Chương 99: 1-98 Baptized in flames

The light was so bright it hurt Zippa's eyes even with his eyes averted. It seared his scales like no fire had ever managed before, all while spreading a dreadful cold down to his very bones. Taking that blast had been the worst decision he had ever made, and he had a habit of collecting stupid injuries. He didn't regret it, though. Not then, and definitely not now. How could he, with his brother's life on the line? Bezzo had never been as durable as him, so he would take whatever damage he could for him.

That's how it has always been. It was his way of paying his brother back for everything his flames had taken from them.

"It's… barely a scratch." Even he didn't buy his optimism this time around. Every word sent pain spiking through his throat, making it feel as if it was dry, cracked, and tearing apart. Would Josef still be able to fix his body now that it had spread so far? Maybe he'd just burst like an overripe fruit, once that mana entered him. His claws still stung from where he'd been treated, despite everything else gradually falling into a cold numbness. But he couldn't lose hope, not as long as they were still standing.

Not as long as Josef was fighting alongside them. Despite all the difficulties they had encountered in the dungeon, he never once regretted going along with him. Zippa knew he had chosen the right man to follow. The right one to believe in. His very own sun. Then, another light flashed in the corner of his eye, and with great difficulty, he turned to look at the pillar of magic that had come crashing down. Despite the lingering brightness of the attack, his gaze fixed on the spot where it had struck.

It felt as if his entire world had been plunged into darkness. That unmoving body, standing there with its face frozen in a painful grimace. If Zippa's body could still do so, he would have sobbed at the sight in front of him. It wasn't right. That wasn't supposed to happen, was it? How could his sun go down when they most needed him? Why did this feel like that day was happening all over again? When he had tried everything to help his parents, only to fail miserably.

To make things even worse than they had already been. He was powerless, no matter how hot he burned. Things just never went right for him, did they? He was bound to lose anyone he cared about once again. This time, even his brother wouldn't make it out alive. His world moved back and forth as his brother shook him, calling for him to snap out of it. But there was nothing for him to snap out of. There was simply no fight left in him, because he knew they were all out of options.

"I'm sorry, Grandma. I don't think I'll be coming home," Zippa whispered, more to himself than anyone else. His voice was barely more than a rumble, unable to reach anyone's ears. He idly watched as his brother engaged Thaladur once more, with Linda jumping to his support. Without her sword, she resorted to wielding two jagged stones from the ground. It was pointless, because no matter the weapon, she still found herself disarmed once the light caught hold of it.

One after the other, they were both sent flying by the elf, who didn't even have to try with his superior strength. Zippa had never expected to be outmuscled by a guy who looked like he could barely walk without a cane, but with enough levels and attributes, appearance could always be deceiving. Then, their executor finally turned to face him.

"Child, I can see the heaviness in your heart." Thaladur's voice was without any of his earlier compassion. Now, he sounded entirely too judgmental.

"Worry not, because the light will guide all to salvation."

"Dragons scorch you." Zippa spat. If this was his end, he wanted it to be quiet, without that elf's annoying voice. Closing his eyes, he waited for the final blow. Instead of the expected death, or his desired quietness, he instead had his eardrums shaken by the sound of an explosion. Lifting his heavy eyelids to glimpse what had happened, he saw a tiny sphere of water in front of the bishop's face. Disbelieving, he slowly turned his head back towards the rest of the room.

Back to where their only water user should have been, still as a statue.

"He's still hanging in there," Zippa wanted to laugh at the sheer disbelief he felt when he saw his friend rejoin the fight, despite his horrible state. And everyone always said he was the guy who didn't know when to quit. Then, the next projectiles followed, and he felt overwhelmed by the force behind them. Where did this power suddenly come from? Josef wasn't the kind of guy to hold out on them like that, so how was this possible? He felt the answer once he saw the eyes of his friend.

Or rather, whatever creature was standing in front of him. A shudder of primal fear ran down Zippa's spine. Piercing blue eyes, with a slitted white pupil in their centre, felt as if they didn't belong here. They radiated something almost impossible to describe. Just looking in their direction made him feel like a predator was pinning him down, roaring in his face. It was as if its mere gaze could choke the air out of him, while piercing every secret in his heart.

Those weren't Josef's eyes, which usually radiated kindness or concern. These eyes were far too cold and cruel. And yet, what- or whoever this was, put Thaladur on the back foot. For the first time, it was his blood spraying through the air. Finally, it looked like they could actually win this fight. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Until he had to mess everything up again.

All he had to do was not get in the way of that entity, but he couldn't even do that much. He found himself dangling like a slab of meat in the elf's outstretched hand. He saw those merciless blue eyes, and the spell about to end his life. This wasn't how he had imagined going out. How would Josef feel about it? Zippa hoped he would be able to move on. Staring death in the face, he braced himself. If this would take down Thaladur and save everyone else, then maybe...

just maybe- All his thoughts ground to a halt when that deafening sound rang out again. But the death it promised never came. Instead, it brought only the barest hint of a sting on his cheek. Did they miss? He searched those blue eyes and found something that wasn't there before. They hadn't become warm, at least not like Josef's, but they felt just slightly less chilly than before. Like they finally stopped seeing him as prey. Josef, are you still there? Zippa wondered, hoping this to be true.

