I take a moment to consider my options. A massive, monstrous, writhing flesh-ball of tentacles and misshapen flesh is my opponent. I can only vaguely guess as to what it is capable of, but certainly, it would be unwise to let it grab hold of me. That limits most physical fighting, although I can warp space so that tooth and claw can strike deftly from a safe distance. While I have a very broad mastery of elements and schools of magic at my disposal, none of them hit particularly hard, at least not for the nature of this level of opponent. [School's Out] will allow me to chain through the elements to strike a hefty blow as a finisher, but what would actually hurt this thing?

Fire seems like an obvious choice to purge corrupted flesh. To me, it seems so obvious that my opponent would surely have a counter. I love certain elements and schools of magic more than others, and there is one that Skull and I share that is near and dear to my heart: Shadow. By itself, Shadow magic does not cause direct physical harm; it cannot usually kill someone. However, it can amplify other effects, such as Skull's zweihänder, making its blows cut past enemy defenses and utterly hampering attempts to regenerate the damage. It also acts as a source of entropy, sucking the energy and mana out of a foe, or otherwise restricting their capabilities. While I would love to have the coveted Shadowflame mixed element, that requires a level of commitment and specialization I am not ready for.

With quick communication, Skull and I decide to use Shadow as a finisher and then go from there to see how it affects our foe, which we will dub "Fleshy" for this engagement. The real fly in the ointment is how Fleshy here has some spark of divinity in it, as in, it is certainly acting as a nascent Avatar of some evil god from beyond our world. We will need Skull to become an Avatar of Gulthar in order to counter Fleshy, but Gulthar may not be inclined to indulge. Time will tell.

With a gurgling roar, Fleshy launches an assault of surprising long, quick, and nimble tentacles in my direction. I am a big boy, but my bulk belies a level of agility that is more than sufficient to evade. Nanu has seen to my training, and now those hours of hardship and horror are paying dividends. I don't sense any overt magical effects being cast at me, and so I probe its abilities by responding with Nature magic to grow magically induced vines from the earth to ensnare its tentacles.

I want to confirm if it can absorb more biomass, and more specifically, if it can absorb biomass summoned by a spell. Generally, doing so would be a Very Bad Idea, as anything that is summoned eventually returns to where it came from, even if it is now part of a body. Wrangling tentacles with vines is rather tricky, and ultimately, Fleshy is far too strong, so it rips free easily enough. As predicted, Fleshy does absorb the biomass, and with concentrated effort and more mana, I forcibly dismiss the vines to instantly unsummon them. The results are less than promising. Yes, Fleshy was wounded by the effect, but its regeneration covered the loss and it still seemed to suck something out of the vines, yielding a net gain.

With that fact discovered, I would have to be indirect in using any magic that involves biomass. Unperturbed, I use Earth magic under it to raise a pillar of rock to launch it up into the air. With no wasted time, I prepare spikes of Ice, each as hard as steel. The pillar's top is sloped, and Fleshy rolls off and onto the spikes below. Fleshy roars in pain, but ultimately, it seems no worse for wear as it regenerates. Normally, there is a limit to how much one can regenerate in a timely manner, but with it being an almost-Avatar, all bets are off.

Fleshy, rather cross by recent developments, decides to retaliate. Ugly maws of misshapen teeth open on its tentacles, each one screaming and spewing acid and other foul concoctions pretty much everywhere, but the attack is certainly concentrated in my general direction. I use my wings to block what would hit me, for while a dragon lives, his or her wings are virtually indestructible. I can feel it trying to burn away at me, to leech at my mana, but it finds a poor grasp upon such metaphysical aspects of my person, and a quick flick of my wings casts the ichor away from me.

The ichor was not finished with its intended purpose, for it dissolved into both a miasma of toxic gas and swarms of little bugs that appear awfully hungry. This forces my hand to use Fire to burn it all away, for while those bugs probably cannot penetrate my scales, I don't want to find out. This may surprise you, but being infested with flesh-burrowing bugs is nowhere to be found on my list of fun things to do.

Fleshy then unleashes blobs of itself, each one morphing into crude constructs of flesh that not only approach me, but the area around me as well. Traps I had hidden about the field detonate one after another, and even my attempts to modify their triggering mechanism are futile, as these blobs seem to be especially designed to forcefully detonate them. It would appear that Fleshy has done its homework, for now one of my hidden aces is off the table.

This fight is proving to be difficult and frustrating.

Within the shadow of my Master, I cultivate the connection to my god, Gulthar. Our foe is a horror beyond imaging to most, one that will destroy and devour all that it can. While it does not embody Fear specifically, it represents an entity that would frighten the masses to no end. But Gulthar is also the god of Courage, and it is Courage that his champions need to conquer such terrors.

While I have never known fear on a personal level, I do understand concern for the wellbeing of others. If Fleshy does not perish soon, all that I love and hold dear will be swallowed in its wake, leaving me alone if I somehow do not perish here and now in fighting it. I have no personal need for Courage, but the masses need a symbol of hope, a beacon to rally to, one that can inspire them to tuck away their fear and to fight until the bitter end. And it is with such conviction that I pray to Gulthar and call upon his divine aid.

