Chapter Eighteen: The Final Battle

“To the left!” I scream as we rush towards the Dark Lord who gleams at us from his throne.

“Got it!” Nova says, punching through a Grimgar Ex. I can see their movements before they attack, as if the fight with Wundah increased my fighting perception greatly.

“Barrier!” I block a battle axe as Juzo unleashes a deadly combo.

“Aghhh! Take this!” He chops three into pieces and they turn into black sand.

“Move! Super Air Cannon Volley!” The three of us dive backwards as Eva unleashes a vicious volley that tears through the Grimgar, leaving the Dark Lord Exposed.

“Nova don't!” I rush to her arm and push her back she she tries to activate the ring.

“Reflection Barrier!” The Dark Lord says, raising a glowing green barrier.

“Don't touch it!” Juzo stops his attack inches away from it, “Barrier Needle!” I shoot a small needle that cracks the barrier, “Nova Flame Barrage!”

“Grand Void Beams!” The Dark Lord yells, snapping his finger. On every surface of the hall a spell circle is glowing bright violet. I can't see the next move.

“Ta!” Nova punches the floor beneath us making a huge hole but the spell circle remains and glows brightly. I quickly unstrap my arm armor.

“Nova block the top! Juzo pick me up and use me to block bottom! Eva hold us in the air please!” I toss my armor to Nova.

“Got it!” She holds it in front of the spell circle.

“Gotcha!” Juzo picks me up and holds me over the circle.

“I'll use my huge muscles to hold you guys!” Eva balances Nova with one arm and holds Juzo with the other as the hall fills with beams of energy. The small area that we block is big enough for us to avoid the attack. The beams surge for a long time and then disappear.

“I'm done playing with you fools!” The Dark Lord holds his hand out towards us, “Mind Control!” We move to dodge but nothing happens, “Mind Control! Mind Control!” He keeps yelling as nothing happens, “Why isn't it working! I had Nekra make sure to command Umbra to give his clone orders to make you wear two Nethershard earrings each! They can only be unequipped by Divine Heroes!”

I reach towards my ears but all that remains is empty holes, “It must've been the guys when they knocked us unconscious!” Juzo yells feeling for his earrings.

“They provoked a fight on purpose just to help us out huh! Agh what cool people!” Nova smiles and cracks her knuckles.

“They helped us level up too! I want to repay them one day! Prepare yourself Dark Lord we're going to wreck you!” Eva yells and clutches her staff, “Agility! Defense! Attack! Stamina! Mana Pool!” She buffs the four of us.

“Thank you Wundah and guys for looking out for us. Rounds on me all night when this is over!” I step to the left to avoid a punch from a Grimgar who has four arms and glowing purple energy emanating from his body. I kick high with both feet and he blocks the punch as Nova punches at the same time with flames covering her fist. It melts straight through his body.

“Meteor Barrage!” She leaps into the air and shoots ten massive meteors that rush across the hall at the Dark Lord who opens his mouth.

“Beam!” A ball of energy appears in front of his mouth and from it a surge of energy rips though the meteors but that was just a distraction.

“Tornado!” Eva screams and above the Dark Lord a powerful tornado spawns and surrounds him but his feet stay planted in the ground.

“It seems we are at a standstill, I will cut you to pieces instead!” The Dark Lord grabs his Greatsword, the same sword Clone Umbra had and swings it, the tornado instantly disappearing, “Summon Hydra!” A massive black seven headed hydra appears behind Juzo and I.

“We got this!” Nova yells, dodging acid, ice, fire, wind, dark energy, mud mixed with red electricity and bright blue lightning beams surging from their mouths as the hydra roars.

“Air Cannon!” Eva punches a hole through the Hydra but it instantly heals. I turn my focus to the Dark Lord, who is clashing swords with Juzo who is in his Transformation state. I rush in and see my opportunity, Juzo slashes from the top while I slash sideways and the Dark Lord has to block both, I quickly kick his left thigh as Juzo punches his chin. Our swings were just bluffs for the counter attack. The Dark Lord is sent flying into the wall. Juzo picks up his Greatsword and throws his across the room. It lodges into the Hydra.

