have to kill him now! If you die in this realm you’ll be lost forever!” A God noticed that the growing pile of corpses didn’t disappear which usually happened if a God couldn’t sustain their physical form.

There were no survivors among the first wave of attackers and their deaths brought Ira a brief period of rest. His shadowy visage remained standing, although his arms hung at his sides as if they were weighing him down.

“Attack now!” Xandes rushed forward and thrust the Origin Blade but only hit the crystallized ground as Ira leaped away.

“Stop him!”

“Don’t let him isolate you!”

“Avoid his attacks and group up!”

The shouts came too late for one God who had his chest ripped open by Ira. His divinity was plundered in front of his eyes but instead of a marble, it was more like a tiny bead.

Ira pinched his fingers together and lifted the bead into the air before dropping it into his mouth. It wasn’t enough to restore him to his previous state, but it helped him endure. The war the Gods waged on Ira became one of attrition.

“Don’t run from me, Avarus!” Xandes became enraged and kicked off the ground, sending shards of crystals flying.

Hundreds of other Gods followed behind him, shooting toward Ira who was busy evading them.

Their bodies became a blur as they moved with speed and agility that couldn’t be found in Mortals. Even with their Divine Power expended, most of the Gods managed to maintain their physical prowess.

Ira found himself cut off as the Gods tightened their formation around him. He let out a faint and eerie laugh before rushing toward the closest God.

The God was a stout old man with pale skin. He grunted heavily before throwing a punch toward Ira who narrowly avoided it.

“Ahk!” The God let out a strange cry as Ira’s claws were driven into his side. “Not...so...fast!”

He grabbed Ira with both his arms and held him tightly.

“Now! Kill him!”

The formation parted and a few Gods channeling divine spells could be seen aiming at Ira.

“No!” Xandes cut apart the incoming projectiles. “We will capture him!”

With the attack gone wrong, Ira bit down on the stout God’s neck and ripped it open before getting free.

“You’ve gone mad, Xandes! The Avarus dies now!” A Goddess picked up the longest crystal shard she could find and ran her fingers over it before revealing a crystal javelin.

“He must be captured!” Xandes brandished his sword. “If you cannot understand that, then so be it!”

“This is not the time for this! We must-” A God who was the most reasonable was forced to shut his mouth when he felt a claw wrapped around his throat.

“Shhh,” Ira whispered before snapping the God’s neck.

Unfortunately, Ira’s actions brought clarity to Xandes and the javelin wielding Goddess.

“The only way we remove the effects of the black fire is to capture him. If we kill him who is to say that the flames will go out?” Xandes used a practical approach to get through to the Goddess.

“...Fine, but if capturing him appears too difficult we kill him. There will be no discussion if that time comes.”

Xandes nodded at her ultimatum but it was unknown if he would truly follow through with it.

The two turned their sight back to Ira who was easily moving through the Gods. It wasn’t to say they didn’t land any attacks. At some point, they began using the crystal shards as weapons and used them to fight against Ira.

“He’s slowing down!” A God shouted as he stabbed a shard into Ira’s back.

Ira twisted his body and struck the God with a huge amount of force. He let out a low growl and became more aggressive soon after.

The Gods pressed forward and everything became obscured. Ira couldn’t be seen from outside the wave of Gods but a few bodies would sail far outside the area of the battle or a painful cry would be heard which signaled he hadn't fallen yet.

Somewhere in the chaos, Xandes slipped through unnoticed. He used the other Gods to hide him from sight as he advanced forward. It was hard to keep track of Ira as the focus of the battle would shift with wherever he appeared next, but he steadily approached.

Ira lifted a God by his arms and pulled him apart before suddenly throwing his body backward to avoid an attack.

Xandes’ blade cut through one of Ira’s arms but didn’t manage to leave a fatal wound.

“You're quick!” Xandes said regretfully.

Ira stared at Xandes as he drove his hand through another God and stole a bead of divinity. After consuming it, his limb expelled black mist and a new arm appeared.

“...You,” Ira mumbled before charging at Xandes.

Xandes raised his sword and defended against a pair of black claws, causing sparks to soar into the air.

“Everything you have will be mine, Avarus.” Xandes gnashed his teeth and branished the origin blade.

The two fell into a strange rhythm with Ira attacking and Xandes defending. The remaining Gods found themselves still as there was no opportunity to interfere.

