Black Onyx - Forgotten Magic

Chapter 292: Goodbye, Part 1

Rumble!

Streaks of lightning rent the sky asunder, and deafening thunder followed behind it.

It has been some time since the Demons invaded the land, and the soil was coated with crimson blood and black ash.

It was a war, a war between light and darkness, between the merciless invaders and brave souls of the invaded.

High Elves and Demons fought a bloody battle across the Neloron continent, without a care in the world for the weaker human servants, who were dying in the millions.

It was the apocalypse, the end of the world for them. They ran and hid as the Gods, the rulers of this world, decimated the invaders and turned them to charcoal with everlasting flames.

Streaks of hard light evaporated anything and everything they touched, and despite hundreds of millions, even billions of deaths, the enemy didn't stop.

In fact, with every passing day, the Demons and their henchmen were advancing, spreading outward from the Portal, increasing their number and taking over the land. It was like a disease. An all-consuming rot that destroyed the beautiful world.

The most powerful individuals from the High Elves' side fought on the frontlines for weeks already and they were becoming exhausted.

Beliar held his sword in his grasp and turned his strikes into a living meat grinder. Each strike of his took thousands of lives as black lightning shot out, devouring the enemy forces like fire does straw.

With each swing he took, the sky darkened momentarily as if his sword used light to feed itself. The interchanging instants of light and darkness were especially unnerving for those of weaker mental states.

"Don't you think your techniques seem a bit too sinister for an esteemed High Elf such as yourself?"

Beliar scoffed and didn't answer.

"Some might mistake you for a Demon"

"Shut up old man!" Beliar finally shouted and made another strike, aiming this one towards the ground where the black lightning opened a gully and devoured dozens of Giants at once.

They were the big ones, a hundred meters tall each and far along the path of growth towards a legendary Titan.

"What are you, a thousand years old?" Beliar asked irritably.

"I have crossed my fifteenth century decades ago," the old man beside him answered and his fingers drew a line across the sky after which everything below him, in a straight line, turned to dust.

"And yet you still spout such nonsense! Had you survived centuries in the Void as I did you would have seen things with different eyes! Compared to the horrors out there, this bit of bloodshed is nothing!" Beliar shouted without even looking at the old High Elf beside him.

"Besides, it's your fault this happened! The best formation master my ass! Had you assessed the barrier correctly this shit wouldn't have happened!"

The old man shook his head and sighed, "And who was it that said he could handle the beasts on his own? I clearly remember suggesting we ask for help."

"Shut up!" Beliar became red in the face and released his anger by killing a few thousand High Orcs. The five-meter tall beasts were like ants below his feet.

"And stop reading that damn book already! This is war, take it seriously!"

"Ah~" The old man sighed, "To be young again"

"Damn you-!"

***

The pair fought in the battle alongside thousands of other High Elves of Divine Rank, hundreds of thousands of warriors of Spirit Rank, and countless others.

Even mortals on the ground fought against the weaklings and cannon fodder, trading their lives with Orcs and Goblins.

***

Despite being at a disadvantage, the war effort seemed to be bearing some fruit. The armies of darkness entered a long-lasting stalemate after expanding their territory a few hundred kilometers from the origin.

Just when the High Elves thought they could take a breather, tragedy struck.

Or actually, it was the Illusion Demons. A class of Demons specializing in misdirection, stealth, and assassination.

Stab!

"Urk!"

A crimson blade suddenly pierced the old man's chest from behind. He could barely release a pained groan when a blinding light erupted from his chest and destroyed his body and Soul from the inside.

"Old man!" Beliar shouted with eyes wide open. Without missing a beat, he flew towards the shadowy figure that became momentarily visible and struck...empty air.

"Aaaargh!" he shouted and expanded his senses to the limit, searching for the assassin.

"Be- Beliar" the old man weakly called. He was falling from the sky, his powers and life draining out of him like a torrent.

"Old man!" Diving after him, Beliar quickly caught the dying High Elf and brought him on top of an empty hill peak.

As the old man tried to speak, Beliar quickly hushed him. "Don't speak, I'll get you patched up in no time, don't worry"

"Arrav, my name is Arrav Xius" the old man answered weekly and then proceeded to cough out a bucket of blood.

"Take- Take this book," Arrav pushed the blood-covered Elemental Codex into Beliar's hand.

"What is this?! Can you forget this stupid book for one second and focus on yourself?! You are dying!" Beliar shouted.

"It's for the...young generation They...they need...knowledge" Arrav's voice was becoming increasingly haggard, and his breathing strained.

"Old man?" Beliar called. He got no response.

"Arrav? Arrav! Stay with me!" He shook him by the shoulders and yet There was no reaction.

"Aaaaaah!"

A sudden scream alerted Beliar and he looked up. Many other High Elves were also sneak-attacked and were falling from the sky. All those Divine beings, with near-immortal Souls and indestructible bodies, were falling from the sky by the dozen, dying.

'What sinister weapon-!' Beliar shouted in his mind when he suddenly felt danger coming from behind him. He spun around and punched just as a thin blade grazed his side.

"Argh!" He released a muffled groan as the pain was out of the world. The blade attacked his flesh and Soul at the same time, a terrifying weapon indeed!

However, the attacker fared much worse. Beliar's punch shattered the Illusion Demon's jaw.

"You!" Beliar said the word with such hostility and hatred even the bloodthirsty Demon shuddered.

His shadowy figure quickly merged with the space around and disappeared.

"I Smell You" Beliar grinned wickedly and gripped his sword, slowly turning his head towards an empty space.

The air vibrated and the Demon reappeared momentarily. It felt dread from that gaze alone and completely lost the will to fight.

However, just as Beliar lifted his sword and was about to execute it, another ten or so shadows flew across the sky. Each of them carried the same cursed blade.

"Cowardly scum!" Beliar roared and executed the Demon on the ground and burned it to ash. He then flew towards the sky like a meteor. "Come at me you invisible pricks! I'll kill you all!"

Endless energy inside him burst forth like a raging volcano and poured into his sword. Such a thing should have not been possible after a month-long battle, and yet it happened.

"Disappear!" He suddenly came to a stop and pointed his sword forward.

"Pillars of Annihilation!"

The world suddenly lost all color, and darkness descended upon the land. Only a single pillar of light was visible shining across the sky and striking the ground behind the horizon.

The Pillar of Annihilation skimmed the surface of the planet and disappeared into space. Anything in its way was evaporated in an instant, including the Illusion Demons caught in the blast.

The sheer power released split half the continent of Neloron, separating north and south by hundreds of meters deep valley.

"Shit" Beliar quietly cursed. "Now I have done it" He winced from sudden pain that assaulted his body and his hands holding the sword trembled.

From the tip of his fingers, across the forearms, and up his arms cracks appeared on his skin, and parts of his flesh decayed into dust.

"Arrav!" he suddenly remembered. Luckily the old man was left resting on the ground behind him and was spared from annihilation.

Beliar quickly took him in his arms, but to his horror, he felt no life coming from the body.

"No, no, no! Don't you die on me now!" Beliar shouted. "Innos! He'll know what to do!"

The air shimmered and they disappeared from the place.