The morning sun rose, and Allura prepared herself for the day before she made her way from the tent to join the others. Rune was nestled in Flora's lap as she toyed with the flickering shadows, and Axis stared at the fire while Basar was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Basar?" Allura questioned as she set her bow down on their makeshift table. "I want to get this trip over with," she grumbled, and Axis gave her a questioning look.
"I'll go get him!" Flora chimed as she hopped up, and she handed Rune off to Allura. "He just went up the hill, won't be a sec!" she smiled before jogging off.
"What happened last night?" Axis pressed with a slight frown forming.
"He tried to-"
"What did he try?!" Axis barked, jumping to his feet before hastily checking Allura over, and embarrassment warmed her cheeks.
"He- he tried to kiss me," she revealed, and flames flashed in rage over the phoenix.
"I'm going to fucking kill him," Axis vowed, but as he started to turn away Allura grabbed his arm, earning his ire.
"I smacked him once already."
"You should have stabbed him!" Axis snapped, defiantly meeting her gaze while his flames continued to spark, but she remained calm with a gentle expression for her protective phoenix.
"Calm down," Allura spoke sweetly, and he froze with the distant memory of a sweet voice saving him with those same words from Usko's nightmare. "I told him he's on his own if he tries anything again," Allura assured the dazed Axis before he grabbed her wrist, abruptly pulling her into a kiss.
Allura's eyes widened in the unexpected passion, and Axis happily lingered in the stolen moment. He held the back of her head, deepening the kiss while Allura sank into it until he gently pulled back, and his hand slipped over to her cheek. He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip, gazing lovingly upon her face with an undying warmth in his eyes.
"Ehnhhh," Rune threatened the moment with a complaint of a squeak as he was squished between the two.
"It was you, wasn't it?"
The sloth was ignored by the phoenix as Axis failed to notice anything beyond his hero, who was looking rather confused at this point.
"Ehnh."
"I can't believe I never realized it until now," he breathed as he held Allura close.
"What are you talking about?" she struggled to understand.
"You were the one that saved me from the nightmare.".
"Do you mean Usko's?" Allura's befuddlement grew indefinitely. "I don't-"
A scream pierced the air, and fear grew Allura's eyes as she began moving without thought.
"Flora."
She broke into a dead sprint with Rune clinging to her chest, and Axis did not hesitate to follow. Her heart was silent as she raced through the deafened world.
*Thud.*
A body fell.
Allura barely stood in the sight of Basar tossing Flora aside. Allura could feel nothing, but a single want as the light left her eyes.
"I'm going to kill him."
Every fiber of her being screamed for Basar's end, and each step drew her closer to his demise.
"EHNHHHH!"
Fear shook the sloth as he looked into the icy abyss that held Allura's eyes.
"Allura!"
Warmth called for her, shattering her trance, and tears filled her eyes as his grip found her shoulders.
"What's going..."
The phoenix's words faded as his sight found Flora, and Allura's legs began to tremble. She broke into another sprint before they could fail, dropping to her knees as she reached her light.
"Flora!" Allura cried, pulling the girl into her lap as her desperation grew. "Usko?!" she called to hell's hound, but the shadows were still.
Blood dripped from Flora's mouth, slowly falling to join the rest. Her clothes were torn and stained while bruises covered much of her exposed skin. The mage of hell had fought, and even her guardian was defeated.
Allura dropped her head onto Flora's chest, holding her breath until hearing the faint beat of her heart, and a broken smile found Allura as her tears fell.
"Hold on, Flora," she gently brushed the blood-stained locks from her face. "I'm going to get you through this," the broken promised before her words shifted focus, while her gaze remained on Flora. "Why? How?"
"She kept trying to tell me that cur was good for you, after I told her we belonged together," Basar scoffed, and Allura silently searched her mind for the answer of what magic could defeat Usko. "We are meant to be together, Allura..." She was at a loss. "Unfortunately, you have these people who are distracting you from me," he cooed, stepping towards her, but a protective ring of fire erupted around the women.
"Stay the fuck away from them," Axis growled, and Allura's eyes darted to him.
