Logan was in the middle of it all. Demons surrounded him from every direction. At times, he couldn't even breathe with all the blood raining down on him. His katar-like hand pierced through the flesh of both demons and insects—he didn't stop for a second.
Occasionally, he gave himself time to breathe by sending shockwaves around him. The beating of his wings caused the air to vibrate, unleashing an ear-piercing sound that blasted through the ears of most nearby creatures, forcing them to flinch.
He further empowered this with wind, enhancing the range, distance, and impact of each pulse.
It was like standing in front of the blades of a helicopter—except these blades generated electricity.
His black mantis-like form possessed exceptional speed and power. A single punch turned everything in front of him into mounds of flesh, his electricity both searing and destroying all it touched.
He continued forward. He had to reduce the enemy's numbers as much as possible, especially the insects whose outer shells were so tough that a normal blade couldn't pierce through them.
In the distance, he saw the others fighting alongside him. Bursts of white radiance erupted from time to time—Lisa was doing her part to keep Zaryx in check, giving Logan the chance to focus on his task in the war.
The loudest clashes came from the far side of the battlefield. There, the mechas were fighting the insect queen. Hundreds of beetles swarmed to protect her, their defense so fierce that Silis had to intervene.
Ferra was the only one nearby supporting Logan, helping keep the numbers manageable. Still, he was struggling.
Logan couldn't sweat in this form—but if he could, he would've been drenched.
He did not stop moving for a second. At some time, he felt that even Voltar had to take over—the creature's soul was still active, giving him mental notes and guiding the way Logan needed to attack.
The creature was every bit the master that the soldiers had regarded him as. He had taught countless warriors how to correctly use blades, and now he was helping Logan with how he moved his body.
"Halfway through my mana, huh…" Logan sighed. He had caused a large circle of corpses so high that no others could reach him for a few seconds.
He would need to blow them away soon and continue, though—his winds were still holding back the demons from coming through.
"A few more seconds… just a few," the boy muttered.
[Take over, Master? I can kill for you while you rest,] Voltar suggested.
Logan groaned, knowing he wouldn't be able to keep going without doing something big.
"Fine, go. I'll relax a little while you take control."
Logan felt his mind begin to blur. He could no longer control his body—the one who had taken over was Voltar, as they had been merged.
He wasn't sleeping or anything, though. He was busy thinking of a countermeasure.
He needed to do something—and fast.
Having any less mana would put him at a disadvantage against the other two leaders in the enemies camp.
As he was thinking, he noticed that his body was moving more fluidly. The actions Voltar took were far more powerful. His control over the wind had even improved—the mantis was using the electric element like a plasma sword with the katars, moving from one side of the field to the other while using only the minimum amount of mana.
[How are you so good, Voltar… you gotta teach me…] Logan was far too impressed to understand what was happening. How was it possible to have such mastery? He had only ever used his mana wastefully in comparison.
[Can teach… but not now,] Voltar replied, some strain in his voice.
The creature was using all he had to focus on what needed to be done.
Logan stayed quiet, turning his attention to what felt like a corner of his mind so he wouldn't disturb Voltar.
Outside of his body, the others were doing their best. The army was quickly losing members—fortunately, more demons than allies. So far, only untamed creatures had fallen: many goblins, some wargs, even a few wolves. But those deaths only pushed the rest to fight with more vigor.
Voltar, feeling their pain, moved faster. He was inherently resistant to pain—so feeling more of it meant nothing to him. In fact, he did the opposite. He inflicted even more pain on those who had harmed Logan's troops, cutting just deep enough to ensure a slower death, targeting nerves with cruel precision.
Logan kept his focus on all the movements, trying to learn from them. He paid attention to how Voltar used his four feet—how each step pushed the others, generating faster and more efficient motion. It was a rhythm Logan had never noticed before.
There were still many demons left to fight, but that didn't stop Voltar. Unfortunately, both Logan and the mantis wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer—the mana cost of the skill was becoming a problem.
[Let's retreat and recover, Voltar. We've done enough for now.]
Logan could feel the creature's stamina starting to run low.
As they pulled back, the two began to split midair—Logan flying to the left, Voltar to the right. Both were exhausted, though not as much as expected. It felt as if they had split the exhaustion evenly between them.
Logan quickly pulled out two elixirs and tossed out crystals for Voltar to absorb.
"Relax, Voltar. Recover, then return to help."
Logan didn't have that luxury. He looked ahead at the battlefield and called back Silis—he needed his strongest creature to take on a new role.
The large dragon burst from the ground, her scales and body just as powerful and healthy as they were at the start of the battle. It seemed she had conserved mana, focusing instead on sneaking and trapping the demons.
[Perfect. I'm sorry, Silis, but we'll have to get in there and take as many out as we can…]
Logan steeled himself, mentally preparing himself once again.