Artorious' palm gleamed with killing light as he activated [Angel Arm].

It sped towards his targets in the forgotten alley of the ruined city – targets that were barely clinging to life as it was.

The only one standing among them was Lamphrey, who was using her Oneiromancy magic to suppress the others and keep them down.

"L-Lamphrey!"

Fauna had tried to get through to the magi. She'd tried everything to make her listen. But there was no convincing that woman. There never had been.

She stood now with utter conviction in her eyes as the Angel's undodgeable attack sped towards them.

As the light trailed towards her, Fauna closed her eyes. Yet still, she could see the glaring radiance that was coming for her – the end that was coming for them all.

And she could also see what the angel's plan was: he was going to force Ethan to tank the damage. He was going to force him to defend his allies so that Artorious could take him down.

And Lamphrey…it was entirely possible she'd simply gone insane. Or perhaps she'd looked into he future and saw that their deaths were necessary for Ethan's triumph…

She tried to rise. She tried to warn the others to run, to leap, to survive…if that was even an option anymore.

And that's when it happened.

Lamphrey turned her head, facing Fauna with eyes that now seemed wearier than they had been before.

Then her mind touched the Hopla's:

You have wished something of me for a long time, Fauna the Hopla. You have wished to hear me speak in no more riddles. No more deception. No more obfuscation.

The Angel's light cascaded towards them. And in response, the Tialax Magi lifted up her staff and stood high before the last Hybrids of Sanctum.

So, I shall tell you this, the lizardwoman muttered in her mind. I am afraid.

Fauna saw the green glare of Oneiromancy magic collecting at the tips of Lamphrey's fingers, pooling and spiraling out in great waves that radiated from her.

She knew the spell the Tialax was channeling.

"Lamphrey…"

Seconds before the light of death crashed into them all, the beam was suddenly halted before Lamphrey's figure.

The Hybrids gasped in shock, feeling the searing heat of the ray as it bubbled before Lamphrey, burning away the Tialax's staff and the tips of her nails.

"Lamphrey!" Fauna shouted. "You can't block it!"

N-no, the lizardwoman replied. But I can…slow it down.

They alley was bathed in light and heat. The sides of the crumbling Sanctum hovels were torn away by the sheer energy emanating from the halted beam. Lamphrey's green light was all that stood between them – a wall of cracking power that the Tialax had taken from all of them in an attempt to stop the Lightborn from achieving his victory over Ethan by going through them.

But even with this shield, she couldn't keep up her vigil forever. Fauna saw her slip. She saw her head droop. And the same despair that had followed them this entire battle began to return.

But then – a flash of brilliant blue. And before them all, their savior appeared.

When she saw Ethan then appear before her – his form just as striking and strong as it had been when he'd left them at Griffon's Watch – such despair momentarily vanished.

"Lamphrey!" he shouted. "Let go!"

The Tialax gave a grim smile as she fell back, exhausted beyond all reason, into Fauna's waiting arms.

"Crazy bitch!" Tara yelped over the din. "Can't she for once drop us a hint when she's gonna do insane shit like that?"

The rusted, crumbling blocks that had once served as homes for the Hybrids melted away as the angel's light passed them by. As it flew from his fingers the entire central cavern was once again bathed in white – turning the whole place into a monochrome nightmare. The power the Lightborn had channeled in that attack alone was enough to tear apart any mortal being that walked upon Argwylian soil ten times over.

But unluckily for Kaedmon's lacky, Ethan Hawke was no ordinary mortal.

[Repulsor Shield] activated as a pure reaction to magical energy – summoning five chromatic hexagons that would at least slow the blast down while Ethan channeled the one skill that would successfully block the incoming spirit damage.

Blade Barrier (Grade A)

You create up to 10 Spirit Swords that spin in a 15ft radius around you. Each blade can deflect up to 300 pts of DMG each.

This is the only Skill that may deflect SPIRIT DMG

*Note: This skill cannot be used at the same time as [Arms of the Vigil]

Fauna, Tara, Klax, and Lamphrey all watched as the one black figure in the maelstrom of white light summoned up ten spectral blades which each clashed against Artorious' burning, eradicating beam. They watched as each sword cut through entire swathes of the attack, each one slicing into the light as though it could be simply cut apart like a swordsman's limbs.

