Demoness 2 - Chapter 39 - Civil War (Finale) (Patreon)

Elania read the message again, the words glowing with a soft, peaceful divine luminescence that contrasted with the chaotic battle around her.

[You have achieved maximum Divine Affinity. Would you like to attempt Seraph Transformation? Y/N]

The last time she had transformed, it had created a permanent change in her along with the permanent Darkwalker core.

This time though, didn’t she already have a Divine Core from the engine?

Transforming into a Darkwalker under the current circumstances wasn’t going to help her in the battle, and she needed an advantage.

“Sure, why not,” Elania murmured, her voice a mere whisper against the cacophony of battle.

The pressure in the back of her neck vanished, and she felt a surge of energy that was almost overwhelming.

Around her, the air shimmered with incandescent brilliance, casting an ethereal glow that painted stark terror on the faces of the fleeing monks.

Her entire body felt lighter, and then the floating motes of [Power] flowed toward her back. There were two pinches of pain as her own [Power]sprouted out of her backs near her shoulder blades.

Gravity suddenly declined to hold her, and she floated up several feet into the air.

Oh. She’d grown wings. Or rather, her power had coalesced into two wide arcs of energy that were embroidered with feathers of light.

The first thing she wanted was to check her status, but the [System] declined to respond.

That was just like when she transformed into a Darkwalker.

That wasn’t helpful.

One thing she felt that the transformation confirmed: [Divinity] certainly was the element that had been affecting her emotions so much.

Everything felt distant and unimportant, and she was filled with a sense of... detachment. Like she was looking at things through the lens of an analytical observer.

She didn’t like that. At least she still remembered what her purpose was.

Punishment. The word resonated within her, a clarion call that pierced through the fog of detachment.

She would punish them again.

A musket ball tumbled through one of the ethereal appendages but evaporated into a spray of light motes. The spray slowed and then reversed, flowing back into her wing.

Elania took a deep breath and focused. She was still in a battle, and getting used to her new form was going to have to wait.

Gesturing toward a lump of bodies on the bridge, an application of [Soul Siphon - Visible]was trivial. Her vision had shifted and she could see the coalescent sparks of lingering soul energy. They would give their last vestiges to her now, rather than dissolve into the backdrop of the Engine’s cradle.

All the dead monks began to dissolve into a spray of light as she willed it.

Raising her hand, the [Power]flowed into a growing golden orb that floated in her palm.

A wave of holy bells and other light spells struck her, but they did nothing but dissolve and add to her [Power].

When she had enough, she finally spoke.

The voice that came out of her throat wasn’t hers.

“Mortals should fear to tread where angels’ gaze,” she intoned. The words reverberated deeply, echoing off the distant walls at a volume that was far too loud.

She gestured toward the fortress, and the orb of [Power] shot forward with a comet’s trail.

It was halfway to her target when a figure appeared in front of it. Flanking the shape were two others, and a harmonious chant erupted, sounding as if it was coming from every direction.

There was the sound of a gong, and then the orb of [Power] stopped in the air and began to evaporate into an expanding mist.

Elania activated [Identify]immediately.

[Elder Winx - Level 412]

[Elder Eidan - Level 420]

[Elder Gant - Level 415]

Winx wasn’t dead. That was unfortunate. She’d heard the other one mentioned before, but just how many of these Conclave Elders were there?

Rather than wait for the massive orb of energy to disperse, Elania angled her wings and flashed forward. When she reached it, she punched it with her fist.

The manifestation of [Power]rippled and then splashed over an invisible barrier in front of the Elders. The energy had to go somewhere, though, and suddenly spikes of light slashed out in every direction, carving lines of fire into the stone walls and fleeing junior monks alike.

She went to strike again, when the Elders began a second chant.

Before she could react, an invisible hand surrounded her and squeezed. Her wings folded inward, and she slowly floated to the ground.

The pressure was immense, and she felt her bones creaking under the strain.

Divinity. Light Magic. The monks... holy powers.

A whirlwind of thoughts spun through her head as she tried to piece things together in a way that would let her escape.

The monks’ power was related to [Divine] essence and energy, and she had stolen their power and turned it into her own.

But here were three Elders, masters of its manipulation, and they were using it against her.

[Soul Management]

[Darkwalker Core - 33%]

[Divine Core - 33%]

[Human Core - 34%]

[Essence Distribution]

[Darkwalker - 4%, Divine - 91%, Human - 4%, Other - 1%]

The chanting grew stronger and the crushing sensation began to increase.

Maybe if she reduced her [Divine] essence, it would reduce their ability to affect her?

She tried to force some of the [Divine] essence through her other cores, but it was like trying to push a boulder through a keyhole.

The monks walked closer, holding up an ethereal golden bell and ringing it calmly as they approached. The ringing in her ears became deafening.

Elania landed on her knees, the stone cracking under the weight.

A nearly transparent series of massive chains floated out of the fortress toward her.

A cold realization that she was going to be bound filled her. Whatever that meant, she knew that they’d already done it before.

The presence in the dungeon.

That had been something angelic siphoning her [Power].

Her [Divine]essence dropped a percentage, but it was much too little, much too late.

The chains were almost to her.

A blue form flashed over her shoulder and straight for Elder Gant, a thin sword glowing with an ethereal blue fire.

It was Magister Bannon!

The elder stopped his chant to deflect the attack with his staff.

The pressure on her lessened, but more importantly, it was lopsided. With their triangle formation broken, their containment was incomplete.

She flexed a wing, and the chains shattered a few meters from her body.

Elania stood up and faced Elder Winx and Elder Eidan.

The two of them began to chant again. She wasn’t sure what they were doing.

But she knew what she needed to do.

A predatory instinct filled her. So what if she was pumped full of [Divine] essence? She was still a Darkwalker, and prey that intended to kill her was still prey.

The ground cracked as she kicked off to launch herself straight for Elder Winx’s throat.