Roars echoed across the dark skies as two dragons tore through the clouds. With each strike of lightning, the colossal beasts growled and clawed at each other, trying to knock their enemy out of the air and down into the ground below. They had been fighting for hours, neither of them willing to give up, but driven by opposite motives.
“ARKADIN, STOP!”
Kairos’s pleas fell on deaf ears. The Thantophor growled and hissed, throwing shadowy blades in the Whenvern’s direction. Kairos retaliated by swooping out of the way and trying to trap Arkadin inside a slowed time cage. Every godly power he had thrown at Arkadin though, the Thantophor had completely destroyed.
“ARKADIN, PLEASE!”
Below the battle, Epani watched helplessly. Arkadin had attacked her first and she’d had no way to defend herself. He had caught her by surprise, tearing through one of her fins and throwing her into the ground. The planet though seemed to act against her, as fleshy tendrils had twisted themselves around Epani, locking her in place. If it hadn’t been for Kairos…
“It’s not you I want…” Yisini appeared out of nowhere, her tail coiling around Epani’s neck. “It’s Kairos. I need him. I’ve taken all I need from Arkadin. I need more. I need Kairos.”
Epani struggled. She managed to wriggle her fin just a little, changing the weather above. The lightning turned into snow and hail, battering the dragons above. Whether it was helping or hindering Kairos, Epani didn’t know, but Yisini had recoiled a little, the ice damaging her body
“You should leave us alone!” Epani growled, trying to free herself. She shrunk herself down then suddenly grew in size, stretching and breaking the coils around her.
“I can’t, Epani!” Yisini shouted back. “I am close! Closer than I have ever been in the last billion years! Kairos has the key, he has to!”
“No one has the key to immortality! No one!”
Yisini hissed, slithering off into a hole in the ground, disappearing from view.
Above, the fight was still raging, as the two dragons stabbed holes into each other. Or rather, Kairos was stabbing holes into Arkadin, reversing the shadowy blades the Thantophor was throwing at him. Not that it mattered, as Arkadin was simply taking the hits. In fact, Arkadin hadn’t slowed down at all.
“Arkadin, please…” Kairos was still pleading. “She’s controlling you!”
“You…” Arkadin was struggling to talk. “Run… Can’t…” His tormented words turned into grunts of pain as Kairos finally managed to land a blow of his own. A stream of fire, lightning and ice exploded from Kairos’s mouth, freezing Arkadin’s wings and sending him crashing into the ground.
Arkadin hesitated. It looked like he was trying to say something, but his mouth wouldn’t move.
“Brother… You need to fight her…” Kairos remained airborne but hovered closer to the ground.
“Please… Run…”
Epani glanced at Kairos, lifting herself into the air. “Arkadin…”
“Run…” The Thantophor repeated. As he did so, he began to grow, healing his injuries and spreading out his wings. He stepped forward, growling and gurgling, his claws elongated and covered in blood. He didn’t seem to attack though, he was just hissing and grunting menacingly.
Kairos hesitated some more and hovered closer. “Arkadin, you have to-“
Suddenly, a dark, inky spear pierced Kairos’s side.
“Ow.”
Kairos blinked as he realised he couldn’t move anymore. Shadowy thoughts began to enter his mind, stealing his ability to think.
The last thing the Whenvern saw was the Panelix fleeing as the Allbirther approached, flanked by an army of horrific monsters…