Dominion of The Beast Masters

The battlefield was chaos incarnate, yet a strange beauty lingered amidst the destruction.

From the top of their beasts where they stood, the group watched in silence, their breaths stolen by the grandeur of the clash unfolding before them.

Above, the sky was a tapestry of light and shadow, torn apart by explosions of emerald and gold. Below, the earth trembled as Solnova clashed with Star Eater.

It was a battle of titans, a show of power so immense it felt as though the world itself might break under the strain.

No one spoke. Words felt small in the face of such devastation.

Each member of the group stood rooted in place, caught between the urge to act and the paralyzing realization that this was not their fight, not yet at least.

Mercury's fists clenched at her sides, her body taut with the need to intervene. She wanted to dive into the fray, to lend her strength to Eratz and stand beside him.

But deep within, a quiet voice held her back. She pressed a hand to her abdomen, a gesture of both reassurance and restraint.

I can't... It will only distract him... I can't do that... Damn... Of all time... it had to be now...

The thought was bitter, and her throat tightened with unspoken frustration. Her heart screamed to act, but her mind knew better.

To her left, Colin stood with her hands clasped tightly. She trembled as if the force of her prayer could bridge the gap between herself and Eratz.

Her lips moved silently, forming words only she could hear. She begged for his victory, for his safety, for a miracle that would ensure he would come back to them.

The others were no less troubled. Catarina's usual playful demeanor was gone, replaced with a solemnity that felt foreign on her face.

She shifted on her knees, her tail swaying anxiously as her eyes flicked between the combatants.

Sia stood on guard as if she was waiting for any opportunity to join this Hell, but her trembling eyes and clenched jaw were telling another story.

The destruction around them was breathtaking in its ferocity. Blasts of energy carved the earth into jagged scars, each strike leaving craters where lush land once stood.

The air itself seemed alive, charged with the raw power of their attacks. Lightning and fire danced in the heavens and emerald beams and flashes tore through reality like shards of shattered glass.

It was terrifying, and yet there was a strange poetry to it, a dance of chaos and creation, of light and shadow.

Tamara and Solnova were holding Star Eater at bay with an almost regal precision. Their goal was simple: hold it, keep Kallistra away from her strongest weapon to even the chances, and avoid big attacks risking to touch Kallistra.

This second thought seemed to be equally shared by Star Eater who only fought with physical attacks.

To the group, it almost felt like an obligation.

Nothing would work. Nothing would matter. Tamara was holding it back because only she could. Interfering would risk upsetting the fragile balance they had established, and it hurt to admit it, but this was better. Above them, Kallistra adjusted her stance with a faint smirk. With her power, she shifted the gravity above, sending Eratz hurtling toward the ground.

Eratz gritted his teeth through the crushing force, his body twisting mid-fall as he turned into lightning.

His form arced through the air in a wide sweep, and with immense effort, he redirected himself back toward her.

When he managed to close the distance, Kallistra's body shimmered and any attack passed harmlessly through her.

How? Eratz thought, frustration boiling within him as his punch missed its mark. Which one of Star Eater's abilities is this?

He pivoted, lightning sparking at his heels as he moved to strike again.

His knuckles burned with energy, but once more, his attack phased through her like she was a shadow.

She's fast… No. Eratz's mind raced even as he dodged a sudden emerald blade sweeping toward him. If she were fast, she wouldn't have been hit earlier. She doesn't dodge. She takes the hits… but my attacks never touch her.

He darted back, hovering midair as he studied her, his spiritual mode was at its peak, the world slowed, and yet… it gave him little clarity.

Her body… It shouldn't be covered by any dimensional power... I hit her before; nothing has changed. So why now?

His eyes darted between her movements, syncing thought with action as he dodged another assault.

A moment of silence passed, and then realization struck. His eyes widened.

She's… timing it. Her dimensional power isn't constant; it activates with my attacks.

Without hesitation, Eratz surged forward again, his aura blazing brighter. This time, he stopped short just before reaching her. Instead of striking, he released the Thunder Lycaon from his aura.

The beast burst forth in a flash of darkness and lightning, its predatory form lunging toward Kallistra.

Her smirk faltered.

The Lycaon passed through her as expected, but its brilliance blinded her momentarily.

For a brief second, she lost sight of Eratz.

... Oh

But she had no time to think more.

Eratz appeared above her, delivering a brutal trowel to her head.

The force of the hit sent shockwaves through the air, and her entire body shook as cracks spread across her head.

Her emerald eyes trembled violently as she brought her hands to her head in great pain.

She had barely registered the agony when Eratz followed up with another explosive punch to her face.

One blow after another rained down, each strike landing with a thunderous impact that sent shards of emerald flying in every direction.

Kallistra's composed expression dissolved into anguish as the cracks on her face deepened, spider-webbing across her smooth surface.

She opened her mouth to retaliate, but another fist silenced her, the sheer force leaving her reeling.

At last, she screamed, her voice raw and piercing.

With a desperate motion, she generated another rift, her body vanishing into its depths to escape Eratz's relentless assault.

When she reappeared at a safe distance, her trembling hands instinctively patted her cracked face, as though attempting to piece herself back together. Her emerald eyes shimmered with a mix of pain and disbelief.

