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The inquisitor froze in his place.
Feodra’s form had finished changing and had stopped a few meters away from the inquisitor.
“I won’t let you… hurt Master,” she spoke out, her voice young and innocent.
The inquisitor took a step back.
Feodra squinted her eyes a little as she felt a strange sensation wash over her for a split second.
Without breaking eye contact with Feodra, he put away his whip. A rasping sound escaped his robe as he pulled out a bright blue blade.
“A relic…” she spoke softly, her eyes gently fixated on the blue blade. A bead of sweat trickled down the inquisitor’s temple.
The inquisitor raised the blade, pointing it towards Feodra.
“I thought there were no more Sovereign class monsters left alive,” he paused.
“Cardinal Varl Thorax made them extinct,” he croaked, one brow raised.
“Varl… Thorax…” she whispered out. “You are a follower of him?”
“Of course!” He roared out suddenly. “He is the First Cardinal; without him there would BE no Oitheric Order! He was a blessing sent upon mankind!” his fist clenched.
“I see,” she paused for a moment, looking at him with a saddened pity. “You must not be allowed… to live,” her tone was low and quiet.
“Haah? A pup like you thinks she can threaten ME? AN INQUISITOR?!”
She stretched out her hand, pointed toward him, and commanded, “Lythia’s Ordinance.”
At the same time, the inquisitor roared in rage “Oither’s Penance!”
A bright blue slash shot out from her hand and flew at great speed towards the robed man. A dark golden wave shot out of his sword towards Feodra, clashing at the midpoint.
A huge explosion at the midpoint where the spells clashed blew all of the rubble around them away, including some of the camp’s walls.
The two of them stood in their places, unmoved.
The inquisitor burst forward, his blue blade low.
“I will finish what Cardinal Thorax started!”
He slashed the blade towards Feodra, sending out a light blue curved line towards her. She was gone.
“What the—”
She appeared just to his side, standing on her arms mid turn. Her foot connected with his cheek, sending him flying through the wooden wall.
Her body spun elegantly, landing on her feet. Without wasting a movement, she burst forward towards the hole in the wall.
The inquisitor had his hand on his head, slightly dizzy from the impact through the wall. Her face suddenly appeared inches from his, her body already pulled back a punch.
“Shi—”
Another shockwave exploded from the impact. One of his ribs broke. He lay in a crater of dirt. Feodra stood above him, pointing a single finger towards his head.
Feodra’s eyes had a hint of sadness in them.
A tiny bright red ball formed in front of her finger. In two seconds, it had charged into a large ball, roaring with flames.
Suddenly, blood began to trickle from her nose. She hadn’t noticed.
“Disappear now. Final Flame,” she softly said, almost whispering.
The inquisitor noticed the blood trickling from her nose and grinned.
Just as Feodra’s spell was about to fire, he kicked her in the knee, breaking it.
Feodra’s eyes widened in realization as she went off balance, the spell fired in a line as her hand moved, trailing upward past the treeline.
A second later explosions erupted where the line had cut through.
The inquisitor grinned as he stood up, looking down at Feodra who was on the floor, holding her leg.
“It looks like the tides have turned,” he broke into a laugh.
“You haven’t won y—”
She let out a shout in pain as her hair was gripped by the inquisitor. He launched her back into the camp.
Feodra lay on the ground, breathing hard, a trail led from where she landed and continued for a few paces where she had stopped.
A figure appeared in the dust of the impact.
“I will be the next Cardinal, after defeating a Sovereign class beast,” a voice spoke out through the dust.
The inquisitor appeared and pointed the relic blade at Feodra once more.
Feodra’s head turned toward the robed man and held out her hand, beginning to chant.
“O Goddess Lythia, hear me in my hour of need…”
“Praying now, are we?” He laughed out, slowly walking towards her.
“Let my enemy not cause me harm, for you shall seal them away for their evil deeds.”
“I think… It’s too late for that now,” his grin widened as he stopped, holding out his hand.
“And punish them in your garden forever. Pandora’s Seal.”
A large red circle appeared in front of her hand, slowly rotating. A pale, transparent face began to emerge, its eyes closed. It had red tears on its cheek, with its head the shape of a woman.
A single word escaped the inquisitor’s mouth.
“Checkmate.”
The face suddenly opened its eyes, which began to glow a blinding red color.
The inquisitor shouted out, almost crazily, his hand clasped the air.
“Divine Mirror!”
A large, golden decorated mirror appeared in front of the inquisitor, and flashed white for a second as it reflected Feodra’s spell back onto her.
Suddenly, a bright glowing prism appeared around Feodra, lightning crackled around it as she began to scream out.
She felt every fibre of her being restricted, unable to move, torment flowing through her as if hundreds of swords pierced all over.
The inquisitor walked to her slowly.
“You are strong… but your inexperience has led you to your defeat,” he stated, cocky.
Feodra barely opened her eyes, the vision of the inquisitor shaking as the torment continued.
“Farewell, Sovereign,” his grin was the largest it had been all fight, he pulled back his arm, the relic pointed at her chest.
With all the might he had left, he thrust the brilliant blue blade forward.
