The Spire.

[DragonMasterX]

The explosion of the void energy covered the place in the gooey shadow over everyone again, but Infini was there, unscathed, even after receiving the full brunt. Infini waved an arm after Ryoji jumped several feet away to protect himself, but instead of an attack, Infini cleansed the ground with a mysterious power which sprinkled the place in some kind of powdery brilliant dust. Nera was sprinkled in it, and all of a sudden she would be rejuvenated by a powerful healing effect, "Thou hast done well, mine Maiden. I be concerned about this whelp's status, mine shell is not complete. Seek shelter with the virtuous." He ordered, his ambar, imposing eyes never leaving Ryoji, Infini's claws were balled into fists, he didn't seem very pleased.

The golden dragon growled and panted, not exhausted or drained. His barrier was still active, his powers at the top of shape, but his fear was starting to take over. This dragon... Was Infini really inside of him? Had the god been inside all this time? Or had it been inside of F'Nerah and had somehow deposited inside of him? The questions flooded his mind, but they unilaterally pointed to the same end: His plans had become endangered.

Infini took a step forwards, his aura starting to overwhelm the place as his powers continued increasing, "Mine servant's Kohryu's barrier is protecting thee, young whelp. I be perfectly aware thou thinketh it will last forever, however, nay, it shalt not. Struggle more, and thou shalt be extremely weakened by thy last moments." he explained, taking another step towards Ryoji, "I giveth thee one final chance at redemption, whelp. Repent for thy sins, or faceth the wrath of a true god."

Ryoji grunted, he had to devise a plan. Infini was right, he suspected Kohryu's powers to be vast and nearly limitless, but if this dragon truly was their god, it would be impossible to contradict the reality he was speaking about. He growled, his eyes jumping between the landscape and any possible opportunity, bystanders, fighters, even innocents, he had to be resourceful before his plans became fully compromised.

[Erethzium]

"M-My liege..." Ereth mumbled, falling to his knees and bowing respectfully as F'Nerah did, trembling slightly. Wow....it's really..him... he thought, looking up at the large dragon and gulping slightly. And I thought that was just a Mythology book!

[Shadowknight]

Shadow blinked a bit, unsure entirely of what was happening, but followed the other's example as he knelt down, not wanting to accidentally anger anyone.

Katt however was still a bit dazed from her petrification, "Ugh, how, where is he, that bastard," she growled softly as she looked around for Ryoji.

[Frisk E. Coyote]

"Ungh... ow... My insides feel like mush..." Nero got up, staggering on his four, shaky feet. "What's goin' on?" He asked, totally confused by not one, but two godlike manifestations, the black flames on his paws and mane flurried as they were disturbed by Infini's aura.

"NERO!!" Lacia pounced the canine, hugging him tightly. "You didn't die!"

"As you command, my Lord!" F'Nerah complied, and turned to address everyone else. "We must escape the Spire! With two forces this powerful clashing, this place has become too dangerous for us to remain! Follow me, and I shall explain everything on the way!" She called at everyone, and led them back inside, down to the staircase.

Nero broke free from Lacia's hug and galloped after Nera. He didn't stop to question anything. The pressure he felt from just being up here made him feel highly uncomfortable.

"C'mon Katt!" Lacia took Katt's paw, "We have to go!"

[DragonMasterX]

Infini nodded after hearing F'Nerah, not taking his eyes off Ryoji, who looked desperate. "What shalt it be, whelp?" he asked the golden dragon who seemed more terrified with every step counted towards him. Ryoji wouldn't speak however, only the growls of a scared animal could be heard, his eyes continued darting around for any possible method of escape or at least anything that could buy him some time. Infini was not very patient however, "Thy time be over."

Ryoji's pupils thinned out more so than normal as, with his heightened senses, he saw Infini take off from the ground and spread two large wings from behind his back that had somehow sprouted from two hidden pouches in Mar's back. The dragon god took off with indiscernable speed for mortals and charged at Ryoji. Ryoji was shoulder-charged with incredible force; for everybody else, the golden dragon would suddenly fly out and crash onto a nearby pillar, demolishing it and being buried under the debris. Infini said nothing and suddenly appeared above the pillar, holding his arm outwards with his palm facing the debris, a ghostly force pushing it all as Ryoji was levitated towards the ivory-white dragon, who caught him by the neck and held him off ground.

Ryoji grunted in pain, unable to counter attack and now at Infini's mercy. His pupils thinning out again as he felt pain surging through his body, "H-how...?! Kohryu's barrier is... it's impenetrable!" he grunted with the little air that he had left.

