Above the academy's skyline, amidst swirling clouds of divine energy, the figure descends a man-beast wreathed in black fire and drifting ash.
His body is covered in ash-gray fur streaked with glowing runes that pulse like embers beneath the skin. Two massive lower fangs jut upward from his jaw, gleaming like carved ivory. His eyes burn crimson, fixed on the ruined courtyard below.
Across his back is a spine-mounted quiver but instead of arrows, it bristles with massive spears, each engraved with tribal symbols that shimmer faintly. His garments are a grotesque mix of bone and cloth, fused together into armor that clatters with every motion. Even his boots are crafted from polished bones, bound with strips of dark hide.
In one clawed hand, he grips a blackened axe heavy enough to crush dimensions; in the other, the air itself coils with his aura.
He gazes down at the academy, his voice rumbling low and guttural in thought:
"Our master commands ruin. Destroy the halls, the students, the soldiers break the Dark Lord's strength."
A growl escapes him, deep and feral. The black fire surges. The hunt begins.
Ava's golden eyes ignite rings of light spiraling outward as Tenshi no Me, activates.
Across the academy grounds, he sees chaos erupting warriors of shadow and fire swarming through the skies, assaulting towers and halls. The students around him shout battle cries and charge forward, weapons drawn, spells flaring.
Above them, the man-beast Atahsaia lets out a guttural roar that shakes the air. His red eyes blaze like molten coals, and his massive axe rises high, black fire trailing from its edge.
"I am Atahsaia," he bellows, voice like thunder rolling through bone, "Zuni, the Devourer of Light! You weaklings will die! I will devour every last one of you!"
He leaps down into the fray. The axe swings once and a dozen students vanish in a streak of blood and smoke. Spears tear free from the quiver on his back, glowing red, expanding into colossal size midair. They pierce through buildings, walls, and fleeing students, detonating with shockwaves that twist the air.
Ava's eyes narrow as he sees souls rising like smoke from the fallen. Atahsaia opens his maw wide, the black hole within spiraling a storm of screams and light pulled into him.
"I will devour everything," he rumbles, as essence and spirit funnel into his throat.
"Stay here," Ava says quickly.
Star grabs his arm, defiant. "No I'm coming with you!"
He exhales once, nodding. "Fine. Then let's end this."
Golden light bursts from his hands Life Strings snapping out like living rays, wrapping around Atahsaia. Ava seizes Star's hand.
"You ready?"
"Yes."
In the next instant they vanish.
A thunderclap.
They reappear right in front of Atahsaia, both fists drawn back.
Ava shouts, "CHAOS STRIKE!"
Black and purple lightning detonates around his arm, crackling through the air.
Star follows with a shout " Starburst!"
Tiny pink stars ignite around her fist, forming knuckles of celestial fire.
Their punches collide with Atahsaia's face
BOOM!
The explosion splits the sky. The beast is hurled backward, smashing through walls and crashing into the academy courtyard, leaving a crater of smoke and golden sparks.
Atahsaia rises from the crater, laughter shaking the air. His aura burns black and red, the ground trembling beneath his feet.
"Good… I was worried everyone here was weak," he growls, voice rumbling like stone breaking. "Finally a challenger."
Ava hovers in the sky, golden eyes blazing. "What are you all doing here? What do you want?"
Atahsaia sneers. "This is war, boy. Don't you understand? Your master the Dark Lord attacked our hyperverses. He's been trying to conquer them. This is retaliation. I've joined forces with the other Outer Gods. The Dark Lord must fall his forces must burn."
Star floats beside Ava, pink aura shimmering around her wings. "Oh no… I wonder if Dallas and Demeter are safe."
Ava looks at her sharply. "Go check on them. I'll fight this one alone he's too strong."
"I'm not leaving you," Star snaps. "He's a monster an Outer God! His power is insane!"
"I know," Ava says quietly. "That's why you need to go. If things get too dangerous, I can escape easily. You can't. Go find our teammates. Make sure they're safe."
Star hesitates, then nods, flying off in a streak of light.
Atahsaia "You look strong," he rumbles. "A shame I have to kill you. Or… you could join me. We Outer Gods have made a pact to end your master's tyranny."
Ava narrows his eyes, thinking: So these are the enemies of the Dark Lord… the part of the Dark Omniverse he doesn't yet control.
If I can capture one of them inside my Higher Dimensional Cards… it'll be one more piece toward victory.
Out loud he says, "I'm not joining you. Leave this place now."
Atahsaia's eyes flare crimson. "Never! Your generals killed my family. Every soldier of the Dark Lord will die!"
He charges, axe swinging with instantaneous speed, slicing through reality itself. Ava moves in sync, golden energy bending around him. Velocity Sync activates he ducks one strike and counters with a shout:
"CHAOS THUNDER!"
