>>Amber

Persephone's eyes glowed with satisfaction as she held our organs in her hands, her power seeping into the air.

"You have a big ego Persephone." Hael said as one side of his lip curled up in a taunting smile, "But clearly mine is bigger." His palm remained in the air, "You're an idiot to think I'd ever beg."

Persephone's eye twitched. The miasma around her darkened, swirling with malice. "I'll make you beg," In one hand she held my organ and in the other Hael's. Then she used her magic, dark and filled with Miasma to burst the slippery and bloody meat into tatters.

It was an effortless motion, she crushed the organs in her grip, letting the mangled remains fall to the ground in a grotesque splatter of blood and tissue.

I wanted to scream again, but my voice failed me. My body convulsed as waves of pain shot through me. I could feel the void where my intestines had been, the jagged edges of my torn flesh throbbing with each agonizing heartbeat. Hael was trembling too, but even now, he refused to give her the satisfaction of hearing his pain.

She dropped the organs. Persephone's voice was cold, dripping with malice. "Beg," She ordered, her gaze fixed on Hael.

His eyes, though bloodshot and filled with pain, remained defiant. He didn't lower his hand from the air where it hovered, controlling some unseen force. His lips moved slowly, "Make me." His voice barely audible

It made her angry.

"Your ego is another thing." She said and he placed his hand on me, "Let's see if heartbreak brings it down." She glanced at his hand, then at me.

Her fury boiled over in an instant. She raised her arm to strike again, her claws elongating, and for a brief moment, I thought this was the end. She was going to tear us apart. But Hael, ever resourceful even in his weakened state, pulled me closer, blinking us further away from her grasp with a sharp use of teleportation magic.

My mind was spinning, the pain almost unbearable, but I caught a glimpse of Hael's face. He was focused, determined, despite the blood gushing from his open wounds. Persephone was already closing the gap between us, her dark power looming like a storm. Her claws gleamed as she lunged, aiming straight for us again.

The similar searing pain couldn't get me to stop thinking about the pain I was in.

Persephone's claws elongated as she targeted our bodies, ready to rip us apart.

But she crashed into something

A shield—a glowing barrier of light—materialized between us and her. Hael had used my holy power to conjure it.

I gasped for air, barely able to breathe. My body was shutting down, the gaping wound in my abdomen leaking more blood than I could afford to lose. Hael's voice came through the haze of pain, urgent but calm. "Heal yourself," He said, his own voice trembling with exhaustion. I could tell he was near his limit too, his hand still raised, maintaining the shield with my borrowed power. "Hurry!" Both of us were bleeding to our ultimate doom, "Hurry!" He was trying to sound confident but I could see his pain

I placed one shaky hand over my torn gut, the other pressing against Hael's chest. My mana was weak, fading like a flickering flame, but as Hael had said, the holy power is omnipotent, so I summoned it anyway. I couldn't lose him. Not now.

"Heal!" Summoning all of my power I tried to heal us both

Persephone's relentless pounding against the shield was getting stronger. With each strike, the cracks in the barrier spread wider, webbing out like lightning across the surface. I could feel my energy draining with every breath I took, and yet, the healing was taking far too long.

Hael's barrier can break. It was made from my borrowed power after all. Not from pure holy power

Persephone kept banging her fists at it and we both watched as the shield began to crack

!?!!

Oh no

The healing was taking more time. Probably because of how weak I was at the moment. If it weren't for the adrenaline in my veins. I would have passed out- No- I would be dead.

Our wounds slowly closed up.

I felt obnoxiously dizzy but I held on.

Hael winced beside me, his lips tight in a grimace, but he stayed focused. His palm remained outstretched toward Persephone, unwavering, even as the cracks deepened in the barrier. "What are you doing?" I whispered, my voice strained, desperate.

A sigh of relief left his lips as his wounds patched up. He didn't answer. Blood still soaked his robes, and his mana was almost depleted.

Crack.

In fact we both had lost a lot of blood and a lot of mana.

Crack

The shield was filled with cracks.Oh no no no

I'll reinforce it! I wasn't done with the healing so I couldn't do it immediately . Come on!! Come on!! I tried to hurry up.

I barely managed to finish the healing spell when Persephone stopped her relentless assault, her eyes narrowing on us as she smiled—a cruel, knowing grin.

"Your death is inevitable," she said softly, her tone filled with malice. She pressed her hands against the most vulnerable part of the barrier, her open eyes fixated on us like a predator toying with its prey. She was going to break through. I wasn't ready. I needed more time.

I finally managed to finish healing. Persephone moved her head back for power.

I tried to raise my hands, to reinforce the shield with what little strength I had left, but my body was sluggish, heavy. I wasn't fast enough.

