Amelia and Karteira both stepped forward with the idea to support Orion.


    But a blade stopped their advance.


    "Elliott?!"


    They glared at him as if he were the enemy.


    "It''s no use."


    Without glancing at them, he stood his ground, and stopped them nonetheless.


    "Amelia."


    Henrietta suddenly interjected, calling her daughter.


    Confused, and slightly angry, she turned to her mother.


    "This is Orion''s fight. Even if you intervene, there is no way to change the future."


    Both clenched their hands into fists, and dropped their gazes to the ground.


    "But..."


    Still, it was impossible for them to ignore Orion when he was in this exhausted state. They weren''t ready to let him go yet.


    "The only one who will change the outcome of this battle is Orion, and Orion only."


    Elliott, who had kept his eyes on him since the beginning of his lone stand, dropped his sword.


    "And still. Orion hasn''t given up yet."


    Saying that, the two women looked toward Orion, who breathed roughly. After a few seconds, he stabilized his breathing, and straightened.


    "..."


    Watching with anticipation, the heavy air around them only intensified as the two opponents entered the last act of their confrontation.


    Being at the center of the terrible storm, which only kept growing stronger, the entire area was covered by a dark veil, as if night had fallen on the group.


    Yet, not a single drop of rain fell on the broken and ravaged ground. Not a single cold bead came to alleviate Orion''s exhaustion and overheated body.


    Orion and Miasma glared at each other, with not a single speck of energy to spare. They stayed there, watching the other carefully, as they tried to find a plan to finish the other party.


    Even Miasma, who used his visions, couldn''t find a way, as all he could see was Orion standing on that spot without end.


    Unable to know what his enemy''s first move would be, Miasma was cautious. On the other end, Orion was also at a loss.


    ''There''s barely nothing I can do anymore.''


    He moved his shoulder slightly, feeling his bone creak as it moved, even barely. His knees were locked in place, holding his weight as if this would be the last thing they would be doing.


    His left hand was unable to open, clenching the bracelet with the last bit of strength left in him.


    ''It''s been so long since I''ve felt like this...''


    Countless hours of training in Auro led to this outcome, but since developing his light magic in the fairy realm, this exhaustion became a thing of the past for him.


    Still, on very few occasions did he let this feeling bathe his body with it. It was a good feeling. A feeling that proved that he was improving.


    That he was surpassing himself.


    And this day wasn''t different. Even threatened by his potential death, Orion remained calm.


    ''There''s only one thing left to do.''


    His slate colored eyes glittered with determination. The will to live still hadn''t been extinguished in his soul.


    This was something he had to do. A battle to prove himself. To prove that the ones that survived, were those who made their own destiny.


    That the will to survive was stronger and purer than a rule imposed by the world.


    At that moment, as if he had lost any traces of patience inside of him, Miasma lunged at Orion.


    Heavy footsteps trampled the earth, as they approached the unmoving Orion.


    Lifting his arm above his shoulder, Miasma punched Orion''s face.


    The power was weakened enough, that it only pushed Orion back a little, without leaving a single scratch on him.


    Without leaving him a second to breathe, he kept pummeling him with punches that forced Orion to defend for a moment.


    But oblivious to what Orion was thinking, Miasma kept pushing. Bidding his time for the perfect opportunity, Orion endured the onslaught of blows.


    Face, stomach, chest, arms, legs... Every place on his body suffered weakened but painful blows.


    Until the perfect opportunity was offered to him. Miasma recoiled back for a more powerful strike, leaving his chest wide open.


    Orion clenched his right fist, and pierced Miasma''s chest without hesitation.


    "Kh!"


    The Remnant cowered back, fearing that Orion would find his core and crush it.


    Then, a vision entered his mind. A deranged smile broke on his face, as he turned his face toward a group of people.


    Out of nowhere, Miasma began to dash toward Elliott, who was acting as the defender in case something like this were to happen.


    "Tsk!"


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Orion clicked his tongue, before following behind Miasma at his normal top speed.


    "...!"


    Elliott aimed Vanitas at Miasma, ready to intercept him, while Henrietta took the two women further away.


