Near the Center of the Deadlands: 936, December 31st, Monday, 1:00 AM.
Having reached further into the heart of the hellish zone, the one chosen by the goddess herself continued his efforts to stop the invading army of specters from leaving the Deadlands. Though his speed and power greatly outmatched that of his opponents, fending off the horde had begun to reopen old wounds in the man’s body—restraining his movements, and limiting his options in battle.
The knight kept his eyes closed to maintain a clear mind, and held his breath through the entire fight. He evaded the ceaseless assault of specters that leaped at him from all directions, dancing around the battlefield while the beasts struggled to land even a single hit despite their absurd numbers. Hiding the many injuries that ailed him under his clothes, the knight dominated the fight as not even a sore body could interfere with the experience and masterful skills he’s garnered over the decades.
Knowing the battle couldn’t be won by remaining in the offensive, the champion began to counter the violent attacks of the specters, and quickly dispatched them with a single strike of two fingers—shattering their bodies with fast and simple movements. The strategy proved less tasking on his body, but limiting in the number of demons he could take at the same time, which allowed a number of them to break through his line of defense and rush further south.
“Sorry, Atalanta… Gal, Maulik.” The knight lamented in his own thoughts, as he sensed some of the creatures escaping the area towards the others. “But I know you can take on that many.”
Many more creatures managed to ignore the sole knight that fought them in the hundreds, led further away from the center of the Deadlands by their animalistic instincts. Although more demons would hit the dirt and vanish into embers compared to the amount making their escape, their vast numbers continued to flood the field and prevent the champion from advancing even further into the core of the region—arriving at the battlefield in waves.
“Not looking too good, champion.” A young voice echoed in the knight’s ears.
Too focused to allow his concentration to break however, the lone fighter continued to clean the battlefield from the terrifying demons, fending off their powerful army all by himself. The infuriated cries of the beasts called for stronger foes to appear as their desperation grew, summoning greater power to deal with the injured knight.
The earth rumbled with every step taken by the colossal monsters, flattening the surrounding specters that got in their way. Their powerful presence immediately caught the attention of the lone knight, who had no need to open his eyes, or turn to face the creatures that approached him from behind.
From the darkest depths of the Deadlands, emerged a trio of large beasts that tripled the size of the gladean knight. Their bulky bodies were protected with the obsidian exoskeleton of every specter, displaying a rocky structure that resembled molten lava rocks with their glowing crimson veins. Their bodies were quite humanoid, but through their mountain-like appearance and enormous size they could only be describe as golems.
“You know they can’t beat me,” the knight calmly stated.
“Since when are you this confident?” replied the voice in his head, huffing a quick laugh before proceeding. “I’m won’t let you go any further, Ninigi. Even if I have to keep entertained here until tomorrow.”
“I gave you a chance.”
“Not everyone deserves one, chosen one. You should’ve learned that after King, but here we are.”
During his conversation with the young man, the three colossal specters utilized the opportunity to strike against the presumed distracted knight. Their fists and feet sunk in the scorched land of the Deadlands, creating a powerful rumbling with every attack they threw at their opponent—who quickly caught on with their intentions.
Not even their enormous size could aid the demons in landing a single attack against the champion, as his nimble and swift movements continued to avoid their violent onslaught regardless. Piles of rocks flew in the air, leaving large open craters on the ground as the monsters did not seize in their assault.
“Are you going to attack?” wondered the young man in Ninigi’s head.
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Just as the voice finished its question, one of the specters managed to land a strike on the fast-moving knight—smacking the ground with a powerful punch that shook the earth, and buried him underneath its fist. A cloud of dust enveloped the entire battlefield, left by the demons’ fanatical assault against the sole fighter.
Two golems observed the screen of dust as it cleared, while the third demon attempted to pull its fist out of the gigantic crater left by its attack, but to no effect. Its desperate struggle to retreat was quickly noticed by the others, but their reactions proved too slow to escape the sudden counter from the gladean knight trapped inside the large hole.