Incantations are not necessarily meant to make much sense, for gods tend to hear all things said by their followers. The cacophony of so many voices is almost deafening for a god, and to hear the voice of one follower in particular is difficult without a petitioner being at a shrine to said god. Incantations serve as a code phrase that should not arise in normal conversation, which helps the god lock in to a particular follower, and in addition, the ritual of an incantation helps solidify the bond between petitioner and deity.

"Ten thousand screams and more do I offer unto You. Let mortal hearts quake at the thought of You, and may the righteous find stalwart resilience in the presence of You. Your will is that of The Beginning, that all life shall know of it and live by it first and foremost until The End.

"I call upon Fear, that it may be my mantle, shrouding my form in the unknown that lurks within the darkness. May my enemies falter at the sight of me. May the conviction of mortals be tested, and may only the worthy survive. Invigorate my body given unto You, and hinder those that are an affront to Your divine self.

"I call upon Courage, that it may be my armor, protecting my form from all that stands between me and my duty. May my enemies find no purchase upon me. May the worthy be inspired by my zeal, and may the unworthy be scorned, never to know Your protection. Empower my spirit given unto You, and hamper all attempts to prevent me from carrying out Your divine will.

"I call upon Gulthar, my god and my purpose. May He be my sword, that I may destroy all that opposes Him. The time for peace or compromise is over. Let nothing remain in my wake that offends You. So do I offer myself unto You, Gulthar. Let your will be made manifest with my body serving as the vessel for your Avatar!"

Within his Domain, Gulthar sat at his desk, processing some paperwork while humming a merry tune to his skeletal self. Business has been booming lately with the whole "end of the world" thing going on. Petitioners were coming to him left, right, and center, and the simple layman was more inclined to become devout as the days passed. This great boon didn't even require plotting and scheming, nor did it involve complicated politics with the other gods. No, instead such fortune was a result of nature taking its course, for desperate times spread fear in spades, and the courageous proved themselves time and time again.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Suddenly, an annoying buzzing sound alerted him that he needed to respond to some important matter. Said buzzing pulsed on and off, and by the third pulse, he pressed the button on his desk to address it.

"What is it?" came the slightly annoyed voice of Gulthar.

"Sorry to disturb you, Lord of Unfathomable Darkness, Master of the Unknown Reaches, Primordial-"

"Yes, get to it! I don't need all my titles, just spit it out!"

"My apologies to The Shadow That Looms Over All, His Most-"

Gulthar slapped his hand to his face in exasperation. WIth saintly levels of patience, he endured until the clerk on the other end got to the point.

"The Void has received a collect call from Skull Aneta-Avatar. Do you wish to accept it?"

"Sorry, wrong number," Guthar responded before turning off the conversation with another push of a button. With a sigh, he rose from his desk and summoned forth his wardrobe. Thousands of outfits awaited him, each one worthy of his divine self. Seemingly without a care in the world, he mustered his Avatars and perused them.

"Too flashy, too outdated, too uncomfortable. This one makes me look fat." He grumbled as he swiped by each one faster than the last. "Too spicy, too obnoxious, too perfect, too unpredict- wait!" He went back to the penultimate Avatar. "Yeah, this will work. Just a few cosmetic tweaks here and there and I will be in business."

He donned his Avatar, and as if he had almost forgotten, he went back to his desk and flipped a sign that read "Back in five" before he departed for the exit of his Domain.

I have used [School's Out] thrice by the time Skull manifested from my Shadow as an Avatar of Gulthar. Shadow did and still continues to weaken Fleshy, but it is certainly not out of the fight. The second iteration, I slammed it with a debilitating effect of [Spatial Manipulation] to continuously warp space around it so that its movements are hampered and its actions stymied. The final iteration was a use of Fire, for the space around it also had the secret effect of sucking in and condensing the oxygen in the air, which would help to fuel the inferno I had cooked up for it.

Fleshy is still immolated and screaming, and despite everything I have done to hamper it, it still manages to be a threat and nuisance to me. I can tell it is preloaded to become an Avatar, as that power sits just below the surface. Unlike Skull, who has to worry about divinity poisoning, Fleshy is most likely disposable, and as such, can turn things up to eleven without much care or concern. Ergo, when Skull lays into Fleshy, I will be supporting her, as I don't want to be in the middle of two divinities fighting by proxy.

I have seen Skull as an Avatar of Gulthar before, but this one looks different. While I am perhaps twice as tall as the general centralized blob of Fleshy, at least at the natural upright position where my head is located, Skull is half the size of Fleshy. So, she is still rather massive, and if her form is anything to go by, quite deadly.

Her armor is made of white and radiant light, with shining metal and a sheen of glory radiating out of it. Fully encased in plate armor, not an inch of her body is exposed. As for its theme, the armor makes her look like she either is or is encased by a skeletal dragon, one that would resemble my likeness were I flesh and bones minus the flesh. She also sports a long flowing cape of shadows, its form indistinct as it seemingly stretches infinitely. It is difficult to look at directly, and, much like observing the sun, one is best suited to glance out of the corner of the eye, for witnessing it stirs discomfort born by primordial instinct and the resurfacing of past fears. Also, she has great shadowy wings of a draconic shape that sprout from her back and seamlessly phase through her cape without issue.

