Prizmatic Hope #9: Life Received! The Three Heroes' Decisive Battle!

The world felt as if the end was near. A mysterious dark cloud engulfed the skies as Freia continued with her rituals to unseal the Deviants, with Gabbie's younger brother, Renée and her mother, Régine as the keys to unseal them, as the blood of Aurora's descendant was required as a key to unseal the horrors that the Angelus of Colors and Light once fought and defeated. During the war against Dark Nightmare eons ago, Aurora Angelus defeated numerous Deviants and sealed their souls beneath the tower that would serve as her final resting place, the Ephemeral Sky Tower. After years of its slumber beneath the cold Canadian Arctic waters, it was forcefully unearthed again.

"You will never succeed in your plan, you reptilian bastard! My daughters will get you for desecrating Aurora's resting place and trying to unseal the horrors she fought against! You hear me?!" said Regine as she was restrained on top of an altar along with her son. "Help me, mommy!" said Renée. The blonde boy could only cry as he and his mother are about to become the key to unleash the ancient Deviants' souls.

"Glad we still made it in time thanks to you, Kotaro. If I didn't get that call from my friend Cassie, we would not be here. Anyway, we must find a way to the tower and end this once and for all!" said Gabbie. "My home country is in danger, and if we don't act quick, things will get even worse, with the tower unsealed from its peaceful slumber and the sky's covered in dark clouds" she continued as she, Kotaro and Daiki readied themselves to fight their way to the Ephemeral Sky Tower.

Canada was crawling with Deviants, including those who has fallen against the Espers back in Azure City and Polaris Sanctuary. It was like a zombie apocalypse, with major states such as Ontario and British Columbia invested by those demonic beings. What appeared to be former Blood Gear gang members that were slain by Alfredo previously were rampaging through Toronto.

"My hometown!" screamed Gabbie in fear. "No need to fear, we'll defeat them all together!" said Daiki as he and Kotaro fought together against the revived Blood Gear gangsters. "Hmm.. I'll make y'all pay for what you did to my hometown!" said Gabbie before she joined the two and charged at the Deviants.

"Let's rampage once again! Abare-Spirit, forever!" said Draco Piscis' soul before he took over Daiki's body again. He then attacked multiple Deviants with claws and fangs made of Water-elemental aura. Kotaro swiftly cut down several Deviants, mostly Blood Gear members using his ninjutsu and shuriken-like bladed yoyo and Gabbie puts her martial arts skills to good use as she crushed multiple Deviants while saving her friend Cassie. The redhead grappler thanked Gabbie for saving her life.

"Thanks for saving me, Gabbers! Your other friends Blair and Gail still needs your help!" said Cassie. She remembered that Blair was her friend and rival who happened to be a fellow Nak Muay like her, and Gail was a pinkette amateur wrestler who was very familiar to her and Cassie. Without thinking twice, she went out to save them, leaving the rest of the Deviants to Daiki and Kotaro.

Back in Polaris, Irene and Marika discussed about the current Deviant outbreak in Canada. Marika has sent Lazuline troops to the scene in order to vanquish the Deviant threat, while Irene decided to send Hiroki, Lucy and Hayato to Canada. "Me, back to Canada again?! Sweet! I used to study there back in elementary school!" said Hiroki. His brother told him to calm down before the Fujimiya siblings and the twin-tailed British girl went to Toronto to crush the Deviants.

"Oh.. Gabbie! You saved me! I thought me and my family were going to be goners but, you're a very helpful person, despite our rivalry back in the ring" said Blair. The part-Hong Konger martial artist thanked Gabbie for saving her. She then went to save Gail, best known as Gallium Heart and her mentor Haley Cote, best known as Silver Ace. The two were attacked by the revived Thorny Lacewing and Arthrolycosa Deviants, previously fought by Kathleen back in 2012.

