Angel Monarch-Chapter 316: Europe Aflame (8)

Just as Sera's declaration of war went out, she and everyone else mounted their hippogryphs.

Kastral spent a few moments with Alyrine, his mate, and Castor, his son. They rubbed their gigantic heads together, with their eyes closed, while making chittering noises with their beaks.

Sera looked at them, and a pang of pain appeared in her heart. So much could go wrong with her plan, and if she permanently died, Kastral would die with her…

What would happen with the hippogryphs then? Would they survive without their leader? Will Alyrine and Castor be able to live with the pain of losing their loved one?

As more of these questions popped up in her mind, she realized what was happening… She was projecting her situation to Kastral.

She felt fear, or more like worry, towards the future…

Would her family and loved ones survive her failure? Could they move on from her death? How many of her citizens and followers will die if her plan doesn't succeed?

Sera's mind began spiralling just when Bran came to stand next to her. His presence brought a nice calming effect over her turbulent mind. She took a long, deep breath before turning away from Kastral and his family.

She looked up at Bran and gave him a gentle hug. He leaned in and took a whiff of her hair.

They stayed together for a few seconds, then eventually separated and went to their mounts. No words needed to be exchanged. Everything they needed to say was already said, and what they forgot wasn't important, anyway.

All soared into the sky and, after circling for a bit, they witnessed a large portal opening in front of them. In the portal, the jungle of Malta stretched for a few kilometers. They ventured inside with zero hesitation.

The portal silently closed behind them after everyone was through. They were fairly close to the lab's entrance, only a few hundred meters away. Since they were pretty high in the sky, it took them no time to find the empty patch of land.

The vanguard unit, meaning Sera, Kim, Astrid, Leslie, and Adam, all hit the ground in a roll, jumping off of their hippogryphs.

The others waited for a few moments before they all landed nearby. While they sorted themselves out, the vanguard unit was already inside the lab's entrance, securing the area.

There was nothing in the small structure. The staircase stood wide open, each step lit from the side, inviting them in.

They saw no apparent security measurements on top or near the stairwell, however, they wisely didn't venture down. The rescue mission to free Sera provided them with sufficient intel about the bunker's layout.

Why choose to enter the deathtrap stairwell, when they prepared a much more fun and a lot louder alternative?

The others filed into the structure, too. Outside, the hippogryphs took to the sky and waited for Sera's call. They would stay near the island, but high in the sky, so nobody from the ground would notice their presence.

When everyone was inside, Mary and James stepped forward. They carried over a large metal disk with a bunch of holes at its bottom. It stood on three small legs, which kept it away from the floor's surface.

They moved near the walls, away from the device, waiting for James. He typed on his watch quickly, sending commands to the device.

It quickly sprang to life. The ground rumbled as the machine's inner generator energized the disk.

"I suggest everyone look away for this part. It will get quite bright!" shouted James over the loud rumbling.

People began turning towards the wall with closed eyes. James's and Mary's visors snapped down, covering their eyes and filtering the light. Sera, of course, didn't care about the brightness, since her eyes ignored any changes in the lighting.

After making sure nobody looked towards the device, James pressed another button, and the drill activated.

From the holes at the bottom, bright light illuminated everything. The middle of the drill began spinning in circles at high speeds, while the brightness increased.

Only after moments, the entire room turned pure white from the light. Small tendrils of pure energy exited the holes as the drill spun perpendicular to the ground.

The metal floor turned red, then orange, and eventually white. It liquified under the increasing pressure, heat and energy transference.

The energy turned brighter and stronger until the small tendrils transformed into half meter long arms. When these lines of energy touched the molten metal, it started vaporizing it.

The room became intensely hot, even for Ascended; however, Damien easily controlled the temperature. He built an ice barrier around the drill, directing both heat and metal vapor upward through the roof.

The drillbit continued to spin, and after it reached high enough energy output, the clamps connecting it to the three legs released.

There was already a dozen meter long tunnel below the drill, so when gravity took hold of it, there was nothing to stop its momentum.

Mary and James designed the drill, so the faster it fell, the stronger its energy would become. It also needed no manual controlling, since it would fall towards Earth's center until something could stop it.

The room suddenly went dark. It took everyone a few seconds until their eyes readjusted to the loss of unbearable brightness.

While they all dried their wet eyes, Sera walked to the newly made entrance with a small smile. Inside, she was laughing at how dumbfound Harold must've looked, when he saw what their plan was.

Sera was certain he already had something prepared deep down in the laboratory, but this time, she felt fully prepared to confront him. But solely after having a long awaited meeting with her Scarred self.

She continued staring down the hole until everyone gathered around her. She looked intently at them, each stare more determined than the last. They held her gaze and gave reassuring nods, accepting whatever happened next.

Everyone knew they reached a crossroads. After they went down, they only had to option victory or death. This marked their last opportunity to run like cowards.

Everything until this moment they prearranged. They knew all the possibilities, chances, surprises, but upon entering Harold's layer, they could only improvise. The plan wasn't the best. It held a high chance for failure, but Sera wasn't about to give up right at the finish line.

Two years. That's how long she waited for this confrontation. For her, retreat was never an option. She needed to push forward and get her revenge or perish while trying.

From the moment she woke up at the destroyed Gateway two years ago, vengeance fueled her heart. Initially, the path to redemption escaped Sera's mind, but the longer she suffered under Harold's 'care', the more hatred built up inside her.

Now that her emotions turned more apparent inside her heart, the rage and anger began surfacing. She felt her blood boil in her veins, begging for justice.

As Sera looked upon everyone around the hole, they held similar anger towards Harold. Maybe not as strong, maybe even stronger than hers, but nobody remained untouched by his Madness and cruelty.

After a few seconds of staring, Sera inhaled and exhaled deeply, full of exhaustion, then her eyes turned towards the roof. The molten metal vapor created a hole above them, and through the hole, Sera looked up towards the cloudless, blue sky.

All her dedication over the past two years… All the suffering she endured… All the hell she pushed through… All the people she murdered… Everything happened for a reason, for her and everyone else to be here…

It was time for everything to change… It was time to end the current world order, and begin a new one… It was time to end her story one way or another… But most importantly, it was time to die and reunite…

Unlike everyone around her, for Sera, it didn't truly matter if they won or lost. Triumph won't alter the outcome for Sera. She will die either way, at least this Hollow part of her would.

She would fight with her Scarred self, but ultimately, the outcome won't make a difference. Whoever wins their reunification didn't matter, since both would die to create a new Seraphine.

She confided this secret to no one, not even Bran. She didn't want to worry them before the war, and telling them wouldn't have changed anything. Reunion meant certain, permanent death for both Hollow and Scarred Sera.

It also didn't help that she felt afraid. Sera didn't want to die when her life finally became perfect. She had a loving partner, an amazing daughter, and a perfect woman to co-parent with. Friends surrounded them every day, making her life feel whole.

Sera recognized the necessity of this step, this sacrifice; however, selfish desires remained. She preferred remaining her current self instead of just a part of some new iteration.

As these thoughts zipped around her mind, Sera closed her eyes. In that moment, she let all her worries, desires, and terrors wash away. Upon opening them, the two golden-green orbs seemed to glow with fierce determination.

Slowly, her golden armor's helmet crawled back over her head, enclosing it for the last time in her life. She took another deep breath, then looked at the molten hole below, and without saying a word, she stepped forward, letting gravity take hold of her body.

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The others soon followed her, and they all began descending with ever-increasing speeds. A few hesitated near the hole, but eventually everyone jumped after Sera, and to their certain doom…