Malakor smirked. His burning sword, eyes, and wings glowed fiercely, radiating heat that seemed to warp the very air of the Vastyrion realm.
The abyss of the realm erupted in massive fire blasts, each one aimed at Michael. He dodged effortlessly, twenty-two enormous blasts tearing through the nothingness as if they were slow projectiles.
Michael's sword glowed brighter, star-like lights spinning around its blade. He thought in his mind, I don't fully know yet… but okay, I'll try.
He swung the sword, cutting through a fire launcher in a single motion. Again and again, he sliced the next attacks as they came.
Malakor's smirk widened, a dangerous challenge gleaming in his burning eyes.
"You can't defeat me, Michael! You can't stop me!"
The demon lord's claw fired a massive laser beam, burning through the air of the Vastyrion realm. The energy cracked the space itself, forcing Michael outside the realm briefly.
Malakor teleported to the dimension of nothingness, pushing Michael with the intense laser blast.
"This is one kind of realm, Michael. the realm of nothingness. Dark and pure, its ground is hollow, and its glow is nothing but shadow!"
"Your destiny is not decided by you… but by me!" Malakor roared.
He unleashed even more fire force. Michael dodged, blocked, tanked, and slashed with the glowing sword.
Michael thought, I have to stay careful. I'm not proficient yet, but thanks to this sword, I can go far beyond.
He did not teleport. Instead, he moved at unmeasurable speed, appearing behind Malakor in a flash. Malakor's wings twisted to dodge.
Their swords clashed: glowing white star-dotted blade against the burning sword. Lightning-like trails cut through the nothingness. The dimension trembled under their swings, each clash shaking the void itself.
Malakor could not believe it. A young boy was putting up a fight, all thanks to a sword blessed by a higher being in the planes no one could reach.
"You are lucky to have that sword, kid," Malakor growled, "but you are inexperienced, and I have centuries of mastery!"
He struck. One swing sent Michael flying with immense force.
Michael stood, tanking a massive fire blast from below that could have torn a fortress apart. His clothes were nearly destroyed, but his body bore no bruises.
He thought firmly, I don't know you, demon, but my mind says I have to defeat you.
Malakor laughed, a dark, echoing sound.
"You believe your mind can stop me, kid? Be ready!"
He cast into the air of the nothingness. The dimension cracked under his energy, exposing fragments of fortals through the fissures accidental but dangerous.
"I am powering up now, Michael. Prepare. You cannot be a complete Sentinel! You cannot!!!"
Michael just stood tall, gripping the sword.
"I still don't understand… but… okay."
The void trembled around them, the clash of two powers shaking the infinite nothingness.