"Come at me, Jason Marquoid!!!"
Jason bent his knees slightly, his body humming with energy. In the blink of an eye, he vanished, the air around him rupturing with a thunderous boom.
Dreagon's eyes widened as Jason blurred past him.
"His speed just now…"
Jason reappeared several meters away, hovering in the air, struggling to steady himself. He glanced down at his hands, his fingers crackling with raw energy.
"Incredible… I'm so much faster than before."
Dreagon wasted no time. He launched himself toward Jason, his fist streaking through the sky like a comet. Jason barely managed to react, crossing his arms to block the impact. The force still sent him reeling backward.
Jason's mind raced. "My body is made of nothing but pure energy now… Yet I can still think, still feel—just like before. It's such a strange sensation."
Dreagon inhaled sharply, a surge of lightning bursting from his mouth, streaking across the sky toward Jason.
But Jason was gone before it reached him.
Reappearing in an instant, he drove his fist into Dreagon's jaw, sending the monstrous being spiraling through the air.
"Just like Connor said… beyond the comprehension of life itself."
Dreagon steadied himself and smirked, his red eyes gleaming. "Feels good, doesn't it?"
Jason eyed him warily.
Dreagon continued, his voice almost hypnotic. "You're no longer human, Jason. You are now a god! You could burn the world to cinders if you wished."
His grin widened, fangs gleaming in the twilight. "Fight me, Jason! Let us embrace our true forms to the fullest!"
The two launched themselves at each other, their fists colliding in a shockwave so immense it flattened the trees below.
The battle escalated—a blur of motion faster than the eye could follow. They struck, countered, and retaliated, each blow powerful enough to shatter mountains.
Dreagon exhaled a torrent of fire, but Jason flew straight through the inferno and delivered a brutal punch to his ribs.
Dreagon smirked as he recovered, realization dawning on him.
"Ah… I almost forgot." His grin widened. "He's the Fire Elementiel. Any fire based abilities, no matter how powerful it is, are unable to harm him."
"Fortunately… I have other options."
Dreagon's chest swelled, then—
A beam of pure light erupted from his mouth.
Jason's instincts screamed at him. He twisted at the last second, narrowly avoiding the blast, and rushed toward Dreagon at blinding speed.
But Dreagon clapped his hands together with such force that the shockwave sent Jason crashing through multiple mountains.
Jason righted himself midair, energy coursing around him. He hurled a bolt of lightning, but Dreagon slapped it aside like it was nothing.
Then, he vanished—only to reappear behind Jason in an instant, striking from all directions at once.
Jason struggled, his body absorbing hit after hit. "He's too fast… I can't—"
Then, a memory surfaced—his grandfather's technique.
"Of course. Now's the perfect time to use it."
Closing his eyes, Jason steadied his mind. Dreagon sneered. "Oh? I see what you're doing."
He struck again. Jason clenched his fist, resisting the pain. "I have to focus—visualize."
Then—
Dreagon burst into flames.
His eyes widened as fire engulfed his entire body, flames roaring as though conjured from the very air itself.
Dreagon chuckled. "Ha… Incredible. He set me ablaze without even touching me. Just like his grandfather."
TheIgnite, atechniquethatcansetanythingonfirewithouttheneed to touchit.Byvisualizingandfocusingonthestructureofanyobject, hecansetanythingablaze. However, itdoeshavea limit.
Theobjectmustbeclosetohimoraroundhisrangeofperceptionorelse, itwillnotwork.
Dreagon brushed off the flames, revealing burn marks across his skin—only for them to vanish as quickly as they appeared.
Jason scowled. "Even that wasn't enough?"
With a sharp inhale, he ascended higher into the sky, fire and lightning swirling around him. He stretched out his hand—a small fireball forming in his palm.
Dreagon narrowed his eyes. "What's he planning?"
The energy within Jason's hand began to swell—brighter, hotter, unstable.
"No… I can't control it—!"
The sphere detonated, streaking past Dreagon's head and slamming into the ground below.
A heartbeat later—
A massive explosion erupted, consuming everything in sight.
The battlefield trembled. The knights turned as a wave of pure destruction surged toward them.
