Varian never desired hell so much.
If only the pain crushing his every nerve ending didn't feel so awful, he would've been grateful.
But he had no choice.
The flames of darkness weren't just an application of darkness powers. They were a fusion of Isadora's three powers.
The flames burned his soul. The scorching heat on his spirit was much harsher than on his body. It was as if his sensitivity to pain had increased 10x. And unlike his body, his soul wasn't melting right away. So, the fire kept burning, causing greater pain.
The flames were also heavy, infused with terrible gravity. Each spark slammed his body like a hammer, crushing his bones and tearing apart his flesh.
And finally, the darkness. The dreaded darkness.
It consumed him. Devoured him. Ate him up like a great cosmic beast.
Varian could still see but some of his vision was purely dark. He could still hear, but some section of the voice went blank.
As the darkness continued to devour him, parts and pieces of himself were being deleted out.
So, he kept running, trying to get away from the scary woman.
The Great Harvester was the strongest being he ever faced. But he didn't struggle against him.
He simply used the power of the artifacts and Ares' inheritance to deliver the final blow.
But her…
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"I will not destroy the human empire, be grateful for that." Isadora said in a casual tone.
Varian wanted to yell a shut up but if he really did yell, his throat might break apart, so maintained silence and kept teleporting.
But Isadora was no easy opponent.
She used her soul and gravity powers to slow him down. With his mind and body affected, Varian who otherwise would've had no problem escaping from even thirty rank 6s through teleportation faltered.
Every few seconds, black flames soared into the sky and engulfed a man who could only let out a silent scream.
'What should I do? What can I do? What can I even…'
Varian's mind went into a frenzy, desperately trying to find a solution. But the more he panicked, the less anything seemed possible.
[Varian, I have an idea]
Sarah's voice sounded through their Synergy link. Her voice was a bit scared and worried.
After watching Isodara, she was relieved that she didn't fight alongside Varian. Isadora at least tried to break down Varian at the start and didn't go all out on him right away.
But on her?
Even if she didn't go all out, Isadora's initial attack would've seriously injured her.
And the flames of darkness, not to mention her, even Varian would've fainted when they burned him right away if he didn't have the slivers.
The dark flames were too overbearing. One hit and your soul would be rendered immobile, your body would be in tatters and you would soon be engulfed.
Sarah was clear. If she was hit even once by those flames, she'd have fainted right away.
That's why, watching Varian take the hits from the flames ten full times caused her heart to nearly stop.
So, she racked her brains and came up with a plan in desperation.
[…it'll be risky, but this might be the only way.]
Varian struggled and couldn't bear to approve her plan.
Sarah's voice sounded again, determined than ever.
[If you don't do this, both of us will die. Sia and Enigma might never see the light of the day again.]
Varian gritted his teeth and nodded.
After three more teleportations, Isadora once again caught up with him. This time, it wasn't that she really caught up with him but Varian acted it out.
When she was about to use the dark flames once again, a time field acted on him. Since he didn't resist, its full effects were shown.
Varian triggered the space mark he planed a while ago and Sarah appeared right next to him.
At the same time, the sliver powers protecting him peeled off and formed a black and white armor.
"Go!"
The armor latched onto Sarah who used a time distortion on herself and grabbed Isadora who was surprised by her appearance.
"You could've lived." Isadora showed no remorse as black flames soared out of her and engulfed Sarah.
She'd have fainted right away but the sliver armor came into play and bounced back the soul attack.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmSarah had the path of Adept, Light and Time. So, she couldn't bear a full blown out soul power.
With one weakness removed, she used her light power.
Sarah shone with a blinding light, freezing all darkness in the area for a moment.
The dark flame was an incredibly strong power. But it needed the mix of all three powers. And the carrier of the attack was the darkness.
So, when Sarah froze the darkness, the flames also froze. The gravity power imbued into the flames was helpless on its own due to the very nature of the flames.
"Now!"
Varian didn't hold back. He didn't dare to. He gave his everything.
In that tiny fraction of a second, Varian ran through six different powers.
The time of Isadora slowed. The space around her solidified. Half of Varian's sword was covered by lightning, the other half with ice.
The power of a famine through the center of the blade, promising to suck away the enemy's vitality.
And then, all his powers channeled into Adept path, pushing his power to Mid Rank 6. His artifacts boosted his strength and pushed him to high rank 6.
Varian's sword moved.
A thin line of gold and blue appeared on Isadora before blood spluttered out of the gap. Her body's regeneration was prevented by the famine power.
Hit by a severe strike, Isadora wanted to teleport away using the card. But the space around her tightened further, delaying her escape. That small delay allowed Varian to drive another strike. This time, he punched her straight through the stomach.
The pain engulfed Isadora's mind. Then, attacks rained down on her as if there was no tomorrow.
'Noo!'
The familiar darkness engulfed her.