His right eye radiated with blinding pain. Suddenly the numbing effect of the enhancer turned into hypersensitivity and all the biting pain from his deeply sliced neck, nose, and cheek flooded back as well as the throbbing in every muscle fiber and all the wounds that riddled his body.

No room to breathe. Aurelius snapped back into constant flowing motion, even though every movement like like it would be his last. He wanted to collapse, be embraced, and have his veins wiped clean of filth, but none of that was possible anymore. His honed instincts stayed sharp, however, his panic and enduring agony made for clumsiness. And with his mind frenzied by Sherridan's every movement, his whole being was overwhelmed with tension.

He couldn't see her nor predict her. She was out of his grasp in a world where everything was in his grasp. Even his slashes were starting to dissipate before reaching their target. Their makeup was too flimsy and they flew too slow. The technique Aurelius had worked over a year to perfect had betrayed him and his eyes went wide as he realized he needed his second enhancer and quick.

But he didn't seem to be able to get a chance to take it with his remaining assailants in constant flux. They came at him from all angles striking from one side and regaining their position on the other side before rushing back at him. All Aurelius could do was use his improvised acrobatics and superior speed to mitigate the damage, but he was getting sliced up.

Despite that, he remained collected, as knew of a way to get the second enhancer which would spell his victory.

With Sherridan in the picture, he had to center his focus on her, especially because she seemed intent on killing him with every strike. She never engaged him head-on. Instead, she was a looming presence as he was getting cut up by the remaining two of the elites: the man with the blue demon mask and the last survivor of the squad of shadowy assassins.

The man with the demon mask was stronger and the shadow faster. And even though they had been among the most active in the battle against Aurelius, they'd managed to conserve their stamina. That, and they were clearly the most proficient out of the bunch, likely the vice-leaders or champions of their squads.

Having observed them for long enough, Aurelius began to set traps. While constantly Sherridan was zigzagging from the dark spaces beyond the pillars that lined the main hall, Aurelius began to be able to predict her as well. She had the terror of the unknown on her side, but Aurelius' capabilities were known and that could be exploited as well.

Aurelius began to feint attacks at the demon mask. While they attacked in unison, Aurelius started leaning away from the shadow and focusing his attention on only one.

They struck from both sides with blades. Aurelius avoided the shadow's attack and struck a blade of his own down at the demon mask. The man grunted under Aurelius' blow even though the contact had been blade on blade. Aurelius took advantage of the moment and struck out. The demon mask barely managed to avoid the blow and created distance. Aurelius turned to see the shadow's blade right at his neck and put up a hand in a panicked state. He let out a grunt as his arm was sliced through his overcoat and tried to counter. The shadow had already created distance, though.

He had been ready to follow up his initial strike when Aurelius avoided it, but didn't get too greedy with the opportunity. He had read Aurelius.

Immediately after, Sherridan attacked diagonally from behind. Aurelius was already breathing raggedly from the earlier encounter and located Sherridan only to form a shield as a hurried defense. Sherridan seemed to change her attack mid-air, hitting the shield with a flying kick that rattled Aurelius. He spun toward the middle of the hall from the impact and was immediately met with another barrage from the duo. He'd learned his lesson and went back to splitting his focus.

More encounters followed with Aurelius being trapped and whittled away at. He couldn't do anything but wait. He was losing stamina, blood, and power, but there was nowhere to escape.

He had never faced such despair in battle before. Even when he faced off against Izir, he had Cade to look to. Now, he was all alone, surrounded only by his sin and enemies. The loneliness he thought he'd felt before seemed like a puddle compared to the ocean of his misery at that moment. But what truly pressed him was the fact that he had come to know intimately by then: it could always get worse, and it was nothing short of a miracle if it didn't.

More abnormal was that as he countered the attacks of the three, he wondered about them. Where did they come from? What were they feeling now in this hell of theirs? What did they think of him?

Did they have mothers who worried and cared for them, fathers who inspired them, or maybe even siblings who they spent leisure time with? What did all those relatives of theirs think about them? The world extended so far. Aurelius couldn't wrap his head around it. But what had led them on such a path? What did they think of themselves?

Had they, at any point, as they watched their comrades be slaughtered to seemingly no end, think: 'Why are we here? Why do we kill? Why do we die?'

What did they see when they looked at Aurelius? According to Gadreel, they saw him as nothing more than an obstacle to wealth beyond their imaginations. Was that really possible? Why wouldn't they have thought: 'I don't know this person. I have no reason to fight him.'

If they'd just thought like that, maybe their comrades would still be alive, and they wouldn't have to endure the brutality Aurelius had honed to perfection over the years. Why couldn't they see that?

