Within the encampment, Ehrek looked around, but there was no trace of Merkmal. Not a single hint of his cosmic essence was found anywhere in the world. If it did exist, it was too small to notice. Ehrek sighed and opened a wormhole toward the southwest. “Based on that map on the table, that’s where the enemy encampment is.”
He walked through the wormhole and found himself in the middle of another ruined city, defended by makeshift barricades and patrolled by desperate-looking men. Homeless women and children huddled along the streets. A voice cried out behind him, demanding he stop and identify himself. The man's gun began to glow bright red at the barrel as he pointed it at Ehrek.
“A promise is a promise after all,” Ehrek muttered. He extended his hand and a spear slowly materialized from the wormhole. Ehrek grabbed it and threw it just as the man fired his weapon. The gunshot sounded much more powerful than he had anticipated. Ehrek raised his arms to shield himself from the attack, and his armor began glowing purple and orange in response. The fiery red bullet slammed into Ehrek's armor, which glowed bright orange for a second before returning to normal.
The spear Ehrek had thrown went straight through the armed guard, slamming into the front gate and causing a loud impact that reverberated through the streets. Sirens blared from all around as more armed guards began running towards him, weapons ready. Ehrek stood his ground as they surrounded him, weapons pointed directly at him.
“Those of you who are innocent should leave now,” Ehrek's voice rang out across the ruined city. “For if you don’t, you will be slaughtered.”
The guards, undeterred by his warning, began firing their weapons at him. Some of them even wielded glowing magic of different colors and sizes. Ehrek’s armor absorbed the impacts, glowing with a myriad of colors as it reacted to the attacks. He raised his hands, cosmic energy swirling around him, ready to unleash his full power.
Ehrek’s eyes glowed with determination as he activated his conduit, pulling more weapons from wormholes. With a swift motion, he conjured a massive shield and sword, deflecting bullets and magic alike. He charged at the nearest guard, his sword cutting through their defenses with ease. The shield blocked incoming fire as he advanced, each step bringing him closer to the heart of the enemy encampment.
Despite the overwhelming odds, Ehrek fought with relentless precision. His armor absorbed and countered every attack, and his cosmic energy seemed limitless. The guards fell one by one, unable to withstand his power.
Each blow from the bullets made Ehrek’s armor light up orange, while the magic attacks caused it to glow purple. The intense colors flickered but did not waver as Ehrek slowly made his way towards the closest guard. Holding out his hand, he pulled a longsword from a wormhole, and his voice rang out with a calm, deadly intent. “Each one of these weapons was crafted by the previous Conduit of the Cosmos. You will be honored to give blood to these blades.”
Finally, within striking distance of the circle of armed guards, Ehrek dashed forward, swinging his blade with effortless precision. Each guard fell like butter under the sharp edge of his sword. Screams and yells echoed through the city as one by one, the guards were cut down. The chaos gradually faded into an eerie silence as Ehrek stood over the last body. The rain began to fall, pattering against the flickering remnants of the city's lights.
Suddenly, the sound of cracking bones filled the air behind him. Ehrek turned just in time to see a massive fist flying toward him. The blow connected with his helmet, sending him hurtling through the street. As he flew, Ehrek stabbed his sword into the ground, using it to slow his momentum and flip back onto his feet. He looked up to face his new opponent.
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The figure standing before him was an imposing 8’10”, with eyes glowing with the fiery intent of an unstoppable force. The sheer presence of the giant man was intimidating, but Ehrek’s resolve remained unshaken.
he blonde man's hair shimmered in the moonlight as he stared at Ehrek, his expression a mix of amusement and disdain. “I must admit, while you did a good thing by getting all of the civilians out, you did take my job. Now, I am a reasonable man, but you did kill every single person here.”
Ehrek responded swiftly, his tone cold and unapologetic. “I did a service by killing them where they stood. If anyone thought that it was wrong, they would have stopped me.”
The big man scoffed, “Guess that’s why I am here then.” He laughed and smiled, standing there soaked as he took off his shirt. Barely visible flames emanated from his fists. “Do you think you are justice itself?”
Ehrek responded shortly after, “With that, I have done nothing wrong… But I now understand what I must do.”
The big man in front of him seemed to be emanating a faint amount of cosmic essence, different from Merkmal's; it was almost as if his essence was always burning. “Haha, normally I don’t like making the first move, but it appears there is something off about you.”
Ehrek's anger grew as the conversation dragged on. “You seem to have something of mine. Hand it over, or I will take it by force.”
The man laughed it off, “Excuse me? Do you honestly know who I am?”
Ehrek didn't seem to care; he had already given his opponent a chance. “Force it is.” He suddenly dashed from the ground, creating a slight crater as he swung his blade, reaching the man incredibly quickly. The man's reflexes were sharp as he dodged a few swings from Ehrek’s sword before slamming his fiery fists into them. The blade didn't seem to melt at all. “I know it’s raining, but still…”
Ehrek let go of the longsword with one hand and slammed his fist into the man's stomach, pushing him backward a fair bit. The man swung his hands, and barely visible fireballs flew from his fists at Ehrek. Ehrek’s sword began to glow with the same two colors that were on his armor previously as he effortlessly cut through the fireballs, causing them to destabilize in the rain.
Ehrek sped up, about to slice through the man, but the fire emanating from him grew slightly hotter, becoming a dull flame on his hands. The man blocked as a fiery shield appeared from nowhere, intercepting the initial swing of Ehrek’s glowing blade.
With swift movement, the man created a sword made of fire, swinging it from behind the shield. Ehrek, already mid-swing, cut through the flaming shield as their swords clashed, creating a shower of sparks. They exchanged rapid blows, the sound of their weapons ringing out in the rain-soaked air. Ehrek’s superior skill and efficiency in wielding his weapon began to show, gradually overpowering his opponent.
The man, sensing his disadvantage, gained considerable distance before dispelling his flaming sword, transforming it into a bow. Ehrek, anticipating the move, made the spear he had thrown earlier reappear from the wormhole. Stabbing his longsword into the ground, he raised the spear, preparing to throw it.
Both Ehrek and the man launched their attacks simultaneously. The spear and the flaming arrow whizzed past each other in the rain. Ehrek’s sword glowed as a shield was projected from it, shimmering with orange and purple hues. The arrow slammed into the shield, piercing through the purple magic defense but being just barely stopped by the glowing orange defense. The spear, however, was too fast for the man to dodge, striking him in the chest and dropping him to his knees as his fire began to burn out.
Ehrek walked over to the man, standing right in front of him. “Tell me your name before you die,” he demanded.
Gasping for air but smiling, the man managed to say, “Schein.” With a swift motion, Ehrek cut into Schein’s neck, and his body fell to the ground.
“He did well, but his cosmic essence began to grow during that fight. If that went on any longer, I am sure it would have gotten a lot worse,” Ehrek mused.
He wiped down the blade using the rain before sticking it back into another wormhole along with the spear. Ehrek then reached his hand over Schein’s body, clenching it and pulling a faintly glowing mist-like aura from the corpse. The aura wrapped around Ehrek before disappearing. He looked up at the night sky for a moment before creating a wormhole back to the encampment.