Chapter XVIII: Damien vs. Junichiro - Nature's Aid (Pt. 2)

 In a moment of desperation, Damien put every ounce of his strength, every ounce of his will, and every ounce of his power into a final push as his blade began to carve through the energy produced by Junichiro. Damien forced his way down until he finally broke through just as Junichiro's eyes snapped open, but it was too late. Damien cut clean through him from the shoulder to his other side's rib cage with a fatal Thunderstrike. The strike was laced with so much lightning that Damien saw it released from the opposite side of Junichiro and travel into the ground before visibly dispersing in all directions. All of Junichiro's power dissipated abruptly as he dropped his sword and fell to his knees with a shocked expression. Damien's Electric Embodiment deactivated, inviting the rain to wet him again as he watched with a pained expression. Junichiro's expression shifted to one full of regret, but Damien knew it wasn't for having been cut down. Junichiro regretted he could no longer protect his family. "Why'd you make me do that?" Damien said as he walked up to Junichiro. This wasn't the first time he'd killed, but for some reason, he was filled with remorse for having cut through Junichiro. Junichiro didn't respond. He tilted his head up to glance at the massive storm that reconverged overhead. Then, without looking at Damien, he spoke. There was a hint of anger in his voice. "This...should not have been the end for me....You infuriate me to no end." "You could have stopped...why didn't you stop?" Damien responded. Junichiro repressed the urge to cough, knowing it'd hasten his last moments. "Why not control me the way you did Claeg...?" Damien curled his bottom lip and looked away with guilt. It hadn't occurred to him at all. Somehow, he'd gotten caught up in the rush. He could've easily subdued Junichiro at any moment by controlling him. Why had that not occurred to him? "I..." was all he could say. When Damien looked back at Junichiro, he was met with a glare of judgment. After a moment, Junichiro visibly let go of his frustration and took a softer expression Damien didn't think he could make. His gaze went back to the clouds above, and he...smiled. "Ah, Wren would love this..." he said as a single tear rolled down his cheek and the life in his eyes faded. Just then, the integrity of his body finally gave out, and the upper segment of his body slid to the ground. There was no blood. Damien's lightning had cauterized the wound as he cut through. Damien stared at the corpse before him as the rain continued. Suddenly, all of the fatigue from the battle rushed to the surface, causing his limbs to feel like they weighed tons. He couldn't move. He couldn't stand. Damien collapsed to the ground. The blood from the injury on his back began to spurt outward again now that his spirit energy was inactive, but he could still see the light from Michael's thread glowing. He was done. He'd done his part. He closed his eyes and let Michael heal him as best he could.--------------------------------------------------------Fun fact: Junichiro was the second oldest among Avarice's beloved children. He'd always loved and cherished Wren and Trevor while also devoting himself to his savior, Avarice. His loyalty and discipline was so profound he killed his older brother, the first successful High God, who once rebelled against Avarice long ago.Enjoying the story? Have any constructive criticisms? Leave a like or comment to share your thoughts with me. :)Super Supporters: Wanna learn everything up-to-date? Get exclusive information about your favorite character(s)? Or perhaps you'd like a place to chat with other fans of the series or even the author himself...Read the series for free as a free member of the series' Patreon page @ www.patreon.com/primordialsOr show your support for a new, growing series by subscribing to one of the site's tiers! Your further support will earn you several bonuses such as immediate access to highly detailed character profiles, updated lore, amazing artwork, suggestion polls, and more!

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