Fine. He had a small reserve of his magic left--he reached for it, for a few extra precious seconds, stabbed his sword into the ground, and let the vines loose to entangle the beast. It thrashed, and struggled, and Lyonesse grit his teeth, holding it tight as Ida's arrow impacted and made it rear back, spewing another burst of thick, black ooze.
He grit his teeth.
Give up, something inside him said.
No, he thought, and he focused on channeling what was left of his spell, using his sword as an anchor against the shockwave of Encke's magic.
Kerberos took a deep breath. His knees were starting to wobble, and his chest ached, and he knew he was running out of energy.
His legs began to give out, and the shockwave from Encke's magic knocked him off them, though at least it didn't slam him back into the wall again.
Just let go. It will be so much easier. Give up, give in, come back home.
No.
Chaos was not home. Chaos had never been home--it had been a hastily-constructed house of cards, held together by stubbornness, and by pain, and by a deep, agonized resolution that he simply did not deserve better than the suffering he had been experiencing.
It would be easier, certainly. To let despair swallow him, to give in. But he could not. Would not.
Once again, he pushed himself up. Forced himself forward. Got close enough tot he creature, even in its thick, clinging muck, that he knew his most powerful magic would wrench its core.
In the path he walked, even through the muck, asphodel flowers burst through and bloomed.
This was a creature of despair.
What would it do, he wondered, if some of hat was channeled right back into it?
"Asphodel's Requiem," Kerberos said, and the magical field of flowers grew up around him, and the creature shuddered in the hold of Lyonesse's magic. Perhaps it didn't have feelings to influence, or loved ones to hallucinate--but the power of the magic still ripped through it.
With a horrible noise, like a scream, but somehow not, under the onslaught of spell after spell, and with the final push of Kerberos's own magic, the creature came apart, slumping down and peeling away from the wall.
Underneath it was the First Flower, wilted, but still clearly alive.
"There you are," Kerberos said softly, and his knees gave out with relief. Next to him, Lyonesse let out a heavy sigh, let go of his magic, and sank to the ground.
And, as he keeled, something bubbled at the back of Kerberos's mind.
"Asphodel's Bloom," Kerberos murmured.
A new spell. Another layer of flowers bloomed up around him, and Kerberos watched the scrapes on his arms from the creature's tendrils begin to heal.
"Oh," he said, lightly, a little airily, like he was trying to pretend he wasn't at the very end of his magical rope. "That's neat."
He'd have to collect some samples for Lyndin, in the Mason jars he'd tucked into subspace before he came. The lingering residue of the infection creature, a few petals and leaves off the First Flower, anything he could bring for analysis. But that could wait a moment.
For now, they'd won.
Quote:
Sailor Kerberos says the name of his attack, and asphodel blooms around him, to a radius of 10 feet. Allies within the radius will feel a sense of peace, and moderate injuries are partially healed, while minor injuries are healed completely. This magic lasts for 35 seconds, and can be used twice per battle.
Seiana_ZI
Orangeish Sherbert
Whimsical Blue
stari-maga
