Location: The Chamber of the Sacred Flame, Natlan
Current Form: Human
Status: Negotiating a war, sensing a rivalry
The inner sanctum of the Stadium was a place of intense heat. The Sacred Flame burned in the center - a massive pillar of fire that served as the heartbeat of Natlan. But Raiden noticed flickering shadows within the flames. It was dying.
Mavuika stood before the flame. Il Capitano stood on the opposite side. The tension between the Archon and the First Harbinger was thick enough to cut with a knife.
"The Flame is weakening," Mavuika admitted, her voice solemn. "The Abyss - the Night Kingdom - is choking the roots of the Ley Lines. If the flame dies, the Ode of Resurrection fails. Our warriors will no longer return from death. Natlan will fall."
"Your methods are inefficient, Archon," Capitano's deep voice resonated. "You sacrifice your own power to feed the flame, delaying the inevitable. The Fatui plan is absolute. Hand over the Gnosis. I will use it to burn the corruption out at the source, once and for all."
"And burn half the nation with it?" Mavuika countered, eyes narrowing. "I will not sacrifice my people for a scorched-earth victory."
"Sacrifice is the currency of salvation," Capitano stated coldly.
"Can you two stop measuring your auras?" Raiden stepped between them, eating a bag of spicy chips. "You're heating up the room. My chips are getting soggy."
Both powerful beings looked at Raiden.
"The Anomaly," Capitano acknowledged. "You consumed the breach in the arena. You possess an affinity for the Void."
"I eat trash," Raiden corrected. "And the Abyss is just cosmic garbage. Mavuika, you said you wanted to cleanse the Night Kingdom? Let's go. I'm still hungry."
"You cannot simply walk into the Night Kingdom," Mavuika warned. "It is the realm of death. Without the protection of the Wayob, your soul will erode."
"I have [Destined Death Nullification]," Raiden reminded her. "I ate the entry ticket. I'm VIP."
Capitano adjusted his glove. "I intend to enter as well. If the Archon fails, I will take matters into my own hands."
"Fine," Mavuika grinned, equipping her claymore. "A joint operation. The Archon, the Harbinger, and the Dragon. Let's see who kills the most monsters."
Mavuika opened a gateway using the Sacred Flame. The three titans (plus Aether and a terrified Paimon) stepped through.
The Night Kingdom was a monochrome nightmare. The sky was static. The ground was gray ash. Floating obsidian monoliths whispered the regrets of the dead.
"It's so... flavorless," Raiden complained, kicking a gray rock. "It looks like an old TV channel."
"Stay close," Mavuika ordered. "The corruption here is dense. It seeks to drain your will to fight."
"My will is iron," Capitano walked forward, his heavy cloak undisturbed by the spectral winds.
Suddenly, the ground erupted.
A horde of Abyss Lectors (Void) and massive, shadowy Saurian-Abyss Hybrids charged them. There were hundreds.
"Small fry," Mavuika swung her claymore. A wave of pyro swept through the front line, vaporizing shadows.
"Weak," Capitano didn't even draw a weapon. He simply punched the air.
BOOM.
A shockwave of pure kinetic force and Cryo energy obliterated a dozen monsters instantly.
Raiden whistled. "Nice punch, Cap. But watch this."
Raiden opened his mouth.
[Gluttony: Area Eater].
He didn't target individuals. He targeted the space the monsters occupied.
SLURP.
A chunk of reality - monsters included - was sucked into Raiden's mouth.
"Needs salt," Raiden commented.
They pushed deeper until they reached the root of the Sacred Flame within the Night Kingdom. It was being strangled by a massive, pulsating tumor of Abyssal flesh. It looked like a beating heart made of tar.
The Abyssal Tumor.
"There," Mavuika pointed. "That is preventing the resurrection cycle. It constantly regenerates."
"It requires total annihilation," Capitano stepped forward. Blue flames ignited around his fists.
"Or," Raiden stepped forward. "It requires a stomach."
"Do not interfere, Dragon," Capitano warned. "This requires precision."
"You call punching it 'precision'?" Raiden laughed.
Suddenly, the Tumor shrieked. It morphed, forming a massive avatar of shadow - a Shadow Archon construct.
It swung a massive blade of darkness at Mavuika. She blocked, sliding back.
Capitano caught the blade with one hand. The ground beneath him shattered, but he didn't budge.
