Power of Runes-Chapter 80: Twin Calamity Subjugation (10)

THUD!!

Ray collapsed onto the ground with a heavy thud, the sound echoing like a cruel drumbeat across the battlefield.

Zerak's came to a sudden halt, his frame stiffening, his crimson eyes narrowing as he took in the fallen figure before him.

For a moment, silence claimed the broken air, broken only by the soft crackle of demonic energy still lingering in the atmosphere.

Then, a low chuckle rumbled from Zerak's throat, deep and filled with mocking cruelty, a sound born not from amusement but from sheer disdain.

"So this is the extent of your defiance... pathetic," Zerak muttered, his head tilted slightly, almost curious, much like a predator circling a wounded prey that no longer posed a threat but still twitched with fading life.

The power Ray had unleashed earlier, the brief flash of something monstrous and untamed, had been real enough to stir a whisper of caution within Zerak's instincts.

Yet now, as he stood there, watching Ray's unconscious form, teetering on the cusp of death.

Let's end this farce.

Zerak thought coldly as he moved closer to Ray's unconscious form, his claws pulsing ominously with demonic energy.

His hands hovered above Ray's unmoving body, ready to strike down and snuff out what little life remained.

Inside Ray's dormant consciousness, a voice screamed with growing desperation.

{HEY, YOU BRAT! WAKE UP! IF YOU DON'T MOVE, YOU'RE GOING TO DIE, YOU HEAR ME?! WAKE UP, YOU STUPID HUMAN!!}

Aetheris, bound to Ray's very soul, continued to scream inside his mind, but Ray didn't wake.

Normally, Aetheris could see the world through Ray's eyes, experience every heartbeat, every tremor, every battle.

But with Ray unconscious, the connection had narrowed, his perception was now limited to a few meters of the world around them.

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{WAKE UP!! IF YOU DON'T, I SWEAR I'LL LET YOU ROT AND FIND MYSELF A NEW MASTER, YOU PATHETIC BRAT!! WAKE UP!!}

But no matter how much he screamed, Ray remained still, unmoving, unreachable.

Zerak's hand lowered slowly, the claws sparking ominously as they neared Ray's chest, ready to rip through him without mercy.

Just as Zerak's claws were about to tear through Ray's defenseless body—

PUCHI!!!

A blade, coated in silver energy, lodged itself deep into Zerak's Buttocks.

Zerak's hands froze, his eyes widening in shock, his face contorting into a mask of rage and disbelief.

The pain was a dull throb compared to his raging power, but the insult — the audacity of being attacked at that place — ignited an inferno of rage within his blackened heart.

Slowly, almost robotically, he turned his head to look at the source of the attack.

This... fucking filthy bitch, Zerak thought, his body shaking in anger.

Elysia stood there, her body trembling under the weight of her own injuries, blood staining her lips, her knees buckling as she forced herself to stay upright.

Her sword, still embedded in his flesh, quivered in her fragile grip, yet her gaze remained steady, fierce, and desperate.

W-what was I thinking..?

Elysia's panicked thoughts raced, heart hammering painfully against her ribs.

It was a foolish decision, she knew.

Ash had clearly told her to stay back, to make sure she stayed safe no matter what happens.

But—

I couldn't just watch...

When she saw Ray fall, his body crumpling to the ground, something inside her cracked.

It wasn't love that moved her.

It wasn't loyalty to Ray or some grand sense of duty.

It was something smaller, something rawer — a piece of herself that refused to stand still and watch someone die while she did nothing.

The same fragile, stubborn kindness that had always made her weak.

The same foolish, reckless instinct to reach out, even when she had no strength left to give.

She had died in her previous life because of this same reason.

She had felt the coldness of death wrap around her bones, stealing her breath, her dreams, her future.

And she knew —the instant her sword pierced Zerak's flesh that she had made a terrible mistake.

Before she could even take another breath—

"YOU DARE!!!!!"

Zerak's furious voice boomed out like a thunderclap.

His hands, which had been hovering over Ray, snapped back and lunged at her like a viper.

There was no time to dodge.

His claws pierced through her stomach, cutting deep with monstrous force.

Her body convulsed violently as blood spewed from her mouth, staining the ground in dark crimson.

Demonic energy, cold and corrosive, flooded her veins, tainting her very life force, consuming her strength like a wildfire.

Zerak yanked his claws free with a guttural snarl, leaving behind five deep, gaping wounds across her stomach, each one a grotesque testament to her mistake.

Elysia staggered back, the world spinning wildly around her, the pain drowning her in a sea of helplessness.

I ruined it. I ruined everything again.

I really made a big mistake... but I don't know why, my body just moved on its own.

The thoughts circled endlessly, vicious and biting.

I am so selfish and pathetic... I made Ash fight when he must have been waiting, planning something... just like he always does.. And I... I shattered everything.

Her knees buckled, her vision blurring beyond recognition.

I was so weak... so selfish... I couldn't even...

I'm pathetic. Hehe... looks like I don't deserve him. I always end up making him go through pain...

Tears she could no longer control slipped down her bloodied cheeks, mixing with the dirt and the blood pooling at her feet.

A single broken thought whispered through her crumbling mind.

I'm sorry... Ash... I'm sorry...

Her body collapsed.

Zerak, breathing heavily, his fury barely contained, raised his claw once more to deliver the final blow to the foolish girl who dared defy him.

But the universe had other plans.

Without warning, a massive explosion of force cracked through the battlefield.

