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Chapter 28: Lost ...

The corridors of the second level of the Sewers became a frenzied blur as they charged forward with reckless abandon. The very foundation of the underground labyrinth quivered and groaned like a dying leviathan besieged by an armada of ships. The earth itself convulsed, triggering a panicked frenzy among the usually dormant fauna and flora. The world trembled under the weight of the malevolent force that descended upon the bowels beneath the city.

In this twisted realm, the odd duo raced forward with reckless abandon, leaving a wake of destruction in their wake. The hulking Crab Man, a grotesque amalgamation of exoskeleton and flesh, charged forward, its massive claws tearing through any obstacles that dared impede their path. Perched atop its back, the mischievous shadow creature, known affectionately as Little Fella, clung on for dear life, its eyes glinting with a mix of excitement and dread.

Guided by Little Fella, Monsoon and he became one with the chaos that consumed the twisting corridors of the sewer's second level. The ground trembled beneath their feet, mirroring the tortured groans of a dying leviathan besieged by a relentless armada. Panic-stricken fauna and flora burst into frenzied existence, their primal instincts screaming in terror. The very fabric of the world quivered under the weight of an impending force that descended into the bowels of the city.

Monsoon, the guardian of this forsaken realm, relied on Little Fella's guidance to pinpoint Luke's exact location. Yet even without their aid, the cacophony of sound and the violent vibrations served as a macabre symphony, revealing the stray's whereabouts. Monsoon's dominion over this part of the sewers granted him scrying sigils and a partial influence over its twisted domain. Though the activation of his rule drained him of vital energy, he could not resist peering into the unfolding events.

What he witnessed made him speed up even more.

What he witnessed ignited a surge of urgency within him. As he sought the shortest route to reach the stray he had grown fond of, Monsoon felt his grip on his domain weakens. The Bone Rat, with audacious insolence, seized control over the minds of the free-roaming rats on the second level. In a maddened frenzy, they hurled themselves upon Luke, a grotesque pile of fur and claws. Monsoon's fury intensified, fueled by the sheer impudence of a Bone Rat encroaching upon the sacred grounds of the Second Level. This trespass had sealed the intruder's own doom.

His heart raced, beating a discordant symphony within his chest, as Monsoon beheld the abomination that Luke had become. An all-consuming bestiality and an unsettling, unnatural madness radiated from him, threatening to push him beyond the edge of sanity. Time became a cruel adversary, demanding swift action if Monsoon were to salvage him from the brink of irreversible madness.

A sense of despair enveloped Monsoon as he watched the mound of rat flesh smother his friend, engulfing all hope in its suffocating grip. But then, amidst the chaos, he heard it—a sound that sent shivers down his spine, a harbinger of impending doom. He couldn't fathom what it could be, but he knew instinctively that danger lurked, ready to consume everything in its path.

AN OMEN TO AN END.

His senses were assaulted by a blinding flash, searing through the Throat and obliterating everything in its wake. The protective wards, the intricate sigils that guarded his domain—incinerated within an instant. The malevolent blaze scorched the very connections that tethered him to his claimed land, a relentless wave of power that sought to invade his very being, igniting his insides and core. Sensing the impending destruction, he swiftly severed the connection before the backlash became unbearable.

Writhing in agony, he clasped the shadowy creature tightly in his hand and plunged deep into the solid rock, as though it were a fluid. The entrance sealed seamlessly above them as they descended further, narrowly escaping the cataclysm that followed. A Void Solar Flare surged through the tunnels they had occupied mere moments before, warping reality itself beyond recognition. Stone turned to glass, shattered into a tempest of violent vibrations that unraveled the very fabric of existence.

The magnitude of the devastation surpassed anything Luke should have been capable of, even accounting for his affinity for the Void.

Abandoning any notion of conservation, Monsoon donned his full suit of armor, unleashing his true potential without the slightest hesitation. He couldn't afford to hold back now. He knew he could take on the Bone Rat, even an entire horde of them, if necessary. But what he had just experienced... It was a threat that transcended anything those grotesque rodents could ever pose.

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Clutching The Little Fella tightly in his hand, he traversed through the solid stone and rock, bending it to his will. Like a speeding harpoon, he shot towards his target, momentarily losing sight of it as the disruptive wave tore through the sewers, obliterating his meticulously crafted spells and sigils that adorned the tunnels.

So much painstaking work is now reduced to nothingness.

Drawing upon the innate abilities inherited from his bloodline, he honed his senses to detect the tremors that reverberated throughout this underground labyrinth, guiding him toward the epicenter of the disturbance. The relentless quaking, the echoes of bone breaking—a testament to the ferocious exchange of fists and the cacophony of shattered lives.

Monsoon punched through the brittle stones, as he entered the tunnel leading to his target. The Little Creature in his grasp coughed and spit away the dirt and dust it inhaled.

The sight that greeted their eyes left them frozen in shock.

