Angelic - Part X [Patron-Guided] (Patreon)

Crowds move like streams through the streets, flowing past abandoned vehicles in their rush away from the giant. All attention had been turned to the mountain of debris after it had collapsed deeper into itself, but moments later, it began bubbling upwards beyond the height it once was. Gray and brown dust rolls down the sides like ribbons of cotton, filtering into the maze of streets while chunks of building hail down. Appearing above the smoke, growing out from it, is the angel from before, the very one that struck the building down with her fingers, only to shrink down and enter the very mess they made. That same celestial now unfurls from a blanket of bricks, arisen to a glowing new scale that continues to enlarge.

200 feet does not satisfy Cyth, though no size properly could. Their humorless expression ignores the panic storming at their feet, their ears far away from the cries of terrified people and the wailing sirens that alert them of danger. As Cyth grows evermore, they stroll up the main road of the city, each footfall flattening two lanes of traffic each and expanding to devour more with every step. A hand brushes against a skyscraper’s balcony, using it as support while they idly stroll by, yet with enough force that the corner crumbles away under their touch. Within only a few paces, Cyth reaches a lake of startled people, but their gaze never falls onto them. A bloody footprint is all that Cyth acknowledges of their presence, with a second step roaring over the survivors’ heads with no regard to who would be crushed next.

Their decision had already been made, hence the carelessness of their movement. The city would be no more. Its future history of propelling humanity into a world of pollution and business would not be allowed to transpire, regardless of wherever the devil Oriphi had fled to. Cyth intends to cover all possible hiding places by destroying them all under foot, ensuring it could never be rebuilt to its former glory. With every foot in height gained, Cyth nears closer to the ideal size for crushing the very city they exit from.

Back in the direction they came, Cyth stands outside the city limits, two enormous feet each occupying a block of suburban homes. They stare into the city, perceiving it once more from a several thousand-foot size; no building surpasses their ankles, no street is wider than a finger, every person a speck of dust that clustered together. Those on Cyth’s side of the city watch in tranquil horror as a range of toes looked back at them, plainly situated over crushed houses and trees. The angel’s disgusted expression is out of sight, reaching the clouds that calmly hover past the doomed town.

The event is wordless, but Cyth’s glare speaks volumes to any mortal in the city with the vantage to perceive it. Their intense gaze weighs on the city as if gravity was amplified; mobs slow to a dreadful halt, while others collapse into whatever refuge they dream can protect them. The busy urban center slumps into paralysis as a foot outside the limits launches into the air, digging up fields of woods and homes that crumble off the bare sole if not becoming a stain upon it. The rain of dirt proceeds to enter the city, a sweep of coolness following it as Cyth’s shadow creeps over rows of structures.

Firearms are discharged. Missiles, too, rocket into the sky. The city’s last ditch efforts to save its population of hundreds of thousands are expended, resulting in small, distant puffs of explosions. Nothing at all deters the foot, tanking any and all damage while it takes an angled position. The heel slams into the earth to rest, conjuring an earthquake that warns the community of the coming disaster. Fear is renewed in the wake of the shockwave, but no panic can save them from the sole lingering over their roofs.

Cyth’s foot declines on the border of the city. Their heel rolls forward first, conquering a road of colorful homes, its winding hillside roads, and eventually a gas station. All is crushed by the round wall of flesh without flinching, including the eruption of the fuel reserves -- a combustion of immense flame, stomped out into nothingness as quickly as it had appeared. The wild flames in their brief lifespan cause an unnoticeable burn to Cyth’s heel, one of many burns that were sure to mark the sole as it continued down onto the city.

Nearby skyscrapers are next in line for demolition, their tall roofs cracking under the slow but unrelenting drop of weight. A particularly tall building topples over from the might of their little toe, causing it to collapse and overrun yet more structures. The crack and pop of building after building succumbing to their foot provides Cyth with only flickers of amusement, their head still deep in the frustration of having let this mission fail. At the very least, they feel confident knowing that Heaven’s authority will be maintained with this city’s destruction, sentenced to death by a single footstep.

But that footstep, Cyth suddenly finds, refuses to finish. Not one structure was strong enough to resist the footfall, and certainly no human effort could ward off their sole. Yet, something quite powerful is under their foot, holding it off in defense of what is left of the city. It pushes back with strength that gradually increases, much to the surprise of Cyth. In time, their stomp is not just stopped, but being reversed. Cyth’s balance begins to falter as whatever is beneath their foot rises, as if growing -- like a celestial.