“Thanks for the new sword. This didn't belong to you in the first place so I don't want to hear you pouting.” He lets out a big laugh.

“You will regret underestimating me! Limiter Removal! Grand Demonic Transformation! World Calamity!” There is a bright violet flash like that of a Flashbang. The towering muscular Dark Lord's body becomes even bigger, expanding to the point where his armor shatters as he morphs into a towering black humanoid dragon the size of those titans Eva fought, Juzo and I stare up at him as he roars, as the roof is destroyed and sent flying into the distance, as he spreads his wings. A beam of black energy surges from around his body into the bright-blue sky. It reaches as far as the eye can see and then explodes, spreading and blocking out the sun and every inch of blue. The world is shrouded in darkness. The purple runes along the Dark Lord's body glow and surge with power.

“Woah look at that big boy!” Nova holds Juzo's Greatsword on her fingertip, “I'll give this back later Juzo thanks for the help!”

“You can keep it! How'd you beat that Hydra?” Juzo stares up above at the towering beast.

“She was so cool! You should've seen her!” Eva yells enthusiastically.

“I chopped it into dust! Muahahaha!” Her eyes gleam with fire, “Can't regenerate if there's nothing to regenerate!”

“Nice! This guy is going to be hard to take down, the dark energy is giving him unlimited mana! Final Step Dragon Slayer Focus Slice! It will take a long time to charge!” I say, planting my feet and holding my sword steady, surging as much mana as I possibly can into this attack.

“We got it covered! Transformation!” Juzo says, flying along the Dark Lord's leg while digging his Greatsword deep into the skin.

“I'll be back!” Nova rushes to fight, shooting twenty enormous meteors and following up with a beam of energy. The Dark Lord roars and shoots a coin sized ball of dark energy at Juzo that he quickly dodges. It flies into the distant pavement and explodes with dark energy twice the impact and range of Nova's Supernova attack.

“Wind Spirit! This should hold for a while, just focus and let us take care of it Leader!” Eva shoots a smile and flies off, shooting Air Cannon into the Dark Lord's face. They force him to follow them away from me, I breathe slowly, channeling my mana as calmly and slowly as I can.

“Look out!” Juzo pushes Nova away as a long black spike crashes down from the sky and goes through his left arm.

“Wind Spirit!” Eva yells, causing Juzo to fall through the spike and protecting the three of them from an onslaught of spikes falling from the sky, “Heal!” He's back to normal.

“Thanks Juzo! We have to get away from these!” Nova yells, the endless hail of spikes continue to fall as the Dark Lord shoots a beam from his mouth.

“There!” I swing my sword and a enormous crescent shaped beam of white energy cuts the Dark Lord in half, his body aging and withering into bone and then dust.

“Wooooh!” Juzo yells, flying down to me.

“Nice! We did it!” Nova smiles and kisses my cheek.

“Good job everyone!” Eva smiles, clutching her staff as Wind Spirit wears off for us.

“Look out!” Juzo yells but I've already sensed it, the real Dark Lord is behind me, rushing to attack, the massive one was a clone made during the flash. I quickly kick with the back of my heel, not looking where I'm striking. As I make impact I hear a crunch of armor and high-pitched yelp from the Dark Lord, as I turn around to look his hands are down as Juzo slices him in half, Nova grabs his head and shoots a beam of fire through her hand while Eva slices the rest of his body with many numerous Mini Wind Scythes. The darkness that surrounds the sky vanishes, the sun shines brightly once more.

“That wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, kind of a letdown honestly.” Nova dusts off her hands.

“I completely understand.” Juzo sighs and clips the Greatsword onto his back.

“Yeah well we did train for so long.” Eva smiles and then runs her fingers through her hair, “Let's hurry and help out everyone else that's fighting!”