Gabbie took down both Deviants with single-handedly. "Thanks for saving us, we were very worried because those monsters are everywhere!" said Silver Ace as she shielded her pinkette protégé from the Deviants. Meanwhile, Hiroki, Hayato, Lucy and a detachment of Lazuline Troops led by Rachel's brother, Daniel Mason vanquished several Deviants, including some that were previously fought by Alfredo and Kathleen. "FIRE!!" commanded Daniel as the troops fired their Sigil-powered rifles at the marauding Deviants. They all screamed and fell as they died one by one.

"Now, let's go to the tower and put an end to this horror once and for all. It's time for our final battle" said Daiki. Gabbie arrived back in time after she saved Blair, Haley and Gail, while Kotaro managed to escort who appeared to be Gabbie's father to safety. "Thanks for saving us, but my son and wife are taken away by that wretched being! A woman with claws, glaring reptile-like eyes and a snake-like appearance" said Gabbie's father. His daughter remembered that she was kidnapped by a similar being. "I think I know who are we dealing with.." said Gabbie. "Let me guess, that Freia girl? Oh boy…" said Daiki.

"You three are our only hope. You're the only light who can vanquish the darkness that has plagued this nation. May Aurora Angelus bless you three!" said Gabbie's father. The three then flew to the tower using Kotaro's hang glider. They landed at a remote island located in the Canadian Arctic called the Lonely Island of the White Night. From there, they discovered an ancient culvert that led to the tower's basement. The three swam into the cold water as they entered the tower from below.

"Man I feel pretty wet and cold.." said Gabbie as she shivered after swimming with Kotaro and Daiki. The swordsman used the Anemo and Pyro Enestals to dry and warm Gabbie. "Thanks, you're a lifesaver" said Gabbie after Daiki helped her. The three then scaled the tower from below by walking through a spiral stair. Along their way, Daiki saw murals of the Great Lumian War and the history of the Lumians themselves. One of the depicting an evil serpent-like being with glaring red eyes, none other than Dark Nightmare. On the other side was an angelic being with seven angels below her. It was Juno, the Goddess of the Seven Stars and the Six Angeluses: Lumino, Aurora, Augustus, Demetrios, Julius and Hermes. On the Angeluses were symbols depicting a sun, a rainbow, a moon, a blue planet, a star and a flash of lightning.

The next mural depicted the triumph of the forces of good. Juno and the Angeluses defeated Dark Nightmare and the evil deity was banished into the Temple of Nephilim, where it was sealed beneath the deep sea. Before they perish to their wounds, the Angeluses would settle in different places in Earth. They would give birth to the first Lumians, and in return, they built structures as the Angeluses' final resting place. The one built for Aurora however, also served as a seal. Before she died, she sealed the souls of the defeated Deviants beneath the Ephemeral Sky Tower, before she entrusted one of her descendants a crystal pendant with a prismatic cyan sheen. Her body shriveled as she died, and her soul entered the pendant, serving as her vessel. The first descendant of Aurora would be the progenitor of Gabbie's family, which happened to be her mother's clan. Below the tower's mural were murals of mooses, beavers and woolly mammoths, as well as snow-covered maple trees and ice mountains. Aurora passed away in the Canadian tundra.

"Impressive. Never thought I would be the descendant of an angel, yet Muh-mah kept telling me stories about Aurora Angelus" said Gabbie upon seeing the murals. Her pendant resonated with her. "Now you know the truth. It's time for you to embrace the facts that you're my child, so as your sister, your mom and your younger brother. You are entrusted to bear my soul within this pendant as decreed by the elders of your clan, who are my children too. You are my reincarnation in this mortal world" said Aurora Angelus' soul from within the pendant.

"I will do whatever it takes to protect this world, even if I have to sacrifice myself. Just like you in the murals. You fought bravely and won, and before your final breath, you sealed your enemies in this tower and passed away. Even if I ended up like you, I will always stay strong" said Gabbie. Her face was filled with determination and vigor. She was ready to fight the final threat alongside her friends. "If you're ready, we'll continue our track upward" said Daiki. Gabbie and Kotaro nodded and they continued scaling the stairs.