Then, the fight turned back around, and that stiff, statue-like body awkwardly skidded across the ground, dodging beams of light. Had they lost their chance because of him? Anger and shame flooded through his veins. It was just like that night, when his parents died because of his weakness. When they had to save him from his own mistakes. And all he could do in turn was to watch them burn away.

A part of him was still terrified of unleashing that part of himself, fearing that he would once again see his loved ones turn to ash.

"So what?" Zippa could hear the heat in his heart whisper to him.

"If everyone was going to die, then let it be in glorious incandescence!" For the first time in over a decade, he stopped holding back his fire. All his life, he had to spend effort to keep it locked up within, fearing what would happen when it broke loose. It was why he spent even his nights in constraints, needing the suppressing feeling to not loosen the chains too much while he was sleeping. Because if he ever truly let go… Zippa's world would burn.

It began with subtle cracks, like firewood heating up in the stove. A sound that came from his very own body, which could not adapt to his own mana properly, while that whitening had a hold of him. He wasn't afraid of that, though, because he had made the decision to use everything he had, even if he had to turn himself into tinder. Then came the quiet, almost imperceptible whistle, as the moisture touching him turned to steam.

This much wasn't hard for him to control, and he had even used it to burn off dirt before. He and water hadn't ever gotten along, especially if it was of the cold sort. Next, his scales heated enough to gleam, though their usual shade was subdued by the effect of the mana infesting his body. That stuff refused to burn away, but it couldn't block him either. Finally, Thaladur had to react to the heat, because even with the constitution of a high-level classer, he couldn't outright ignore the searing of his palm.

For all his strength, he fortunately didn't have a resistance to fire, like himself. Zippa found himself dropped to the floor without ceremony, before a kick sent him almost flying. A little too bulky to lose ground so easily, he instead rolled across the floor before sharply impacting against solid stone. He felt rocks, and more, crumble onto his back and disperse like gravel.

Maybe it would have been fine to stop here, to hope that the entity within Josef could finish things, now that he was no longer an obstacle. But that was no longer enough for him, as he slowly moved his stiff body upright. His fire had been unleashed, and it would not stop burning until it consumed that hateful elf. With his legs stiff and unbending, he slowly lumbered forward, eyes fixed on the continued battle. Despite Thaladur's injuries, he was holding his ground slightly better than before.

Had he adapted to the pattern of the attacks? Within seconds of observation, he knew the reason was far worse. The frequency of projectiles had simply slowed down, giving the elf much more room to maneuver. That, in turn, allowed for counterattacks, and those created even more lulls in the offensive. Zippa wasn't the greatest when it came to magic, but even he could tell what was happening. Not-Josef was low on mana, and their regeneration wasn't keeping up with the pace of the battle.

"Brother!" Bezzo had made it to his side, but was keeping a respectful distance. The fire dancing across his body was enough to cue him in on what was happening. He saw the fear in the eyes of his younger sibling. The temperature was spiking faster than it normally did when using his affinity.

"Grab whoever you can and drag them away," his voice was more level than he felt on the inside. However, it took him a bit of effort to prevent any flames from leaking out of his throat. Feeling the onset of a rebuke, he added more vehemently, "Now!" As a big brother, he was usually a pushover, he knew. But right now, he wouldn't take no for an answer. Seeing the balance of the fight between water and light steadily shift towards ruin, Zippa tried to hurry his pace.

It did him little good, especially since his steps became increasingly unsteady. Even the stone underneath couldn't endure his heat, and gradually began to glow and soften. He caught the moment when those cold blue eyes glazed over, and the white of their pupils grew into a blur that covered the whole. Then, they returned to normal, regaining that precious warmth, though it was packed with some confusion. The last desperate attacks had done a lot of harm to Thaladur, who had a dozen more holes perforating his body.

But ultimately, the elf had refused to go down, no matter his gruesome state. Maybe it was the light alone that kept him standing, as it shone down around that monster, illuminating him as if he were some living saint. Then, taking advantage of Josef's spells sputtering out momentarily, that wrinkled old hand came up again. Within it was that cursed light, ready to end it all. Zippa didn't let it.

"Burn!" A mighty roar tore from his throat, ripping it open in the process. However, no blood was sent flying, because all of it evaporated the moment his fire followed the sound. It was no longer that small and steady stream he could control. Instead, he sent forth a swirling inferno, which drilled its way through the air before engulfing the elf whole. He didn't get his hopes up, even as he heard the elf's screams of pain over the roaring fire. The dead couldn't scream, so this wasn't over yet.

To no one's surprise, a wave of light pulsed from within the flames and expanded in his direction. Even if Zippa had been in good health, he would have struggled to find a way around it. Dodging had never been his style, though. Bracing for the impact, planning to bowl straight through, he was surprised by a slab of stone suddenly being yanked in front of him, providing him with cover. Searching for the origin of this help, he first looked to Josef, who seemed just as confused.

Finally, though, he spotted a dark shape moving up to their fight from the far back. It was that black-scaled bastard from before. As their eyes crossed, they both nodded, turning their anger towards the one most deserving.

"We'll see who burns out first," Zippa murmured, lumbering forward without slowing. Around him, the flames licking across his scales steadily shifted into a blue hue, and the stone beneath began to bubble.