The monstrous roar echoed through the cave, shaking the hanging bridges and the temple swayed gently on the chains. Noktum casted a barricade to shield Chaos from the wind that followed it. The barricade was cracking rapidly. Just as it broke a figure came from the inside of the temple. Its teal robe with light teal stripe in the middle combined with the emotionless white mask made it clear that this time the battle will be outside.
- Seeing how you have overcome three of my brothers I've allowed myself to prepare the arena in advance
- Summon your beast already!- Phantom shouted, preparing an abbadon in advance. It had to work on one of those elementals eventually.
- The wind is already here- the king only chuckled. The powerful wind returned and rapidly started forming the shape of a great serpent in the sky. At first came it head, formed by the mighty typhoon from the north of the cavern. As it finished forming a teal glow came into it as the last gap was closing. Then came its massive body shaped like the most furious tornado that the world has ever seen, daring to rip the whole cavern apart just to show its might. The wind serpent was the largest elemental they have ever seen. Its head was right before them and even though it was coiling and twisting through its entire length the tip of the tail still was at the very end wrapped around the temple.
The abbadon finally fired off. The red beam connected with the elemental's head, piercing in through and leaving a hole in it. A smile crept onto Phantom's face but it quickly disappeared as the hole quickly closed and the elemental seemed to not react to the attack. The serpent opened its mouth and started sucking in air. In its mouth the air was forming a sphere which it later shot out. The wind sphere was circling around the arena, not doing anything for the moment.
Chaos was slightly dumbfounded at that, but Noktum and Phantom quickly took the opportunity to attack. The demon started with hydra's chains and the magician quickly followed with triple dragon's chains. As the chains were closing into the serpent, the wind sphere in a blink of an eye came before the elemental, sucking in the spells and sending them back at the mages.
- A bloody trap?- demon screamed, dodging the upcoming chains.
- This would probably rule ranged spells out- Noktum thought casting a fireball, which just as the chains was sent back at them. The wind sphere flew away, circling around the arena. Phantom was casting abbadons left and right, but they flied through the serpent not even leaving a scratch on it. Noktum sat down. There had to be a way to destroy that trap. He looked over at the samurai who also seemed to be deep in thoughts. No trap was indestructible after all. Granted that this one was rather peculiar and he hadn't seen anything like that before, but must have had some weak point to it.
- Oi Noktum, got any ideas?- Samukai walked over to the shadow, watching as the demon was casting spell after spell. The elemental was countering with his own blows of powerful wind which were targeted at Phantom, but he was dodging them by going into the air circling around the elemental. Maybe he wasn't doing much but he was buying them time to think.
- Well first of we have to get rid of that trap
- I thought that maybe casting something like the black comet would be able to go past it, but the cavern is getting in the way- Noktum was deep in thoughts after hearing samurai's suggestion. Yes, that could work. Any spell of such size could. As he was wondering, Samukai grabbed him by his horns and barely got him out of the way of the powerful wave of wind. The elemental was now looking their way, completely ignoring Phantom's abbadons.
Samukai pointed the Izanagi at the elemental. Chanting an incantation, he thrust the sword forward launching a projectile made out of wind at the serpent. As before the trap came before the elemental. When the projectile crashed into it, it wasn't reflected back. Instead the wind sphere was rapidly increasing and decreasing its size. It took a few seconds for it to stabilize, but the wind which made the sphere was now slowing down.
The serpent immediately backed off, shooting another wind blast as the duo. They dodged it, but the spell took a good chunk of the cliff with it.
- Phantom! Wind, hit it with wind!- samurai shouted at the demon who in the meantime was trying various ice spells, with no success. Demon quickly got the memo and fired off his own hydra's chain of wind. The first two tore into the trap, while the last one managed to slip past it. The serpent noticed it and quickly started moving away from the chain. It only managed to graze it, but it was more than enough to tear off its skin, leaving an open gap. Phantom laughed.
- This will be the easiest one yet!- demon continued to laugh as the wind sphere dissolved into nothing. Serpent took the chance to close the gap on its left side- Oi, the hell are you doing?- Noktum noticing that started to prepare his dragon chain of wind. Samukai already fired off yet another projectile. The elemental dived down, being only grazed by the upcoming spells. It was going all the way down the cliff. In a matter of seconds it vanished without a trace. Chaos took the opportunity to regroup and rethink the strategy.
- So wind weakens it, Noktum did you find some other weaknesses?- demon questioned as he landed near the rest of Chaos.
- Not yet. Perhaps lighting or ice spells might work. Samukai you wouldn't happen to have any useful traps for now?
- Save for the black serpent, I don't think any would suffice
- Then blasting it winds spells it is- Phantom slithered closer to the edge of the cliff- It sure is taking its sweet time. Oi king! Tell your snake to come out!- the king has not reacted to the demon, seemingly deep in thoughts.