"Thy arrogance knows no bounds, mortal. We be Kohryu's maker, we art his designer. We can as easily destroy him," he coldly explained, Ryoji's stress hitting a spike.

All of a sudden, Ryoji's mid-section glowed, Infini looked down and saw a large wave of energy spreading outwards. His free claw punched the wave, penetrating the telekinetic barrier that held its spherical form with a single concentrated jab, but before he could say anything else, he received a strong headbutt delivered by Ryoji's growling form. Infini staggered for a small moment, having been taken by surprise, "You expected me to use Kohryu's powers, not mine," Ryoji gasped in relief, his body glowing for a small second as his bruises and damaged internals were instantly healed and repaired.

Infini shook his head as he recovered from the small stun. A god as he was, he was not allowed to pry into his people's minds unless it was his own shell's, Ryoji had hit the nail square when he ascerted he would always be able to predict and counter-measure against Kohryu's powers, but the unpredictability of a mortal's actions would dampen his tactics. He wouldn't let the mortal dragon's actions go unpunished, however; it was only a matter of time before his powers would be returned completely and his shell would reveal its true form.

Ryoji had no intentions of chatting, however, and before Infini could have time to recover from the strong headbutt, the golden dragon disappeared from sight and re-appeared beside Lacia and Katt, delivering lightening-fast jabs to their necks to know them out cold. He held both girls by their necks and off ground as he grinned to Infini, "Your majesty... We need not sacrifice mortal lives, do we?" he said, his long tail slithering across the floor.

"Thou dare use mortal shields?! Hast thou no shame?!" Infini exploded, his anger dampening his concentration as well as the recovery of his own powers.

[Shadowknight]

Katt hissed loudly, still a bit out of it after recovering from her petrification, barely registering what was happening before she was knocked out, her body falling limp.

[DragonMasterX]

Ryoji smirked deviantly, "I don't care what you call me, the point in question is that you're not helpless!" he laughed evilly. Infini fumed through his violently flared nostrils, he was taunting him. But the god couldn't make a false move, Ryoji was powerful enough to rip both innocent females to shreds with a thought were he to attempt to do anything rash.

Ryoji smiled wider, knowing from that passive reaction that he wasn't off from his assumption. He used his powers to level one of pillars that had been split in two during the earlier struggle and hurled it at the white-scaled god with a full concentrated telekinetic attack. Infini tried side-stepping but his pupils thinned out as he saw Ryoji near his clawed finger to Katt's neck, probably planning to decapitate her. Infini stayed in place and received the brunt of the incredibly heavy pillar, the stone being crushed and Infini thankfully was resilent enough to only be pushed back and onto his knees from the sever impact but no considerable wound could be found in his pure white body.

The golden dragon began laughing maniacally, withdrawing his clawed finger away from Katt's head, "Yes! Now you're powerless before me!" he exclaimed, beyond himself with happiness, "You can't do anything!"

Infini scoffed and got back up to his feet, his ambar eyes staring daggers at his opponent. Ryoji was overconfident, but alas, as long as he had hostages he couldn't compromise their safety; after all, failing to save one life immediately meant failing to save them all. Infini growled as more debris was hurled his way, his arms being put up to guard but Ryoji continued feigning to be about to kill either girl in various ways if he put up resistance; Infini was able to use his excellent vision to see the precise moment when Ryoji would attempt to go for the kill, and he was sure Ryoji also knew that, which was why he continued feigning with that pleased expression in his wicked face. The dragon god continued being assailed with more rubble, his body not appearing to show any significant damage, but he began panting suddenly: His shell wasn't going to last forever, the expectancy wouldn't grow either considering Infini couldn't resist the attacks.

It was only a matter of time.

[Frisk E. Coyote]

"K-" Lacia's eyes were wide as she was cut off and forced into a world of unconsciousness. The cloud leopard was helpless.

"Lacia!" Nero skid to a halt and doubled back, galloping back into the battlefield, though the two godly beings confused him. Wasn't there just one? "F'Nerah!! He's got Katt and Atalacia!" He barked, and the woman came running back, her face stricken with worry.

"Let them go Ryoji!" Nera cried. "They have nothing to do with this!"

"I don't get it- just who IS that guy?!" Nero growled, his head lowered aggressively as he bared his fangs at the Ryoji. He felt a strange sensation whenever he addressed the second anomaly, like he was being rude and had to apologize to an elder figure. He had the unconscious urge to bow down and revere the new person, until he noticed something. "-Is that Mar!?"