Just then, something at the very corner of his eye caught movement.
His eyes moved.
Suddenly, half of his vision went black.
The blade was tilted slightly to the side, piercing through Feodra’s chest, missing her heart. Feodra screamed out in pain as the blade began to burn her.
The inquisitor let out a shout in pain, his hands instinctively covered his eye, blood seeping out of them.
“What’s happening?! What the hell is happening?!”
He yanked the blade out of Feodra’s chest, his body swinging around, looking around for whatever had just caused his injury.
Hiroshi was a couple of paces away, on all fours, taking a stance that’s not even human anymore, the only sound that escaped was a low growl.
“You!” he shouted out. “Just fucking die already!” the inquisitor burst into a sprint towards Hiroshi, still covering his gouged-out eye.
Hiroshi’s eyes were completely blank, as if no one was there, only a savage animal driven by desire to win.
The inquisitor was about to swing the blade from the top when the vampire lunged sideways, kicking the robed man's feet out from under him.
“Shit!”
He began to fall when he felt claws dig into his back deeply. Hiroshi had driven both hands into the inquisitor’s back.
Hiroshi pulled them out swiftly and swung his hand around, grabbing the inquisitor by his neck, and smashing him into the ground.
He coughed out blood. The blade in his hand swung towards Hiroshi who was atop him, but came to a sudden stop.
The vampire had grabbed the blade directly in her hand, clenching her grip until the blade began to crack.
“No!” The robed man shouted out.
“Impossible!”
The blade shook as he kept trying to drive it towards Hiroshi, who held it back, pressing harder and harder until it finally gave in and snapped.
“Divine Protection!” he shouted out with all his might.
His body glowed a brilliant golden color, scorching Hiroshi who was forced to leap a few paces back.
The inquisitor looked down, the relic blade broken in his hand.
“This can’t be…”
Without a chance to process what happened, Hiroshi was right in his face again, blank eyes stared into his soul.
“So fast—”
Bending his body sideways, he barely managed to dodge Hiroshi’s strike, which cut away some of what little hair he had left.
He began to swing the shattered blade, his voice shivering from the monster before him.
“You were supposed to be on death’s door!”
His voice shook, barely dodging Hiroshi’s swings and swipes.
“There, an opening!” he cracked half a grin as he stabbed the broken blade forward, piercing Hiroshi before him.
Around the blade, Hiroshi’s phantom image flickered.
“Huh?”
He felt claws sink in his back once again. He pulsed with a dark green color.
His eyes began to tear up blood as he began to cough, swinging the blade behind him.
Hiroshi was there, on all fours again, growling towards the inquisitor.
As he blinked, the image of the vampire woman vanished and reappeared behind him. Hiroshi swung his head down hard, teeth sinking into the robed man’s neck, biting at it like an animal.
Time froze for the inquisitor.
“What just happened?”
“Am I going to die here?”
“She… she just broke a relic…”
“Wait wait wait.”
“She isn’t Lilith…”
“That’s a monster… Lilith is already dead.”
“What’s this sensation… my body feels… lighter…”
The inquisitor stared at the sky, rain pouring down on him.
Blood seeped out of his neck as Hiroshi drank his fill.
“Is this… the end?”
A hooded figure appeared before him.
“Alright, play time’s over.” A young girl's voice reached both Hiroshi's and the inquisitor's ears.
With a swift movement, her hand struck Hiroshi’s chest.
“Burn,” she said playfully.
A massive golden flame burst out of Hiroshi’s back, rising far above into the air.
From the tree-lines, the goblins watched a tall golden flame reach into the sky.
Hiroshi let out a final grunt as the attack incapacitated him.
The flame burned for a couple of seconds before it gently faded away.
Hiroshi fell to his knees, out cold. A small hole was between his chest and shoulder.
“You!” the inquisitor’s voice trembled.
“I-I’m not done here!” he stated.
“Sorry inquisitor, but there’s orders from above. We’re pulling back,” her tone was playful.
She clasped his shoulder and began to drag him away from Hiroshi, who was on his knees, head motionless pointed at the ground.
The robed figure turned her head back, looking at Hiroshi and Feodra lying on the ground, motionless.
“Interesting.”
She looked forward and swiped her hand, tearing open the space in front of them. A golden light filled the hole, on the other side there seemed to be furniture.
“I-I have this under control, let go of me!” the inquisitor barked out, starting to flail.
“Wait, I said wait!”
His voice vanished as both of them stepped through the golden tear in space, then closed a second after.
Rain poured down on the utterly destroyed camp, on Hiroshi, and Feodra.
Thunder roared from time to time.
The goblins began to slowly descend the tree-lines, approaching the obliterated camp slowly.
As they made their way inside, some closed their eyes as they saw Gobu’s head lying on a wet cluster of flowers.
Others ran to Hiroshi and the white wolf lying in a pool of blood mixed with rainwater.
The elder goblin’s eyes scanned the scene, and he fell to his knees, putting his hands together and beginning to pray.
Other goblins soon joined in, and before long, every goblin was on their knees with their hands together.
The rain hadn’t stopped.