“Hey Carbon what's the status of the battle?” I say in guild chat. Minutes pass but no response, “Carbon?”

“Carbon has fallen in battle, he fought bravely. The enemies have retreated back into the dark crevices that they once hid in. I assume things have gone well on your end. This is Sophia, the battle has been long, but we are alive and the time to rebuild is upon us. Come, return to your kingdom brave Dragon Slayer.” The woman’s voice brings joy and sadness into my heart.

“Thank you Sophia, we will be on our way.” I sigh as I clench my fist, “Let's go.”

“That sucks, sorry bro. Let's head down. Transformation.” Juzo pats my back.

“Thanks Juzo, dying is all part of this world. Isn't it?” Nova picks me up again and I rest my head against her arm.

“I'll take us down as safely as I can!” She smiles at me and kisses my cheek.

“This has been so stressful! I just want to take a nice hot bath!” Eva smiles and we jump over the edge of the destroyed battlefield.

“Same here!” Nova chuckles and we fly for the longest time downward towards a charred battlefield full of slayed beasts. The Kingdom is safe once more, but who knows for how long. I ponder over the future of our lives, the broken fragments of what was and what is so come. How long this battle has been, and now I can rest peacefully in the arms of the woman that I love. I just want good drink and good food. I want to sleep in a comfortable bed surrounded by pillows. I gaze upon the exhausted faces of my friends, dark rings surround their eyes and I am certain to be the same way. Is this what it is to be a hero? Is this just the life of an Adventurer? How was Umbra able to use portals? What are the other dimensions? “Love!”

I look up at Nova, “Yeah?!”

“Let's get married!” She has the biggest smile on her face.

“You sure you want me?!” I yell, smiling as the wind furiously blows our hair.

“Yes of course! You are my world!” She laughs and pauses for a second.

“Look out!” Juzo yells, from below. I turn to see a Behemoth flying towards us at full speed.

“Don't ruin this moment stupid!” Nova yells and shoots a thin beam of energy from her mouth, splitting the Behemoth in half, its body falling to the floor. She takes a deep breath and smiles at me, “So what do you say?”

“I would love to marry you, to spend my life with you going on countless quests and fighting endless enemies. I want to spend weeks mapping out a cave system and finding hidden relics and loot. Please, yes let's get married!” We kiss each other and then laugh. This is happiness, I wish I could stay in this moment forever.

“They're over there!” Eva yells, pointing to a vast army who continue to cheer triumphantly.

The dead bodies of many God level legendary creatures are spewn about the battlefield. As we land I search for the body of Carbon, the friend who saved my life. Someone who I wanted to have a beer with after this was all done, the army cheers as we land. I am approached by a tall woman in golden armor, “I am Queen Sophia, congratulations on this victory to the four of you!” A nearby wolf howls in the air, it is followed by the howling of many wolves and cheering of everyone else.

“Thank you Sophia! Carbon, where's his body?” I ask in a panic.

“He fought a powerful mage who had long white hair and bright red eyes. The mage hit him with a Dark Lightning attack and kicked him into a portal, the mage disappeared shortly after, but the thing is, he attacked the Dark Lord's army with a hail of black spikes before he left, turning the tide of battle.” Sophia nods to a small broken tree in the distance, “That is where the portal was.”

My vision focuses on the tree, I see mana flowing next to it. Then I am faced with the question of searching for my friend or staying here and help to rebuild the kingdom. “You see it too?” Juzo says as the sun shines warmly on his face.

“Yeah, where do you think it goes?” I say, pondering the many outcomes of this moment.

“I think you and Nova should go. If there's a slight chance Carbon could be alive, you should at least try.” Juzo pats me on the back and fakes a smile with a thumbs up.

“I can't just leave the two of you, we have so many adventures to go on still.” I stare at the small clouds floating in the distance.

“I'm telling you to go and then come back as fast as you can. Then we'll walk every inch of this world.” I can hear the sadness in his voice.

