5 (final chapter) – The first, but not the last

The storm rages inside the dark clouds. Yet they part as Amor makes his way through them. Even the flowers of lightning and the roars of thunder keep themselves at bay through his wake. Now faster than lightning, even his wings beat more vigorously than thunder.

“Leviathan! Reveal yourself!” Unlike their first meeting, the beast does not respond to his call.

An odd silence fall upon the dark clouds, as their master does not appear to greet the intruder.

“Treacherous abomination, you were the one to say that all who trespassed inside your territory would have the same fate! Yet here I am! Twice have I entered, and once spared! What mockery is your claim of control over the endless skies when you have neither control over your own self-declared territory, nor of your own rules! The sky is free! And a pathetically small creature like you will never reach even a speck of its boundless splendor. Foul beast! Today ends your reign of tyranny, for you shall release my friend, so she may see the sky she dreamed of!”

Finally, the ear-splitting explosions of thunder break the silence, as the flickers of light reveal the approaching monstrosity. The calm eye of the storm does not reveal itself upon their approach this time. Instead, a perilous thunderstorm takes its place besides its master, as the enraged Leviathan shows themselves to the boy once again.

This time the beast appears directly in their snake-like form, opposed to when they coiled their body in the shape of an island.

Previously, their enormous size were the greatest cause of concern. But now, Amor had the end of the snake in sight, and felt like he could fly across their head to the tip of their tail.

“Foolish child! What sort of mockery is this, for you to show yourself before me once again! How can one be so quick to forget about their previous loss, when their only redeeming point are their insults? It is a shame for you that we fight with our bodies and not our words, for the sting of your jeer has proved way more hurtful than that of your sword!”

“Over that we can agree, monster! For the insults you spill out of your mouth cannot even begin to compare to your foul breath! But have you come here to exchange words or blows? Or would you care to try and understand my wings once again?”

“Obnoxious child! You had no idea of who you even were before you came here! How dare you show this sass in front of me! This time you won’t be released from my maws! I’ll chew on you, rip-off your distasteful wings and spit you back to the bottom of the sky! You’ll be forever banished to the edge, as I take control of all of the sky!”

“Yet thanks to you, now I know who I am, and what must be done! Thank you for your kind support, you arrogant blabbermouth!”

“Grhaaah!!!” The Leviathan tries to slam their body against Amor, followed by a treacherous bite.

Yet Amor quickly dodges their advances, and carves their body with his friend’s rapier. The dark clouds simply flash in response.

The Leviathan then pulls themselves back for a moment and take a deep breath.

Amor notices the ominous impression their movement creates and flies away from the direction of their head.

But the Leviathan does as best as they can to follow him. They crack open their mouth and blows flowers of lighting in Amor’s direction.

Who could possibly count how many of those serpentinous waves of electricity Amor managed to dodge and cut with the star-forged metal? However, the only answer was not enough, as some of them hit directly into him, cursing heat and shock through his veins.

“Aaaagh!” Amor let’s out an exclamation of his pain. But by now he had experienced fiery heat way more intense than this, nor the shock was anything compared to the beast’s powerful maws. The boy spread his wings and dispersed the lighting back into the sky.

Then taking advantage of the momentum, he carves the rapier along the monster’s body all the way from their neck to end of their tail.

Light flashes, as the beast once again pulls back and takes a breath.

This time, the boy advances directly into their head. His sword clashes with the beast just at the same time lightning is released. Some are cut down by the sword, others skillfully dodged and some hit directly into the boy’s body. However, the tyrant does not come out unscathed either. The rapier infused with lighting as it pierces through one of the Leviathan’s eyes.

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“Huuuooooohhhh!!!” A deep agonizing scream cuts through the skies. The air vibrates so intensely from their cry, even flying becomes difficult for a moment. The surrounding dark clouds also partake in their pain, as they roar with thunder and send wild lightning coursing through their entirety.

Enraged, the Leviathan slams their head against Amor and drags him to the other side of the sky.

The boy manages to protect himself using the blade. But as soon as the Leviathan parts their head from him, they began to erratically and furiously strike with multiple bites aimed at Amor.

Without any other choice, the boy backs away from their reach, just as they expected.

They take a longer, wider breath this time. And Amor saw this as a chance too, as he flies into their direction, faster than ever before. The blade in his hand hums an unheard serenade, before the enemies clash one final time.

