Guardian Inveticus

"Iagen is a very dangerous Vulpi who specializes in lies and deceit, Shien," Oreic warned as he checked the cockpit of a cardinal fighter. "And I'm worried about how far your mother has gone."

"Mom's always been there for me when I was hurt," Shien wore a trench coat similar to the dark caidercoat he wore in Syanic Earth. "Now, Mom's hurting, and she needs me. I need to help her realize Iagen's lies."

"Then we'll help Isrina together."

"Shien, if you're going to find your Mom, I'm going too," Mivangeline offered.

"Are you sure you want to come along? You're probably tired. Why don't you rest with the gang? I caused enough trouble for you today.

She shook her head. "I cared for your mom before we attacked the Azir Citadel, and I couldn't stop worrying about her. I still wish to care for her and see Isrina happy."

"Mivange, thanks for taking care of Mom when I was away. And hey, I'm down if you want to tag along!"

***

Isrina ventured through the caverns that shone with shining crystals, listening to Iagen's directionality of the place. When she approached the blue temple doors that guarded Indeavorga's tomb, the Vulpi apprentices attacked her with their clarinet spears.

"Ouroboros Fang: Lunar Misfortune!"

Cracking and popping of joints sounded as Isrina's elbows dislocated, chain-punching the Vulpi with limbs that attacked like bending snakes. After knocking them out of the way, Isrina faced the locked door.

"Ouroboros Fang: Helshadow Serpente!"

Her arms twisted into cobra heads of melted flesh, each having four eyes and an upside-down human nose. They opened wide to fire acid that corroded the doors into smoke. Within the icy blue tomb was a rectangular sarcophagus, guarded by Guardian Inveticus.

"Isrina Niang. What happened to you?" The Vulpi guardian looked into Isrina's weary eyes surrounded by dark veins. "What happened to the legendary Desert Cardinal that the Vultau and UICA looked up to?"

Guardian Inveticus was a Vulpi man with ruffled blue hair and purple eyes. He held an ice hulusi woodwind and wore a turquoise Vultau robe.

"Get out of my way," Isrina growled.

"Please, Isrina. Speak of your emotions. Stop bottling them to yourself! I'm willing to listen. Your UICA friends like Saitori and Oreic would listen too. Don't forget the value of your companions!"

He lies. Iagen whispered to Isrina. Everyone failed to protect Shien. Nobody understands your troubles but me!

"Move or be destroyed!" She gnashed her teeth.

"Isrina, you're a fool to follow a scoundrel like Iagen instead of those close to you! Think of your son. Shien wouldn't want you to do any of this! Would he?"

"Ouroboros Fang: Draco Animus!"

Isrina's hand turned into a veined dragon that blasted demon fire at Inveticus. The Guardian played a peaceful tune on his hulusi to morph the bloody fire into crystal butterflies.

"Desert Cardinal! If I can't get to you, you leave me no choice. I will protect this sarcophagus from you!" Inveticus blew into his hulusi to command the crystal butterflies to attack Isrina.

While Isrina fought Inveticus, Master Oreic flew the Cardinal fighter towards the Niagara waterfalls with Shien and Mivangeline.

"Iagen is an Omaunukai," Oreic warned the couple. "They are demons who drink Vulpi blood to gain unnatural powers."

"Ew!" Shien gagged. "But what does Iagen want with Mom?"

"Iagen is trying to awaken the Prognosticus Trinity. He has already freed the Earth and Death sisters. Now, he's using Isrina to free the Ice Sister."

"What happens when Iagen frees those sisters?" Mivangeline asked.

"Shien is unfortunately their selected host."

"Host? Like a parasite?" Shien gulped.

Feeling it was the right moment, Oreic decided to tell them the Vultau prophecy of the Revelation Concerto. "Iagen and the evil trinity spirits will fuse with you. The sisters will drink your blood to revive their ancient magic and feed you to the beast, Sol Eszkeios Epsilon."

Shien turned pale at the sudden news.

"Eszkeios is the devil while Makiyu is God in Vultau culture, right?" Mivangeline held Shien's hand to comfort him.

Oreic nodded.

"Will they end the world if the demons get my blood?" Shien took a breather.

"Not yet. Eszkeios and the Omaunukai must beat us Vulpi at the war ritual in the music dimension. If the demons win the war, then the end will surely be upon us all."

"We'll do what we can to stop those demons," Mivangeline hugged Shien. "Together."

Shien nodded to her. "I'll help too. We'll wake Mom from Iagen's grip before she awakens the Ice Sister."

When they attempted to enter the waterfall, Oreic pulled the aircraft away when a giant ball of ears and tongues popped out, making Shien and Mivangeline gag. Macadion Firma kicked Hel Amuru out of the temple like a soccer ball, chasing it down the lake with a stone spear.

"That's Master Yanshi's summon, and... whatever that thing is," Oreic redirected the cardinal through the waterfall.

"Yuck! That thing's gross!" Mivangeline saw Hel Amuru whip Macadion Firma with its tongues.

While Macadion Firma and Hel Amuru brawled in the city, the cardinal landed in the ruined entrance filled with smoke. The three jumped out and entered the smoke, looking for Isrina. They found the temple entrance occupied by an intense battle. Yanshi smashed his erhu against Nazad's khakkhara staff while Psyinen and Seniel struggled to keep up with Kaviel's swarm of illusion clones.

"There're so many of me! Can you find me?" Kaviel bashed her tsuzumi into Seniel's chest, sending her flying.

"Peek-a-boo!" Kaviel hit her drum into poor Psyinen's eye. "Ehehe! That'll teach you to treat Grannie well!"

