MLIII C5, P4- "Cemetery Of Fire"

"Cemetery Of Fire" is the fourth Part of "Miracula Luxia III" 's fifth Chapter.
It was released on 07.04.2022.
== Plot ==
While Adam and his allies continue to fight for their lives at the top of Darkthrop's cathedral, Melanchion and Ardo prepare to decide the fate of their brother. With tears in their eyes, they regretfully make the decision that he is not worthy of living in this world.
However, the evil dragon is far from done. Although he is trapped in a corner and more desperate than he has ever been, he still has the strength to fight his brothers, with the intention to continue serving his dark master for all eternity and to remain alive and well while they perish in his black flames.
A final battle between Athron's most powerful children is about to happen. And there is no turning back.
== Story ==
Melanchion and Ardo look up at the cathedral and hear the yells coming from the top.
"They did it, brother."- Ardo says- "Our friends promised us that they will find the evil sorcerer. And it seems like they succeeded."
Melanchion nods.
"I wish them luck in fighting this crooked man. The world would definitely be better off without him."- He says- "But now, our duties lie here, in this city of evil and despair."
He turns back to an incapacitated Dorgen.
"Dorgen, you wretched beast. I hate to repeat myself, but you crossed the line."- He says to him- "When you joined forces with Darkthrop, you betrayed our entire family. You forced us to hate you. And why did you do that? Because the man offered you countless piles of shiny trinkets in return for your incredible power? Tsk! You have always been fooled by dreams of fame and riches, so easily and effortlessly. But now, you drank too deep into the devil's cup."
Dorgen shakes his head.
"You think that I regret what I did, you fools? How naive of you."- He asks them- "Ever since I left Mother's home, I've been looking for opportunities to redeem myself. To show the villains of this world that I'm worth cooperating with. And I'm sure that Darkthrop's deal was the most perfect opportunity that I would get in my entire life."
Ardo steps forward.
"You are a sinner, Dorgen. A traitor and villain who will never change his ways."- He says to him- "We have always tried to show you the light. To make you believe in our ways, in our heroes. But you simply shrugged it all away, as if you didn't want to be one of us. Isn't that shameful to you? Don;t you want to be a dragon?"
Dorgen silences him.
"Quiet!"- He yells- "I am a dragon because life intended for me to be this way, not by choice! If I had the chance to decide my fate, I would rather be one of the creatures that live in the underworld. At least they have someone who respects them!"
Melanchion shakes his head in disbelief.
"You want to be an imp? Or a demon?"- He says and sighs- "I guess that such fiendish monstrosities are perfect for you. Your heart is way too tainted to be anything else."
Dorgen attempts to free himself, but to no avail.
"It is pointless, brother. You have already lost."- Ardo says- "Submit to your fate and we may end your pitiful life sooner than you think."
Dorgen roars, but the sound emerges from his mouth in a weak, pitiful way.
"Never!"- He says- "I've fought for Darkthrop for too long. Longer than you fools would ever imagine! That kid is up there, fighting him. And I won't let him get away with that!"
Melanchion glares at him.
"And you think that you can stop him?"- He asks- "Then why don't you go ahead and give it a try?"
Melanchion and Ardo step back, anticipating his pitiful attempt to get back up.
Seeing that his brothers are taunting him, in their own, draconic way, makes Dorgen very angry.
He roars again. This time, the sound is much stronger. Much more frightening.
"I will crush you both!"- He roars- "And when I'm done, you shall be the ones who lie dead under this rubble!"
With that, he launches a massive wave of heat in their direction.
Despite their enormous size, the two massive dragons are thrown back while Dorgen easily throws the wreckage away from him.
"And now, it's time... "- He mutters- "... to make you pay!"
With a fearsome roar that would terrify an entire army of humans with ease, Dorgen flies in the air and descends toward his brothers with incredible speed.
Melanchion flies in the air as well. Just as Dorgen gets close to him, he waves his claw and summons a massive wave of fire, throwing the massive creature back into a nearby building and breaking it.
As expected, this does not wound the evil dragon. But it does make him angry.
He waves his claws at Melanchion, launching fireballs at him without taking a break.
Melanchion is able to avoid his attack, but only barely. Without the help of someone else, he will soon fall fictim to Dorgen's rage.
Seeing that his brother is in deep trouble, Ardo wastes no time to launch a massive ray of light at Dorgen. The attack manages to pierce his leg, forcing a sudden reaction that he rarely dares to do in front of his enemies- a roar of pain.