"Why…" she murmured, her voice faint. Then, she erupted into a shout, her voice quivering with outrage. "Why do you keep hitting my face?! Why?! My whole body is vulnerable! You could hit anywhere, but you're always targeting my face! Just why?!"

Eratz's voice flared in response, more frustrated than angry. "Because at least I won't have to look at your fucking smooth, empty glass-headed bone-less face all the time! You idiot have no bone in your head!"

Kallistra froze, stunned by the sheer audacity of the insult. Her lips parted as if to retort, but the sheer weight of the words left her speechless.

For a moment, the air was silent, save for the distant crackling of energy from their battle.

Finally, she rubbed her face, her fingers grazing the cracks as though checking for something.

"You… what are you... I have bones everywhere!"

Eratz rolled his eyes, shaking his head and spreading his hand.

"Where?! You look like you only have air in your head!"

Her emerald eyes narrowed, frustration mounting as she stamped her foot.

"Stop... insulting me! I've been respecting you this whole time, and I deserve the same treatment!"

Eratz crossed his arms, unimpressed.

"Respect? You?! You see how your head is empty?"

Kallistra took a deep breath to calm down, her tone shifting to something softer, almost vulnerable.

"Listen. It's because you don't respect people that everyone sees you as a bad guy. You're all alone, Eratz. I can see it in you… that loneliness. I feel it too."

Her voice became wistful, carrying a strange tone. "Don't you see? We're the same. You and I… destined to fight here, like soulmates caught in an eternal clash..."

Eratz interrupted her straight, waving his hand.

"I'm not alone. I have enough friends, a wife, and two children."

Kallistra paused once again, fixing him attentively for seconds before letting her jaw dropping. Her voice rose to a high-pitched shout. Stay connected with empire

"What?!"

Eratz shrugged nonchalantly.

"Everyone has someone special. Everyone but you. That's why YOU are alone, because nobody can stand you."

Kallistra blinked, stunned into silence, before managing a faint.

"What?"

Eratz continued, relentless.

"Tamara and Victoria are back together. They hang out all the time, happily chatting in a group chat with only the two of them. It's even called BFF. Guess who's not in the group."

Her body trembled, her wide eyes filled with disbelief.

"What…"

"Oh, and they've even added a new girl as their third buddy," Eratz added. "They're drinking together now while nobody cares about you. And when you're sad, you have to pat your back yourself. When you cry everyone is laughing at you. Everyone hates you so much that even your beasts are weak as hell despite being calamities. And the only one who can stand you has no face and no heart."

Kallistra's trembling intensified, her face frozen in a mix of shock, fury, and despair.

Her hands balled into fists as she struggled to form words. Finally, her voice cracked, laced with trembling outrage.

"You… you…"

Eratz tilted his head, cutting her off.

"Hey, what's this on my fist?"

Before she could react, he vanished in a flash of lightning, reappearing directly in front of her. His fist swung forward with devastating force, the cracks on her face deepening as the impact rang out.

"Your face!" he shouted as his punch landed, the sound echoing like a thunderclap.

Kallistra flew backward, her movements unsteady as she tried to regain her balance.

One hand pressed firmly against the side of her head where Eratz's punch had landed, her other arm hanging limply by her side.

Her head was lowered, her hair obscuring her face as she hovered in place.

The battlefield seemed to pause, the oppressive silence hanging in the air like a storm waiting to break.

A murmur escaped her lips, the sound low and guttural, like a whisper carried through layers of distortion.

The strange cadence of her words sent a shiver up Eratz's spine. His instincts screamed at him, and he shifted his stance, lightning crackling faintly around him as he readied himself for whatever was coming.

The green light beneath Kallistra's cracks began to glow, its intensity growing with every passing second.

It pulsed like a heartbeat, spilling an eerie luminescence across her form. Her fingers twitched against her face, and her shoulders rose and fell with each labored breath.

Then she spoke.

Her voice was low at first, a chilling monotone that reverberated unnaturally in the air.

"You think this is funny... Eratz?" Her head tilted slightly. "You think this is some kind of joke? Just because I'm being nice to everyone?

Her tone rose, anger bubbling to the surface. The air around her began to distort, ripples of energy warping the space as her green glow intensified.

"I have tried," she continued, her voice cracking under the weight of her fury. "I have tried so hard to achieve my dream without crossing that line. I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to see this happen."

Her hand dropped from her face, revealing the cracks that had deepened further, glowing with a blinding radiance. Her expression twisted, a mix of despair and wrath that seemed almost inhuman.

"But you…" her voice rose into a venomous hiss. "You have pushed me to that edge... You've turned this battle into a joke... so let's play your game."

The oppressive atmosphere thickened, pressing down on Eratz like a physical weight.

The air was growing cold and heavy as though drained of vitality. He tightened his grip, his aura flaring brighter to counter the encroaching energy.

Kallistra raised her face, showing black eyes with glowing green irises blazing like twin suns.

She extended a hand, her fingers curling slowly as if grasping something unseen. Her smirk returned, but it was darker now, devoid of humor.

"Have a nice trip," she whispered ominously.

The green light around her flared, consuming her entirely as the space around her warped and twisted, and the battlefield seemed to collapse into itself.

"In my field spell."