Chapter Text
It was a beautifully engraved silver crucifix, originally meant to deal with a fake priest smuggling occult artifacts.
A thought struck Blitzø. It was a stupid thought, a desperate gamble that probably wouldn't work, but he had absolutely nothing left to lose.
BLITZØ
HEY! STRIPES!
He screamed to get Akaza’s attention, then dove for the open briefcase, snatching the silver crucifix.
BLITZØ
Got bored of Hell’s toys, huh?! How about a taste of the Heavens, you fucker!
He brandished the cross, thrusting it toward Akaza like a holy weapon. The moonlight caught the silver, casting a long, sharp shadow over the Upper Moon demon.
Akaza stared at the crucifix in Blitzø's hand with a blank expression for a split second. Then, the corner of his mouth twitched upwards into a sneer, followed by a laugh that echoed through the ruins.
AKAZA
Ha... Hahaha! This? This is your trump card?
He laughed, bending over slightly, his voice dripping with amusement and scorn.
AKAZA
Human scrap metal... a worthless trinket... Did you truly believe such a thing would affect me? Has despair made you this foolish?
Blitzø’s eyes remained steely. He didn't actually expect it to burn the guy like in the movies... he just needed to buy time.
BLITZØ
(Grinning wildly)
Who cares! Seeing that dumb look on your face was worth it!
Blitzø’s words were the signal!
In that moment, while Akaza was distracted by his own arrogance, enjoying the enemy’s desperation and slightly loosening his grip on Millie and Loona, the two captives locked eyes for a millisecond... and made a simultaneous decision.
They didn’t try to break free. They did the exact opposite.
MILLIE & LOONA
RAAAAAAGH!!
Both roared and threw every ounce of their remaining strength, not into attacking, but into anchoring Akaza in place! Millie dropped the handle of her ruined axe and wrapped both arms around Akaza’s forearm in a vice grip. Loona used her larger frame to leap onto his back, digging her claws deep into his trapezius muscles to lock herself down.
Akaza froze, genuinely surprised. What was this suicidal move?
He got his answer a second later.
BLITZØ
(Screaming at the top of his lungs)
NOW, MOXXIE!!!
From behind the wreckage of the forklift, Moxxie popped up. He wasn't holding guns. In his hands were two large bricks of C4 plastic explosives he’d pulled from the van’s emergency stash. He thumbed the detonator and hurled them with all his might!
The explosive bricks spiraled through the air and landed perfectly where Akaza stood... right between his legs.
Akaza’s golden eyes widened for the first time. He sensed the massive potential energy about to be released. He tried to shake Millie and Loona off, but they held on with a death grip, willing to die rather than let him escape.
AKAZA
You wretched—
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!
The world turned white.
The explosion was deafening, a sound like the end of days. A violent shockwave ripped outward in every direction, tearing the concrete floor into confetti. The steel skeleton of the factory twisted and groaned like a dying beast. Blitzø and Moxxie were swatted away by the concussive force like flies, tumbling dozens of meters through the dust and debris.
A mushroom cloud of fire roared into the night sky. Then, silence rushed back in... a terrifying silence, broken only by the sound of red-hot metal raining down and the high-pitched ringing in Blitzø and Moxxie’s ears.
Thick smoke choked the blast zone, obscuring everything. Blitzø tried to push himself up, coughing up a little blood.
BLITZØ
(Voice raspy and broken)
Millie!! Loona!! Sound off, dammit!
No answer came from the thick veil of smoke. Moxxie’s heart dropped into his stomach. He stared into the grey haze with utter despair.
Did the plan work? And what was the cost?
Then... through the thinning smoke... a silhouette appeared.
He stood in the center of a small, freshly made crater. His upper body was... mostly gone. Only a spine and some internal organs remained, but they were knitting themselves back together at a speed visible to the naked eye. His left arm was missing from the shoulder down. Both legs were charred to the bone. Yet... he was still standing.
Akaza slowly lifted his head. Half of his face had been melted away by the blast, but the remaining golden eye burned with a fury unlike anything before. The smile, the amusement, the respect for a worthy opponent... it was all gone. Replaced by a pure, unadulterated killing intent that made the air turn ice cold.
