Phantom - Chapter 13

The Gefallene König.

It was the hotel where Michael Angelson and his wife had consummated their marriage, and it was also the night when the Archangel Michael had taken over his body. His had become pregnant and had a baby girl who they named Charisma, who was not only beautiful, but unbelievably kind and sweet. She was eighteen, nearly nineteen, and Michael Angelson could not have been prouder of her.

The Archangel Michael, however, couldn’t have cared less about her.

She, and her mother, were a constant reminder of his own wife and child had been murdered and he felt sick every time she called him dad.

He also hadn’t intended for his ‘daughter’ to be here with him as well, in their private suite on the highest floor of the hotel.

“Gefallene König,” he mumbled. “How fitting.”

“What was that dad?” Charisma asked from behind him.

He turned to face her and smiled thinly. “Nothing, nothing at all.”

Charisma had wavy brown hair that extended to her lower back, glittering blue eyes and she was dressed in a beautiful teal gown with a small amount of makeup applied to her face. She stood up from the chair, grabbed her purse and put on her high heels.

“Are you heading downstairs?” He asked.

“Yeah. Stacy’s waiting for me.”

“…Right.”

She tilted her head. “Daddy, what’s wrong?”

He turned to look back out of the window, and muttered, “It’s nothing.”

“Are you-?”

“You don’t want to keep her waiting, do you?”

“…Yeah.”

Charisma left the room and, when she did, Michael clicked his tongue.

“Why did she have to be here?” He spat.

Despite the attack that he had ordered in the city earlier in the day to help keep reinforcements away from Ferris, the nightlife in Berlin was still as busy and as happy as ever. Even though she had been in the city during the attack, Charisma was still heading out with her friends to enjoy themselves.

A distant red light in the corner of his eye caught his attention and it started getting closer and closer to him with each passing second.

Michael smiled weakly. “Damn.”

***

Eric hadn’t wasted any time finding the Gefallene König.

When he found it, he knew exactly where Michael would be and he flew straight towards him. Once he saw Michael Angelson, smiling at him, his rage overcame him and, without a care for the lives of the guests, he smashed into the side of the building, breaking the window into millions of pieces. Eric landed roughly inside the suite and failed to get his footing, almost falling over onto his front as the room exploded around him.

The furniture, the chairs, the fragile and expensive ornaments in the room flew around the room and were destroyed; the carpet burnt upon impact and the fire slowly began to spread through the room. It began to fill with smoke and Eric shot vicious glares around the room, searching for Michael, but, even though he had been there a moment ago, he had disappeared.

“Where are you?” Eric howled.

“I’m here, don’t worry,” Michael said. “I’m…surprised. How did you recover so…? It doesn’t matter.”

“Come out and face me!”

“Eric, I will give you this chance here and now to leave. I pity your situation and know that you’re angry and I know where that anger will take you; go now and I won’t harm you.”

“You think I’d honestly accept that? After everything you’ve done? After everything you’ve taken from me? Why did you do it? Answer me!”

Michael stepped out from the bathroom in his Armour, his sword in his hand, and he stared at Eric. “For the same reasons that you’re here tonight.”

“What?” Eric demanded.

“Eric, you’re here to kill me tonight to avenge those you’ve lost, right? I’ve done everything that I have to take my revenge and kill that monster in your arm. When Kasmine denied me the use of the Death Stone, I used my wealth and established Phantom and did whatever it took to get access to it. I’ve killed thousands, tens of thousands, for that purpose alone.”

“Why? You’re meant to be an Angel, right? Virtuous and kind, so why would you-?”

“Then, let me ask you this: if someone had stopped you from coming here tonight and taking your revenge, what would you have done?”

Eric felt something dark and that tasted like vomit rise in his chest.

His mind went back to the conversation he had with Spike on the rooftop before they had come here. The sheer, blinding white rage and anger that consumed every fibre of his being, threatening to consume him, to drive him and to define him, like it would obliterate him if he let it.

If Spike hadn’t been there to calm him down, then Eric would have lost himself to it.

His mind went blank and he felt the anger and hatred slowly fade in his body.

If…If I hadn’t…Had Spike not been there…would I have ended up like him…?

“It seems you’ve realised it,” Michael said, stepping towards the window. “So, I ask you again, Eric Agrim: fight, or fly?”

Eric grunted. “Do you even have to ask?” A green light shone around the city and Eric grinned beneath his helmet. “Fight.”

***

“Yin!” The Merchant yelled, thrusting his arm towards the city.