The golem’s feet were suddenly lifted off the ground in a mighty display of strength from their foe, pulled even further into the air, and forced to stand on its hand. At the bottom of the crater, Ninigi held the gigantic fist of the demon with both hands, proceeding to spin the creature around like a toy before slamming its body into the other pair--knocking the beasts into the ground with a single strike.
A ball of obsidian stone golems formed as they crashed against each other, lifting an even large cloud of dust among the crimson fog of the Deadlands. One specter was smacked into the other by Ninigi’s throw, forcing it to stumble into the third demon, and bringing them both to the ground. The golem that buried the knight under its fist would barely reach the dirt, as its body was caught by the two fingers of the lone champion. The strength of his fingers alone arched the back of the demon as he held it in the air, drawing painful groans from the trapped beast that struggled to even move.
Dispatching his opponent with a single strike, Ninigi pressed both fingers together in a quick motion to form a tight fist, shattering the obsidian golem from the middle. The force of his knuckles proved strong enough to crush the armor of the specter, and split its body in half with a simple punch that fissured its rocky structure.
“Tsk... Don’t let your guard down just yet.” The young man warned him, as the remaining pair of golems recovered from his attack.
The effect of their stomping approach lifted the knight’s feet from the ground, but refused to even open his eyes at the fast approaching threat of the beasts. Pressing two fingers together once again, Ninigi aimed them both like a firearm towards the closest specter—gathering a small number of azure particles at the front.
Just like firing a pistol, the champion unleashed a barrage of small projectiles from his fingers, and showered the nearest demon in a rain of light that stopped its advance. Each tiny particle of azure pierced through the golems rocky structure like an arrow through a thin layer of paper, breaking their way into its core and shattering the monster’s source of energy.
The specter plummeted like a pile of rocks, crashing against the scorched land as it dissipated into crimson embers. Its collapsing at the front became an obstacle for the third and last golem alive, which clumsy movements prohibited it from avoiding the enormous monster that had just dropped in its way, tripping over the fallen golem before hitting the dirt itself.
Shaking the ground with a violent fall, the colossal specter’s jaw crashed on the dirt as it slid in closer to the brave knight—enveloping the nearby area in a screen of dust. Ninigi stopped the sliding demon with his hand, placing it gently on its face before releasing the air he’s been holding inside his lungs throughout the entire fight.
Every vein and artery in his arm began to glow with an azure light, crawling their way into the intimidating beast, and replacing its crimson glowing eyes and fissures with the colors of the gladean knight. The beast could no longer resist, and was peacefully put to rest by the champion’s hand as it turned into dust by the energy released through his body.
Ninigi opened his eyes with a calm expression, gazing upon the vast and barren fields of the Deadlands—populated by the ferocious army of demons that approached him with uncontrollable anger.
“Not a bad show,” the young man spoke in his ear. “Though I see you are slowing down a little,” he said, huffing a chuckle before continuing. “You won’t beat me like this, champion. Are you counting on the other two perhaps? I already show them their limits, what could they possibly do against me?”
“Put an end to this,” Ninigi growled.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing. If you didn’t refuse to fight your own kind, then maybe we wouldn’t be here.”
“You want the statue in Paradise.”
“Do I?”
“Why?”
“To end all of you once and for all,” replied the young man. “I promised you I would, didn’t I? You’ve seen those things that King tries to pass as gladean knights, no?”
“Specter.”
“Fine, I did aim to get my hands on that statue of his.” The young man calmly stated. “Though recent events have changed my mind a little, and all I need now is to bring their false paradise back down to earth.”
“I spared you again...” Claimed the champion, clenching his jaw in both anger and disappointment. “This time I won’t hesitate, Specter.”
“Sooner or later, you had to learn your lesson, but I’m afraid you don’t have to worry about that anymore. This ends today, Ninigi.”
“What are you planning?”
“Leave me alone and find out.”
“I will not allow you to hurt more people.”
“Then perish here with the rest.”
END OF CHAPTER