    The grin on Miasma''s face hadn''t vanished. Something was strange, and Elliott noticed it.


    His hair suddenly moved, as if unaffected by gravity.


    "Shit!"


    A dilemma appeared in front of him. Either stop his father here and there...


    Or die.


    Orion noticed it, as a memory flashed in his mind. One where he stood in front of Amelia, before dealing a serious blow to Miasma.


    He looked at Elliott, who was ready to sacrifice his life. Feeling his gaze on him, he looked toward Orion, who shook his head lightly.


    "..."


    Seeing this, Elliott thought for a second. Then, he covered himself with his energy, before lifting Vanitas into the air.


    "I''m counting on you..."


    Five bolts of black lightning crashed on Elliott as he said that. The blast was so intense that it forced Henrietta and the other two to fall back.


    Miasma avoided the area where Elliott was, and continued toward the three, with Orion close being him.


    "Perfect!"


    Miasma aimed the palm of his right hand toward them, firing an arrow of corruption at them.


    The arrow flew into the air, aimed at Amelia directly.


    Watching the projectile get closer, no one was able to react in time.


    Other than Orion.


    A portal opened in front of them, directly in the path of the arrow.


    *PUCK*


    The arrow pierced Orion''s left shoulder, as he emerged from the portal at the last second. Amelia fell backward from the shock, and dropped on the ground. She looked upward after opening her eyes.


    In front of her, Orion was gritting his teeth in pain, clenching the arrow stuck in his flesh with his right hand.


    He pulled the arrow from his shoulder, where his blood gushed out profusely for a second.


    Karteira hurriedly walked behind him, and pressed her hand on his back.


    "...!"


    This wasn''t part of his dream. Karteira healed the wound, and helped Orion recover a slight amount of stamina at that moment.


    He glanced at her with a smile on his face, the corrupted arrow tightly clenched in his right hand.


    "Thanks."


    Before she could say anything, Orion bent his knees, and kneeled forward.


    With enough energy to use the ''Fourth Gear'', he pushed on his legs and appeared in front of Miasma.


    The Remnant smiled, and threw a punch at him, only to be met by no resistance at all.


    Confused that his vision did not happen, he searched for Orion.


    "Looking for me?"


    Orion appeared behind Miasma, and jumped on his back.


    "!"


    Not letting time for him to move, Orion plunged the corrupted arrow inside his back. The tip of the arrow made contact with his core.


    Miasma opened his mouth wide, lifting his face to the sky.


    He felt a pain akin to no other wrap his body, pulling every fiver of his being apart.


    The core itself wasn''t damaged, but the arrow managed to corrupt part of Miasma''s soul.


    A part that wasn''t his.


    The power to influence space and time.


    "What... have you... done?!"


    Miasma shook Orion off, and backed off.


    Finally freed from the lightning strikes, Elliott hurriedly joined with Henrietta and the others, watching his father writhe in agony a few steps away.


    Orion warped in front of them, and glared at Miasma, prepared for one last event.


    He knew something was about to happen. A part of him was screaming ''danger'' incessantly, while his void magic cowered in fear.


    Miasma clenched his chest, feeling a power out of his control wreak havoc in his body.


    Feeling pressured, Orion opened a portal behind Miasma, and kicked him into it.


    He turned to Amelia, and opened his mouth.


    But before the words could leave his mouth, the last of the dream he was unable to hear played in his mind.


    -


    "Don''t worry. I''ll keep living inside you."


    -


    ''Did I... seriously say that?''


    Orion gritted his teeth in anger at himself. He turned to the group with a frown on his face.


    Then, that frown turned into a smile.


    "I''m sorry I was unable to do more. Say that to the others."


    He turned around and followed behind Miasma, who was sent right under the eye of the storm.


    "O...rion?"


    Amelia, helped by Karteira to stand up, looked at the closing portal.


    The two women were shocked beyond belief. Their minds were trying to process those words, but ultimately, they were translated into his last will.


    Henrietta closed her eyes with a pained expression and looked away, while Elliott clenched his sword''s hilt while looking down.


    They all looked to the distance, where Orion and Miasma stood face-to-face for the last time.


