Dark Mephisto's resilience exceeded even Gustave's pessimistic expectations. Despite taking Nexus's full-powered flying kick directly to the torso, the dark giant rolled with the impact and sprang to his feet with fluid grace, already dodging the silver Ultra's follow-up attack.
The space beasts, responding to their master's unspoken commands, immediately swarmed Nexus from multiple angles. Their coordinated assault forced the hero to fight defensively, giving Dark Mephisto precious seconds to regain his composure.
But Gustave had no intention of allowing such luxury. Lightning continued cascading from his position, each bolt carrying enough energy to level city blocks. Dark Mephisto simply absorbed the electrical barrage with his dark form, sparks dancing harmlessly across his obsidian skin.
"Seriously, mon ami, you should consider a name change," Gustave muttered, maintaining his aerial bombardment despite its apparent ineffectiveness. "Dark Mephisto sounds so pretentious. Why not Dark Agul? At least that has a certain aesthetic appeal to it."
His running commentary seemed to achieve what raw power couldn't—genuine irritation flickered in the dark giant's glowing eyes.
"You've succeeded in annoying me, human," Dark Mephisto replied with cold precision.
Progress! Gustave noted with satisfaction. He'd been promoted from "insect" and "ant" to actual "human" status. Small victories were still victories.
The dark giant's attention turned fully toward him, those crimson eyes holding the promise of swift and painful retribution.
"Merde—time to go!" Gustave immediately shifted into full electrical form, his body becoming living lightning as he streaked through the Dark Domain's twisted atmosphere.
What followed was an epic chase sequence—Dark Mephisto pursuing with relentless determination while Gustave weaved between dimensional barriers and shadow constructs, his electrical nature allowing speeds that bordered on the impossible.
The fundamental advantage was simple physics: electricity traveled at nearly light speed, while even cosmic entities had mass limitations. Dark Mephisto possessed overwhelming power, but velocity remained Gustave's domain.
After several minutes of futile pursuit, Dark Mephisto's tactical assessment overcame his wounded pride. Below them, Nexus was steadily eliminating the space beasts without the dark giant's direct support. The four-versus-two advantage was collapsing into potential defeat.
Ignoring Gustave's continued provocations, Dark Mephisto abandoned the chase and dove back into the main battle. Whatever damage the French chef could inflict was insignificant compared to losing his primary objectives.
The moment Dark Mephisto rejoined the fight, Nexus's situation became desperate. The Mephisto Claw materialized in the dark giant's hands—a weapon of pure malevolent energy that tore through Nexus's defenses like paper.
CRACK! The claw raked across Nexus's chest in an explosion of sparks, followed immediately by an space beast's tail strike that sent the silver warrior crashing backward. His color timer began flashing ominous red.
"Shuwatch!" Tiga's startled cry cost him dearly—Dark Faust seized the opening and struck him with a concentrated light bullet that made his own timer start its warning rhythm.
The Dark Domain's oppressive atmosphere was taking its toll. Both heroes found their strength ebbing faster than normal, their light literally being drained by the corrupted environment.
"Camearra!" Gustave shouted desperately from above. "Where are you? Your boyfriend and brother-in-law are about to become cosmic pancakes!"
His mind raced through possibilities. Had they encountered Dark Zagi already? But that ultimate evil shouldn't have been resurrected yet—not without first absorbing Nexus's power completely.
As Tiga and Nexus struggled against overwhelming odds, Gustave reached a grim decision. If Camearra couldn't break through, he'd have to retreat to the Bamboo Staff and convince the Moral Lord to intervene directly.
Dark Mephisto and Dark Faust advanced in perfect synchronization, their remaining space beast flanking the exhausted heroes. The final assault was about to begin.
Tiga and Nexus stood back-to-back, arms raised in defensive positions as they prepared for what might be their last stand.
Then the Dark Domain's sky simply tore open.
A golden figure plunged through the dimensional rift like an avenging angel—Camearra in her true form, blood-red eyes blazing with ancient fury, her entire being radiating power that dwarfed everyone else on the battlefield.
Relief flooded through both Tiga and Nexus at the sight of their ally. But their enemies' reactions were markedly different—confusion and wariness replaced confident anticipation as they processed this new variable.
"Who are you?" Dark Mephisto's voice carried suspicion rather than welcome, despite Camearra's obvious dark energy signature. "Are you here to steal my prey?"
Camearra ignored his question completely, descending to hover protectively near the two beleaguered Ultramen.
"Forgive my tardiness," she said, her voice carrying the weight of geological ages. "Breaking into a corrupted Meta Field required... finesse."
"Perfect timing," Daigo replied with evident relief. "The puppet master finally revealed himself."
"I sensed the disturbance from outside," Camearra confirmed, her ancient eyes studying Dark Mephisto with calculating intensity. "Such crude manipulation of shadow—like watching a child play with forces beyond their comprehension."
"You're a Dark Giant!" Dark Mephisto's confusion transformed into outrage. "Why do you stand with the forces of light?!"
"Who decreed that darkness must serve evil?" Camearra's tone dropped to arctic temperatures, carrying the imperious authority that Gustave remembered from "The Final Holy War." "Your assumption reveals the poverty of your imagination."
"Traitor to darkness itself!" Dark Mephisto snarled.
Camearra's response was immediate and devastating. Her energy whip materialized in a cascade of golden light, lashing out with precision that spoke of thirty million years of combat experience. The whip wrapped around Dark Mephisto's torso like a golden serpent.
The Dark Domain that had suppressed Tiga and Nexus worked exactly in reverse for Camearra—she was a shark returned to blood-warm waters, her power amplified beyond its usual terrifying levels.
Dark Mephisto felt the crushing force contained within that energy construct and wisely chose discretion over valor. He shoved the nearest space beast into the whip's path and rolled clear of the attack.
Camearra's whip tightened with inexorable force. The unfortunate creature was sliced cleanly in half before exploding in a shower of ethereal fragments.
"Sacre bleu," Gustave whispered in awe, watching from his aerial vantage point. "Camearra just killed a monster with a single strike. Her power level has definitely increased since we arrived here."
The dark energy saturating the Nexus world had indeed transformed Camearra into something beyond her previous capabilities. Compared to her first appearance aboard the Bamboo Staff, her strength had easily doubled—perhaps tripled.