"We told you, brother. You stand no chance against our combined power."- Ardo says to him- "Your reign of terror is over. There is nothing you can do. You have been defeated and the only thing left for you to do is to submit."
Dorgen shakes his head.
"I might be going down, but I'll take you both with me!"- He roars- "Once you're gone, our so-called family will fall apart. Our mother will feel nothing but despair and our brothers will learn to understand the true meaning of fear. Soon, the dragons will become nothing more than another bunch of fallen heroes. Our dreams of a mighty empire will fall alongside us... and there's nothing you can do about it!"
Dorgen spins his own body at an accelerated rate. The force is strong enough to form a massive hurricane that slowly gets closer to Melanchion and Ardo.
"In the end, you will die a misunderstood creature. An outcast who served only as a tool to a greater power."- Melanchion says- "Ardo is right. Your tyranny has gone for too long. Now it's time for us to finish what our mother started."
Having said that, Melanchion bravely jumps into the hurricane. The massive force of nature consumes his body within seconds.
Dorgen laughs at his apparent victory.
"Hah! That was easy!"- He says triumphantly- "You are a fool, Melanchion. To think that you can actually conquer your own f-- "
Suddenly, Melanchion emerges from the hurricane and pounces at Dorgen. Pushing him back toward a nearby building, he manages to break it and get even faster as they fly further back.
"This is the power of us, the dragons of Avernum!"- He roars- "Our strength is not the sole determining factor! Unlike you, we have faith! Courage! Valor! Wisdom! We have everything that you simply shrugged away to achieve your vile goals!"
Dorgen tries to push him back, but he is too weak to do anything.
Meanwhile, Melanchion pushes him back into a nearby house and breaks it effortlessly.
Then, he pushes him into another.
And then another.
And yet another one.
Finally, Melanchion stops at the city's wall and swings his mighty claw, throwing Dorgen back into it and slamming his head into the stone, breaking it and stunning the massive creature for a short time.
But this is not enough to stop Dorgen. Once he gets back up, he roars and exudes a massive ring of black fire, throwing Melanchion and Ardo back to the entrance of the cathedral.
Dorgen walks over to them, triumphantly. And then, he laughs.
"So, this is all that you've got? A show of your insufficient power and a few pretty lights?"- He says- "I believed that you would be better than this, Melanchion. How naive of me to believe that you have changed in the years since I left you."
As Dorgen prepares to breathe fire on his brothers, Melanchion forms a magical shield and protects himself and Ardo from his wicked fire.
"Hiding behind your weak magic again, aren't you?"- Dorgen says and laughs- "Once again, you depend on something else to give you shelter. Just like you depended on our mother to make you strong and independent. But it won't be enough!"
Dorgen breathes a massive ball of fire toward Melanchion and Ardo. The massive impact is strong enough to blow them away, into the walls of the cathedral.
Melanchion gets up with ease. Such a pathetic attack is not enough to bring him down. 
However, it is not the same for poor Ardo.
"Brother!"- Melanchion says and rushes to his side- "What happened to you? Did he hurt you?!"
Ardo looks down at his lower body. He notices that a large amount of it has been severely burned by the blast.
It is no secret to him that he will die soon. Such a wound is proven to be fatal, even for mighty creatures such as the dragons.
"I'm sorry for surprising you like this, dear brother."- He says to him- "I just wanted to... stay by your side. Help you remember your true purpose in this world of ours."
Melanchion shakes his head.
"You could have just stayed in our home! Protected our mother!"- He says- "Why did you have to throw your long, happy life away like... like this?"
Ardo smiles.
"Because I love you, Melanchion."- He says to him- "Every brother's duty is to protect his siblings. I always thought about it when I was away from you. And then, I realized that nothing is better than knowing that the creatures that you love the most are safe and sound."
He sighs.
"Back then, I suspect that you thought of me as a weak one. A small morsel who was too inept to do anything in this cruel world. And you know what? I think that you were right. I was nothing more than a hatchling with big dreams of fighting villains and saving lives."- He continues- "However, it was thanks to you that I learned how important we are to this world. How we have always neglected the people who are responsible for its current, prosperous state. And I knew that I had a purpose in mind. I wanted to protect those innocents, to be their light. I wanted to be a hero, to you and to them."
He looks down at his wound.
"But I never counted on... on this."
Melanchion looks down.