They then reached the tower's inner sanctum. A statue of Aurora Angelus lies in the center of the tower. There were no stairs leading to the top, until Gabbie's pendant glowed and resonated with the statue. "Lend me your power, Aurora! Where there's darkness, there's always light!" shouted Gabbie as she pointed the pendant towards the statue. The grimy stone figure of Aurora glowed as well and unleashed a rainbow-colored light from its eyes, firing at the trio. The three were then teleported to the tower's top, where Freia awaits.

"Muh-mah! Renny!" said Gabbie as she saw her mother and her younger brother, tied up in the altar. She then freed the two using the pendant, causing the dark tendrills that held them to disintegrate.

"Thank you so much, my beloved daughter. We'd better get out of here before-" said Régine before her speech was interrupted. "Who dares to distrub my rite? Who dare to foil my perfect plan for my beloved one?" said the mysterious clawed being. Freia was no longer human again. She revealed her true form, a reptilian Deviant who was also one of the first two Deviants, refered as Progenitor Deviant β. She's now an eldritch abomination resembling a feminine reptilian humanoid with dinosaur-like features and a gaudy appearance. "Game over, Freia! The reincarnation of Aurora Angelus is here to finish you once and for all, like your fellow Deviants below this tower!" said Gabbie.

"You… YOU!! GRAAAAAAAAAGH!!" said Freia in anger. She threw a meltdown upon seeing that Gabbie was no longer in her hands. She became very angry after all of her plans for her beloved Hideo has gone kaput. She almost had Mizuki, Kathleen, Cathy, Machiko and now Gabbie. The keys to unsealing the Deviant souls were freed, and now Gabbie has joined forces with an otherwordly hero and a skilled ninja from a very-known clan of sumo wrestlers. "I will not let you fall like Euphie, even if you said that you're willing to sacrifice your life. I will not let that happen. Lend me your powers, Gabbie" said Daiki. "I wonder if we can combine our powers together, me and Aurora?" said Draco Piscis' soul.

Upon hearing that, Daiki had an idea. He took Gabbie's pendant and slotted the crystal into the Dragunbuster's Enestal slot. "Hey, what are you doing?!" said Gabbie in anger as her pendant was snatched by Daiki. "Let's kick it up a notch! We shall be remembered as the History's Strongest Braves when two powers become one!" answered Daiki. He then did a little dance before firing his Dragunbuster to the sky. "FIRE!" shouted Daiki as he pulled the trigger. The pendant was crushed, unleashing Aurora Angelus' and Draco Piscis' souls from the gun's muzzle.

"It's about to get wild.. We shall decide this story's ending!" said Daiki quietly as a shimmering aura of gold and sapphire engulfed the trio.

"Instead of hiding, we rampage! I'm all fired up!" said Kotaro as he brandished his sword.

"My feelings will pierce through the darkness like nothing! Behold, the Reincarnation of Aurora Angelus herself" said Gabbie as she clenched her fists and readied to fight Freia.

Freia threw in a slew of Paramecium Deviants to protect herself. They were defeated one by one by the trio, thanks to their new powers. Kotaro's outfit turned from his red and white jacket to a bright green one with a sparkling gold lining. Daiki's navy uniform turned into a heroic red uniform with some hints of black and a golden cape while Gabbie's outfit turned into an angelic fighting outfit with a wing-like scarf and a blend of white, yellow and cyan. A neatly-tied white hair scarf resembling a rabbit's ears adorned her hair, along with her barettes.

Freia fought intensely against the three, yet she could not handle the three's attacks, thanks to the fusion of the Dragon Deity and Angelus' souls. She tried to claw Gabbie down, but the Canadian martial artist broke her long and sharp claws with a single knee strike. Daiki finished Freia with his Draco Alchemisaber, causing her to fall on her back, and Kotaro slashed her with his sword while moving as fast as a blowing wind.

"Guh… I need to pull back and report to my sweetheart Hideo. I can't fight too much like this. Mark my words, Valhalla will never die! Hahahahaha… Hahahahah!" said Freia as she covered her wounds with her scaly hands. She then tried to escape, but she was too weak to move. "Let's finish her off together, shall we?" said Daiki. 'With pleasure" answered Gabbie.