A surge of black and purple lightning slams into Atahsaia, sending him flying. But the beast catches himself midair, snatching one of his massive spears and hurling it with impossible force.
Ava sidesteps only for the spear to vanish mid-flight and reappear through his stomach.
Blood bursts from his mouth. "How? I dodged it…"
Atahsaia grins. "Because I devoured its cause and effect. I can eat causality itself and spit out the outcome I want. Anything I touch its logic becomes mine."
He raises his hand. "I thought you'd be tougher. Now die!"
The spear glows violently, about to explode
But Ava whispers, "Omnipresence."
He vanishes just as the spear detonates, birthing a higher-dimensional black hole that twists the sky, pulling matter and sound into silence. The shockwave implodes, then explodes outward again reality cracking.
Atahsaia laughs, brushing off the dust. "He's dead. That was easier than I thought."
He turns toward the academy, watching students flee and other Outer Gods descend upon the campus. "Time to join the fun."
A roar thundered from above.
Ava reappeared, golden eyes blazing beneath the storm. His voice carried like a decree through the trembling air.
"Chaos Absorption."
Black and purple energy spiraled inward, flooding the wound across his body. The chaos around him raw, volatile, alive was drawn into his form. His skin knit itself together, veins pulsing with reborn power as the corruption became his strength.
Then, in a flash of gold and shadow, a glowing Higher-Dimensional Card appeared between his fingers, radiating divine geometry and humming with celestial light.
He flicks it open an Ice-Buff spell surges to life, the runes on the card spinning in a circle of frozen light. Frost crawls up his arms, and the air around him snaps to a temperature so far below zero it can freeze the soul itself, even the essence of higher beings. The ground crackles and the walls glaze with crystal ice as the entire area begins to freeze around him, the air hissing with divine frost.
Then he raises his head.
Divine power ignites.
Chaos floods his body, the temperature dropping further as black and purple lightning bursts through his veins. His Black Lotus Wings spread wide, petals of darkness edged in gold, wrapping around him like radiant armor. Above his head, his demonic halo blazes a ring of molten light flickering between angelic gold and infernal violet.
The ground beneath him fractures under the pressure.
He rockets forward like a missile, voice thundering through the storm:
"BLACK LOTUS DRILL CHAOS ICE OF DEATH!"
The world trembles as a spiraling lance of black-and-violet lightning wrapped in frozen mist launches toward Atahsaia, carving a trail of frost and destruction through the sky.
Atahsaia tries to dodge but his body begins to freeze mid-motion, frost crawling up his limbs.
"What?!"
Ava slams into him, drilling straight through his torso. The impact triggers a colossal explosion, freezing part of the campus. Buildings, beasts, and students alike are locked in crystalline ice, purple lightning sparking through the ruins.
Ava landed atop the fallen god, fists blazing with golden fury as he drove strike after strike into Atahsaia's chest. Each blow echoed like thunder through the heavens.
Atahsaia spat blood, then grinned through broken teeth. "That all you got, kid?"
A pulse of raw divinity erupted from his core a blast of pure ruin hurling Ava backward through clouds of dust and fractured light.
With a guttural roar, the god rose again, pressing a massive hand against the gaping wound in his chest. His grin widened.
He leaned forward and bit the air itself.
Reality shuddered. The wound sealed as bone and flesh reformed in an instant, his body mending beyond divine logic. The air itself bent around him.
Atahsaia had devoured cause and effect.
Anything he touched, he could rewrite the injury became uninjured.
Black flames spiraled around his colossal axe as he charged again, every step shaking the sky,
Ava meets him head-on.
"Chaos Counter!"
A mirror version of Atahsaia's weapon appears in his hands the Chaos Axe their blades collide, creating a flash brighter than the sun. The explosion sends Atahsaia hurtling through the air, crashing into a wall, blood dripping from his mouth.
He wipes it, smirking. "That punch… that one actually hurt. Who is this kid?"
Ava steadies himself but before they can clash again, several teachers and high-ranking warriors appear, led by Principal Rosavelle.
She steps forward, wings unfolding. "Thank you, Ava. You've held him back long enough. Leave the rest to us."
Ava shakes his head. "No. I'm staying. I want to prove myself to show my commitment to the Dark Lord."
Rosavelle smiles grimly. "Good. Then stand with us."
Together, the academy's defenders charge. Atahsaia roars, summoning monsters and warriors from his hyperverse a tide of devouring fire and stone. Both sides collide, light and shadow erupting across the infinite campus.
Meanwhile, far above the chaos
Star flies through the burning clouds, searching desperately for Dallas and Demeter.