“What if there's no way back? What then?” I say coldly.

“If a year passes then I will start searching for you. I will summon you using dark magic if I have to. We owe Carbon a great debt for saving our lives, it's something we have to do.” He takes a deep breath, “Got it?”

“What do you think Nova? Eva?” I look back at the two and they have sad expressions on their faces.

“You two go and come back as fast as you can!” Eva has tears falling down her cheek, she hugs Nova tightly.

“We'll go as fast as we can I swear!” Nova yells, sobbing loudly.

“Alright bro, stay cool. I'll see you soon!” I hold back my tears and hug Juzo.

“Be careful out there!” Juzo's nose is running, the saddest expression on his face.

“I will I will, bye Eva.” I hug Eva and she gives me a stern look.

“You better take care of her!” She wipes the tears from her eyes.

“I will I swear on everything I will.” I give a thumbs up and so does she.

“Bye Juzo, take care of Eva okay, we'll be back!” Nova hugs Juzo and I stare at the perfectly built kingdom of shining gold buildings.

“I will! I will!” Juzo wipes his face.

I hold out my hand toward the kingdom, “Infinity Barrier!” I use up all but a small sliver of my mana to create a large indestructible barrier of white light encircling the kingdom and its surrounding land. It will protect against the forces of evil, “Alright time to go.” I hold Nova's hand and we wave at Juzo and Eva, “See ya.”

“Bye you two!” Eva yells even though we're close together.

“Bye!” Nova yells.

“Be careful! See ya!” Juzo yells, I can't look back. This is the decision we've made. We walk towards the tree and I focus where the mana is flowing from and we run into it.

Nova hits the side of the tree trunk and falls down onto the floor. My face hits something soft and squishy and I fall grabbing onto it.

“Wha? What who's there!?” A voice yells in a slurred panic.

“Carbon is that you?! It's Umbra! Turn your invisibility off!” I sit up from the ground.

“Release!” Carbon is laying on the floor face down with his butt in the air, my face turns red, “Did we win?”

“Heal!” I heal a large gash on his arm.

“Ouccchhhhh that huuurt!” Nova is rubbing her face.

“Carbon! Man you're alive!” Juzo yells, standing next to us.

“Nova are you okayyy? Agh no not your face!” Eva is picking twigs out of Nova’s hair.

“Yeah the war is over and the Dark Lord is defeated. Are you the original Carbon?” My heart beats fast in anticipation.

“Yeah… yeah I am. That Necromancer took a clone and asked if I could help save his wife. There was a certain sadness in his eyes so I knew I had to help, plus he saved me from a pack of Hydra. I won't know what adventures my clone goes on, but I hope everything turns out okay. I'm glad everything worked out!” He laughs while rubbing his neck. I help him up and we stare at the vast army behind us.

“What should we do now?” Juzo asks while stretching his arms and taking a deep sigh.

“We help this kingdom blossom into a thriving sanctuary for any Adventurer no matter how rich or poor or weak they are. For beasts and Adventurers to coexist together and live in peace. Should we start building defenses? Let's look at our guild bank.” I swipe through it and can't believe my eyes, “Close to one million Platinum! We can renovate however we want!” Plans for defense appear in my mind.

“I want a hot tub in my room!” Nova smiles and screams with excitement.

“Me too!” Eva yells while giving Nova a thumbs up.

I quickly glance at Juzo who winks at me, “Yes of course!” We smile at each other.

“If possible I would like to marry Sophia.” Carbon smiles as Sophia blushes.

“Um well yes we did declare love for each other during the battle. Yes Carbon.” She holds him in her arms.

It took some time for the Light Kingdom to be up and running, but the dream Umbra had of making a sanctuary for beasts and Adventurers alike became reality. The four of us became the Kings and Queens of the kingdom, but put King Carbon and Queen Sophia in charge so we can go on adventures across the land. The journey has been long but after a month of rest we finally embarked on another quest.