Safari tore through the thick overgrowth of the forest, his boots slamming into the dirt with brutal speed. Branches clawed at his face and arms, but he didn't care. His breath was ragged, every inhale burning with rage and fear.
"ANGELEVA!" he roared, his voice echoing through the trees.
No answer. Nothing but the sound of birds scattering and the crunch of leaves beneath his pounding steps.
He darted through narrow paths, between crumbling stone ruins, over fallen logs. His voice cracked as he screamed her name again and again, the desperation rising in his throat like bile.
His heart pounded like a war drum.
She's not answering. She's not answering...
The dread started to sink in. Thoughts spiraled.
What if they hurt her? What if she'sâ
"No," he growled. "If those bastards touched her... if they harmed a single hairâ"
His fists clenched. His arms shook with fury. His Devil energy pulsed beneath his skin like a volcano about to erupt.
I'll kill them all. Every last one of them.
He heard voices.
Near a clearingâthrough the treesâa flickering orange light illuminated the shadows.
A crowd stood around a burning wooden hut, its roof collapsing, flames spewing smoke into the sky.
From within the crowd, cruel laughter rang out.
"Damn thing's still alive?"
"Seriously, how long does it take for a fairy to burn?"
"Don't worry. Her filthy spawn will burn with her."
Safari's entire body froze.
He stepped toward them slowly, his breath like a storm, his shadow stretching long behind him in the firelight.
"What's the commotion about?" he asked, voice low, barely hiding the seething rage behind his words.
One of them, without looking, chuckled.
"Just disposing of the unholy. You know how it isâcleansing the planet."
The man turnedâthen froze.
His face drained of all color as he recognized the green-haired devil standing inches from him.
"Y-youâ"
Safari's hammer was already swinging.
"Devil Hammer Shock!"
A deafening wave of force exploded from the weapon, sending the man flying into the air and crashing through the trees. The others screamed and scattered like insects, stumbling over each other in their desperation to escape.
Safari's glowing red eyes locked onto the burning hut.
She's in there.
He charged, shoving past the flames at the entrance, his armour catching sparks that he didn't even feel. Inside, the smoke was choking, the heat suffocatingâbut none of that mattered.
He heard it. Faint. So faint.
A whisper, nearly drowned out by the fire.
"...want to live..."
His heart skipped.
"...want to stay... by Safari's side..."
He pushed deeper through the collapsing timbers, shielding his face with his arm, forcing his body through a narrow gap.
Then he saw herâbarely visible through the smoke.
Angeleva.
Curled on the floor, a dim Fairy Barrier flickering weakly around her. She trembled, her voice a broken whisper.
"I don't want to die... I don't want him to become a monster..."
Tears streamed from her closed eyes. Her hands cradled her swollen belly like it was everything.
Safari's heart shattered.
She's still alive. She's still fighting. For me... for them.
"No more," he whispered.
Safari's body moved before thought could catch up.
He could hear Angeleva's faint whispersâbarely there, a flickering signal of lifeâand it drove him forward like a beast unleashed. Her voice, weak and desperate, lit a fire in him stronger than any flame around him.
Without hesitation, he raised his Devil Hammer high.
"Devil Hammer Slice!"
The massive weapon of raw Devil energy tore through the inferno like a blade through silk. Flames erupted and scattered, momentarily pushed aside by the sheer force of the shockwave. The burning air hissed in protest, the wood groaned as it cracked and splitâbut he didn't stop.
He charged forward, slicing through another wall of fire, his arm catching fire and spreading along his back. Heat blistered his skin. Flesh burned. The pain should've dropped himâbut he didn't care.
All that mattered was reaching her.
"Angeleva!" he cried again, voice ragged.
Then he saw her.
She was still alive, trapped near the center of the hut, smoke curling around her flickering Fairy Barrier. Her hands protectively held her swollen belly, her lips trembling in quiet prayer, whispering his name like a lifeline.
"Safari... Safari..."
Suddenly, a massive timber above her gave out, engulfed in fire. It snapped and fellâa blazing wave of death crashing from the ceiling.
Without thinking, Safari launched himself forward.
"Devil Rush!"
He blurred into motion, slamming his body between her and the falling fire. His back took the full force of the impact, the flames crashing over him like a tidal wave of heat.
He screamed in painâbut his arms were already around her.
"I've got you... you're safe," he rasped through clenched teeth.
The barrier cracked and collapsed the moment his arms wrapped around her, her body collapsing into him instinctively.
"Safari..." she sobbed, clinging to him with the last of her strength. "You came..."
"Of course I came," he whispered, his voice quaking with both rage and love. "I'll always come."
He tightened his grip, gently lifting her into his arms, shielding her body with his own smoldering back as he turned toward the exit.
The flames roared in protest, licking at his legs and arms, but his willpower burned hotter.
The weight of her body in his arms, the heartbeat of the children inside herâit gave him strength that dwarfed even pain.