They could scarcely recognize him in his current state. The sheer weight of misery and despair radiating from him was suffocating, an oppressive force that permeated the very air. But even more overwhelming was the twisted madness interwoven with a bloodlust that tainted everything it touched. It was as if the walls and atmosphere themselves bled and quivered in response.

The form before them was a grotesque nightmare. Much of his flesh had been savagely torn away, even the protective embrace of the Void cowl unable to conceal the extent of the carnage. The exposed tissue was a mass of shredded sinew, interlaced with the insidious tendrils of the Void infection, stretching and distorting the already ravaged muscle fibers. Amidst this horrifying display, a violently pulsating heart pulsed with an otherworldly neon brightness, its veins branching out in a macabre network throughout the body. It was a heart both protected and exposed, encased in jagged, exposed ribs that seemed to serve as a grim barrier. Yet, from the depths of that blinding core of light, a point of desolation seeped in—an inky blot of darkness that wormed its way into the heart, draining it, compelling it to unleash every ounce of its strength to fend off the consuming forces.

Luke... The entity had forsaken its eyes, replacing them with a grotesque mask of twisted Void flesh. It was a rugged visage like scar tissue stretched across the bone, yet no one could dare label it blind. Even before it emerged from the depths of the earth, Monsoon, and The Little Creature could feel its gaze bore into them with an unnerving intensity.

One of its legs plunged deep into the chest cavity of the Bone Rat, securing it in a macabre crucifixion. Its talons served as cruel nails, pinning the creature to the ground. The abomination savored its grisly feast, tearing into the still-living and quivering flesh with insatiable hunger. Its own face was a mangled pulp, devoid of eyes, yet it emanated an aura of anguish and a desperate plea for release.

The Void Spawn had no intention of granting such mercy. With its searing-hot fangs, it ripped and tore at the flesh, relishing the agonized convulsions of its prey more than the taste itself.

"Luke!" they both screamed simultaneously, their voices reverberating through the twisted tunnels.

At that moment, the monstrous being halted, its entire body frozen in an eerie stillness, as if contemplating something. Abruptly, it snapped its head to the side, causing Monsoon and The Little Creature to instinctively flinch.

As the flayed skin sizzled and hung from its grotesque mouth, the monster slowly unveiled its twisted smile. With each passing moment, the figure grew more jittery, its entire form trembling uncontrollably. It straightened itself with an agonizing slowness, revealing a body even more ravaged than they had anticipated.

The true arm, now nothing more than a flickering manifestation of volatile energies, crackled and oozed blood with erratic spasms.

A pathetic sigh of relief escaped the wretched creature as its clawed hands emerged from the wounds in its arms. Still smiling, Luke lifted his knee from the monster's chest and drove it deep into what remained of the half-eaten and crushed snout.

The entire body went limp as brain matter and fragments of the spine splattered across the floor, causing the ground to quake and fracture under the force of the violent stomp.

Monsoon and The Little Creature stood in stunned silence, their minds grappling with the incomprehensible sight before them. What had become of their friend?

“Luke! Buddy, come on now, you’re safe now, you can calm down, we’re your friends, remember ?” The Little Creature pleaded, its voice tinged with desperation as if it were trying to convince itself more than the monstrous figure before it.

"Lukas! It's me, Monsoon. You must regain control. If you don't, not only will you die, but you'll be forever consumed by the Hollow Void. COME BACK!" Monsoon's voice boomed with a commanding force, his determination filling every word.

The creature let out a quiet, chilling cackle, its head held low. In the crumbling tunnels, the silence amplified the eerie effect, making it all the more menacing.

Shifting its position, the creature pried open the rat carcass. With its hand construct, it firmly gripped the spine, placing one of its legs on the dead creature's hips for added leverage. With a mighty pull, the sound of snapping bones echoed through the halls as a whip-like tail made of bone segments detached from the body that birthed it. The hip bones resembled an arm guard, while the remaining portion of the spine served as the hilt.

Covered in spinal fluid and pulsating with blood vessels, the hilt began to throb as Void energies and Primordial Veins connected to it, enhancing its power and forging a connection to the wielder.

As the creature stood upright, it whipped the blade, causing it to coil around its body. With a sudden snap, its arm extended, releasing the blade like a whip. The spiraling weapon extended along the tunnel, stretching for over 20 meters.

Perfectly cut pieces of stone separated from the walls, creating a path for the monstrous being. In one swift motion, the blade snapped back, melding together into a single, colossal Zwei hander sword.

The creature's grin widened, its mouth dripping with plasma-hot saliva, a macabre testament to its insatiable thirst for violence.

As Monsoon erected his protective barriers, the creature positioned the blade behind itself. Extending its other hand towards the weapon, it completed a circuit of power. The blade began to resonate with opposing forces, their clash tearing at the very fabric of reality.

Reality itself whimpered and writhed in agony.

Fixing its gaze on a new target, the creature let out a bone-chilling scream and charged forward, its monstrous form propelled by sheer thirst for murder.