F'Nerah bit her lower lip. It was time she explained some things... though she's kept the secret for the longest time, she owed it to the people who were risking their lives today to at least know what was going on. "Yes... and no." She answered Nero. "That being, is Lord Infini. You've heard of him, haven't you? I've educated you in our ancestry and history."

"L-Lord Infini... I... wow." Was all Nero could say, his jaw dropping. He thought it was all just part of dragon myth, and he thought history was boring. But when you put it this way where there was a chance they would be fried by TWO mythical beings, it wasn't exactly what he'd call boring.

"And the entity Ryoji possesses... is the benevolent Guardian, Kohryu. Kohryu's powers for the most part were meant for protection... the preservation of himself and others, which is why so far, we are still alive." Nera continued to explain. "He is a Guardian of Lord Infini..." She paused, "-And I am Lord Infini's maiden."

"His maiden?" Nero asked, getting a mental image of Nera as a house wife in an apron and wielding a feather duster for some reason. He assumed it meant wife.

"Like the shrine maidens to the deities in Japan, I am the herald and humble caretaker of Lord Infini and his vessel." Nera explained, "I was chosen by him personally after proving that despite all strife, a mortal could still walk the path of peace. You see, our Lord Infini is a child compared to other gods, innocent, curious and playful as he was, he oversaw the evolution of life, taking interest in the dinosaurs, who gained knowledge before humans ever did, or even came to existence." She said. "This was of course, the decision of Lord Infini."

"He felt compassion for the innocent, curious apes running around in his civilized world, experimenting here and there, and thus, he commanded his heralds to educate humans. He bestowed them limited knowledge to be able to evolve like his people, the dragons." Nera smiled, "So in a way, Dragons and Humans go hand in hand, having both received the gifts and blessings of knowledge and evolution from our Lord." She frowned at Ryoji. "By forcing humans to have to learn in order to adapt, they adapted in a manner different from the instantly indoctrinated dragons. By this, I mean we are at the end of our evolution, but the humans are still going on. This is what has come to be known as limitless human potential... and I suppose, Ryoji, this is something that makes you subconsciously fear, feel threatened by or envy humans. This is what makes you hate them."

"Of course," Nera stood tall, crossing her arms, "Humans still couldn't survive by themselves, in the beginning. This was where the Pact of Origin starts, and where we dragons were tasked with protecting humans in order for them to reach the same evolutionary grade as we did, and to this end, Lord Infini used his powers to influence the world, allowing it to nourish and forcibly change."

"An Era came to an end, and we were given different forms, mystical abilities and properties, the chosen race to herald the message of our great god, and were tasked to guide and govern over humanity, watching them grow and flourish." Nera's tone changed to a quieter one, "But this wore our Lord out as it fragmented and divided his power, as every dragon carries a bit of his essence within them. Soon, Lord Infini was not able to maintain a physical form or manifestation in this universe."

"Instead, he chooses one shell... out of every generation, to be able to remain in the world he he created. Unable to actively watch over it all, he designated several guardians," She nodded over at Ryoji, glaring daggers at him and his desecration of a draconic sacrament, "One of which was Kohryu, to do it in his stead."

"-But not all was well." She continued, eyes darkening. "Back then, our Lord's power was great within all dragons, unlike now, where it has been dispersed and distributed to accommodate the numbers of dragons over the years... but power can corrupt, and that was exactly what happened in the times gone past. Abuse was created, and evil started to thrive. The power of dragons brought forth demons, fiends, dark lords... all those who have forgotten the generosity of the Lord of gave them everything, all those who who believed they were above everyone, and everything..." She glared at Ryoji again, "War and conflict spread, and it was the beginning of the dark decades for dragons."

"Not just dragons though. Humans were equally susceptible to the sins of sentience. They forsook the one who loved them and allowed them to become what they were. Like the way there were exclusive dragons, and virtuous dragons who worshiped Lord Infini, there were two human factions, one that went on to worship their own figures, and another devoted to Lord Infini." Nera sighed.

"And now Mar is his vessel. We're lucky it's just Mar... if Lord Infini's vessel were the wrong dragon..." She clenched her hand into a fist at the thought, snarling in anger and contempt as she watched their Lord get battered with debris. What could they do?

[Shadowknight]

"Get your lazy ass up!" Shadow suddenly shouted, "Come on Katt, I've seen you go off on people, damsel in distress just isn't you!" he roared, hoping to rouse her.

A soft growl began to rumble in Katt's throat, her sensitive ears twitching slightly.

[Erethzium]

"Cut that out you fucking coward!" Ereth roared, shaking his fist at the evil dragon, deeply wishing he could do something, but not able to, in this hostage situation.