A gust of wind came from the cliff and alongside it, the serpent. It rose up to the ceiling and its body once again coiled around the temple. The elemental opened its mouth and started sucking in air. Its throat grew bigger with each second, resembling that of a toad. Noktum and Phantom were throwing wind chains at it, but they clashed with each other. The same happened to the next pair of spells. The elemental closed its mouth, although it seemed to be struggling with it. The wind serpent stayed still as if it was awaiting an order. Both mages took the opportunity to strike the elemental again. This time both chains hit the serpent's head, creating gaping holes in it. That was when Chaos noticed a faint teal glow coming from inside it. Samukai in the meantime climbed upon the Fenfir and fired his own wind projectiles.
The king finally seemed to make his mind, pointing at Chaos and nodding. The serpent understood its master order. Its mouth opened violently, nearly getting ripped apart as the most ferocious wind was unleashed. It quickly took over the entire cavern, creating a vortex, a tornado that took everything it could. Chaos tried to get under Fenfir for any cover, but the wind was stronger and took them all, along with the cliff side. Only the temple was left alone as the cavern fully converted into a heart of tornado. The debris was flying left and right. Both smaller and larger chunks were being equally thrown around by the wind. Chaos tried to dodge it, destroy it or even use it to own advantage, but there was too much of it. Even the king at one point had to strike away one of the larger chunks that flew into his direction.
Chaos screamed as they were taken by the wind, spinning with such speed that everything became nothing more than a blur. Phantom tried his best to go against it, but wings couldn't even move. Samukai was trying to cut down any debris that he was about to crash with, thought holding Izanagi in those circumstance was harder than he would ever imagine. Noktum was holding to Fenfir with all of his strength and the hound curled into a ball in order to protect the magician.
It was bad. Horrible even. There was no way that they could defend themselves against the serpent. It could pick them one by one if it wanted. Speaking of the serpent, the moment the tornado appeared the elemental had vanished. It probably was preparing itself to strike. Or at least that's what Samukai thought. As he was being thrown all over the cavern, for a short while he spotted a teal glow that was being taken by the wind alongside them. The same glow from the serpent. Great, now they were done for. Before he could think of anything more, he crashed into something hard.
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- Watch out where you are being thrown around!- Phantom's voice was barely hearable in all of the mayhem.
- You wouldn't happen to have any spells to get rid of a tornado?
- And what do you think?
- Forget that I asked. But can you get us to the temple? It seems to be the only place left in peace- Samukai pointed, or at least tried to do so, and the temple which stayed still on the chains with the king standing right at the entrance, calmly admiring the view.
- No. And flying is out of the question. I can't even unfold my wings without them being torn off- demon lamented. They just grew back not so long ago, he would let them get destroyed again. The demon continued to get thrown around by the wind, from time to time noticing the great black ball also going in circles. Though he had a plan in mind. Granted it had a great possibility of failing but he had to try it.
- You better hold on tight- warrior did as he was told, but he was truly curious as to why Phantom would tell him that. When he noticed an abbadon forming, he was even more lost. That's when Samukai saw something wrong with the spell. It seemed to be forced out. Normally it would spin for a while and then spew out the red beam. But this one just continued to spin, soon it started screeching. Whatever demon was planning surely wasn't good.
Phantom tried to hold abbadon for as long as he could. If it blew up too early or too late then there was no saying what the wind would do to them. It pained him to see abbadon so eager to release and keep on a leash but he had to do it. Finally they were above the chains which held the temple. It was a perfect spot. The abbadon exploded. The force sent them flying straight at the chain. The very moment they would collide with it, the demon wrapped his tail around the chain, and then the rest of the body followed.
- Next time maybe tell me that you want to blow us up- Samukai said, being held between the chain and demon's tail, dangling above the endless pit below them- Now what about Noktum and Fenfir- right, they were still being taken by the wind. Phantom thought of using water spells to try and catch them. But the wind was just too strong. Noktum was a smart boy and the demon had to hope that he would think of a way of getting out or perhaps using the same trick as he did. Either that or he and Samukai just had to kill that elemental. Speaking of which, it still had not appeared. Perhaps it overestimated its own strength? Just then the demon saw something forming on the opposite site.
A serpent's head was taking shape. It was bigger than the last time. It could fit the entire temple in it without a problem. Though it wasn't interested in them, rather it was looking at something else. The black fur ball which still was going in circles seemed to be its target. Phantom launched a triple hydra's chain of wind just as the serpent head lunged at Fenfir. The first chain hit the hellhound, knocking it off the course and the remaining two hit the head right in the middle. The head retreated back into the tornado and vanished once again.
- Tell your stupid snake to stop hiding and meet us head on! It's supposed to be a fight isn't it?- Phantom called to the king who seemed to acknowledge him as the emotionless white mask met with demon's gaze.
- You still don't understand? This is the elemental- "this"? The whole tornado? If the king wasn't lying then how were they supposed to get the crystal? How could one destroy a whole tornado? Just then the demon remembered the faint glow which was taken by the wind. Demon's mouth opened wide.
- Oh, you have got to be shitting me- he muttered. Samukai just looked at his side. Phantom simply pointed at the glow. It didn't take the warrior long to understand what the demon meant.
