Storm Fury

Kavir wasn't even panting. He breathed in and out with no effort and regularly, focusing as much as he could not to lose control. His heartbeats were steady and had a good rhythm. A flow of thoughts constantly crossed his mind as he reasoned quickly about the conditions of that battle.

The face of Ares's father didn't even flinch and he acted like he didn't care about his lost left arm at all.

Blood was continuously spitting out of it, and it surely was painful. However, the determination he showed since the start of the battle was still there and grew stronger each time. He needed to use a lot of his mental energy to be resilient and ignore such serious damage, but he could pull through it.

Jasmine's folk wasn't as stable as him, though. That sight made their eyes get moist with tears as their hopes vanished slowly. It wasn't possible even for someone as tough as him to beat that Ancient with such conditions.

The Phoenix was also harmed, but it was disappearing quickly. The healing properties of her flames were something to be envious of. Nonetheless, there was a point that no one down there could notice, but Kavir could, and that was the reason for his will still being burning inside his chest.

That Ancient had its breath unsteady, it seemed to be flapping its wings with less energy as well. That big wound and the other small cuts that Kavir managed to make were closing, but they still caused bleeding for some time and exhausted the beast.

The man had bruises that couldn't be healed as fast, but they were tied when comparing their exhaustion.

"Your greed to get power is so big like this? You will really destroy everything in your way for this sake?" Kavir inquired. His tone of voice was filled with bitterness and pain, but he had a composed expression. "How far will you go until you are satisfied, huh?"

The Phoenix seemed to understand what he was saying but didn't react in any way.

"You won't be talking now, right? You will really keep your mouth shut about all the atrocities you committed, even though your reasons are good, don't you?"

The beast stayed in silence, using that opportunity to recover for a bit. That absence of response made Kavir get angrier. He shut his eyes while tightening the grip on his axe. He was holding his feelings back, so he could fight at his peak. That was the basic to control Mana. It was all related to his state of mind.

He imagined a loud and furious storm inside of his mind. The wind was blowing away the leaves of the threes and the rocks on the earth. It was night, but the drops of water could be seen because of the pale silver light of the moon.

The silver glow around him got stronger. It was not just an aura detailing the axe and his silhouette anymore. It shone like never before, to the point where people needed to cover their eyes to avoid it blinding them.

The Phoenix answered him feeding the fire around her with Mana as well. Those flames were already surreal before, but now it seemed even unfair. The Ancient was clearly holding its max power for some reason. It seemed to be willing to fight Kavir and see what he was capable of.

People continued to watch as they advanced more in the golden fields, but this time slowly. They wanted to keep seeing it from closer, but getting far away from that was better.

Kavir held his breath, getting into position. His axe was poised behind his back in an unorthodox battle style.

'Father, that's the only technique that you taught me. I hope I do it right.' He prayed silently. 'I couldn't use this before because there were too many people that I could harm. I am sorry that I couldn't save you. And... thank you for everything, old man. I will make sure to make Ares have some more years of life, I promise.'

Once he finished his last words to his father, his body flew towards the Phoenix at a high speed. The beast did the same. Although it was getting tired, it managed to increase its speed with the power of those flames.

However, that was all that the man wanted. In the last second, he changed his curse dramatically, going up straightly all of a sudden. The Phoenix was prepared to give chase on him, but it was not dumb. The Ancient knew that something huge was coming.

After all, that man was the son of Arthur Stormray, a strong Beast Hunter.

The Phoenix had analyzed that axe for a long time, and also the runes written on it. They were the same that it saw several decades ago. So, that movement could just mean one thing...

Above several meters from the Ancient, Kavir had his body turned toward her. He was doing that same unorthodox fighting stance from before. In a matter of seconds, the skies turned gray as several heavy dark clouds appeared. The flow of Mana in the environment was going crazy, showing that powerful magic was going to be used. The runes' brightness stayed with the same explosive intensity.

"Mystical Art, Lightning element: Storm fury." His calm voice was deep, his eyes sharp and focused. His call for the magic's name echoed through the golden fields.

All people around felt that a slight electricity shock ran through their bodies, making them feel ticklish and shiver.

Several lightning bolts fell in the distance as the clouds gathered above the spot where Ares's father was.

Electricity began to gather in his body, coming from all sides. His eyes shone in pure white color. That silver aura merged with the electricity and increased its intensity.

The sound of thunder echoed as the light of a lightning bolt blinded everyone.

Kavir's body went down toward the Phoenix at a speed that surpassed all bounds he had met before. It had a high acceleration. He went from 0 to 100% in a matter of milliseconds. He seemed to be the incorporation of a lightning bolt.

An explosion happened on that spot, sending a wave of electricity and shockwaves through the fields. That folk got amazed and frightened with the turn of events. The distance they had got wasn't enough to prevent them to get harmed with that battle at all.

As the effects of the explosion lessened, they returned to look to the battlefield. Their eyes were optimistic now... except from one person.

Ares never could avoid his eyes from that battle and he was still looking at it. He knew very well... the battle didn't end there.

From the cloud of smoke that the explosion created, and even with his buzzing ear, he could still notice that they were on a clash. Thunder against Fire. A fierce battle. Their strength and resistance weren't something that could end with just one blow.

Once the smoke was gone, they saw that the man was still swinging his axe single-handed with all his might. He was boosted by the electricity gathered in his body, but it was weaker than in the first attack.

The Phoenix was struggling against him and raising even more its strength and the intensity of the flames at each clash.

'Go dad!' Ares prayed. 'Go, please!' He still had tears flowing in his pleading eyes.

'Sharper! Do sharper attacks!' His dad's attacks became sharper immediately.

'Dance around the battlefield. Pay attention to the footwork.' Kavir's feet barely could be seen and his rhythm was unbeatable.

'Don't lose your balance! Think while you fight! Faster! Stronger! Be relentless!' Every single one of his thoughts seemed to get to his father.

Kavir stomped the ground with his feet, closing the distance between him and his opponent in seconds. His grip on the axe was as firm as never. His eyes didn't blink and his pupils were retracted. He spun his hips together with the strength added by his legs. His arm made a swift and efficient motion.

The axe's blade drew a horizontal line toward the neck of that huge legendary bird. It seemed to disappear in the air while traveling as if it was warping. The sound of its sharp edge cutting the air couldn't be heard not even by Kavir.

'The perfect slash!' Ares thought.

However... the blade never landed. Kavir stopped the attack right when it would reach the Phoenix's neck.

He gave a helpless smile towards the huge Phoenix. Tears were flowing out of his eyes and evaporating midway while running down his cheeks.

The Phoenix quickly cast a sad look towards him, but it disappeared just as quickly.

It covered Kavir's body with its huge wings, enjailing him just as if it was hugging his body. The Ancient's flames acquired a strong light as its power was raising.

Kavir looked over her wings, his face's skin getting slowly burned. His eyes met with Ares's.

"DAD!" Ares shouted with despair.

His father had the expression of someone apologizing, also as fondness as he looked to his son's face for the last time.

"A-Ar--" He didn't have the time to finish.

All that heat accumulated and condensed in the Phoenix's body broke out at once.

The explosion that followed it engulfed Jasmine's village completely, ending with the memories of that folk once and for all, and also with Ares's father. All of it in front of their eyes.

Love, sadness, paternity, cultivation, home... Everything turned into ashes.