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"Our dream cannot end here! IT WILL NOT END HERE! IT WONâT!!!"
FLAAASH!
HĂ©lunaâs body blazed with brilliant light. Her Aura surged and fused into her flesh. Wounds knit together at blinding speed, forcing everyone back. They watched in stunned silence as her light-pink skin darkened to deep purple. Her ears lengthened dramatically, and crystalline pink antlers sprouted from her head.
A third eye, vivid purple, opened in the center of her forehead. Her hair turned silver and flowed like liquid starlight under the pressure of her aura. Enormous butterfly-like wings unfolded from her back, each one five times the size of her body.
Just as Fortune and Deus could unseal greater power to assume stronger forms, HĂ©luna did the same, becoming both majestic and terrifying.
"I am the second Venerable ever born! I am the Immortal Moon Princess of Starlight!"
Her Aura pressed outward relentlessly, making it nearly impossible for anyone to approach. Rootâs eyes widened as he sensed her power skyrocket, at least tenfold.
"Are you kidding me?! She had even more hidden away?!" Amethyst shouted.
"This is insane! How are we supposed to deal with that?!" Triton cried.
"...We have to!" Surtr declared. Despite his inexperience, leadership came naturally to him. "If we donât stop her, who will?! We canât let my sister and the others get attacked while theyâre on their most crucial mission!"
"Youâre right, Surtr," Azure said, appearing beside them through one of Hermesâ teleports. He had been tirelessly saving lives, pulling allies from danger, healing with Root, and raising barriers against lethal strikes. "Thereâs something much deeper inside all of you. Roar and let it out! Combine everything you haveâyour knowledge, your training, your skills, your Divinity, your Archetypesâand unleash it with everything youâve got! We dragons...!"
"HAVE NO LIMITS!!!"
The dragons roared as one. The thunderous chorus shook HĂ©lunaâs long ears and only fueled her irritation. She thrust her hands forward, gathering purple, silver, and pink moonlight and starlight, compressing it until it became pure white void.
"Dragons have no limits?! What ridiculous nonsense is that?! Everyone has limits! You cannot possibly believe you can stand against me, no matter how many of you there are! I have cultivated my power for hundreds of thousands of years! Your king isnât even here! Youâre nothing but extrasâsecondary characters nobody cares about! Without him, you are worthless!"
She roared and unleashed her attack.
"{Celestial White Void Moon}!"
A colossal sphere of white void surged toward them, expanding until it covered hundreds of kilometers. Escape seemed impossible.
Azure raised his claws and roared, his Aura flooding into every dragon, lending them his strength.
"Donât give up! You can do this!"
Drakeâs legacy burned within them all. The dragons answered with their own deafening cries. Their Archetypes began to manifest more fully, merging with their draconic bodies into powerful hybrid forms.
"RAAAAAAHHHHH!"
Their combined Auras spiraled upward like an ocean of elemental essence, carrying Drakeâs spark in every heart.
"Youâre wrong about one thing, HĂ©luna!" Surtr bellowed.
"Drake isnât gone! Heâs right here with us!" Amethyst added.
"He left a spark in our soulsâin our hearts!" Emerald shouted.
"And as much as I hate to admit it, he taught us a lot!" Triton growled.
"I only knew him briefly, but he made a lasting impression. Heâs a good king!" Hydra laughed.
"Heâs a wonderful friend too!" Celene said.
"My brother saved me when nobody else believed in me! He never gave up on me, and Iâll never give up on him!" Hrimvaldr roared.
United by the man who had gone out of his way to bring them together, the dragons charged. Their combined roar pushed HĂ©lunaâs moon backward, only for her to force it forward again, crackling with white lightning that warped space itself.
"Fools! Whatever blessing he left you with, itâs nothing compared to my power! I possess ten Ascendancy Law Rings! My strength is Rank 19âa realm none of you will ever reach, no matter what shortcuts or cheats you try!"
"Thatâs where youâre wrong, HĂ©luna," Root said, his own power surging as he joined the fusion. A spectral figure began to take shape behind himâa slender humanoid form of wood and green-silver steel, with long elven ears and golden hair flowing like vines. It resembled his appearance from a past life. "Youâre not just fighting us! Look around!"
"...?!"
HĂ©lunaâs eyes widened. Through their unified auras, countless silhouettes appearedâthe ancient dragons of the Draconic Records themselves, lending their strength to the chosen champions of each bloodline.
"We dragons are one enormous family! Something none of you will ever understand!!!" Surtr roared.
The dragons answered with a deafening chorus. Their combined power shoved the titanic moon backward once more.
"Drake left me in charge of these young ones, and I will not disappoint him!" Root declared. The specter behind him grew more solid with every word. "I will stop you, HĂ©luna... my beloved niece. And through you, I will stop my brother. That is my duty!"
RUMBLE!
The silhouette fully materialized, radiating pure life and nature energy that spread everywhere, restoring vitality and stamina to every dragon.
"Awaken! Verdant Sage!"
FLAAASH!
Rootâs Archetype appeared in full glory.
The elf-like figure raised long, metallic hands and summoned a massive wand of living wood, leaves, and fruit.
Root, burning with determination to protect these dragons and defeat HĂ©luna, fully awakened his Archetype, merging his past and present selves. His draconic soul blazed with unbreakable conviction.
"{Wildgrowth Aegis}!!!"
FLAAASH!
The Verdant Sage pointed his wand forward. An enormous glowing shield of spiritual wood surged into existence, clashing against HĂ©lunaâs spell and steadily pushing it back.
RUMBLE!
"Now!"
Azure roared. Every dragon unleashed their strongest techniques at once.
Surtrâs sword carved the sky, releasing a colossal wave of flames and fire dragon souls.
Amethyst slashed repeatedly, gathering light into a radiant ocean.
Tritonâs trident summoned a divine whirlpool of oceanic power.
Emerald unleashed a storm of wind and thunder.
Hydra conjured clouds of spectral death energy.
Hrimvaldr fired beams of blood-ice and holy light.
Celene created countless mirrors of moonlight, merging them into one enormous mirror that absorbed every attack.
"HAAAAAH!"
She reflected the combined might as a single, gigantic beam of swirling rainbow colorsâa vortex of pure destruction that pierced straight through the white void moon and struck HĂ©luna.
"I-IMPOSSIBLE! HOW...! HOW CAN YOU...!"
The Venerable screamed as the beam hit. Her spell shattered and exploded in her face. For a moment the sky turned pure white, and dazzling stardust rained down.
BOOOMMM!!!
The dragons stared in awe at what they had achieved. HĂ©luna was still alive, of course, emerging from the smoke, but she was clearly wounded. Her regeneration could not keep up with such overwhelming damage.
"Y-You damned beasts... Youâve truly angered me now. I will no longer hold back. You will perishâright here, right now!"
RUMBLE!
"Huh?!"
In an instant, the dragons, Alma, and Hermes found themselves engulfed by stars, the dark night sky, and a colossal moon overhead.
Within the blink of an eye, they were inside HĂ©lunaâs Dominion.
"You will suffer."
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