"Was I such a bad brother?"- He wonders aloud- "Did I really turn a blind eye on everything that I loved, just to make my own family and live somewhere else in the world?"
Dorgen laughs.
"Yes! Yes, you were! And you still are!"- He roars- "You are a failure to our kin, Melanchion! A weakling! You were never meant to be the leader of anything!"
Ardo shakes his head.
"Ignore that vile beast. He will be gone soon enough."- He says to Melanchion- "Still, I fear that my time in this world is getting shorter with each passing second."
A few seconds later, he notices how a large portion of his energy leaves his body. His eyes start to close.
"Remember me as I am, dear brother. Keep the memory of the heroic one in your mind for all eternity."- He says to him, weakly- "I hate to say this, but it's time for me to leave this world behind. But before I leave, I wanted to tell you that our entire family is alright. They are impatiently awaiting your return and hope that you can work together to save this world from evil."
Tears form on Melanchion's big eyes.
"I understand, brother. However, I only wanted to work with you."- He says tearfully- "Out of all of them, you are the only one whom I can truly trust. The only solace left in my life. Don't leave me all alone, I beg you!"
Ardo smiles.
"Forgive me, brother. Knowing that you're suffering down here will always haunt me in the Afterlife."- He says to him- "Farewell, Melanchion. My most beloved brother. My most ardent ally. See you... on the other... side... "
Melanchion roars, in anger and emotional pain.
"Yes, I am suffering! Yes, I want you to stay by my side!"- He roars- "Please, stay with me! I want you to see the world that I made for you! I want you to feel the happiness, the prosperity, the laughter of those beautiful, innocent children! Don't leave me now! Please, don't leave me... "
Terrified, he looks down at his brother and notices that his eyes are closed. He tries to wake him up, but it is futile. He is already gone.
And so, another mighty creature falls. Another true servant of the light and justice, slain by the seemingly endless forces of evil. Once a loving brother and devoted protector, now Ardo the White is just another casualty. His claws are cold and his eyes are lifeless, devoid of all the hope and faith that he once cherished more than life itself. A tragic sacrifice that will never be forgotten.
As expected, Melanchion takes his brother's demise very seriously. He leaps back to look at Dorgen and grits his teeth.
Then, just as Dorgen laughs at his pain, he roars ferociously.
"You vile fiend! You hopeless malcontent!"- He roars at him- "Do you realize what you just did?!"
Dorgen laughs.
"Yes, I did!"- He says- "And I am proud of it! You and Ardo were only obstacles in my way! You've been dragging me down for years, making me feel guilty when I shouldn't be. And now, I am free. I can finally be a true servant of Darkthrop!"
Melanchion roars angrily.
"Then, you will die a servant of the dark one! A lackey of evil!"- He roars and prepares to pounce- "This one is for Ardo! Together, we will defeat you!"
Dorgen takes a step back and prepares to cast a spell.
"Do your worst, brother."
Without any hesitation in his heart, Melanchion pounces on Dorgen and prepares to claw him to death.
The massive dragon, however, still has some strength left in him. He pushes him back and bombards him with a barrage of fireballs.
Melanchion easily avoids his cowardy attempts to defeat him, jumping from place to place in order to confuse his opponent. Then, when the time is right, he flies in the air and closes his eyes for a few seconds.
"Ardo, give me your strength."- He mutters- "I know that we can win. I just need your help."
When he finally opens his eyes, they glow white. It seems like Ardo has managed to transfer some of his immense power to his living brother.
"Even so, you still don't have the guts to defeat me!"- Dorgen roars- "You can't kill your own brother! You just can't!"
Melanchion glares at him, as if shooting sparks of light with his glowing eyes in his direction.
"Is that so?"- He says to him- "Then prepare yourself... to be corrected!"
He lifts his hands in the air. A massive orb of pure light appears between them.
As time passes, the orb continues to grow, in size and intensity.
"Die, you fiend!"
With a single motion of his hand, the massive orb of light is launched toward Dorgen.
The evil dragon tries to get out of the way, but fails. The orb of light is too big to be simply avoided.
In a futile attempt to save himself, he tries to push it back. However, it soon reaches and obliterates him in a matter of mere seconds.
Melanchion descends and walks over to his evil brother's corpse. Then, he smirks.
"This outcome would have been different, but you brought this upon yourself."- He says to him- "Now, you paid the price for your crimes... with your blood."
