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Ben, now clutched like an afterthought within Ere’s dragon claw, watched with trepidation as Ere flashed between his humanoid and dragon forms, and everything in between.
Ere was clearly fighting the magic of the Celestial Realm that always stripped his powers before he could set foot in that plane. But this time, he bared his monstrous teeth and forced his way through the magical barrier, while trying to maintain his beast form.
In the end, he lost the full dragon form but kept his monster half form. And as he hurtled toward the ground of the Celestial Realm, his wings flailing like umbrellas turned inside out by a strong gust of wind, he released Ben and Cloud from his clawed feet mere seconds before impact.
Ben used all of his martial arts training to brace himself and land in a way that didn’t break bones.
As it was, the harsh fall jolted his entire body, even as he immediately rolled to slow the momentum. Cloud, on the other hand, managed to land gracefully and lightly on his feet after a few somersaults midair.
“Gotta learn that move,” Ben muttered and bit back a groan as he slowly stood, his muscles and bones protesting every move.
Ere hit like a missile, carving a deep rut into the earth the length of a hundred yards.
Finally, he stopped and stood to his full height, his demon form about eight feet tall. He opened his wings wide, leaned back with fists clenched and released a piercing, earth-shaking roar into the Celestial skies.
Ben couldn’t help but cover his ears, because it felt like his eardrums would burst from the force of Ere’s cry.
Ere was the veritable eye of a hurricane of his own making, for wind blasted from the epicenter of his body, pushing Ben and Cloud several feet back from where they stood.
It took all of Ben’s strength and will power just to remain upright. He could barely keep his eyes open against the onslaught of the whipping wind that Ere gathered around him.
“Face me, fucker!” Ere bellowed in a deep, resonant, inhuman voice. As deep as the earth; as dark as the bottomless ocean.
“Jade Emperor! Show yourself!”
His words were garbled, a distorted sound that Benfeltin his bones before he heard and understood it.
His eyes met Cloud’s across twenty feet of distance. Their stance was similar, both braced against Ere’s wind with their arms shielding their faces, legs bent in a semi-crouch to add some resistance.
Cloud tried to inch closer to Ere’s back; he was closer than Ben. But the wind that whipped at them was like a living, physical wall. For every foot he gained, it shoved him two feet back.
Ere arched his back and released another earth-shattering screech.
The normally sunny Celestial skies and white, fluffy clouds now darkened like the eye of a storm. Lightning streaked from Ere’s body and spread in a blinding, electrical web from the earth to the sky, which opened up like a voracious black hole, sucking all of the oxygen out of the air.
As Ben struggled to breathe while fighting the churning wind to stay upright, icy spears of rain hurled down from the skies like javelins, immediately drenching him to the bone.
Cloud tried to get his attention. He could see the warrior say something, could see his mouth moving.
But Ben couldn’t understand. He heard nothing but the deafening gales and torrential rain. The thunder that accompanied Ere’s lightning, shaking the very foundations of earth and sky.
Long-er…
A new voice Ben had never heard before spoke softly within the pandemonium. Even so, he heard it, as if the being spoke directly into his ear. Within his mind.
Cease this useless rage. It will change nothing.
The past is written. Choices have been made.
Ere roared again before bringing his clawed fists down upon the ground, creating a fissure in the earth that zigzagged in two directions.
Ben fell to a crouch, no longer able to stay upright. The ground beneath his feet was crumbling as if he was caught in an earthquake.
He couldn’t believe the extent of Ere’s powers. Only the Dark King Ramses, an Earth Elemental, could tear up the earth like this. And only Eli, Lord Wind, could command the air, though Ben had never witnessed a demonstration of his powers up close.
Ere wielded all of the elements now—earth, water, air, fire—as if they were child’s play. Even as dragon, Ben had never seen him do this. Even when he had battled the Hydra more than a decade ago, he hadn’t unleashed this kind of terrifying, destructive power.
Who would be able to stop him? If he was truly hellbent on tearing the world apart?
