Chapter 7: Two Hearts Extinguished, A Destiny's Dawn
As the last light of the sacred rune faded into Ar-Chin's body, Thara's form immediately went limp. Akkee, who had been battered by blades and dark energies until almost no strength remained, sensed his wife's life force about to extinguish. He gritted his teeth, forcing his blood-soaked body to stand once more. His eyes, once blazing with the fire of war, now held only profound love and final resolve.
"Thara… my love…" He knelt beside his wife with great difficulty, cradling her head on his lap, feeling the chill that had begun to emanate from her body.
Thara's eyes fluttered open weakly, a faint smile still gracing her pale lips. "Ar-Chin… he's safe, isn't he…?"
"Yes… our son is safe… because of you… because of your sacrifice," Akkee replied, his voice trembling, a warrior's tears streaming down his cheeks, mingling with bloodstains and soot.
"You too… my love… you protected us…" She raised a trembling hand to gently touch Akkee's face. "Please… take care of our son… let him grow up… to be a good person… to be a hope…"
"I promise… I will look after him… even if it costs me my life…" Akkee said, though in his heart, he knew his own time was desperately short.
At that very moment, the lizard demon and the handful of remaining black-clad soldiers, who had been blasted away by the couple's final explosive surge, began to recover. They could see that their two main targets were at death's door, and the infant lay right before them.
"Finish them all! And get the child!" the surviving black-clad commander yelled maniacally. He no longer cared whether that ridiculous ritual was complete or not; as long as he got the child's head, he would consider the mission a success.
Akkee looked up at the enemies creeping closer. His eyes suddenly blazed again with a final surge of power. It was not the flame of destruction, but a light more brilliant and pure than ever before, a light emanating from the very core of his Sacred Realm spirit.
"You dregs of humanity and low-class demons…" His voice was hoarse yet resonated throughout the area. "You will never touch my son!"
He bent down and kissed Thara's forehead one last time. "Rest now… my love… and I will follow." Then, he gently laid her body down before turning to look at Ar-Chin, who still slept peacefully amidst the chaos, the infant completely unaware of what his parents had given for him.
Akkee gently placed his hand on Ar-Chin's chest, conveying his final wish and a blessing from the Sacred Realm. "Live… be strong… and be free… my son."
As he finished speaking, Akkee's body suddenly shone with dazzling brilliance. A pure golden light erupted from him like a miniature sun. It did not burn with heat but was filled with an immense sacred power that struck the advancing demons and black-clad soldiers, disintegrating their bodies into dust in an instant!
The entire room flashed with that golden light for a moment before it all gradually dimmed, finally vanishing along with Akkee's body, which dissolved into golden motes of light that slowly ascended. Some of these light particles hovered around Ar-Chin protectively for a moment before seeping completely into the infant's body.
Beside him, Thara's body also began to turn translucent. Gentle, silvery motes of light slowly emanated from her, tenderly enveloping Ar-Chin's form before her body dissolved, following her husband, leaving behind only eternal love and goodwill.
When all the light had faded, the private hospital room fell into a profound silence once more. Only the soft, even breathing of the infant Ar-Chin, still sleeping on the swaddling cloth, could be heard. Amidst the wreckage, blood, and death, he was now enveloped in a faint warmth and a delicate, sweet fragrance, like flowers from a celestial paradise. The rune on his forehead glowed faintly for a moment before fading until it was almost invisible.
Surrounding the little baby was a thin energy field, invisible to the naked eye, yet palpably sacred and imbued with a strong protective power. It was the final bastion his parents from the Sacred Realm had created to protect their only bloodline.
The chaos outside the room began to subside. The sounds of gunfire and fighting gradually died away, perhaps because all the primary targets in this department had been eliminated, or perhaps because the final power unleashed by Akkee and Thara had terrified the remaining enemies into retreat.