Much to his dismay, Dorgen gets up. His eyes are glowing black.
Then, while his brother is distracted, he throws him back with a ring of dark fire and flies toward him.
Seeing that he is wounded, he laughs.
"Finally."- He says- "At last, I can get my revenge. You will die alongside Ardo. Then, I will get rid of the rest of our brothers and sisters. Our mother will pay, too. Nobody will escape the wrath of the legendary Dorgen- The Dark One!"
Melanchion shakes his head.
"Has he truly mastered the power of darkness? Is he not one of us anymore?"- He says to himself- "It doesn't matter, though. He is too strong."
He sighs.
"If only there were another way to defeat him... "
Dorgen laughs.
"Come on, Melanchion! The tension is killing me!"- He says mockingly- "Don't you have any last words to say?"
Melanchion looks up at him. His eyes are filled with hatred.
"I will only say this."- He mutters to him- "Someday, your reign of terror will end. You shall be defeated. If not by my hand, then by that of a great hero. You will face an eternity of pain and then, you will realize how much you hurt us all."
Dorgen laughs.
"A nice final speech, I have to admit."- He says- "Now, where were we?"
Moments later, he grins.
"Ah, yes."- He continues- "Getting rid of you, once and for all."
From the top of the cathedral, Sharla looks down at the lands below. When she sees that Melanchion is about to be defeated, she gasps and motions for Adam to take a look.
"Oh, no!"- Adam says- "Melanchion is in danger!"
Aiden shakes his head.
"I'm afraid that we can't do anything."- He says- "We have a vampire on our heads. And if we fail to defeat him, he will such our blood."
Gyendal bares his teeth at them.
"That's right, mortals."- He says to them- "You still haven't won this battle. And you will never win."
Adam looks back at Sharla and shakes his head.
"I am afraid that Aiden is right, Sharla."- He says to her- "For now, we must leave Melanchion to whatever fate The Dark One has in store for him. We can only hope that he can survive... "
Sharla shakes her head in disbelief.
"But... but... Melanchion was so kind to us. So wise and caring."- She says- "We can't just betray him like this!"
Aiden shakes his head.
"We aren't betraying him."- He says, unsure whether he is saying the right thing or not- "We're just... just... "
Sharla stops him.
"I understand. Chasing your destiny is a truly arduous task."- She says- "But I refuse to leave a friend in need!"
Having said that, she picks up her spear and jumps down from the rooftop.
"Sharla!"- Adam yells- "No!"
Gyendal laughs.
"Oh, what a fool she is!"- He taunts the two heroes- "Thinking that she can defeat a mighty creature like Dorgen will only lead to her demise. She can't win!"
However, Sharla seems to think otherwise.
With a single swing of her spear, she easily tears through Dorgen's massive body, preventing him from doing anything to Melanchion.
The resulting impact is sufficient enough to slice him in half.
"GAH! THIS CANNOT BE!"- Dorgen screams, refusing to believe what is happening to him- "I AM DORGEN- THE DARK ONE! I AM UNDEFEATABLE! I CAN'T LOSE! I WILL CRUSH YOU ALL! MARK MY WORDS!"
Sharla looks up at him and smiles.
"Hey, lizard."- She says to him- "Look up and see for youself."
Dorgen survives for long enough to notice the massive lightning that tears him apart.
There is no delay. No secret. As soon as it kills him, his entire body is blown into millions of pieces, never to be reassembled again.
Gyendal shakes his head.
"Unbelievable!"- He says- "To think that Dorgen could actually be defeated by a puny human. How was I so dense?"
Adam shakes his head as he draws his weapon.
"Sharla is not a puny human!"- He yells- "She is an outstanding heroine. A skilled fighter. And, most importantly, a wonderful friend. She is everything that you will never be!"
Gyendal shakes his head again.
"Another one of our servants has fallen to those foolish heroes."- He says to himself- "Are they truly worthless to our cause? Did we have to pick better ones?"
He sighs.
"It doesn't matter how powerful you are."- He says to Adam- "You will still fall victims to the everlasting darkness, sooner or later."
Meanwhile, Sharla leans next to the walls of the cathedral and lets out a sigh of relief. Despite her fears of dying on impact, she managed to kill Dorgen and survive the fall with ease.
"Perhaps I truly am a hero."- She says to herself- "Mom was right. All of those lessons that I learned have truly paid off."
Melanchion bows his head to Sharla.