- So how do you want to get it? Unless we throw ourselves back into the current, we can't do much
- We can't, but Noktum could
- I'm not sure about that
- As his master I am more than sure that he is capable of doing so. And Fenfir is with him so they will be fine- the demon put one of his hands to the left side of his temple. His left eye turned orange and the sensation of pickaxe being drilled into his head came.
Noktum, you hear me there?
Yes master. Where are you, where is Samukai?
We are at the temple. But nevermind that. I need you to do something
What exactly master?
You see that teal glow? You have to get it. I and Samukai will support you, but we won't be able to help all the time. We will do everything that we can to distract that elemental from you
Of course master. I won't let you down
Phantom hearing that felt his pride grow. He almost found that funny. In such a short amount of time he found a worthy student. To think that he would be so proud of a shadow. Though he didn't have much time to wonder about it as the serpent head once again appeared. It chased Fenfir as the demon was preparing wind chains. The black fur ball opened and a dragon chain of wind fired off. It wasn't strong enough to get rid of the elemental, but it did make it stop for a brief second. The only problem was the force of the chain which flung the duo into the opposite direction of the glow.
Magician tried to get to the glow by casting chains, but it was nearly impossible to maneuver as the force of the tornado seemed to increase. As if the elemental constantly chasing him wasn't bad enough. While his master helped him with his own chains even he wasn't able to get all of the heads that formed in the wind.
Noktum decided to spend a while watching the glow. There had to be a pattern to its way. It couldn't just be flying on chaotically. Perhaps he could try and predict where it would be going. Of course it were only his hopes, but there was something that he had noticed. The glow was going down. Not at any amazing speed yet he could easily see it getting lower and lower. Which only meant that they couldn't waste any time.
Shadow casted a few more chains. He placed himself lower than the glow. Then he casted a bunch of barricades, five of them, creating a safe box. He only had to wait. Even if he wouldn't catch it then Fenfir could. It was a rather foolproof plan. Now on to the elemental...It hadn't appeared for some time. It couldn't have gone for his master and it's not like it would give up so easily.
Phantom too noticed the lack of the wind serpent. Samukai tried to paint it as a good thing, but the demon felt that something was wrong. Spellcaster kept an eye on Noktum. If the elemental wanted to attack him now then shadow wouldn't have a chance to protect himself. He had to be even more focused than usual.
The glow was finally going down to Noktum's level. As it was getting closer Fenfir started to growl. The crystal was already right next to the shadow. From it the serpent formed, the force of the wind broke the barricades and sent both the magician and the hound at the temple. They stopped right at the steps to the temple. The serpent seemed to grin. Noktum stood up and wiped off the dust from his robes.
- Of course you wouldn't give up the crystal so easily- the magician said as he eyed the serpent. The elemental opened its mouth and blew a powerful gust of wind at the shadow. A barricade struggled to keep its caster safe. Before it broke down Noktum casted a wind chain. The serpent dodged it. The barricade broke. Noktum was taken off his feet, being taken away by the wind. Before he got once again taken into the tornado, Fenfir dug his claws deep into the steps of the temple and caught the shadow with his mouth.
The serpent was circling around the temple, with each turn getting closer and closer to the magician. Both mages were casting chains after chains. Each of them pierced the elemental's body, but it had not even flinched. Phantom continued to cast but Noktum stopped. He let the serpent get closer. It stopped circling around and was now gazing at the shadow. It opened its mouth wide, coiled back and lunged at the magician.
Noktum casted a dragon wind of chain. It fired off a little to the left. It would only graze the elemental. Phantom was already preparing his hydra's chain of wind in one last attempt to save the magician, but then the one casted by Noktum made a quick turn right. It pierced the elemental head, breaking through the mouth and bringing the glowing crystal right under the shadow.
In an instant the tornado had ceased to exist and the ground returned to normal. Phantom finally dropped Samukai and then himself safely on the ground.
- See? I knew he would be fine!- a rather cheerful voice of demon echoed through the cavern. Samukai took a breath of relief and Noktum happily waved the crystals, showing it to Phantom. Their celebrations were cut short by the slow clapping coming from the temple.
- Splendid fight. As your reward I must tell you to beware my three remaining brothers. Their elementals will show you no mercy from now on
- Don't you say- demon scoffed as he and Chaos started to make their way towards the exit. They stopped realizing that there was no way out, only possible exit would be through the maze- Would you mind showing the exit?- the king, despite the emotionless mask, seemed to have a mischievous grin. He raised his hand and Chaos was encircled by a wind. It formed a sphere and vanished alongside them. In a blink of an eye they were no longer in a cavern, but were standing atop of a hill, gazing at the setting sun.
- A long distance teleportation? Seriously? I only hope that we still are in Kohryu- demon commented.
- It seems like it- Samukai replied, hopping onto the wolf. Noktum already sat there taking a rest and Phantom soon followed them. Four crystals in, it went better than he expected. Now to only also complete pest control...why did he feel sick now? He tried to shake off the feeling, but it wasn't going away. The words from the chamber still echoed in his mind.
They were right, he didn't change.