Part 15 - Endless Battle

The room was filled with smoke and dust, while the continuous energy waves from the ongoing battle shook the stone walls around them. Zerathis, despite being pressed by their combined attacks, stood tall with his glowing red eyes. His dark form seemed like a shadow that couldn't be touched, but as time passed, it appeared increasingly fragile—as if the darkness that had always surrounded him was being worn away by their strikes.

Ethan stared at the creature with determination. His sword, glowing dimmer, still contained energy, though its light was fading. "This isn't over," Ethan said, his voice trembling from exhaustion. "We have to keep fighting."

Asha, standing beside him, stepped forward, her hand glowing with a soft light. "I'll heal you all, but don't waste time," she said. With swift movements, her healing energy flowed through each of her friends, mending their wounds and giving them the boost of energy they needed.

Rowan glared at Zerathis with hatred. The fire blazing in his hand nearly scorched the air around him. "I won't give you the chance to rise again!" he yelled, hurling a giant fireball at Zerathis, which flew with incredible speed, burning the air it passed through.

Zerathis did not move, but with one swift motion, he raised his hand to absorb the fire. His body shuddered momentarily as the fire struck, but with a loud roar, he unleashed a wave of dark energy that scattered the fireball into harmless fragments.

"Hahaha, do you think that can defeat me?" Zerathis said, his voice full of suppressive power. "You don't understand the dark power flowing within me."

Amidst the chaos, Kael stood tall, his red eyes blazing, looking for a way to manipulate the creature's attacks. "I won't let you control them!" Kael shouted, focusing his mental energy. With the power of the medallion around his neck, he tried to control Zerathis' mind, but, as before, the creature remained unaffected. "You're too strong, Zerathis," Kael gasped.

Lila, who had been in the background from the start, bit her lip, trying to create a stronger illusion to distract Zerathis. She formed increasingly complex and realistic shadows, spinning around the creature with incredible speed, disrupting its focus.

However, with one swift movement, Zerathis raised his hand, destroying all the illusions around him with tremendous power. "Nothing can stop me," he scoffed, his dark form merging again with the surrounding darkness, making him harder to see.

They all felt the overwhelming pressure, but their resolve remained unbroken. "We can't stop now," Ethan said, raising his sword, which was growing brighter with an intense blue light. "If we stay together, we can do this."

Zerathis sneered, his voice dripping with malice. "Do you think you can fight the darkness that has existed since the beginning of time?" he shouted, his voice echoing throughout the trembling room. "You will only become part of this destruction."

With a roar that shattered the silence, Zerathis released an even larger and more powerful wave of dark energy. The wave hit them with a force that shook the entire room, like an unstoppable tsunami. Ethan and his friends were thrown back, their bodies struck by the energy.

Asha screamed, jumping forward to heal them, but the dark energy released by Zerathis halted all her healing efforts. "No..." Asha almost cried, but she quickly steeled herself.

"This isn't the end!" Rowan yelled, rising again, the fire in his hand flaring even stronger as he launched a new attack with greater force. "I won't let you destroy this world!"

Zerathis laughed, but this time, there was a faint unease on his face. He sensed that their power wasn't entirely weak, and they had created a small gap in his defenses.

"If you want it, then come!" Zerathis shouted, and his dark body emitted an even fiercer wave of energy.

However, suddenly, there was a powerful surge from within Ethan. His sword shone brighter than before, as if responding to an unexplainable call. "Everyone, unite!" he shouted. "We can do this if we perfectly combine our strength!"

Without hesitation, they all stood together. Rowan gathered all the fire energy within him. Lila formed a large illusion that focused their combined power. Kael, with his medallion, began directing his mental energy to distract Zerathis' attacks. Asha, with her hand raised, channeled her healing power to strengthen their existing forces.

Ethan raised his sword with unwavering resolve, the blue light from its tip shining as if piercing the darkness. With one extraordinary combined attack, they unleashed their energy in a devastating explosion.

The explosion shook the entire room. Zerathis screamed as his body was overwhelmed by the force he couldn't avoid. In the combined strength, the dark creature was thrown back, falling with a fragile body that was partially destroyed by the attack.

However, despite being badly wounded, Zerathis still did not surrender. With a terrifying voice that shook the entire room, he realized this was not the end of his battle. On the contrary, it was just the beginning of the great war to come.

Ethan and his friends stood tall, their breaths heavy, but their resolve unshaken. "This isn't over," Ethan said, staring at Zerathis with determination. "We will stop you."

This battle was far from over.