"Thank you, mighty human. Even after I gave up on living my life, you still managed to save it. And in a very effective way, no less."- He says to her- "But to whom do I owe my incredibly long life to? To whom do I have to devote my utmost attention and gratitude? Who is the young maiden who risked her own life, just to save an old creature like me?"
Sharla nods.
"My name is Sharla Qualle Andrias."- She says triumphantly- "I am the daughter of Priestess Gail- most revered priestess in the entire world. And just like her, I fight for the people whom I love and respect."
She turns around and notices the corpse of Ardo. She shakes her head.
"I'm sorry for what happened to your brother."- She continues- "He was a good man... umm... dragon. He will be missed."
Melanchion stands up and looks down. He still cannot believe that his brother is gone.
Sharla wants to say something else, but he shakes his head and closes his eyes.
As the young heroine wonders what is going on, he slowly remembers the time when he and his siblings were still young hatchlings. He sees how they used to play on the Surface and enjoy their short childhood before they were forced to leave their home and seek their fortunes elsewhere.
And then, he sees himself and Ardo. To his surprise, Ardo is still fairly young and innocent, unlike the sacred and kind dragon that he fought alongside to not too long ago.
"Brother, you have finally managed to learn your first spell."- He says to him- "But I am sure that this is far from your incredible potential. What do you say?"
Ardo looks down shily.
"I'm not sure, Melanchion."- He says to him- "So many people say that I'm worthy of being a hero, but I'm not sure whether I can truly be one. It's such an arduous task and so few true heroes are left in this world. Can I truly be one of them?"
Melanchion nods.
"Your powers are incredible. Your knowledge is immense."- He says- "Someday, you will live to see how right I was. You will grow big, strong and loved. You will be revered by those humans, just like our brothers and sisters revere you right now. Plus, you will never be alone. You still have us. And we never forget the bonds that we made with those who matter to us."
He smiles.
"But for now, continue to live the rest of your childhood."- He continues- "Once it is gone, the thing that will remain for the rest of our lives will be our enormous duty to the world. Continue to be carefree while you still can, since those memories are the ones that will remain in our minds, even hundreds of years from now."
Ardo smiles as well.
"You've always been the most caring brother out of all of us. Your wisdom has always brought our true intentions to light."- He says to him- "Someday, you'll be a great leader. And I'll come to visit you whenever I can. What do you say?"
Melanchion nods.
"I would be honored to see you again."- He says- "And when that happens, we will be happy again."
Athron emerges from the dragon's lair.
"Come here, children."- She says to her kin- "I have something important to tell you."
Melanchion turns to Ardo.
"This is it, Ardo."- He says to him- "Are you ready?"
Ardo nods.
"Yes, brother. Yes, I am."- He says- "I am ready to accept my fate, with dignity and bravery. Let's do this."
Melanchion opens his eyes again. He sees the ruins all around him and remembers that he is not a child anymore.
"We were so carefree, so innocent."- He says to himself- "What went wrong? Why did we allow the darkness to consume our kindness? Why did we stray away from our true path to glory and happiness?"
Then, he looks down and notices that Sharla is worried about him. He sighs and shakes his head.
"I appreciate your honesty, young one. My brother was a truly powerful creature, worthy of worship and devotion."- He says- "However, this is not the time or place to mourn for the fallen. We must fight the darkness until it has been eradicated."
He looks up at the cathedral.
"So."- He continues- "Where is the fiend-in-command?"
Sharla points at the top of the cathedral.
"Up there."- She says- "He is a massive vampire with the ability to manipulate the minds of others. He almost took control of Adam and used him against us and we... we... "
Melanchion nods. Then, he kneels and allow her to climb on his back.
"Then let us defeat this creature of the dark."- He say- "Now that my evil brother is gone, we can finally face him in battle without worrying about anything else."
Once Sharla is on his back, Melanchion flies in the air.
"Hold tight, young one."- He says to her- "This will be a turbulent ride."
Then, he flies toward the top with the speed of light.
It takes them a very short time to reach their destination. Once there, Sharla hops down and draws her spear.
"Well, Gyendal. We have returned."- She says to him- "Is there anything that you want to say to us?"
Gyendal stares at them angrily.
"Only that you will die alongside your friends."
Melanchion stands next to Sharla and prepares to cast a spell.
"Your time in this world is limited, fiend of the underworld."- He says to him- "And now, it is time for you to meet your own downfall. Prepare yourself."