"Axis-"
"Don't try to talk me down," he snapped his fingers, forgetting Allura's nature in his wrath, and flames engulfed Basar. "I've had enough of this fucking asshole." He should have known she was plotting. "It's over." He should have trusted her hesitation.
"You are biting off more than you can chew, boy," Larsolis growled.
White feathers erupted over Basar as laughter filled the air. A victim no longer existed as he transformed into something more owl than human, and Allura's eyes widened.
"Visushio..."
She once thought his features graceful and divine, but as her heart shattered in his betrayal she found nothing to admire in him. Tears flooded her vision, and Visushio easily dispelled the phoenix's flames as he approached Allura. His talons carefully took her chin while the pain of his betrayal held her still, and the god's eyes softened with his own sorrow.
"Don't look so hurt dear," Visushio pleaded as Allura silently questioned every comforting moment he had gifted her during the years of her training.
"You betrayed me," she whispered, and he cocked his head to the side.
"DON'T FUCKING TOUCH HER!" The phoenix roared as he rushed the god without regard.
"Stay out of this cur," Visushio squawked with a swing of his hand, and a bone crushing force slammed into Axis, throwing him.
"AXIS!" Allura screamed, scrambling to her feet as her greatest fears breached reality, but Visushio's hand fell on her head, stopping her as magic poured from his touch to fill her with an unbearable exhaustion.
"Go to sleep dear," Visushio coaxed Allura as she collapsed.
"EHNH!" Rune threatened, but annoyance found the god.
"Be gone," he stated without mercy, swiping a taloned hand once again while Allura helplessly watched.
Embers consumed Rune in the force of Visushio's attack, and the sloth was gone as they faded into the rushing wind.
"It'll all be over soon, my love," Visushio assured the broken. "When you wake up, it will be just me and you," he promised, and Allura's eyes turned lifeless as each breath turned into regret for her until the exhaustion dragged away her consciousness.
*
Allura cradled the final illuminated blade of grass in the palm of her hands. No other light was left in the abyssal world. The tree was gone. The island was gone. She was alone with barely a sliver of anything left, but that too was lost. Lines of darkness cruelly infected the light, slowly consuming its life, until nothing was left to fill the void.
The broken sat in her defeat, holding her knees to her chest with just her breathing to combat the stillness of the void that threatened her fragmented sanity.
"Cor meum," the man of the abyss appeared before her.
This was it.
"It is time for you to open your eyes."
Her gaze slowly rose to meet his.
"It's time for you to awaken, cor meum, otherwise our love, Axis, will not survive."
It was a warning she would not ignore, and he circled her as she stood in the abyss.
"For years, I have done nothing."
He moved behind her.
"But you have lasted longer than any of the others, and I wish to see you thrive."
Warmth stemmed from his touch that fell behind her heart, and a pulse rippled through her chest as he gently pushed her. All that she had stood upon was gone, and she fell freely into the darkness of his abyss.
"Open your eyes."
*
Axis crashed to the ground with another heavy blow from Visushio. He struggled to breath with his end near as Visushio rose his talons into the sky, preparing his moment of execution, but a gasp ceased his momentum.
Unbearable pain pounded through Allura's chest as she screwed her eyes shut. Cries of agony erupted from her lungs, and Axis's blood turned to ice in its veins.
"Allura!" he called out weakly as his broken body refused to budge, and fear flickered in the god for his prize.
"What's going on?!" Visushio pressed, watching Allura's torment until she fell deathly still.
A second passed with a moment too long as hearts waited to beat until the held silence was shattered. Coughing erupted from Allura's lungs, and she found the strength to move on to her hands and knees before her eyes searched for her phoenix.
Soon her sight fell upon her broken heart, and tears flooded her vision as he slipped from consciousness. The god of sight swiftly moved to Allura, and he gently gripped her shoulders with concern flooding him as he looked into her eyes, but her turmoil cinched them shut once more.
"What is wrong, my love?" he pressed, sickening her to her core as every fiber of her being threatened to fail under a beating heart until a familiar presence formed behind her.