But the Lightborn wouldn't be satisfied with just one killing blow. He took to the air and launched another [Angel-Arm] towards Ethan, seeing four of the Archon's spectral blades rise up to meet the attack and cleave through it just before it slammed into Baphomet's face.

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The ground trembled, Ethan's fangs chattered, and his paws began to slip.

But still, he held firm.

Ethan knew his game – he was going to wear out his [Blade Barrier] and then come in for a decisive blow. Ethan had enough blades to whittle down these two blasts. But after that…

Don't think about it, he told himself. Right now, there's one thing that's important…

As the other spectral blade slashed Artorious' light beams and then died away, he spared a single look over the broad shoulders of his host.

"GO!" he roared with all the strength he could spare. "Now!"

He met the eyes of his allies and realized too late that this command would fall on deaf ears. All of them stood in utter dismay, all fixed on Lamphrey's shuddering, sagging form in Fauna's arms, until a certain little Hopla mage sent a proclamation through everyone's mind:

You heard Mr Ethan! Mara's voice rumbled amidst the din of the Angel's assault. Let's go, NOW!

He watched Fauna nod once, gather the others, and hen lead them out the cavern carrying Lamphrey in toe. The Tialax had saved them all. He could scarcely believe it…

Don't you have other concerns to worry about right now? Look alive!

Sys was right. He knew it. He turned back to the gradually advancing light that he was barely keeping at bay. He had only two more spectral blades left. If he was going to win here, he'd have to get on the offensive. He'd have to…

"FOR KAEDMON!"

The monochrome-clad city suddenly blazed with brilliant, golden light. The kind of light that seared away the senses and cast away even the most stubborn shadows.

The cleansing light of a God.

Ethan had a chance only to look up as he saw the angel ascend to the highest point of Sanctum's central cavern, spread his feathered wings, and then swoop down towards him.

Only as he began his descent, his entire form disappeared – and was replaced instead by a shining, holy ball of light.

[Judgement of Kaedmon] Grade S

DIVINE SKILL

The wrath of Argwyll's God has come. Judgement will be delivered, and all heretics shall cower before His righteous might.

Effect: Target creature's HP is reduced to 1 on contact.

*Note: this skill can only be used once.

On contact…that's why he wanted to probe my defenses and force me into one place. He wanted me to have nowhere to run, and no way to beat him back…so he could employ his trump card.

I…I've seen this skill before.

Sys' wavering voice was barely audible over the sound of Artorious' lightning descent. Ethan's final blade barrier swords snapped apart, having repulsed the [Angel-Arc] beams.

Ethan – this is it. This is the skill that wipes out all Archons. This is the skill that allows the Lightborn to make their final sacrifice. He's doing it, Ethan. He's ready to…

…he's ready to die, Sys, Ethan growled in his mind. That's all.

He braced Revok, Baphomet, and Typhos, forcing the heads of the Chimera to meet the shining, blinding lightstorm that was coming down upon them like the wrathful heavens themselves.

If my defenses are down, he thought. Then I'll push him back with everything I've got.

As Artorious rocketed towards him, Ethan channeled the power of his Spirit Cores – and of all the Hosts he'd drained since beginning life on Argwyll as the Archon.

And he let them fly:

Bracing Revok's body, Ethan unleashed a fury of attacks that no mortal had ever before witnessed. In the blink of an eye, Sanctum became ground zero for an unprecedented display of raw power—an exchange that would be remembered in Argwyllian history as the day heaven and hell met in direct, cataclysmic opposition.

First, [Storm of Revok] roared forth. From Revok's jaws erupted a torrent of molten lava, spewing volcanic rage toward the angelic juggernaut. It cascaded upward in a volcanic geyser, the earth around instantly glowing molten red, bathing Sanctum in angry orange luminance.

The angelic force met the molten fury head-on. Artorious' celestial armor hissed violently, vaporizing molten streams around him, but still he descended.