A gigantic Yin and Yang symbol appeared beneath the entire city, stretching from edge to edge. It glowed and, suddenly, four million people appeared on the grasslands behind them. They all looked around in wonder and confusing, just trying to figure out what had happened.

Lich turned to face them and he explained the situation to them in German, his voice booming for miles around. A few people protested but they quickly quietened down when Lich gave them his response.

“Grannus, if you would,” Lich said.

Grannus nodded firmly and closed his eyes. A small jade shield appeared on his right arm and he took a few steps towards the city. He slammed the shield into the ground and cried with all of his might, “Aegis!”

Two green beams shot out from the sides of the shield, rapidly expanding around the city. The beams connected and the green energy quickly rose over the city, forming an emerald dome above it. Grannus relaxed and removed his arm from the shield.

“So, that’s the true power of your God weapon, huh?” Spike asked.”

“Yeah,” Grannus croaked. He began to tremble and he fell to one side, however Spike caught him and steadied him. “Thanks. Aegis can be used like this, but it saps the user of all of their magic while it’s in effect.”

“Basically, you can’t do anything while using that?”

“Exactly. Hence why I don’t use it too often, however, the situation called for it.”

The bubble suddenly compressed and only a quarter of the city was surrounded by it.

“What just happened?” Spike demanded.

“I had to make it smaller, I’m sorry,” Grannus replied. “If I hadn’t, then the entire city could have been destroyed when they fight.”

“How much damage do you think those two will do?”

Lich chuckled heartedly and grasped Spike’s shoulder. “Spike, when Gods clash, the world shakes.”

***

“Grannus and Janus, huh?” Michael whispered. “You’ve created a situation where you don’t have to worry about civilian casualties and you can go all out.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Eric said, slowly generating energy around his hands.

Eric spun around, pushed out his palms together and fired a solid beam of red energy at Michael. Michael turned at the last second and the blast hit him in the chest, sending him soaring out of the window. He recovered in mid-air and began to fly. His wings glowed blue and he shot diamonds at Eric, further devastating the hotel, and shredding the area around Eric. Eric threw his wings around him, absorbing the blows, and then he burst out of the room, flying straight for Michael.

Eric summoned his sword and swung at Michael. Their blades clashed and Michael pushed Eric back, before thrusting out his free palm; he shot a blue bolt at Eric and it smashed into his shoulder, sending him spinning backwards. Michael flew over to Eric slashed his blade against his back, causing the boy to scream in pain before kicking Eric in the back of the skull and sending him through the side of the hotel.

Eric tore through the walls and tumbled to a stop right outside a far room’s window, just as Michael flew after him and fire two solid blue beams from his palms at Eric, sending him soaring out of the building. Eric travelled a hundred metres, yelling in agony, before he recovered and fired a beam back at Michael. Michael flew around it and fired more diamonds at Eric, but Eric skilfully weaved through them, soaring towards Michael.

He sliced at Michael, but Michael blocked it with his own sword, parried it to the side and swiped at Eric. Eric deployed his wrist blade from his free hand and blocked Michael’s attack, before planting his boot into Michael’s stomach hard. Michael doubled over and Eric smashed the hilt of his blade into his temple, almost breaking through the armour in a single strike. Michael hissed and punched Eric hard in the chest, sending the boy back and then fired more diamonds at Eric.

Eric wrapped himself in his wings like Michael had wanted and the Angel flew at him, still firing diamonds, with his sword aimed to pierce Eric’s heart.

Eric, however, was ready for him.

His wings rapidly expanded and black bolts of energy flew from the spikey bones of his wings, piercing Michael’s armour in the joints of his arms and legs. Michael groaned and ground his teeth, trying his best to ignore the pain, but his aim had been upset from the attack and he was forced to block Eric’s follow up attack of a blast to the face. He raised his arms before him and the blast smashed against his gauntlets, launching Michael fast onto the rooftop of a nearby building and damaging his Armour.

What the hell is this? Michael cursed in his head. I haven’t fully recovered from the battle and yet he’s acting as if he hasn’t used up any energy at all!

Eric roared, Oblivion drawn back and glowing with a thick red aura, and he slashed at Michael. Michael raised his sword to block it but the impact forced them through the thirty floors of the building and into the ground. Michael slammed his back hard against the concrete and he felt his bones scream in pain, but the impact had forced Eric off him.

Michael leapt up onto his feet, flew at Eric, and fired two solid beams and his diamonds at him. Eric stood up just in time for the full force of Michael’s attack to hit him in the chest, sending him through the concrete walls and onto the street, his Armour cracking and breaking in places, and a small trickle of blood flowing through the gaps.

