Chapter 17 - The Fight

Seraphine's scream ripped through the air like thunder, silencing the crackling of Oracio's flames and the frightened murmurs of the students. The shadow whips, extensions of her fury, materialized in her hands, snapping in the air like hungry black serpents, ready to strike. With supernatural speed, the vampire lunged at Lilith, the first blow aimed at the succubus's face.

Lilith, however, was not an easy target. With a cruel smile, she dodged the attack, the shadow whip passing millimeters from her pale skin. In the next instant, flames erupted from her hands, enveloping her in a mantle of fire.

"Playing with shadows, vampire?" Lilith mocked, her voice laced with scorn. "How cliché."

She launched a blast of fire at Seraphine, who defended herself with a quick movement, creating a temporary shield with her bat wings. The flames licked the black membranes but didn't burn them, dissipating in a cloud of smoke.

"Illusions and fire?" Seraphine retorted, with a growl. "How original."

The vampire dissolved into shadows, disappearing from Lilith's sight. The succubus, for an instant, seemed confused, looking around, the flames in her hands flickering. But then, a cunning smile appeared on her lips.

"Hiding in the darkness, vampire?" Lilith taunted, her voice echoing through the room. "So predictable."

She raised her hands, and the flames around her intensified, illuminating every corner of the classroom. The shadows retreated, and Seraphine reappeared, reluctantly, a few meters away.

"I don't need to hide from you, succubus," Seraphine hissed, her red eyes burning with fury.

She lunged at Lilith again, but this time, the succubus was prepared. Lilith created an illusion of herself, a perfect copy that moved in a different direction, while the real Lilith dodged to the side. Seraphine, deceived by the illusion, attacked the copy, which dissolved into smoke with a hissing sound.

"Fell for it, you fool!" Lilith laughed, taking advantage of the opportunity to counterattack.

She launched a fireball at Seraphine, who deflected it with a shadow whip, diverting the flaming projectile towards the ceiling. The fireball exploded on contact with the stone, sending splinters and sparks throughout the room.

"HAHAHA!!" A hysterical laugh echoed through the room, and everyone looked to the corner where Oracio was. The dragon, now in total panic, was shooting fire in all directions, without any control. A burst of flames hit Lira's tail, who screamed in pain and anger, diving into her aquarium. Another burst grazed Gabriel, who threw himself to the ground to protect himself.

"Oracio, stop!" Greta shouted, trying to get the dragon's attention, but her voice was drowned out by the roar of the flames and the screams of the students.

The fight between Seraphine and Lilith continued, growing more intense and destructive. The vampire, now more cautious with the succubus's illusions, used her speed and teleportation to attack from unexpected angles. She struck with her elongated claws, trying to scratch Lilith's skin, but the succubus defended herself with her flames, creating fire barriers and counterattacking with flaming projectiles.

At one point, Seraphine managed to get close to Lilith, grabbing her by the arm. The succubus screamed in pain as the vampire's claws pierced her skin, but, with an effort, she managed to free herself, unleashing a blast of fire that pushed Seraphine away.

"You're strong, vampire," Lilith admitted, wiping the blood running down her arm. "But not enough."

"We'll see!" Seraphine growled, preparing for a new attack.

The two mages collided, magic against magic, claws against horns, shadows against flames. The classroom, now in ruins, trembled with the force of the confrontation.

Seraphine's shadow whip hissed through the air, slicing a wooden desk in half as if it were butter. The pieces of the desk flew in all directions, forcing the few students who still remained in the room to duck to avoid being hit. A sharp cry echoed as a wood splinter hit an elf's leg, who ran out of the room, limping and cursing in his native language.

Lilith, with a cruel smile, dodged another whip attack, and the shadows slammed against the wall, opening a deep crack in the stone. The succubus responded with a concentrated blast of fire, which Seraphine blocked with difficulty, using a hastily conjured shadow shield. The impact threw her back, knocking over a bookcase. The ancient volumes, bound in leather and parchment, scattered across the floor, and some began to burn, adding the acrid smell of burning paper to the stench of the dungeon.

"Give up, vampire!" Lilith taunted, as she launched another fireball. "You can't beat me!"

Seraphine got up, ignoring the pain in her back. Her red eyes shone with even greater fury, and her bat wings stirred, raising a cloud of dust and soot.

"I'll show you what a relic can do!" She growled, and dissolved into shadows, reappearing behind Lilith.

The succubus, caught by surprise, didn't have time to defend herself. Seraphine grabbed her by the hair, pulling her back with force. Lilith screamed in pain, and her flames momentarily died down. The vampire sank her claws into the succubus's shoulder, tearing skin and clothing. Blood flowed down Lilith's arm, a dark, thick liquid with a sweet and metallic smell, which seemed to excite Seraphine even more.

But Lilith didn't give up. With a roar of anger, she concentrated her magic and unleashed a blast of fire that hit Seraphine point-blank. The vampire was thrown away, falling heavily onto a table, which broke under the impact.

"You…!" Seraphine groaned, feeling the pain of the burns on her body. But the pain only made her angrier.

