Chase gasped, finally free from the infernal smoke slowly incinerating his lungs.
His back hit the ground with a thud while his arms followed outstretched at his sides... His vision already teetering between life and death.
"Drink." Poppy demanded, reminding him of old times as she forced the liquids of a potion down his throat.
Chase gagged, rolling onto his side as both reality as well as the pain of his body- reminding him of the horrible battle he had just fought first hand in...
He groaned, reaching and grabbing at his poorly stitched up chest.
While the back of his eyes burned and his Catalyst ached: His stained eyes glanced up at Poppy, who was sitting gracefully with dried blood running down her cheek, while her eyes clearly told of thankfulness that it was finally over...
Chase returned his gaze to the ground and rested his forehead upon his battered forearm, before quickly looking towards his right out of the corner of his eyes-where the dust of their final stand had begun to settle.
Hans emerged, his shoulders stained red and blue from several blade wounds... While what was left of his prized gauntlets slowly disintegrated from his hand...
It had been the first time Chase had seen Hans's face in quite a while, considering he never took the helmet off.
But he couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy... After all, he had seemed quite amped about getting the chance to fight Veximus...
Chase cursed, turning his gaze away from the devastated Panda and instead tried to scan for any other allies in the vicinity.
Bzzzt
An artifact hanging from Poppy's belt began to vibrate and glow violently, causing the both of them to flinch after the deafening silence.
"You should go." Poppy said, hesitating before slowly pulling the artifact from its chain.
"Uh... Al-" Before Chase could even try to stand up, the artifact hummed to life and launched from Poppy's hand, landing on the ground, spinning and lighting up the air around it with energy as an image began to form from what seemed like light...
Poppy mouthed a curse as the both of them were greeted with a terrible weight beyond anything else being crushed upon their spirits.
Their knees hit the ground in kneel...
"Wha-" Chase tried to speak, feeling his throat immediately close while a menacing figure clad in dark blue armor grinned feverishly at him...
"Father..." Poppy started, taking a deep breath and cautiously lowering her head with formality.
'It... It can't be...' Chase trembled, his own body refusing his very will.
"What has you shaken boy? You need not fear..." Zen chuckled, his chin lightly tapping against his gauntlet as his almost unimaginable eyes pierced the self proclaimed heir...
Chase could not reply...
'He- He has to be at least twenty times stronger than Veximus... No- Even that's being generous towards the monster we fought only five minutes ago...' He cursed internally, his eyes straining against the rancid force in an attempt to make eye contact with The Grand Paladin... However...
"You are no threat to me... I gain nothing by trying to get rid of you, as that was proven quite quickly in spite of the efforts I went through the first time..." He glared at Poppy out of the corner of his eye...
A skull shattering chuckle left his lips.
"Speaking of which... You're to return home in the coming days Poppy... That sister of yours needs to be brought back in for punishment..." Zen sighed, the anger in his tone radiating far enough to be felt even by Jack who winced in pain on the ground as a voice completely overpowering his own will took over his thoughts.
Poppy glanced at Chase and then towards the group of Unity that appeared beyond the storm of fire near the far wall of the crater, all severely wounded and watching the remnants of the battlefield for their lost comrades...
"I understand. I'll leave for home right now, F-father." She answered quietly with her crimson eyes glaring at the ground with a fire of retaliation.
However...
He simply laughed.
"As for the crimes committed in Seh Jenah... Eh, I don't really care actually. Spit on Callahan's body on your way out!" Zen boomed with more laughter before quickly shutting off the hologram without even finishing his fit of laughter.
Chase heaved with a deep breath, his eyes completely dilated as he tried to regather his chaotic mind state...
Poppy on the other hand, grit her teeth before standing with a burst of what had to be the last drop of any bit of Axis she had left. Causing Chase to nearly fly back into an elevated ledge from merely the wind of her fit of rage.
However, the princess nearly instantly took a deep breath and glanced at Chase with a deadpanned expression before walking over to him and offering a hand.
"Sorry. The Grand Paladin and I do not normally speak to each other... It is... A very distant relationship." She sighed, helping an in pain Chase up from his back.
"It's fine I guess. But like... What the hell could your sister have done to get him mad enough to call you up?" He asked, tilting his bleeding head in confusion while Poppy wiped it with a ripped off section of the bottom of her tunic.
"I could make a couple guesses..." She said, scowling behind Chase as if remembering several moments in great detail.
He shrugged.
"You should probably go then... As much as I wanna usurp his throne, I don't think every Lesser god combined could go up against him..." Chase shuttered having felt a mere replica of his force compared to what really sat upon the throne at the heart of The Grand Capital.
"I- Never mind. You're right." Her gaze dropped, shoulders nearly turning to leave.
"Oh! Hey, there's still water in here." Chase observed pulling a charred canteen from a shattered divot in the waist plate of what was once his armor.
Poppy, angered that her Father had made her leave so abruptly especially after everything had just happened...
Splash...
Chase poured the water left in the canteen on Poppy's head before she could walk away, barely holding his laugh as she turned around with a seething red face and soaked ivory hair.
Before she could summon (Or at least try) her spear, Chase held his hands and pointed at the watered down stream of blood rushing deeper into the crater below them.
"You had blood on your face. Probably shouldn't walk around like that. Bad rep." Chase nodded, convinced at his own reasoning while Poppy could only sigh and turn back around.
"Try to stay alive for like three weeks please? I'm probably not going to find my sister, so that's when I'll meet you up North... See ya!" Chase waved, heading towards the most isolated exit available.
Suddenly a current of energy flooded the crater, causing Chase to fall to his knees as a new completely stranger presence filled the air.
And it seemed that Hans had felt it as well, upon seeing the usually un-emotive Hans widen his eyes in horror as his knees hit the ground with two equally powerful explosions.
Chase had at first thought that somehow or someway Gabriel's energy signature was nearby, giving him hope that both him and Michael had finally returned... Although a little late.
But it was only then he spotted the morning sun burning its way overtop of Seh Jenah... And within the sun... The silhouette of an ancient trident bearing no similarities to Gabe' own... Stood almost unprecedented in the horizon beyond...
...
Azure lifted his borrowed trident, pointing it towards the fleet and grinning as Gabriel and Michael readied themselves behind the elated man and almost mentor...
A new day would dawn upon Vallmora... With the Ocean's breeze acting as the driving force that will push a new age upon humanity...