Gentle hands rested over her eyes, and she quickly clung to them as they brought a surreal calm to her turmoil. No longer did she feel that she was struggling to exist.
"Who are you?" Visushio pressed while eyeing the new arrival that calmed his treasure so quickly.
"It's time to open your eyes, cor meum," he only acknowledged Allura's existence as her heart shredded against her ribs, and she tightly gripped his hands.
"For too long I have listened to my heart race."
"Who is speaking?" Larsolis pressed.
Allura's grip slowly relaxed.
"For too long, my heart has suffered."
"This is not good... Usko," Noxera called out. "Leave the girl, get yourself out of there!"
She swiftly knocked away Visushio's touch as she stood with the man, and his hands slowly fell to her shoulders while their eyes remained shut.
"I will not abandon my master," Usko would not abandon his friend. "If I die alongside Flora, so be it. It is a worthy death."
"Open your eyes."
"I-I knew you'd come back," Nexva trembled.
Their eyes opened in tandem, and he appeared before her to gently cup her cheek.
"You were not the first to hold it," he stated as she looked into his silver eyes. "But you were the first to use it," he revealed to her before turning into embers with a gentle breeze taking them away.
"Allura?" Visushio pressed while cautiously reaching out to her. "Your eyes..."
What were once a pale lilac now shone as brilliant amethysts, glowing with untold power.
"I am going to kill you."
Her attack came with force and speed, barely giving the god the chance to block her fist, and her awakened power forced him back.
"What happened to your eyes?!"
Allura moved without hesitation, drawing her dagger before she thrusted it at Visushio. The god dodged her blade, but her free hand took his wrist in an unforgiving grip. His eyes widened as she brought her blade in for another blow. He raised his other arm as a shield, never once believing her blade could harm it in any way that mattered until his hand fell with her dagger shimmering in the power she held.
Shock held the god in more ways than one, and Allura planted a solid kick to the god's chest, sending him skidding across the ground without his severed hand.
"What... What's going on?" Nexeva panicked. "What are you allowing?! SOMEONE DO SOMETHING! We can not allow for a human to slay a god!"
Every step called for Visushio's death.
"I- I will finish my part..." Rixacaeles steeled herself. "I will make this right."
She stood over the god of sight, raising her boot above his head.
*Crash!*
A shield rammed into Allura, robbing the revenge she sought.
"I can not allow you to kill a god," another betrayal greeted her, and she moved to her hands and knees once again with broken laughter as she gripped her sides.
"Figures that you would turn on me as well, Rixa," Allura spoke without warmth as the chaos of her emotions and failing sanity numbed her physical pain, and her eyes settled on the Goddess of War.
"Stand down, and I will give you a clean death," Rixacaeles spoke without feeling, but her form was clenched, and a twisted smile found Allura as she hid in her fracturing mind.
"I'm not dying 'til I've killed him for what he did to Flora and Axis," Allura promised with a sly softness to her tone, and Rixacaeles smirked at her.
"Never reveal your weaknesses my dear, or did you forget that lesson?" the goddess taunted, foolishly rushing Flora before Allura reminded her of the diligent student she once was.
The goddess crashed into Allura's power, and the unseen barrier shimmered in the impact as Rixacaeles's eyes darted to Allura. Her mind raced back to the day she nearly killed the girl seven years ago. It was the first time she had witnessed a piece of this power, but it was only now that she realized she could not fathom its potential when she did.
"You're not getting anywhere near them," Allura vowed with her twisted amusement fading into unforgiving sobriety. "I will kill you too if I have too."
"HA! Like you could," Rixacaeles scoffed, but a deep pain laced her words while Allura drew the claw knife from her hip in silence.
The mortal rushed the goddess, and her blade slashed against her shield before the divine's sword flew towards her. A barrier rippled with shimmering light as Rixacaeles's blade crashed into it, but as a violent violet flash erupted the metal was repelled, and the goddess nearly lost her grip on its hilt. Allura did not hesitate to abuse the opening, deeply scaring the goddess's face until Rixacaeles bashed her to the ground with her shield.