Not far away, Millie and Loona lay motionless on the ground, battered and unconscious. They had been blown clear by the blast, surviving by a miracle, but were out of the fight.
Akaza ignored them. His target was now only two people.
The flesh on his face and body bubbled and reformed, the sound of muscle fibers tearing and reconnecting was sickeningly audible.
AKAZA
(Voice cold, raspy, and dripping with hatred)
You... insects... scum...
He was almost fully regenerated. His eye, burning with rage, stared directly at Blitzø and Moxxie.
AKAZA
I will tear you... into a million pieces.
Akaza began to walk slowly toward them. His regeneration was complete. Every step he took released a crushing pressure that cracked the concrete beneath him. The killing intent was so heavy it felt like gravity had doubled; it was hard to breathe, as if the air itself was terrified of him.
Moxxie trembled uncontrollably. He tried to pick up a pistol lying next to him, but his fingers were numb, and it slipped from his grasp again and again.
MOXXIE
(Stuttering)
S-sir... we have to run! We can't fight him! We have to leave everything and run right now!
But Blitzø stood still. He looked past the demon to where Millie and Loona lay unconscious. Beneath all the narcissism and the chaos... was an unshakable loyalty to his family.
He picked up his flintlock, slowly loading the very last round, even though he knew it was useless.
BLITZØ
(Voice quiet, but rock solid)
No... I'm not leaving them.
He raised the gun, aiming at the approaching Akaza.
BLITZØ
You’re gonna have to go through me first, you candy-assed bitch.
Akaza stopped. He was less than ten meters away. No more words. The conversation was over. He dropped low, assuming a final stance—simple, yet radiating perfect destructive power. Energy began to gather at his right fist, distorting the air around it.
AKAZA
Destructive Death: Annihilation Type.
It was his ultimate technique. An attack meant to erase everything in front of him from existence. Blitzø and Moxxie stood frozen, staring at death approaching...
But then... the unexpected happened.
On the eastern horizon... a thin line of violet and orange light cut through the dark. The first light of dawn.
The instant that light touched the tip of Akaza’s foot...
SIZZLE!!!
Smoke erupted from his skin as if he had been splashed with acid! Akaza screamed—a sound of genuine pain for the first time. It wasn't a roar of anger, but a shriek of primal fear.
The ultimate technique dissipated instantly. He snapped his head toward the brightening sky, panic flooding his eyes.
AKAZA
No... Impossible! Morning!?
The Sun... the one weakness not even an Upper Moon could overcome. His body, which had just healed so miraculously, began to crumble into ash where the gentle morning light touched it.
The battle was over... not because someone won, but because time had run out.
Akaza shot a look of pure venom back at Blitzø and Moxxie one last time. Humiliation burned in his gaze.
AKAZA
(Screaming in fury)
I will remember you! You low-born filth! Next time... there will be no sunrise to save you!!!
With a final roar, he bolted, blurring into the deepest shadows of the remaining factory ruins, vanishing before the sun could fully bathe the area in light. He left behind only a threat that echoed in their ears.
Silence returned. Blitzø and Moxxie stood panting heavily. They looked at the spot where Akaza had stood, then at the sun cresting the horizon... They had survived. Impossible.
"Did we... win?" Moxxie asked, dazed.
Blitzø lowered his gun slowly. "No... we just got lucky."
Reality came crashing back. They both sprinted to Millie and Loona. Fortunately, they were just knocked out by the shockwave. Broken bones, severe bruising, but alive.
Blitzø pulled out the Grimoire, flipping through pages to chant the spell. A crimson portal swirled open on the ground before them.
"Let's go home," he said, his voice exhausted.
They struggled to carry Millie and Loona through the portal, back to Hell. Just as they were about to step through, Moxxie looked back at the devastated battlefield bathed in the innocent morning light.
MOXXIE
Sir, seriously... what was that thing?
Blitzø glanced back as well. His face showed a weariness and a seriousness rarely seen.
BLITZØ
(Sighing deeply)
I don't fuckin' know, Mox... But whatever he is...
He paused for a moment before delivering the final line.
BLITZØ
...I think we just made a new worst enemy.
The portal closed, leaving the ruined industrial district behind... in the quiet dawn.