"Everyone, run!!!" Elijah roared.
The shockwave slammed into them, sending warriors flying, the landscape reduced to nothing but smoldering ruins.
As the dust settled, Dreagon gazed at the devastation, a wide grin spreading across his face
"It seems… he still doesn't know how to control this level of power."
Jason hovered in the air, eyes wide in horror. "Oh no… What have I done?"
Dreagon's laughter echoed through the silence. "You never cease to amaze me, Jason Marquoid!"
He extended a hand. "Join me. With our combined strength, we could reclaim this world for the dragons. And perhaps…"
His eyes gleamed. "Together, we could even defeat 'HIM.'"
Jason's hands clenched into fists.
"I will never join you!" His voice thundered across the battlefield. "I'm ending this—right here, right now!"
Jason launched himself forward, his fist igniting with flames and lightning, ready to strike.
Dreagon matched his charge, his own power surging around him.
Jason's fist, wreathed in roaring flames and crackling lightning, collided with Dreagon's chest. At the same moment, Dreagon's fist—dense with sheer destructive force—struck Jason's face.
A thunderous shockwave erupted from the impact, splitting the ground beneath them and sending waves of energy rippling through the battlefield.
The air distorted from the sheer pressure of their clash, the sky trembling as the force of their blows sent them both hurtling downward.
Moments later, Jason's eyes fluttered open, his vision hazy as he heard distant voices.
"Jason… Jason, are you okay?"
His gaze slowly focused, and he saw Anna kneeling beside him, her hands gently lifting him to his feet. To his left, Connor and Jack stood, their faces filled with both relief and anticipation.
"You guys… Ugh… my head," Jason groaned, rubbing his head.
Anna's expression softened. "Are you okay?"
Jason blinked a few times, then quickly looked over his companions. "Are you guys okay?!"
Anna smiled, gripping his shoulders. "We're fine, Jason. Just knocked out for a while." Her eyes sparkled with excitement. "But you… you did it! You transformed!"
Jason looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers as tendrils of energy crackled faintly around them. "Yeah… I actually did. I just… concentrated all my energy within my body in a way."
Connor stepped forward, nodding. "Exactly. By containing your energy within your body instead of releasing it, you forced it to evolve."
Jack, standing a few paces away, suddenly stiffened. His eyes locked onto something in the distance. Following his gaze, Jason turned and saw Dreagon lying on the ground, a massive, gaping wound in his chest, dark blood seeping into the scorched earth.
Jack's voice was unreadable as he spoke. "Jason… that wound… you did that?"
Jason clenched his fist, recalling the devastating punch he had landed. "Yeah. I just… hit him really hard."
Jack stroked his chin, his sharp eyes analyzing Jason. "His energy level… it's far beyond an average fire elementiel. We can use this…"
But then—
A low, guttural chuckle echoed through the battlefield.
"Guys," Anna whispered, tension gripping her voice. "He's getting back up."
Dreagon's body twitched, his fingers clawing into the dirt as he forced himself upright. His glowing eyes locked onto them, filled with amusement rather than pain.
Connor's eyes narrowed. "He still isn't weak enough for us to use the potion…"
Jack exhaled sharply. "Now that Jason has done some real damage, this is our chance. We end this here."
Dreagon straightened, rolling his shoulders as his wings unfurled behind him. His lips curled into a twisted grin. "Ahhh… So glad you could all join us."
The gaping wound in his chest slowly began to mend, flesh knitting together as his unnatural regeneration took hold.
Anna took an instinctive step back. "His healing… it's fast. And his energy… it's already recovering."
Jason clenched his fists, stepping forward. His aura flared around him like a raging inferno. "Then we don't give him a chance to recover." He glanced at his friends. "We end this. Together."
Anna, Connor, and Jack exchanged determined nods. One by one, they ascended into their Elementiel forms, their bodies radiating raw power—wind swirling, lightning crackling, fire roaring, and nature itself trembling beneath their might.
Dreagon's grin widened, eyes gleaming with savage anticipation. "Yes… YES! Come at me with everything you have!"
The ground beneath them shattered as they launched forward.
Dreagon let out a mighty roar and charged to meet them head-on.
The final battle—begins now!