A loud thunderous blow resounds across the sky!

The light blinds everything, making unsure of what is lighting, starlight or anything else. And after that, finally, a deadly silence.

…

…

…

Slowly, the dark clouds begin to disperse, as the clear blue sky blossoms from behind them.

The Leviathan, now nothing more than a lifeless amalgamation of wings, recoils once again. What once was their body with the size of a whole giant island, now turns into an actual island, floating effortlessly in the sky, as any other.

Someone without any previous knowledge of the monster that tormented this small part of the sky would never imagine the bleak past of this new-formed island, now filled with a hopeful future.

From the remains of where their head used to be, a single fairy flies out from the inside.

Her tattered body is covered by wounds and burns caused by lighting.

Her flight is unsteady, but sure.

Libertad takes a long look at the new formed island. She was broken and defeated, barely escaping death’s clutches through events beyond her knowledge. Yet, her heart beat more intensely than ever.

“A new island! From the remains of the immortal tyrant! Ohh! How ignorant I was, for something that was not even mentioned in any tales or stories has just happened right before my eyes!!! Or, well, more precisely in my case, from inside their stomach, I guess…”

Libertad flies excitedly, exploring the newly formed island, overlooking its smallest nook and cranny.

“Still, who could have been the one to defeat such monstrous beast?” The girl asks herself, reminded of her battle that transpired only a few days ago.

“Note to self: when beating up a giant monster that feeds on fairies, careful not to trip on lightning.”

She then takes a moment to rest over the newly formed island. With the tyrant gone, her journey could finally begin. Or rather, it had already begun. To be the first fairy to explore a newly formed island. She had no idea how island were even formed before this.

Lost in merry thoughts, she almost fails to notice a single fairy’s slow descent from above. His wings continue their strong impulse, despite the tiredness from the long battle.

“Hmm…? Wait, could it be---!”

Libertad happily flies to the encounter of her old friend.

“Amor! I cannot believe it! What a blissful occasion, your wing has finally blossomed! I’m so curious! What kind of wings are those!? They exude such a pretty shine!”

Amor is exhilarated to see Libertad in good health! However, his smile turns a little bitter remembering her first question upon encountering him again is the same as that of when he first met the Leviathan…

“That is a, huh, rather philosophical question. And I would rather not relive the moments that brought me to the answer before some good rest…”

The girl is curious, but does not insist. After all, figuring her own answers is an important part of any new discovery.

“Also, do you know what came to pass for such a fate to befall that hideous monster---? Oh! Is that my precious rapier, the fish-catcher?”

For a moment, Amor thought that the blade might deserve a more fitting name after felling the Leviathan. But then again, he also thought that being slayed by a blade with such name might make that treacherous beast roll inside their grave--- island, and thought it better to remain this way.

Amor hands his friend her blade back, and tells her the story of everything that transpired after she left the island. And she listens with bathed breath to the story of his battle against the Leviathan.

Some time passes as they converse and rest, before the girl has finally restored her energies back.

“Finally, it’s time for me to leave, Amor! To explore the skies, fulfill my dreams and find new ones!” Libertad stares excitedly at the horizon. Her bright gaze remains at it has always been in his memories, despite this whole ordeal.

“Would you like to come with? Now that you have your wings you won’t need to find a way for them to blossom and can simply enjoy the adventure!”

Amor ponders over her proposition for a second. There was much to think about after his battle.

“I suppose I could… Go with you on your adventure…”

“Great! Then let’s go---!” Libertad prepares to take flight, before being interrupted by him.

“But in case I stayed, would you return here to visit?”

“Haha, remember we’ve already discussed this, silly? I need to keep on flying as far as I can reach! No backsies!” Libertad’s eyes glimmer in excitement as she stares into the horizon. Her wings itching to take flight as soon as possible.

“Heh, yuuup. It’s a shame, but I don’t think I’ll be able to go… You see, my wings broke after my battle with the Leviathan, and I think it might take them a while to heal… Goodbye, Libertad. I wish you plentiful adventures.”

“Ok! Bye-bye, Amor! Send my regards to everyone in the island!” Libertad takes flight, without ever looking back.

Amor watches her friend leave; as a single teardrop trickles through his face and falls into the newly formed island.