The swordsman and the martial artist prepared to deliver their dual finisher, now charged with pure light energy from Aurora Angelus' soul and water-imbued aura from Draco Piscis' soul. They both leaped into the air and turned into a piercing arrow of light. Freia was struck from behind by Gabbie and Daiki, causing her to flop into the ground. She tried to get up, but she could not believe that she lost to the one she sought after and her beloved one.

"I can't believe it… I'm defeated by you three bastards. Even if I die, my sweetheart Hideo will continue his mission, to create a nirvana for Deviants. Long live Valhalla, and hail Dark Nightmare! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" said Freia before her eyelids shut and her pupils rolled back into her skull. She exploded violently upon her death.

"Gah!" said Hideo. He felt a burning and piercing pain from within his chest. His beloved one fell to the hands of the three heroes, Daiki, Gabbie and Kotaro. "RRRRGHHHHHH CURSE THE ANGELUUUUUUUUUUSEEEEEEEEESSS!! RAAAAAAAAAGHH!!" screamed Hideo as he went into a meltdown before he grieved the death of Freia, his fellow Progenitor Deviant and his mate. With Freia gone, Hideo had to bear her responsibilities as Valhalla's leader. Not only that, his nemesis Alfredo, whom he met back in the battle at Krait Energies' HQ was still at large.

The three heroes reverted to normal. Their outfits went back to normal again as Aurora's soul dissipated and Draco Piscis' soul returned into Daiki's heart. "We did it, though Aurora's soul sacrificed herself for us. She granted us the power to defeat Freia, and I no longer hear the wails of the Deviant souls from below the tower. The death of Freia purified this tower, and the Canadian skies are no longer dark. We went through a lot together, from the time me and my sis were kidnapped by Valhalla, saved by Turquoise, met Daiki for the first time, kidnapped by Zaphiel, saved by Daiki and kidnapped again by Freia, fought and defeated Reiko and now.. we defeated Freia. We shall be remembered as History's Strongest Braves, the one who saved the world from a Deviant invasion" said Gabbie with a rather melancholic tone.

"Mhm, and I finally awakened the true person within you. You're no longer cold and aloof like before, but you're now a caring girl with some remnants of your cold and aloof self. You reminded me of how strong Euphemia was, but this time I cherish you more, my sweet Gabrielle. There's nothing we can't do as long as we stick and work together" said Daiki. "Sorry bud, but I must go. Afilia needs me more than this world" said Draco Piscis' soul.

"Wait what?! If you're gone, I will no longer be able to use my mana again!" said Daiki. "But Afilia needs to return from its ashes and I can't stay here for long. Please, take care of Gabbie, and cherish the rest of your life with her. Build a new dynasty of your dying bloodline with her in this world" said Draco Piscis soul.

"Please look after the kingdom, and bring back everyone and their smiles!" said Daiki as Draco Piscis's soul flew out of her heart and into the skies. The soul travelled through the space-time continuum and arrived back to the Zenkai Homeworld, where it became one with the skeletal remains of Draco Piscis. The Dragon Deity of the Seas roared once again as it rejoined its fellow Dragon Deities, Aevis Aerios and Rex Vulcanus to rebuild and revive Afilia from its ashes and rubble. Those who fell to the Revenant and his army of Fallen Ones were brought back to life.

"Looks like I'm nothing now, just a normal person with a non-functioning sword and gun. I can't fight anymore" said Daiki. "Who said you're nothing? C'mon, I'll take you to my home. You can stay there if you want to! I have a spare room for you, though it was my old room back when I was still in high school. I'll have to get rid of the girly stuff before you can sleep there" said Gabbie. Daiki nodded and went to the Desjardin residence with Gabbie, her younger brother and her mother, while Kotaro went back to Tokyo where he reunited with his sister, Akashi Tanikaze. Shortly after they left, the tower sank into the sea again, returning to its peaceful slumber beneath the cold sea.