"Psyinen!" Oreic jumped to save his love. "Enbu Fenix! Burn away all unrighteousness!"

"O-Oreic," Psyinen whined in tears.

His saxophone song summoned his phoenix to burn away all the illusion clones and set Kaviel on fire. As Kaviel flailed and screamed within the flames, Oreic hugged and kissed Psyinen.

"Here, Master Psyinen!" Seniel flicked her fingers as if they were playing a guzheng, commanding water to heal Psyinen's eye.

Yanshi felt dizzy after Nazad whacked his head with his staff. He blinked to see Nazad lunging toward him with his demonic weapon, ready to crack his head in two.

"Avian Form: Hummingbird's Tongue!" Shien hurled a finger strike to break one of Nazad's protruding ribs.

Seniel flicked her fingers to heal Yanshi as Nazad retreated, letting his demonic power heal him.

"Y-you're Isrina's son," Yanshi shook Shien's hand. "Thank you for saving me. I'm in your debt."

"Of course. Nice to meet you too. We're here to get Mom back!"

"Insolent fools who stand against our master! Shien, your blood will be ours!" Nazad flicked his staff, dangling the golden rings in tune. "Choke away all hope, Apophis!"

Nazad summoned a sandy wind that coiled into a giant black cobra marked with blood-red hieroglyphs.

"Levian Exedra! Bring forth the waters of hope!" Seniel played her guzheng to summon her twin-headed water serpent against Apophis.

"Go, Shien. We'll deal with these demons," Yanshi stood with the masters. "After all, I owe you."

"Thank you, Yanshi," Shien ran with Mivangeline into the temple caverns as the four masters held off Nazad and Kaviel.

***

After Isrina pummeled the crystal butterflies with rolling punches, Inveticus lunged forward and bonked her head with his hulusi. The impact sent Isrina crashing into the wall.

"Ouroboros Fang: Baneful Dreadscythe!"

Isrina's arms coiled into bloody muscular scythes decorated with eyeballs and fangs. The Guardian held his hulusi like an armored baton, repelling the attack with finesse despite his instrument's small size. He pricked his hulusi pipes at Isrina's arms to paralyze them in ice before smashing them into shards with the instrument's tough gourd mouthpiece. However, Isrina's limbs regenerated with the demonic art Iagen taught her.

"Please, Isrina! Don't let Iagen control you! I know the good Desert Cardinal, the fierce protector of Shien, is in there!" Inveticus played his hulusi to summon his giant praying mantis made of ice. "Des Manthesia! Freeze the darkness!"

"Ouroboros Fang: Aegis of Misery!" Isrina's hand morphed into a flesh shield with an upside-down face, shielding her from the mantis' slashing scythe arms.

"Break the seal and open the mouth of chaos, Gates of the Condemned!" Isrina and Iagen's voices chanted in unison.

Isrina slit her hand with a sharp thumb, making a zurna of flesh and eyeballs eject from the bleeding cut. She placed the zurna into her mouth and played a shrilling desert melody to summon a wall of necrotic tissue.

Emaciated human bodies protruded from the veined wall, opening their fanged mouths wide and screaming. "Die!"

The corpses lifted their long arms to grab the mantis. Des Manthesia's scythe arms glowed with ice, launching cold razor discs at the demonic hands. Shien and Mivangeline ran inside the tomb to see the epic standoff between Inveticus and Isrina.

"Mom!" Shien yelled, jumping onto her. "Stop it!"

"What?" Isrina tumbled on the ground with Shien holding her tight. "M-my Little Chickadee? Y-you're okay?"

Both Des Manthesia and the Gates of the Condemned stopped fighting.

"Yes! I'm here, Mom. Please stop this. No more fighting! Stop following a liar like Iagen!"

"Sh-Shien, I must open that sarcophagus. Iagen said we could kill Fanghui if I helped him awaken his army. He said you can see your father and the family you never had like other kids. I'd fulfill my duty as a perfect, invincible mother."

"Don't talk like that! Iagen wants you to believe you're not good enough, but I love you the way you are!" Shien hugged her, squeezing his cheek against hers.

Don't listen to him. Your son doesn't know better. Iagen growled in Isrina's mind.

"I may not have a father and family like other kids, but I don't need any of that! You're enough for me, Mom. I love you, and I just want your love! I hate to see you doubt yourself."

Ignore your son and open the god-forsaken coffin!

"Mom, I have you, Mivange, and the gang! Why would you think I'm unhappy? Please wake up! Let's go home!" Shien shook her shoulders. "I love you, Mom! Jesus loves you!"

As Iagen's spirit shuddered at Jesus' name, Isrina faced her dark-veined eyes to the ceiling. She wailed uncontrollably in tears. Shien and Mivangeline hugged her tightly as the Desert Cardinal sobbed.

"My Little Chickadee, I'm not a failure of a mother?" She whined in Shien's chest.

Shien shook his head, stroking Isrina's red hair. "Not at all. You're the best Mom ever."

Inveticus watched Shien and Mivangeline comfort Isrina, smiling.

Grr! Imbeciles! I've come too far to fail Eszkeios! Iagen left Isrina's mind and fused with this summon, the Gates of the Condemned. He promised to replace Aian and reclaim my rightful place as Grandmaster!

The bodies of the demon wall roared with arms unleashing Helshadow Serpente. The flesh cobra arms spat corrosive acid at everyone. Inveticus and Des Manthesia protected the group but looked in horror to realize the sarcophagus was vulnerable. It was too late.

"No!" Everyone cried when the wall's necrotic arms pushed the casket open.

"I win, fools! Arise! Indeavorga, Ice Prognosticus!"