Shards of Felwyn

Recursive Application

"Izkra!" Cosmo exclaimed, without a seconds thought. He pulled the mana through his body, ensuring that the spell would not lack power, partly out of repulsion, to destroy the beast so that he would no longer have to take in its grisly visage. However, a part of him pitied Cynderad, as well as the horror it had become. The demon had strayed so far from its humanity. Only one thing could help it now: a swift death.

The lightning crackled with power, surging through the cave with incredible heat, evaporating the sweat from Cosmo's brow swiftly. It only increased in intensity as it continued, tendrils of electricity spiraling around the bolt as sparks showered the ground. The spell was fired with uncanny accuracy, a direct hit to Cynderad's gaping mouth, where it would surely meet its end. Faster than it had been brought to life, Cosmo's spell was subsumed by the demon's mouth. In one gulp, all the power it had held vanished, leaving him stunned.

"Ri'ilnauk." The voice bellowed, the forceful blast of dark energy exuding from its mangled form. Cosmo had learned, however, what this incantaction meant.

"Finau!" He responded quickly, sweeping his arm along the ground as the basalt rose to protect him. The pulse of energy washed over the barrier, rattling Cosmo's skull but the shockwave was not powerful enough to affect him further. He awaited the feeling of his blood slowing in his veins, the typical consequence of the king's shadow magic, but such a sensation did not come. He had grown since their last encounter, and was determined to emerge victorious.

"Mrozić." He spoke the incantation swiftly as he emerged from behind the barrier he had created, the cold, howling winds already picking up speed within the cavern. Cosmo engaged further with zeal, sprinting around Cynderad until the floor had frosted over before sliding under one of its many horrifying appendages for a powerful attack.

"Dualta." A slash with his dagger made escape from the engage possible, firing two vermillion jolts of electricity towards the beast and stunning it, if only for a moment. Cynderad seemed to be unaffected, redoubling its speed and slashing the boy along the back as he made his retreat, pain flaring across his shoulder blades.

"Ralak yn Cyskil." The voice of his adversary filled the room with a low rumble. Cosmo, as much as he would have liked to remain ignorant had turned his back just in time to witness Cynderad's counterattack. From each of the five horrific mouths that protruded from the beast's form bursted jets of stygian flame, the violet tips of the midnight black spell licking every inch of the cavern, as well as setting the boy's clothes aflame.

The pain nearly tore Cosmo's life from his very hands, a terrible searing sensation that cloaked his entire body as he rolled on the ground, both to make an attempt at extinguishing the dark purple embers still clinging to his form, but also simply because the boy was writhing in agony. Nothing, nothing he had experienced in his life, not Varren's blade nor Folcanrog's fire, compared to the mind-numbing torment that plagued his mind.

Only a glimpse of consciousness was bestowed upon Cosmo as he lay upon the basalt, burning and bleeding. He knew that if provided with enough time, he could stand once more. However, Cynderad already loomed above his prone figure, and at every urge to move his body, of which there were many, his muscles protested. His mind screamed, fought against the clutches of death, of defeat. The battle could not be over. Cosmo could not allow it to end here. Nevertheless, the sharp silhouette of one of Cynderad's razor-sharp limbs had already been raised above his chest. He scrunched his eyes closed, not in fear, but in anger. Even still, my strength was not great enough.

Where the pain of the demon's attack should have been, a flash of light, so bright that it was visible behind the surface of his eyelids, overcame the cavern, cloaking all in a cleansing halo. Cosmo forced his eyes open once more. Cynderad's malformed limb now rested at its side, and its grotesque visage faced the opposite direction of the boy. He followed its eyesight and, when he laid his eyes upon what had appeared across the chamber, tears flooded his vision.