Cyth is the first to give in, burdened with their curiosity. They relieve their foot from the city entirely, sentencing it back to the wasteland it created where it last stood. What is revealed from having been underfoot is a glowing figure, cast in an orange light that trickles across their body like electricity. The silhouette expands, just as it had been in the face of Cyth’s attack, growing large enough to rival the buildings, and then larger still. Only at this scale does Cyth recognize the menace as Oriphi, the devil unwilling to let her city be bulldozed into a foot-shaped pit.

Though hundreds of feet tall, Oriphi still has a ways to grow before matching Cyth, but does not appear intimidated by the difference in size. Her smile is cocky as she trudges out of the city, soon to outgrow it if she didn’t escape its borders. Though causing some destruction on her path out, she prides herself on succeeding in stopping the meteoric destruction. Growing bigger aptly increases her confidence, soon becoming a titan that mirrored Cyth -- and then surpassed that height.

Cyth trembles backwards, unknowingly flattening even more homes behind them. They look up worriedly at Oriphi’s increasing size, wondering if it might ever end. Fortunately, even Oriphi’s overflow of power has limits, and her growth ceases. Hundreds of thousands of feet tall, Oriphi claims a size almost double that of Cyth’s, so gargantuan that the city sits between her high-heels, each planted miles away from where she had blossomed from.

“You’ve made a critical error, angel,” Oriphi teases, placing her fists on her hips. Her voice rattles the very city she intended to protect.  “And that was to underestimate me! You admittedly came close, but I never miss a deadline. That attitude is why this city can prosper with me in it. I get the job done.”

Cyth squints up at the looming giant. “This doesn’t make sense,” they say. “If you could have grown to my size, you would have done so long ago. But you don’t have enough worship from the cult to do that, do you?” It was as Cyth had concluded some time ago, that Oriphi’s powers were limited -- but here, clearly they were not. “Explain this. How can you stand like this?”

Oriphi forbids herself from giggling, so she hides a sly smile behind a long finger. “You’ve been so calm until now,” she says. “Are you losing your cool? Oh, you do look precious with that angry face of yours, angel. Perhaps it will be worth it to make you even madder~”

“Just tell me!” Cyth demands, stomping their foot for emphasis. Smaller communities that dot the hills behind the angel are disturbed by the dramatic impact, drawing even more attention to the two.

“A little help, a little boost~” Oriphi shrugs. “I have people looking out for me -- not devils, mind you, but humans. There’s an interloper between us angels and devils, if you haven’t been spending your time too leisurely to not hear of it. A dangerous and mysterious character, that one is. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and a fallen lady does not refuse the hand offering to lift her up.” Her smile persisting, Oriphi aims her head forward in a glare. “When the sky comes falling down, you too would make any agreement to set things right.”

Invaluable information to have in a dire moment of time, Cyth cherishes what was explained. The image of the doctor, donning the uniform of rescue workers, flashes to mind immediately. The interloper, they whisper to themself, realizing their involvement had to be included here. Oriphi had agreed to something, and it was likely this scene here, the ability to grow and be empowered like a truly worshipped celestial. That energy was Cyth’s, ripped from her body by that peculiar syringe, and now transplanted into Oriphi’s veins. Was that all to this deal the devil made? Or were there other factors to consider?

While Cyth contemplates their situation, Oriphi raises a leg into the air. The point of her high-heel is aimed at the shorter titan, imposing a possible attack that would strike her enemy down with thunder-like force. “By all means, dear, continue where you were!” she encourages, lazily motioning down to the city that could fit in her palm. “I hate being interrupted, and I hate interrupting. Don’t let me stop you! But do be prepared for the consequences of your decision, angel. I’ll personally drag you to Hell to make-up for whatever I lose here.”

Cyth glares back, tapping into a reserve of courage. Though facing a wicked and huge foe, it was through calm and collected thoughts that they always surmounted any obstacle. They don't know how long Oriphi will be supercharged, and they are willing to gamble that neither does Oriphi; how trustworthy could this interloper be? In any case, underestimating Oriphi in this state could not be afforded. Cyth considers all of their tactics, mindful of what was at stake…