The River

The gargantuan lizard was still wriggling around the skyline, as I told my plan to the others:

“The bay seems unrealistic, so maybe pulling it over the river? Takako, can you manage to get its attention once we get there?”

“Sure, anything’s possible right now.” She seemed fully delusional, but somehow more stable than the first time she collapsed.

We hurried to the river bank, Araki wheezing while he ran directly behind us. He couldn’t quite keep our pace.

While the creature’s tail tore through the sky, we were still running towards the river. Slowly, a part of it tightened around a building close to us, crushing its exterior with no resistance. The entire building collapsed within seconds, as it wrapped around itself. Audible screaming came out of the collapsing building as we passed it.

We had finally reached the river bank, and Takako readied herself to pierce its skin with a massive spike of rock torn from the ground below. It spun up as fast as possible to reach maximum force. As the spike began glowing from the friction of the air around it, Takako released it toward the dragon’s tail.

A slight crack came from the giant monster above us. Then, a screech that pierced the heavens themselves. A single one of its millions of scales crumbled to nothing as it fell down.

Now, we had its attention, at least. As soon as the scale fell, however, a new one regrew in its place.

A rumbling filled the sky above, as the dragon’s head, which had been more than a kilometer away just moments ago approached at a rapid speed.

“You dare touch me, mortals? Have you lost your will to live?” Its hollow voice echoed through the giant skull.

“Whatever happened until now was fully calculated in my plans. There would have been no more damage than what was necessary to plunge this country into chaos. Now, that plan has changed, thanks to you.”

It began riling up a beam of nothingness just after that.

“Please, help me. I know she’s in there, somehow. Release her, I beg of you.” I yelled at it as it made ready to vaporize us.

“Release? She formed me in the first place; she doesn’t want to be released. I was created to carry out her vengeance in her name. Your pleading is invalid. I will, however, not kill you, out of respect for her feelings towards you. You may go, and leave this forsaken island to its deserved fate.”

It was still riling up the attack. Its tail was lied up slightly more to the river now. Perhaps the time for my plan to take effect had come.

The harrowing screech from the purple mass inside its throat made my ears bleed as I desperately tried to reason with this harbinger of the apocalypse.

“Please. These people don’t deserve to die for what has been done to her. I’m sure she would agree. Spare this country, I beseech you.”

“Your words have no meaning, mortal,” its voice now resounded through my skull, silencing any other thoughts with its sheer force. “You lie, this entire world may be at fault or what happened. I pursuit of power, any one of you insects would destroy the life of an innocent girl.”

Even though it didn’t agree, we somehow still weren’t dead yet.

“If will scorch this entire realm, if it has to be done. My realm has sent me to aid her in that mission. She may be the one to finally sever our ties to your disgusting world once and for all. You poison your own wells and smile while drinking from them. This entire race does not deserve to exist any longer.”

Finally, it released the purple mass from its throat.

The screeching of the sky it tore through gave in to the rumbling of everything it passed through. The orb simply floated through the entire street, tearing everything it touched with it.

All it left behind was a jet-black fluid, unlike anything I had seen before. Upon touching it, it felt like it was all information of what it had just atomized condensed into matter, leaving nothing else behind.

The entire street around us crumbled around the giant orb floating towards us.

I tried erecting an ice wall, as Takako raised the entire ground before it.

No matter what we did, the orb didn’t stop. It simply passed through the wall, leaving a perfect circular hole inside it.

If we stayed here, we would surely suffer the same fate.

“Run! Just run for now!” I screamed, barely triumphing over the bone chilling noise of the orb.

We ran closer toward the river, only to witness the dragon’s tail wreaking havoc across the entire city. Within moments, every large building had collapsed.

“Ai, try to restrain it over the river, and pull it into the bay. Maybe we have a chance then.

Red mist reflected on the sparkling scales across the entire city.

The symphony of agony that it had broken lose with its actions didn’t even bother it in the slightest.

To the contrary even, it seemed to enjoy the sound of suffering resounding through the city. The beast rose high above the sky, as Ai began wrapping water around it.

Just as it rose, it was pulled back down, into the river and dragged further into the bay.

It quickly submerged in the water entirely, not a sign of life remaining.

A bright purple glow began filling the bay in its entirety.

A horrific crackle came from the water.

The entire bay was propelled upwards, most of the water disintegrating in an instant. The water rushing inside from the ocean quickly tore Megami Ōhashi Bridge apart.

It had just broken loose a massive flood on the already devastated city. I looked at Ai, and she immediately knew what she had to do. She dragged water from the river around her to quickly slow down the incoming flood.

No matter what we tried, the divine creature didn’t react to us any longer. Dozens of slashes from Araki’s cursed blade left it unimpressed. Any further piercing earth coming at it simply disintegrated before it reached.

I could see the desperation in all of their eyes slowly manifesting.

There was just one thing left to do to stop it. I had to actually sacrifice myself for the greater good. A more dignified death didn’t exist.