Why were all of them fighting him at the cost of their lives even though they knew nothing about him? After all this, he wagered it was just because there was nothing else to do. All their friends were dead, and even if they didn't seek revenge, the battle was what they lived for. It may as well have been what they died for.

As he came to that conclusion, Aurelius saw something that he didn't want to accept. But just the mere glimpse of the suggestion made him bitter with a simple sadness.

'I'm the same... Aren't I?'

Aurelius managed another set of attacks, but in an instant, he felt a cold sensation spring from his behind. He pushed his chest out from instinct, but Sherridan sliced it open, nevertheless.

His anger came back and he realized his frustrations. It was time to execute. To where he was heading, he did not know, but he would take Gadreel and his myrmidons there with him.

Again, the shadow and the demon mask rushed at him, taking advantage of his moment of vulnerability. Aurelius knew then that the seed had sprouted and went forward with his plan. He grasped the last of his energy and bared his teeth.

The first attack came. It was the shadow. Aurelius sidestepped and focused on the demon mask's attack. It was a broad swing coming diagonally down. Aurelius materialized a shield over his sliced forearm and deflected it. The swing went by and hit the ground. Aurelius then turned the shield into a blade that grew from his arm and attacked. He instantly swung down at the demon mask's arm. He blocked Aurelius' attack half-heartedly and tried to flee. Aurelius wouldn't accept it and got down to launch himself forward in pursuit.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

However, as the demon mask backed away to reset, Aurelius turned, dodged a blade and stabbed the shadow through the neck. Aurelius could practically hear his jaw drip under the mask and blood seeped down as Aurelius held him up.

Even elites with decades of experience fell victim to patterns. All Aurelius had to do was condition them to favor risk with a reward. If he didn't make it too obvious, he could create an opportunity from nowhere. And that's what he did.

The demon mask had reset quickly and came at him in a hurry, not to mention loudly. It was a poor choice. A devastating event, Aurelius had learned, often provoked an immediate action made on impulse. Leaders knew how to control it, but the demon mask was no leader.

He wasn't a brute by any means. He knew Sherridan was looking for an opportunity and a better one than a distraction created by him, hadn't crossed his mind.

He thought Aurelius would have trouble with disposing of him quickly enough. Of course, he did. Aurelius hadn't used his slashes since his right eye was injured.

But then Aurelius turned, letting the shadow fall, and unleashed a barrage of over ten slashes. Up, down, diagonal, vertical, horizontal. Double each. They hit unexpectedly and cut the demon mask into pieces.

Aurelius seethed with exhaustion but turned in a hurry. It was his only opportunity to consume his second enhancer. If he managed to push Sherridan back, he'd get the time to gulp down the vial. And while the pair wouldn't have allowed it, Sherridan would likely wait for Aurelius to suffer side effects instead of attacking him during the ingestion process. What she wasn't aware of was the tolerance Aurelius had built up during the past year. He didn't know it himself before he had taken two enhancers before the assault on Orpheus but had gained the ability to regulate the side effects of enhancers to the point of delaying or slowing down their impact or even getting rid of them completely.

But to get that opportunity, he needed to perform one last feat. Having analyzed Sherridan's patterns she would come from... the left!

Aurelius turned. His heart boomed. Nothing there. Sherridan was behind him. He turned, hand first. His blade sliced air. Only then did he hear movement. His eyes snapped upward, and there she was, blade aimed to decapitate. Muscles exhausted and momentum gone, Aurelius could only try slipping down and to the side.

He was fast, she was faster.

Her curving blade took him under his left eye and the tip sliced through his cheek all the way to his jaw. Thankfully, it was over quickly. Unfortunately, the pain that followed was so much worse.

Aurelius' face lit up with pain once more and he let a steady stream of sound out of his mouth but not because of the hurt. It was because his jaw had gone out of place. He turned to Sherridan clumsily as she was about to rush him for what seemed like the last time.

Sherridan stopped and came to a pause. The same for Aurelius. He wasn't sure why at first. Footsteps echoed. Aurelius turned his eyes away from Sherridan despite the death risk, all just to watch as Gadreel made his way down from his throne and waltzed into the shallow ocean of blood.

Suddenly his footfalls were the center of attention. To top it all off, he began to applaud. Looking at him, Aurelius realized that stepping into the blood was the first time the man had been touched by filth during the entire battle.

He walked with dignity, his charming features accentuated by the ruins he walked upon. His eyes swept through impaled bodies, broken pillars spattered with a million drops of blood and Sherridan's empty figure until landing on Aurelius.

