I Guard The Book That Slays Gods

After everything Raiden had been through within the Dark Dream, he hadn't expected a path into the darkness to be so uneventful. But despite his wariness, he could feel something stirring within himself; his exhausted limbs feeling lighter than usual, and his body coiled like a spring. The energy within him was overflowing.

Noelle, however, rested within MK's arms as they made their way back to rejoin the others.

As they walked, silence stretched between them, MK and Noelle before him while he trailed behind with his arms in his pockets. Not a word was exchanged, but from how MK's feet struck the ground in quick, urgent steps, he knew all MK cared about then was getting Noelle to safety.

Still, none of that interested Raiden much, save for Noelle's well-being, and his mind drifted elsewhere.

His eyes shifted slightly to his left, toward the haunted mansion. Thunder rolled through the heavy clouds as lightning split the sky, darkness deepening by the minute while the moon lurked behind the mansion's looming frame.

But something felt wrong. Soul's aura had vanished from that direction entirely. His thoughts spiraled from one possibility to the next; perhaps the battle had intensified, moving far beyond where they'd last seen it.

His head snapped in every direction, desperately scanning for any sign of Soul's enormous aura. But moments stretched on, and still he found nothing.

He began to grow worried, his fingers beating a nervous rhythm against his thigh, his expression flickering between concern and confusion.

Soul's aura should have been impossible to ignore, regardless of her location. So either the prolonged battle had forced her to suppress it somehow, she had been defeated, or there was something else at play—something he couldn't identify.

He quickened his pace in an instant. He knew getting to the others was his best shot at getting some clear answers.

Soon he overtook MK, turned back and gestured urgently for them to move faster. Without waiting for a response, he accelerated from a quick walk to a jog, and before he knew it, he was sprinting through the darkness.

A few minutes into his sprint, he squinted his eyes, peering through the darkness as bone-cracking sounds echoed from somewhere ahead. Still, there was no trace of Soul's aura.

His soul sank as the sharp sounds reached him. The others were clearly still fighting the Lost Child. But if Soul's aura was nowhere to be found, did that mean she was dead?

His fist clenched as he surged forward. The moon dragon form began overtaking him, his transformation pulsing in rhythm with each heavy footfall against the earth.

His body grew weightless as wild, fluffy white hair burst forth, streaming behind him in all directions. The dark marks that appeared across his skin pulsed with fierce light under the night sky, brighter than ever as his desperation to reach the others fueled the transformation.

He melted into the darkness, his legs disappearing into the shadowy depths as he surged forward at more than ten times his previous speed.

In moments, he reached the dead grass, skidding to a halt to control his speed. The scene spread before him: Aeris and Ash tending to Soul, Leo lying unconscious nearby, while Levi—more energetic now—stood guard with his dual daggers, his dark eyes flickering between the group he protected and Chrono and Odard, who conversed quietly beside their fallen ally.

Raiden felt confused by how calm Levi and the others appeared. To his left lay a disturbing sight that should have had them all on edge.

Speed's dark aura alongside Freya's blue one pulsed with intense rage as they faced a short elderly man with long white hair and beard, both bound in ponytails, dressed in singed black dojo clothing.

Raiden swallowed hard as he stared, uncertain whether the person they were fighting was indeed the Lost Child.

Yet Raiden couldn't overlook the gentle quality of his yellow aura as he stood calmly before them, one hand positioned behind him.

But before he could blink, the Lost Child had blocked Speed's attack. Before Raiden could fully process what happened, Speed materialized elsewhere, landing a strike to the Child's neck that sent him hurtling toward Freya. She responded instantly, her flame-wreathed fists unleashing a barrage of strikes.

The Child parried all attacks, skidding back from the force. Raiden saw the fire burn his flesh, but almost instantly, his skin pulsed with yellow light and the burns were gone.

Raiden shook his head in disbelief, struggling to make sense of what he was witnessing. He'd come here to check on Soul, maybe even fight, but now he wasn't sure he could do either.

He remained motionless, mouth hanging slightly open. Every blow produced sickening bone-cracking sounds, but his mind struggled to follow more than a strike or two.

But then, ice-cold dread washed over him as Speed crumpled to the ground with a hollow sound, hands pressed against his stomach.

Raiden gulped, sweat forming on his forehead. He hadn't seen anything happen—if Speed hadn't screamed, he doubted he would have known what had been done to him.

Raiden's confusion and fear were mirrored by Freya as the Lost Child maintained his distance from her. Her flaming strikes seared his flesh, which healed moments later, yet strangely, the Child appeared to only defend against her attacks.

But as he remained there, bewildered, Freya shouted, "You need to keep him busy for now, my lord. I have an idea."

What? Me?—The thought hit him like ice water, his heart pounding faster. Before he realized it, his whole body was trembling.

He forced a smile as he tried to approach, but his body just wouldn't move. He could feel it in his bones—the overwhelming urge to stay away from that fight.

Soul attacked his very essence, Speed drained his physical strength, and Freya's fire scorched him from the inside out. Despite all this, the Lost Child remained standing, unfazed. Even more terrifying—Speed was roughly three times faster than Raiden, yet still couldn't match the Child's speed

What can I do?—His fists clenched as his whole body shook with fear, terror flashing in his eyes. He couldn't die now, not before achieving his dream.

But as he stood there paralyzed, the next thing he saw was Ash's fist driving into the Lost Child's gut, sending him crashing to the ground.

[We can do this, Papa,] Ash's voice resonated through Raiden's thoughts. His heart dropped as he watched her fluffy hair dance in the dark aura surrounding her. [We are the moon dragon, remember? We can do this.]

Raiden's fist tightened as he pounded it against his forehead, overwhelmed by shame and self-disgust. How could he be this much of a coward?

He drew a deep breath and let Ash's words sink into his consciousness. He had to overcome this fear. Closing his eyes, he felt an inner voice telling him to stop retreating, and that was precisely what he needed.

Euphoria surged through his body as he began twitching with thrills and excitement for the challenge, a devilish smile spreading across his face.

You are right, Ash—he responded to Ash telepathically—we can do this.