BOOOOOOM.

Zerak's head jerked to the side instinctively, his senses flaring.

He saw the black sun, which was Curse of Pain cast by his brother Miraak had been shattered.

Shit!

His eyes darted toward Miraak, who was vomiting blood onto the ground, the backlash of the broken curse tore through his body and soul.

Chunks of Miraak's flesh peeled away, his demonic core flickering violently as it struggled to contain the damage.

Panic flared inside Zerak's chest.

Without another glance at Elysia's crumpled form, Zerak disappeared in a blur of demonic speed and reappeared beside Ash, his fury now redirected entirely.

I will give you a slow death for harming my brother, Zerak thought darkly, his heart thundering with vengeful hatred.

Without hesitation, he punched Ash with half of his full strength.

BAAM!!

***

Present time...

Ash crashed into the shattered floor of the grand hall, the broken stones shattering beneath the force of his fall, dust and debris rising in thick, suffocating clouds around him.

Blood poured freely from deep wounds across his battered body, staining the cracked ground beneath him, but he hardly noticed.

The pain that tore through his limbs was nothing compared to the storm roaring inside his heart.

His mind was somewhere else entirely, desperately clinging to a single, fragile hope that refused to die, even as everything around him seemed to crumble into ruin.

Please... please, be safe.

The prayer echoed endlessly in his thoughts, whispered so many times it barely sounded like words anymore, more like a drowning man's final breath.

As his body began to heal itself, Ash forced himself to stand, his legs trembling, his breath ragged but determined.

The pain was there, a constant throb beneath his skin, but it was nothing compared to the fear twisting violently inside his chest.

Without even pausing to catch his breath, he pushed forward, stumbling through the dense dust that refused to settle.

Every heartbeat seemed to stretch longer and longer, each step dragging against the weight of terror clawing at his soul.

All he could think about was her.

As the dust began to clear, he saw — Grace, Amelia, Lyra, Aurora — all lying unconscious, their bodies limp and unmoving.

The Curse of Pain had been shattered, but the suffering it left behind made them lose consciousness.

Ray, Irvin, Ethan — they too were scattered across the broken hall, breathing faintly but trapped in unconsciousness.

Ash barely spared them a glance.

His eyes searched desperately through the haze, hunting for the one person who mattered more than anything else at that moment.

And then he saw her.

Elysia.

She was lying face down on the ruined floor, her silver hair stained dark with blood, strands clinging to the cold stone and to her own pale skin.

A pool of blood spread slowly beneath her, dark and glistening in the faint light that filtered through the broken ceiling above.

Ash's mind went blank.

The world around him collapsed into silence, every breath he took feeling like it scraped his throat raw.

No... not again.

The thought whispered through his mind, soft at first, before it spiraled into a scream of guilt that tore through him from the inside out.

Why...?

Why is it always like this...?

Ash felt the weight of his failure wrap around his chest like chains, pulling him down, choking him, filling his lungs with a sorrow so deep it threatened to drown him completely.

He tried to move forward, but his legs refused to obey at first, trembling under the crushing weight of his own self-hatred.

I should have been stronger...

I should have stopped her from fighting...

I should have protected her...

The guilt was a living thing inside him now, clawing at his ribs, tearing open old wounds he thought had long since scarred over.

This was the reason I was not telling her about me, I knew she will behave like this...

It's all my fault...

It whispered to him with a cruel voice, telling him he was worthless, telling him he would never be enough, telling him he was nothing but a fool who thought he could be a hero.

But even through the spiral of self-loathing, even through the crushing pain that made every breath a struggle, Ash forced himself to move.

He stumbled forward, dragging one foot in front of the other, his hands shaking so badly he had to clench them into fists to keep them from falling apart.

Miraak and Zerak watched him from the sides, faint, mocking smiles curling their blood stained lips.

They did not move to stop him — no, they watched like spectators at a cruel theater, savoring every second of his unraveling.

Each step was heavier than the last, each heartbeat slower, louder, more agonizing, until it felt like the entire world was pressing down on his shoulders, daring him to collapse.

He dropped to his knees beside her, with hands that shook uncontrollably, he reached out and turned her over, barely daring to touch her, terrified that even the lightest touch might make her slip further away.

For a moment, he thought she was gone.

Her face was pale, almost translucent, blood streaked across her cheeks and lips, her chest frighteningly still against his arms.

But then, through the crushing weight of dread, he felt it.

A faint, trembling breath against his skin.

Weak, fragile, barely there — but alive.

Alive.

Relief crashed into him so violently that his arms trembled harder, he pulled her closer without thinking, cradling her gently against his chest, shielding her from a world that had already taken too much.

But even as the relief washed through him, sound of something broking echoed deep inside his body.

CRACK!!

All the emotions that were locked up Rune of stability and Omni thought broke at this moment.

His emotions were never erased, they were just piling up, and getting locked up, but right now as if a dam that had been strained for far too long had finally collapsed under the unbearable weight.

A raw, blinding emotion that rose like a tidal wave, crashing against the walls of his mind with the force of a thousand storms.

He gently laid her on the ground, uncorked healing potions with shaking hands, forcing them between her bloodied lips.

Slowly, Ash stood. His hands curled into fists. His body trembled, not from fear — but from the fury clawing out of him.

Eyes burning, he turned toward Miraak and Zerak, voice breaking free in a ragged roar that shook the very air around him:

"YOU MOTHERFUCKING SON OF A BITCH"

***

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