Ira found no way to get past Xandes sword so he teleported behind his opponent. Xandes acted quickly as Ira disappeared, twisting his body to avoid the blow. Ira’s claws scratched the surface of the Origin Armor, just where Xandes’ heart would be but it caused no real damage. The latter had no time to even feel grateful for the armor as Ira’s attacks resumed, but this time Xandes began to match Ira, striking with his sword at every opportunity.

Their fight took them further and further away from the Gods who could only watch nervously. All of Ira’s attacks landed right above Xandes heart while Xandes actually managed to strike Ira a few times. It appeared as Xandes was gaining the upper hand as each time his sword move it stripped away chunks of black mist from Ira’s body. And after sustaining too many wounds, only Ira’s hands remained covered in a layer of black mist. The Gods rejoiced as Ira’s human form meant he was exposed to even more danger and the thought of capturing him wasn’t too far off.

Then, without warning, Ira struck Xandes helmet with his fist and sent the God sliding away while just barely managing to stay upright.

“Ah!” Xandes managed to let out a single shout before Ira was in front of him, sending another strike toward hin.

Xandes let out a loud and incoherent exclamation as he drove his sword into Ira’s abdomen. At the same time, Ira slammed his fist against the cracked surface of Xandes’ armor. The armor completely shattered, allowing Ira’s hand to tear into Xandes’ chest.

“Avarus!” Xandes gnashed his teeth together and grabbed for the arm buried in his chest with one hand while the other attempted to cleave Ira in half with the origin blade.

Both of them stood locked together in a stalemate. Ira met Xandes’ crazed stare and smiled, letting black blood spill from his mouth.

“Do you believe you will survive this, Avarus?” Xandes tightened his grip on Ira’s hand to prevent his divinity from being removed.

“I do.” Ira made sure Xandes couldn’t move the origin blade any further. He managed to stop it before his spine was cut away but if he slipped up even slightly, he’d be cut in two.

“But you?” Ira let out a harsh laugh, spitting the dark blood onto Xandes’ face. “I'll make sure you don't live past this.”

“You and your kind...Don't you realize that they were too dangerous to live in the Divine Realm! Look at the destruction you brought!” Xandes said in a haggard voice. He took a step forward forced more ink-colored blood poured from Ira’s wounds.

“You forced me to do this with your schemes and plots, so spare me the explanation, will you?”

Ira raised his head and looked at the sky above. The star covered sky of the Divine Realm was a sight to behold but further up, there was the Origin Realm, a beautiful gathering of conflicting energies that resembled storm clouds. Ira stared at the it listlessly, thinking of the empty sky, with the exception of the Red Moon, his children would see.

“Wouldn’t it be nice if you all could see a sky like that?” Ira muttered in a barely audible voice.

“Xandes! Should we attack?!”

The surviving Gods all prepared to take Ira’s life as soon as the order was given.

“No! I have this under control!” As if demonstrating the truth of his words, Xandes twisted the sword buried in Ira’s abdomen before advancing another step.

Ira’s body flinched and more black blood came leaking from his mouth. His skin seemed paler as if his vitality was being drained away and his eyes seemed hollow, but a thin smile decorated his face.

“This is hard...you know?” Ira spoke aloud.

The Gods remained silent but were full of tension.

“Xandes?”

“I have him where I want him! Do not interfere!” Xandes barked.

“If I gave everything up I could’ve finished this long ago, but it’s just too much to ask.” Ira’s smile grew deeper as he thought of his family.

“Quiet, Avarus!” Xandes took another step and pushed more of the blade through Ira’s flesh.

“...I think I can manage killing you here...It’s what comes after this that’s bothering me.”

“I think he’s gone mad.”

“Can you hear me?!” Ira shouted at the sky. “You want me to die here, don’t you?!”

Xandes tried to step forward again, but he found that Ira didn’t budge in the slightest.

“If you that’s what you what then you’re going to be disappointed!” Ira’s voice rose higher while the space around him began to lightly vibrate.

As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled his head back and slammed it against Xandes’ helmet, causing the latter to stumble for a split second. It was just long enough for Ira to rip out Xandes’ divinity.

“Kill! Kill him now-”

The Gods showed an immediate reaction but Ira and Xandes vanished from sight, leaving a puff of black mist behind.

Right after they disappeared, a loud hum began to spread over the entire Divine Realm, puzzling its inhabitants. And though they remained unaware, the same sound could be heard throughout the Mortal Realm.