War's blade screamed through the air for Allura's death as it flew down at her, but the mortal recovered, dodging past the goddess. Blood splattered as Allura's knife deeply clawed through the back of Rixacales's knee, severing tendons without remorse. The goddess roared in pain as she twisted herself, bringing her shield down on the hasty attacker, and Allura threw her arms up in defence.
A flash of violet erupted as her barrier shattered, and a sickening crack sounded as one of her bones snapped beneath the shield. Allura gritted her teeth as mind numbing pain held her, and her power flashed again to throw Rixacaeles, allowing her a moment to breathe.
"You can not endure using it at this rate much longer, cor meum," he warned as he appeared behind her, wrapped in the abyss to leave only Allura privy to his existence. "No human was ever meant to wield this power," he warned, but Allura chose her revenge, and she sprinted towards Visushio only to have Rixacaeles crash into her. "And yet, you do... so naturally. They were right to call you Unicus."
Rixacaeles straddled Allura, gripping the front of her shirt in one fist as she drew back her blade with the other. Tears stained the goddess's cheeks, but she did not hesitate to bring her blade down on the one she had nearly considered a daughter.
Allura caught the sword in her hand with a new gauntlet of a barrier protecting her. She focused all of her strength into keeping the goddess at bay, but her time lessened as her exhaustion grew, and her need for revenge directed her sight to Visushio.
He had only moved far enough to retrieve his hand, and he now laid on the ground, holding it over his head with the blood dripping down onto his feathers. He was lost to the shock of the events, and the God of Sight blindly ignored the world in his pain.
"You could kill them both, cor meum," the man of the abyss spoke her mind as he appeared beside her and the goddess. "But we do not want that... We love Rixa for those years you trained under her, but Visushio... he is unforgivable," he growled while glaring at the god with the same vengeful spirit. "Will you kill Rixa to kill him, or will you sacrifice yourself to kill him?" he questioned as though there was any limit to what Allura would do to save Flora and Axis. "I know what you will do, and I will not make you break your heart... my heart, further," he lamented, releasing himself from his abyss, and he took Rixacaeles's shoulder in a gentle grip.
"Who the hell are you?!" the goddess snapped with an instant glare.
"The one saving you of course," he smirked, and he effortlessly threw her with Allura's focus darting to him before he nodded. "Go on, cor meum."
"Thanks, Rune," she breathed, and his silver eyes widened in her revelation.
"When?" he whispered beneath her hearing while she struggled her way to Visushio.
"My love... Why?" the God of Sight pressed as she approached him. "I was doing it for you! The cur does not deserve you!" he growled, sitting up and throwing his severed hand at Allura before she kicked him flat on his back with her boot on his chest. "I SWEAR I WILL HAVE YOU! I WILL KILL-"
*BOOM*
The snapping of bones crackled through the air with every ounce of Allura's power decimating the god and buckling the ground beneath him. Blood splattered across the world, and the god's feathers rushed up into the sky without him in the ricochet of the attack.
"I'll do whatever it takes to protect them," Allura growled without regret at the unrecognizable corpse, and the feathers slowly fell to the ground, with exhaustion begging Allura to do the same.
She forced her gaze to search for the second mother to betray her out of need to ensure the safety of what she had left, and the man of the abyss appeared beside her.
"She left, and soon you will lose consciousness."
"I need to help them, Rune..." Allura breathed as she began staggering her way towards Axis with her violet aura beginning to fade.
"Cor, call me Cor when I am like this, cor meum," he requested, and she nodded with her eyes calming to their normalcy.
"Alright Cor, I need to help them," she replied with a weak smile before her exhaustion brought her to her knees, yet she continued to fight it. "Sanocuro..."
"He is already here, cor meum," Cor assured her as she tried to crawl her way to Axis, but she fell flat on the ground in a fit of tearing coughs, expelling blood from her lungs. "You need to rest," he hummed, sitting beside his broken heart.
"I need to..." she struggled to hold on as her vision started to fade, and Cor's hand rested gently on her head.
"Listen to me, cor meum," Cor commanded, and she found herself lacking the strength to lift her head. "I need you to trust in me in the coming days. We will be seperated, you will be tried, but I will come for you, cor meum, my heart..."