And, let's not overlook the massive fucking sword she has. Her zweihänder, while certainly a long blade, is rather thin and not very wide. This sword is a black chunk of metal, inelegant, yet highly utilitarian, designed to smash through its opponents as much as it cuts them. With it being around half again as tall as herself, it is a wonder that she can even wield it. And, the sword is wrapped in a web of Shadow and Light magic, both technically part of the same school of magic, and both associated with Fear and Courage respectively.

Without wasting any effort, and seemingly with a berserk rage, she charges in to fight Fleshy, an action which certainly takes guts. Being fearless, Skull has no qualms about doing as she must, but discretion, which she normally has the wisdom to utilize, has been cast aside in favor of unrelenting violence. She moves with unparalleled grace and speed, zipping around Fleshy as her blade slashed through it.

Fleshy roars in pain (as seems to be its favorite pastime when it comes to vocalization), and without much delay, it too transforms as it becomes an Avatar of…

[The Infinite Maw]

The World Heart cleared up the matter, as one cannot be an incognito Avatar. Well, maybe one could if one were a god of Deception or Skullduggery, but I wouldn't bet on it. Anyway, Fleshy warped into… an even bigger ball of tentacles with a centralized mouth, which contains many mouths lining its interior, and each one of those so similarly lined with mouths ad infinitum.

I would like to describe the fight in detail, but things happened so quickly that I could barely keep track. Additionally, powers were wielded that I could barely understand, for this Avatar of Gulthar had a lot more juice to it. My efforts mostly amounted to herding the fight away from the city and to support Skull and hamper Fleshy. However, I eventually deduced where the fight was heading, and it would end in Skull's defeat.

I would have one chance for a finishing blow when Skull ran out of juice, for Fleshy would be at its weakest. Unfortunately, I didn't have anything in my arsenal that would strike a decisive blow. It was somewhere in those final moments of the fight between Avatars that the solution, and thus the point of this whole fight, dawned upon me.

I did have the required decisive blow. Or at least, I could choose to accept it, and thus, forsake other paths open to me. Barring special aspects of one's Blessing, the effects of one's flight as chosen by the Emperor, or the natures of the Focuses chosen by the Emperor, a dragon can freely choose one and only one breath attack to specialize in. Doing so makes that breath attack significantly stronger, at the cost of all others being weaker. I, who had not made such a specialization, remained somewhere in the middle, with all breath attacks being slightly above average. A breath attack from a jack of all trades would not cut it; I needed to specialize, and I needed to choose right here and now.

Breath attacks are generally destructive; that is their purpose. However, I am not a great warrior, a mighty conqueror, an overlord above all others. I like to build things, to make roads, to enable a world of peace and prosperity. Of all my breath attacks, only one follows that vein of thought: [Breath of Holy Purification]. It destroys that which is anathema to civilization, which in turn creates an environment where people can flourish. It does not amplify people, but it removes detriments from them, specifically, anything that corrupts them.

This cleansing breath is exactly what hits The Devourers hard, so why would they force me into picking it? Do they have some unknown counter against it, and so they aim to take away my future choice by dealing with a known quantity now? Such is a concern for future-me, for there was no time for further deliberation.

Without hesitation, I upgraded [Breath of Holy Purification], selecting it as my Empowered breath, as it is called. Furthermore, I used my Experience Points to grab every last boon and boost to it that I reasonably could to enhance it. [Breath of Holy Purification] was no more, for it had been replaced with [Empowered Breath of The Emperor of the Crossroad Wayfinders - Holy Purification: Celestial Aspirant], which is an obnoxious mouthful.

Speaking of obnoxious mouthfuls, I readied my breath attack, and it was all I could do not to cough as the sheer power of what filled me was almost beyond containment. I may as well have compared a dust devil to a tornado, such was the difference in scale between the two. And, other than raw throughput, this Ability was denser, containing far more metaphysical power and weight to it. This would not be something I could use willy-nilly, as each use of it would attract the attention of the World Heart, and thus, shape who I am and my place in the world. Such power comes with restrictions, as I would some day find out.

For now, as a battered and broken Skull was swatted away by an equally abused Fleshy, I took aim and condensed everything I could into my new breath attack. The light of the world seemed to flicker out right before I opened my mouth, and then, like the dawn of a thousand suns, a beam of light shot forth from my mouth and enveloped Fleshy. I could not hear its typical screams of pain and rage, but I felt confident that they existed, if not in form, then at least in spirit as I blasted Fleshy into oblivion.

In the aftermath, something remained of Fleshy, something that made my stomach turn. Skull's armor and her favored zweihänder were shattered, and her body was not doing much better. Pushed to its limits, she siphoned off my mana like an open floodgate as it inefficiently combated the divinity poisoning that threatened to end her life. Although healers rushed to aid us, they would not arrive before I took measures to address the situation.

We had won the battle, but at what cost?

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