She slowly got up, ignoring the wounds. Her clothes were torn and scorched, revealing parts of her pale skin, now marked with red burns and blisters. But her eyes continued to shine with a relentless determination.

Lilith, in turn, was also wounded. The shoulder where Seraphine had scratched her bled profusely, and her dress was torn in several places. But she maintained a defiant smile on her face.

"Are you tired, vampire?" she asked, with a mocking tone. "Do you want to give up already?"

"Never!" Seraphine replied, spitting the words like venom.

She prepared to attack again, but at that moment, the ground shook more forcefully. A tremor so intense that it made everyone in the room lose their balance. And, along with the tremor, came a sound…

A loud, guttural sound, like the roar of a giant beast, mixed with the creaking of metal twisting and the cracking of stones breaking. A sound that presaged something far worse than a fight between a vampire and a succubus.

"What the hell is that now?!" Lilith exclaimed, looking around, confused and irritated. For the first time, a trace of fear appeared in her violet eyes.

Seraphine, however, didn't have time to answer. A scream from Oracio, sharper and more desperate than ever, cut through the air. And, in the next instant, a colossal burst of fire, coming from the panicked dragon, exploded in the middle of the room, throwing students, debris, and magic in all directions.

The explosion of Oracio's fire was like the trigger of a nightmare. Gabriel, who was trying to stay as far away from the confrontation as possible, barely had time to react. The wave of heat hit him full force, throwing him against the wall with brutal force. He felt the impact on his back, the air being expelled from his lungs with a dry sound. For an instant, everything went dark.

When his vision cleared, Gabriel found himself surrounded by a whirlwind of flames, shadows, and debris. The smell of burning invaded his nostrils, mixed with the sweet and sickening scent of Lilith's blood and the metallic aroma of his own blood. He tried to get up, but a sharp pain in his leg made him fall to his knees.

"Damn…" he groaned, looking at his leg. A piece of wood, sharp as a spear, had pierced his thigh, pinning him to the ground. Blood flowed down his pants, forming a dark puddle on the dusty floor.

"Great… besides being useless, now I'm an easy target…", Gabriel thought, with a mixture of pain, anger, and self-deprecation.

He tried to pull out the piece of wood, but the pain was so intense that he let out a muffled cry. Involuntary tears welled up in his eyes.

*"I need to… I need to get out of here…"

But how? He was trapped, injured, and surrounded by magical chaos that could kill him at any moment. The fight between Seraphine and Lilith continued, relentlessly. The screams of the students, Oracio's roars, the crackling of the flames, and Fay's irritating buzz in his head mixed in a symphony of terror.

"I'm going to die here…", Gabriel thought, feeling panic take over. *"I'm going to die in this crazy place, without even knowing why…"

It was at that moment that Seraphine, in the midst of the fight, saw Gabriel fallen on the ground, injured and vulnerable. Her red eyes widened, and for an instant, the fury gave way to an expression of… horror?

"Gabriel!" She shouted, but her voice was drowned out by the sound of a new explosion.

Lilith, taking advantage of Seraphine's distraction, launched a powerful attack. A serpent of fire, with sharp fangs and glowing eyes, projected towards the vampire. Seraphine, with a quick movement, dodged the attack, but the serpent followed her, wrapping around her body and trapping her in a flaming embrace.

"Now you're mine, vampire!" Lilith shouted triumphantly.

Seraphine struggled against the flames, but the fire serpent tightened its grip more and more, burning her skin and draining her energy. She let out a scream of pain, a sharp and desperate sound that cut through the chaos of the classroom.

Hearing Seraphine's scream, Gabriel felt a surge of adrenaline rush through his body. The pain in his leg, the fear of death, everything seemed to disappear for an instant. He needed to do something. He needed to help.

"Seraphine!" He shouted, trying to get up, but the pain brought him down again.

It was at that moment, amidst the despair and fury, that Seraphine, her voice strained with pain and jealousy, shouted to the entire room:

"He's MY boyfriend, you filthy succubus! Get away from him!"

The silence that followed was almost as deafening as the previous chaos. Everyone, even Lilith and Oracio, stopped for an instant, shocked by the declaration.

Gabriel, fallen on the ground, felt his face burn. "Boyfriend?! Where did she get that?!"

But there was no time to think about it. The fire serpent still held Seraphine, and Lilith, although surprised, soon regained her composure.

"Boyfriend?" She repeated, with a cruel smile. "What a joke! A dead woman with a human? Besides, I'm much better, I love vulnerable humans, they're cute, I love that!" Lilith licks her lips looking at Gabriel like a sexual predator.

With a sudden movement, Lilith tightened the fire serpent even more, making Seraphine scream again.

"STOP!" Gabriel shouted, with all the strength of his lungs.

But his voice was drowned out by an even louder sound. A sound that made the ground tremble and the walls of the classroom crack.

CRACK… BOOM!

The classroom door exploded, sending splinters of wood and stone in all directions. And, in the entrance, enveloped in an aura of power and fury, Professor Akane appeared.