"You're safe now," he muttered. "All of you."
And with fire roaring all around them, Safari marched through the inferno, his burned body a shield, his soul aflame with purpose.
The burning world around them blurred.
Every step Safari took felt like dragging his soul through fire. The wood beneath his feet cracked and groaned, splintering under the weight of destruction. The smoke curled thickly around them, clawing at their lungs, but he kept movingânever once loosening his hold on Angeleva.
Her arms clung to him like he was her last anchor to life.
She could feel the tremble in his muscles, the blistering heat peeling at his skin. Her heart ached at the sight of his burned shoulders, the way the flames still licked at his back like punishment for daring to defy death. But he never flinched.
"You're burning," she cried softly, her voice raw, broken.
"I don't care," Safari whispered hoarsely, his jaw clenched tight against the pain. "As long as you're okay. As long as they're okay."
Tears rolled down Angeleva's cheeks, mixing with the soot and ash. She pressed her hand to his chest, feeling his heartbeatâwild, frantic, alive.
"You're hurting yourself," she whispered, her voice trembling with guilt.
"I'd burn a thousand times over," he growled, "if it means saving you."
Another beam cracked and fell behind them, the impact shaking the structure. The fire roared in fury, unwilling to let them go, but Safari's eyes were locked forwardâunwavering, determined.
He broke through the final wall of fire with a savage cry, slamming through it with his shoulder. Wood shattered. Smoke exploded outward. And thenâ
Air.
Cool, clean, blessed air.
The sky above greeted them like salvation. Stars shimmered beyond the smoke, a silver moon shining over the scorched clearing.
They were free.
Safari dropped to his knees, still holding Angeleva in his arms. His back was a tapestry of burnsâraw, blackened, tornâbut his grip on her never loosened.
Angeleva looked up at him, tears streaming down her ash-smeared face.
"You saved us..." she whispered. "You... you really saved us..."
He leaned his forehead to hers, eyes squeezed shut, breath ragged.
"I told you I would," he said softly. "No matter what. I'd find you... I'd protect you... I'd never let you go."
She sobbed into his chest, holding him tight, her body still trembling from the traumaâbut in his arms, she felt warmth that no fire could take.
And inside her, the quiet heartbeats of their unborn children still fluttered.
Alive.
Because of him.
As Angeleva's tears spilled freely, Safari only held her closer, wrapping her gently but firmly in his arms like a fortress. His voice was low, soothing, yet filled with unwavering strength.
"You're safe now," he whispered into her hair. "No one... no one will ever harm you again. I swear."
Angeleva's fingers gripped the front of his torn, scorched armour. Her lips trembled as she spoke, her voice cracking under the weight of fear and relief.
"I wasn't just afraid for the babies... Safari, I was afraid for you too..."
Safari's eyes widened slightly, blinking as he looked down at her. She continued, voice shaking.
"If we had died here... you would've lost yourself. You would've become something even you wouldn't recognizeâa mindless beast rampaging across the stars... hunted, hated, alone." Her fingers tightened. "I didn't want that... not for you. Never for you."
A silence fell between them. Then Safari nodded slowly, giving a tired, lopsided smile as he met her eyes.
"You really do know me too well," he said, trying to lighten it with a small chuckle. "Because... yeah. That's exactly what I would've become."
Angeleva's eyes widened in alarm, and before he could speak again, she pressed her forehead against his with urgency.
"Don't ever say that again," she whispered fiercely. "Don't agree with something like that. It scares me."
Her hand trembled as it cupped the side of his face, her thumb brushing away a trail of ash. Then she leaned forwardâslowly, tenderlyâand kissed him. Not desperate, not passionate, but full of quiet desperation and deep love. A kiss that spoke of fear, of relief, and of the life they still had ahead of them.
When she pulled back, tears still clung to her lashes. "You lost your planet... just like I did. And I became your wife. So it would tear me apart to know you ended like that."
Safari couldn't speak for a moment. Her words struck something deep in himâso deep, it hurt in the best way. Finally, he exhaled and gave a soft nod.
"Fine... I won't say it again." He gave her a slight smile. "You win."
Angeleva returned the smile, then reached for his hand, guiding it carefully toward her belly.
Safari pausedâhis hand hovering, unsure, scared to hurt her.
But she nodded, encouraging him gently.
And when his hand finally rested on her belly... he felt it.
Two tiny, fluttering heartbeats.
His eyes widened, stunned. Then slowly, that rarest thing appeared on Safari's faceâa bright, genuine smile, eyes shimmering with overwhelmed joy. He looked at her with awe, speechless.
"They're strong," he whispered. "Just like their mother."
Angeleva laughed softly through her tears, brushing his hair back as she nodded. "And just as stubborn as their father."
They stayed there like thatâunder the moonlight, surrounded by the smoldering ruins of hateâwith nothing but love between them... and two new lives waiting to be born.