With a sickening crunch, Persephone slammed her head against the shield, shattering it completely.

The force of it sent shockwaves through the ground, and before I could even process what had happened, she was already launching herself at us. Her claws were outstretched, dark tendrils of magic swirling around her like shadows come to life.

?!?!

This was it. Hael didn't move. Everything seemed to slow down as our impending doom kept getting closer. Her claws came towards us. I could see the pointed end come towards my eyes, merely a few inches apart.

There was no time to raise another barrier, no time to dodge. Her claws were so close now, mere inches from my face. I couldn't breathe. The air was thick with miasma, and everything was moving so fast, yet so slow at the same time. My heart thundered in my chest as I braced for the final blow. I could feel the sharp tips of her claws brushing against my skin.

The miasma surrounded the area, we were unable to see far.

I closed my eyes as I felt her near and knew she was going to take our hearts out this time and kill us.

I felt the pointed end of her claws come in contact with my skin.

And then...

Impact. Her claws never came to slash me. The ground beneath us trembled violently, and Persephone's scream filled the air

What?!.

I opened my eyes, blinking against the bright light. My heart stopped. Where Persephone had been lunging toward us, there was now a massive, gleaming sword—piercing straight through her chest. Right where Hael's palm was facing

The sword seemed to have come from the sky, like a divine judgment, embedding itself deep in the earth.

Persephone staggered, her eyes wide with disbelief. Her mouth moved, but no words came out, only a strangled gasp as black blood poured from the wound. Her hands clutched at the sword, trying to pull it free, but it was futile.

"Surprise," Hael said softly, his voice barely more than a whisper as black blood gushed out of her chest, the. She coughed out some.. Despite everything, there was a smirk on his face.

"What in the-" She couldn't believe it. She moved her head slowly and looked at her chest

It took her a moment but she recognized the sword.

"This-" She coughed again, "This... this can't be..."

"Yes," Hael stood up and stepped back, then he picked me up but kept his hand around my waist, "Nothing can pierce you." He looked down on her, "Nothing but your lover's sword."

!?!?

I shot my head at the sword piercing her.

That's king Valenors sword?

"How did you get that?" I asked him and he looked at me.

"Illaris came to me yesterday night when I was talking to Deus." He looked at me, "The first king's sword is one of the sacred items the temple safeguards. She offered it to me."

***

>>Hael (The day before)

"Hael," Deus said, "If you need it, go ahead." Deus and I talked to each other, "Use it"

I nodded, "If the need arises-" There was a knock on the door.

"Master Hael," A junior mage stood outside the room, "There is someone here who wants to meet you. She says she has something to give to you."

Hm?

"Who is it?" I asked

"It's Saint Illaris," He said, "She brought something with her."

...

I thought about it

"Let her in."

I watched as Illaris came in with a cloth wrapped item. It was quite heavy for her to move but she brought it for me, "I had to give you this." She dragged it towards me, "You did save my life. And I thought that this sword might help you."

"It seems you've read the biography of King Valenor."

"Yes..." She tried handing the sword to me, "The temple doesn't know I brought it."

"..." I used my magic to lift it off the ground. She let it go as she saw my magic, "It might be useful." I brought it towards myself and unwrapped the cloth from it. The sword was kept in a good shape, the edges still sharp.

"It's infused with King Valenor's magic." She said, "It was examined by the temple and I read all the records of the temple too. We call it the sword of light."

***

(Current Time)

Persephone struggled against the blade, her movements slowing, the dark magic surrounding her dissipating with every drop of blood she lost. For the first time, there was fear in her eyes.

Her screams grew quieter as her strength waned, her once unshakable presence reduced to something almost human, fragile and defeated. But even now, her defiance remained.

"This... won't end... me..." She gasped, her voice fading.

"Well, it looks like it will." Hael smirked.Her eyes, now wild with desperation, flickered between pain and fury, "It's over." He took my hand in his, "Let's finish this." He glanced at me.

But then, a chilling laugh echoed through the air.

The sound was hollow, eerie, and it sent a shiver down my spine. Persephone's head lolled back, her eyes closing briefly as though she were embracing some final revelation. When they snapped open again, they were no longer the deep, stormy gray they had been—now they were glowing with a sickly, unnatural purple light, swirling like the vortex of a storm.

!?!?!

Her body began to convulse, trembling as if under the weight of some unbearable power. Black veins spread rapidly across her skin, pulsating with dark energy, and the air around her grew heavy with the oppressive weight of miasma

"This... isn't... over," she growled through clenched teeth, her voice a guttural snarl that sounded more like a beast than the celestial tone it once had.

She grabbed the sword piercing her, then smashed it into pieces

!?!?!?