He gave a few slow, resounding applause before raising his brows and shaking his head. "Marvelous. You are marvelous, Son of Ares." For a moment, Aurelius fell under his spell and Gadreel's words actually lifted his heart. Maybe it was his despair or his brokenness, but for some reason, Gadreel's words gave him solace. Just a modicum of pride at his Father's name being attached. "I can't tell you how wildly you make my heart beat," Gadreel said, resting a hand on his chest as he walked towards Aurelius. His intelligent eyes possessed a kind of gravity to them.

Aurelius let out a noise that was followed by a pain that made him regret it. He touched his jaw tenderly. It went back into place with a snap that got a whine out of Aurelius.

Gadreel chuckled at the effeminate noise. "I must say, though, you're in quite bad shape." He stopped a fair distance away and put a hand on his chin as he mused. "You looked like an angel when you came here, but oh how you've fallen. I'm afraid the wounds on your will become some ugly scars," Gadreel said, shaking his head regretfully. A grin overtook his face. "That is if they ever heal."

"Had enough?" Sherridan's muffled monotone cut Gadreel's laughing off.

Gadreel put a hand up in apology and assumed a more serious demeanor. "Funny you should ask. I was thinking the same thing."

Aurelius watched in suspension as the two interacted, helpless to do anything.

"Meaning?" Sherridan asked.

Gadreel turned to Aurelius. "I think we both agree that you're on the losing end here. Fairly? Obviously not, but losing, nevertheless. You're a genius when it comes to combat I'll give you that. Even if I were to possess your prowess, I can't say I would've done any better than you have. Worse, most likely. I've never seen anyone move like you. I'm not sure how some of your maneuvers are even possible for a human body. That is just how godly you are." Gadreel's eyelids dropped, shading his eyes into terrifying half-circles. "But you're done. That is if you continue in the state you are. You wouldn't have died on the next attack, I'm sure, but you know Sherridan will get the better of you eventually."

Aurelius wasn't keen on talking in the state he was in, so he just leaned his head forward slightly, gesturing for Gadreel to get to the point.

"You have a second enhancer, yes?" Aurelius didn't move respond in any way. Gadreel took that as a response. "If you want to take it, take it."

"What?" Sherridan exclaimed, surprisingly some emotion in her voice. Almost outrage.

Aurelius just stared, prompting Gadreel to elaborate. "You won't be attacked while you drink it, but after that, it's fair game."

Aurelius tried to process the offer. Letting him drink the enhancer, but not giving him time to take in its power. It was a gamble, relying on Aurelius' ability to handle the side effects. If Sherridan attacked him right after he ingested it, a timer would start. He had to fight Sherridan at the same time as the side effects, and if he failed to kill Sherridan before the side effects kicked in, he would be killed with ease.

It still didn't make complete sense from Gadreel's point of view until Aurelius remembered that Gadreel had never answered his initial question: "Why?"

At first, there were other possibilities, but it had become obvious from Gadreel's demeanor that this whole thing wasn't for any kind of benefit. He had arranged it for intrigue. This was all just for that.

With that taken into account, the offer made sense.

At least from what Gadreel knew. However, Aurelius wouldn't be paralyzed by the side effects like he was a year ago against Izir. He could fight through the side effects. In other words, the deal was purely advantageous for Aurelius. He couldn't let that show.

He pushed elation out of his system and channeled all his skepticism into an inquisitive look that he aimed at Gadreel.

"How can you trust such a deal? Well, it's not one we gain much from breaking. Also, you may look at it as me trying to preserve my dear Sherridan." Gadreel nodded to her and she snorted. "Oh, by the way, you're alright with this, aren't you, Sherry?"

"I've told you not to call me that," she said with a low voice. "But yes." She looked at Aurelius and tilted her head. "I wouldn't do it if I were you, though."

Aurelius realized then that Sherridan hadn't taken an enhancer during the battle. The possibility that she couldn't get her hands on one was out of the question, so it had to be something else.

Gadreel cast a jarred look at her comment. She shook her head in response. "You're naive, thinking there's no price to pay for that power," she said. It was unsure which one she was speaking to. "There is always a price. You have no idea what cursed blood really does to humans."

'Hah, superstitions,' Aurelius concluded. 'What an idiot.'

If Sherridan had taken an enhancer, perhaps she would've been able to end the battle already. But because she didn't because he couldn't bear the idea of drinking it. She cowered from the deepest depths of power and that was why she would lose.

Aurelius reached for the leather strap on his lower back and took a second vial. The tension grew as he eyes Gadreel and Sherridan before uncapping the black substance.

"When the substance leaves the vial, the finale begins," Gadreel said, hands in his pockets. His posture exuded power, shoulders back and relaxed. He tilted up his chin and amusedly observed Aurelius with his intelligent eyes.

Aurelius had saved his words as he didn't have many. So before the finale began, he let out one calculated sentence, glaring at Gadreel. "I'll kill you, no matter what."

Then Aurelius drank.