    Suddenly, Miasma''s body swelled, before a beam of energy flew into the sky from his mouth.


    Before anything terrible was to happen to this world, Orion rushed to him, and punched Miasma''s guts with a fist covered with void magic.


    The beam undulated briefly, before disappearing into a rain of particles.


    Everyone thought that Orion had made it, but they weren''t prepared for what was about to happen.


    Orion''s void magic entered a synchronicity with the paradoxical power that Miasma stole from Tetra''s source.


    The two powers conflicted against each other, as large shockwaves emerged from the two as the center.


    Wind from all direction was sucked into the sky, as a dark sphere descended from the eye of the storm.


    The earth itself broke apart, sucked into that terrifying matter, destroyed and absorbed into its core.


    Even Orion was fighting back to stay on the ground.


    But to avoid this surreal energy from destroying Triazils, something had to be done.


    Gathering the entirety of his void magic in one single point, Orion focused.


    Two stars on his hands glowed brightly, as two orbs revolved around him. Light and dark elements merged with the point Orion was focusing at.


    His body flashed for a brief second, before revealing a starry night being with both the traits of a demon, and an angel.


    His voice echoed around the entire area, following his shift in posture and physical change.


    "LEGACY: PLEIONE!"


    A black and white crossbow formed in his hands, before a mighty beam of starry energy clashed with the gigantic dark sphere.


    The shockwave resulting from the two making contact destroyed the environment around Orion and Miasma. The clouds behind the sphere were instantaneously reduced to nothing, as the blue sky reappeared.


    But the clash between the two powers continued, until the world was unable to take it anymore.


    *TIK*


    Time came to a stop, but the standoff of the two energies continued in this frozen world.


    Orion gritted his teeth, holding the descent of the black hole with everything he could. The crossbow in his hand was starting to crack, threatening to break at any moment.


    With him being the only one able to fend off this horror, he screamed at the top of his lungs.


    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"


    The six wings on his back flapped violently, as his feet left the ground.


    With difficulty, he closed the distance with the black hole, which focused the beam even further on a single spot.


    "I''LL PROTECT IT ALL!"


    Light enveloped both Orion and the black hole, before Pleione shattered into pieces.


    ...


    *TAK*


    Time ticked back on.


    As the black hole was broken and reduced to naught by Pleione and Orion, peace returned to Triazils.


    Amelia, Karteira, Henrietta, and Elliott looked into the sky.


    A demonic angel was falling down slowly toward the ground. The only thing shocking about it was that it was releasing particles at a rapid pace.


    They looked toward Miasma, who had the same thing happening to him.


    Orion opened his eyes, which met the beautiful and calm blue sky.


    "..."


    He opened his left hand, and looked at the bracelet. The chain was completely broke, but the device itself was fine.


    His soul and body were a mess. The light and the dark elements were no more in his core.


    The moment Pleione shattered, the two stars on Orion''s backhands flickered and disappeared, as well as the two elements that supported him so far.


    All that was left was the dying essence of the void element.


    But even the strength to think was beyond him at this point.


    "Orion!"


    Karteira suddenly grabbed Amelia, and covered in lightning, ran toward their dying companion.


    Ignoring the still and broken shell of Miasma, they stopped under Orion, ready to catch him.


    But when Orion was about to fall into their arms, him and Miasma vanished, as a rift formed under them.


    Swallowed by the remnant power that they both unleashed, the two slipped away from Triazils.


    As if to punish those who worked to save the continent, ''Fate'' continued, unbothered by their attempt to change Orion''s ending.


    The Hero vanished, leaving no trace of himself behind, except two faint lights that flew toward the wide rift leading to Horizon.


    Karteira stood there, her eyes searching for Orion. Tears swelled up at the corner of her eyes, persuading herself that this was but an illusion. That Orion would appear from a portal of his and be fine.


    But Amelia brought her back from this lie.


    "Orion? Orion?! No! That can''t be..."


    Amelia took two steps forward, before all of her strength escaped her grasp.


    As soon as the crushing reality descended on her, Amelia lost consciousness, falling into a deep slumber she would not wake up from.