Michael flew after him, still firing diamonds, but Eric flew up again to avoid them, soaring around them. With Eric’s back turned, Michael fired a more powerful beam at Eric’s back at his wings, catching Eric off guard and the boy howled madly in pain, falling out of the sky. Michael flew to meet him and sliced at Eric, but Eric blocked it with his arm; the blade, however, cut through and hit the bone.

Eric screamed louder and kicked Michael away, forcefully removing the blade and causing him to scream even more. He hissed and fired a beam from the palm of his damaged arm but Michael effortlessly dodged it and fired back, knocking Eric out of the sky and into the ground. Michael aimed his blade at Eric’s chest and flew down at him as quickly as he could, channelling as much energy as he could into the tip of his sword.

Eric leapt out of the way just as Michael smashed into the ground where he had been lying. It cracked open and shards flew all around them, one large chunk flying into Eric’s back, knocking him back down as he tried to stand up.

Eric leapt up as Michael stabbed at him. He blocked the blade with his own, pushed it away and chopped at Michael. Michael deployed his own wrist blade, blocked it, pushed Oblivion to one side and stabbed at Eric’s neck. Eric dodged at the last second and it lightly grazed against, but didn’t break, his Armour.

They pushed away from one another and swung their swords wildly at one another, each able to counter the other’s moves if only barely.

Had Michael been at full strength and if he hadn’t been so exhausted due to the battle earlier in the day, Eric wouldn’t have been able to trade blows with him so easily.

Michael disarmed Eric, the force of the manoeuvre planting Oblivion into the side of a building, and lunged at him. The boy deployed both of his wrist blade, caught Michael’s between his and snapped the God Weapon in half.

“Damn it!” Michael yelled, kicking Eric hard in the chest.

Michael flew up into the air as close to the barrier as he could, raining diamonds down on Eric as he did, and began to build up energy in his wrist blades.

If there were no civilians in the city and the target of his vengeance was right before him, Michael didn’t have to hold back.

Eric, if you take Michael’s next attack, you’ll be killed! Lucifer shouted. Hurry!

“I know!” Eric yelled back as he flew into the air.

He re-summoned Oblivion, cutting through and dodging the diamonds, roaring, and aimed the blade at Michael’s heart.

Just as Eric was about to stab him, Michael said, “Got you.”

He ducked beneath the sword, kicked Eric in the jaw and stabbed him twice in the stomach, using all of the built-up energy to break through the armour and pierce the boy’s lungs. Eric tried to scream, but all that came out of his mouth was a strong river of blood.

Eric!

Eric grit his teeth, grabbed Oblivion’s hilt with both of his hands and thrust the tip of the blade into Michael’s heart, piercing it and causing the Angel to scream. Michael growled and tried to remove his blades but Eric grabbed one of his arms and, using as much strength as he could muster, kept it firmly held, trapping the blade inside him.

“What are you-?” Michal gurgled as he coughed up blood.

Eric screamed, his wings beat hard and fast, and he forced the two of them to fly at an insane speed towards the ground.

“You bastard!” Michael shouted.

Michael looked over his shoulder and saw that they were getting closer and closer to the ground with every passing moment and that, if he didn’t act soon, he’d be killed.

With all of his remaining strength, Michael withdrew his free arm and, channelling his remaining magic into it, stabbed Eric again, in the heart this time.

Eric didn’t stop.

Michael plunged it into the boy’s stomach and through his spine.

Eric didn’t stop.

Michael cut the boy’s throat.

Eric didn’t stop.

Michael went to do it again but it was too late.

They smashed with the force of a meteor into the centre of Berlin, sending a mighty and powerful shockwave through the city, destroying and heavily damaging buildings within a mile of them. The ground split, cracked and exploded, sending countless pieces of debris flying through the air, crashing into vehicles, buildings and windows.

The crater that Eric and Michael had made upon impact was almost fifty metres deep into the ground and, in it, Eric was still standing.

Michael Angelson’s body had been eviscerated from the impact, leaving only his Armour covered in his blood behind.

Eric, bleeding from the cracks in his Armour, wasn’t able to breathe.

He felt cold, his body felt heavy, and his consciousness kept slipping into a bright burning light and a deep, unescapable darkness.

His Armour disappeared from around his body and he fell onto his knees, his hands still wrapped tightly around Oblivion and he could hear the sounds of the magic in the city being dispersed, and the cries of people as they were returned to the city.

He thought that he had heard some people calling his name, he was pretty sure he had seen some run towards him, but he wasn’t able to focus on anything, except the darkness.

Eric felt himself falling into it and, a moment later, he slipped into it, falling lifelessly onto the floor.