Then, Ethan followed with the deafening [Cry of Baphomet]—a sonic blast of chain lightning ripping from the goat-head's mouth. Bolts forked across the heavens, filling the cavern with blinding electric storms, a tempest of light and sound.

Yet, Artorious cleaved through it without slowing, his holy radiance dispersing the lightning like morning sunlight piercing mist. The relentless angel pressed onward.

Desperation mounting, Ethan unleashed a deadly volley with [Thorn Storm], sending forth razor-sharp, petrifying shards of dark energy. The needles flew upwards like a hail of death, their tips screaming with lethal intent.

Yet, the golden glow around Artorious simply disintegrated the shards as he plunged downward—unbreakable, unstoppable.

Ethan snarled defiantly, his crimson eye burning with resolve. He unleashed his spectral power: [Spectral Snipe], a searing lance of ghostly force streaking directly toward Artorious' glowing core. But as the lance of spectral energy struck the angel's incandescent aura, it fractured and dissolved, shattering into wisps of harmless smoke.

More! Ethan's mind raged. I need…more!

[Albionic Authority]

Sys – not exactly helpful!

Sorry! Performance anxiety!

Without another moment's hesitation, he launched [Arms of the Vigil], calling forth ten radiant Spirit Swords to intercept the celestial missile. Blades met angelic radiance, each sword screaming as it tried—and failed—to halt Artorious' deadly plunge. One by one, the spectral blades shattered like fragile glass against the angel's unstoppable might.

Ethan's panic rose as he hurled forth [Twilight Edge], a shadowy wave meant to engulf the Lightborn in madness. But even this was repelled, the dark wave shattered effortlessly, banished by the angel's wrathful purity.

Nothing was working.

His final assault—[Ice Barrage], a freezing storm of crystalline shards—surged upwards, crystallizing the cavern walls and ceiling in a snap-frost that chilled even Sanctum's molten ruins.

Yet even this devastating cold was shattered instantly by Artorious, whose descending form vaporized ice to mist with his blistering heat. His momentum undiminished, his radiance undimmed, the Lightborn was now mere moments away from contact.

Ethan desperately channeled his last defensive hope—[Ethereal Form].

Ethereal Form (Grade S)

Grade A Upgrade: [True Invisibility unlocked!] While under the effects of [Ethereal Form], you are unable to be targeted by any hostile foes.

It was his one saving grace. The one skill that could give him a chance to live long enough to at least make sure the Lightborn had wasted his cheat skill.

He activated it, and waited for the Ethereal effect to kick in.

…

But he felt nothing.

He blinked, seeing that his limbs were entirely too corporeal for his liking.

It didn't activate…

His mind raced for a reason. His body shuddered, fearing that he'd missed something. Some ruse. Some trick. He searched for an answer – a way to circumvent the death that was coming for him.

There's always a way, he thought, cycling through all his abilities, looking for that one thing that could clench victory from the jaws of defeat.

Every fight – it's just a challenge to be overcome. Every skill has its counter. Every strike has its rebuke. Every –

ETHAN!

BOOM.

The angel slammed into him. The Archon's mind cried out in shock, panic overwhelming him as he realized the grim truth: this wasn't an attack bound by mortal laws or magical barriers. This was the direct judgment of a God—bound to no rules but its own.

Time slowed to a crawl. Ethan felt every second stretch into agonizing eternity as Artorious finally struck him. Pure celestial energy, divine retribution incarnate, surged through Ethan's ethereal body, searing every nerve and muscle fiber, igniting a pain beyond anything he had ever experienced.

The Archon screamed, three mouths howling in torment as his form slammed into the earth. He crashed through stone and steel, through subterranean homes and streets, through the very heart of Sanctum itself. It was as if the angel sought not only to kill the Archon but to drive him into Argwyll's molten core—to erase him utterly from existence.

The earth itself screamed in protest, Sanctum convulsing violently beneath the divine collision. Towers collapsed, cavern ceilings shattered, debris rained down in a storm of ruin. A seismic wave rippled outward, obliterating any remaining structure still daring to stand.

Then—darkness.

Silence.

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