"Crumble," Capitano commanded.
He shattered the shadow blade with a grip strength that defied physics. He then delivered an uppercut to the shadow avatar that blew its head off.
"He's strong," Aether whispered, watching from behind a rock. "He's fighting an Abyssal Avatar with his bare hands."
The avatar regenerated instantly.
"See?" Mavuika wiped ash from her face. "It draws from the Ley Lines. We can't kill it with damage alone!"
"Move," Raiden said.
He transformed.
[Full Release: Obsidian Dragon Form].
The massive black dragon materialized, filling the Night Realm sky. Raiden dove.
He didn't attack the avatar. He attacked the Tumor.
He landed on the pulsating tar-heart. He dug his claws in.
"ITADAKIMASU."
Raiden bit into the source of the corruption.
The Tumor screamed - a psychic wail that knocked Aether unconscious.
Raiden didn't care. He tore a massive chunk of the Abyss root and swallowed it.
Gulp.
The regeneration stopped. The shadow avatar flickered and dissolved.
Raiden continued to eat. Bite after bite. The "infinite" corruption was being shoveled into an infinite stomach.
Capitano watched, his arms crossed. For the first time, he seemed... impressed.
"He consumes the concept of the corruption itself," Capitano noted. "He creates a void where the Abyss cannot return. Effective."
Raiden finished the last bite. The root was gone. The Sacred Flame's connection flared bright and healthy again.
Raiden reverted to human form. He stumbled, clutching his stomach.
"Ugh," Raiden groaned. "That was... heavy. I feel like I ate a lead balloon."
"System Warning. Abyssal Concentration: Critical. Host body temperature rising. Initiating [Void Purge]."
Raiden burped. A small black hole floated out and popped.
"I'm okay," Raiden gave a thumbs up.
Mavuika breathed a sigh of relief. "The flow is restored. The Ode of Resurrection can continue. Raiden... you have saved our warriors' souls."
"Just send the bill to the Tsaritsa," Raiden muttered.
They returned to the real world. The Sacred Flame in the stadium roared to life, burning brighter than it had in centuries. The people cheered.
But inside the sanctum, the mood shifted.
Capitano turned to Mavuika.
"The crisis is averted for now," Capitano said. "But the source of the Abyss remains elsewhere. The Gnosis is still required for the Tsaritsa's plan."
"I will not give it to you, Captain," Mavuika said firmly. "Natlan needs its power."
Capitano nodded. He turned to Raiden.
"Raiden Ragnvaldr."
"Yeah?" Raiden was drinking a glass of water to wash down the Abyss taste.
"You are the greatest obstacle," Capitano stated. "Mavuika is powerful, but bound by her duty to the Flame. You are unbound. You are the wild card."
Capitano began to walk toward the exit.
"In three days," Capitano said without looking back. "I will come for the Gnosis. I challenge you, Pyro Archon. And you, Gluttonous Sovereign. Let us settle this with the old laws of Natlan."
"A duel?" Mavuika grinned. "To the death?"
"To the defeat," Capitano corrected. "I do not wish to kill the Dragon. I wish to see if he can be broken."
He left the chamber.
Raiden crushed his water cup.
"He wants a fight," Raiden smiled, his eyes glowing with anticipation. "Finally. Someone who won't die in one hit."
Later that night, Raiden sat on the edge of the stadium roof.
Mavuika joined him, bringing two bottles of Phlogiston Wine.
"You challenged the Captain," Mavuika said, handing him a bottle. "He is the First. His power... it is rumored to rival the Gods of Celestia."
"Good," Raiden popped the cork with his thumb. "I've eaten Gods. I've eaten Whales. But I've never eaten a Captain."
"Don't eat him," Mavuika laughed. "He's honorable. He saved many of my people during the cataclysm."
"Fine. I'll just chew on him a little."
Mavuika looked at the stars.
"Raiden. If we win... if we save Natlan... will you stay?"
Raiden took a swig of the glowing wine.
"I'm a drifter, Mavuika. I go where the food is. But..."
He looked at her.
"...I kinda like this place. It's spicy. So I'll stick around until the desert is served."
Mavuika clinked her bottle against his.
"Then let's make sure we win. Because if the Captain takes the Gnosis... I fear what the Tsaritsa intends to do with all seven."
"She wants to burn the Old World," Raiden said, looking north. "And honestly? I might help her. After I finish my snack."