It was a standstill. Me, against the three Apostles.
Winds gently whipped at my cloak, and I unlatched the clasp, letting the cloak drift away and catch on a piece of splintered wood.
"Getting brave? Don't get so high and mighty you mortal!" Spat Lucius.
"Then show this mortal whatever it is you want to show me. If you're gonna jump me, do it quickly, I'll take you all on in a fight..." I retorted in an arrogant tone. My brows furrowed all of a sudden as I thought about my choice of words. "Wait a second... that didn't sound right... I meant..." I sighed in defeat. Also, aren't they mortal aswell? No way...
It was Lysander who rushed me first. It was quicker than I could have imagined. If it weren't for my skill, {Lightning Body}, I likely wouldn't have seen him coming. His hand, blazing with thick red flames, came crashing down into me. I coated my own hand and arm with red flames, trying not to reveal my full strength in case they adapted to it.
That was a mistake.
His flames punctured my own in a way I didn't know flames could, and I felt the heat scorch my arm. I skidded backwards, and my arm began healing due to my regenerative skill. His fists kept on pounding me, however, not giving my skill of {Regeneration} enough time to work effectively. I gritted my teeth and tossed my head to the side as a thin line of lightning whizzed past my ear.
"So he's got good reflexes... noted," muttered the skinny man.
"Arathorn! Stop analysing and kill him!" Lucius screamed.
"Lucius... do I need to remind you who is stronger of the two of us?" Arathorn replied icily. Lucius simply shook his head, and Arathorn continued, "Good... then let me do my thing... idiot."
Lysander threw a punch, and I caught it. Increasing my physical strength using {Flame Body}, I threw Lysander towards Lucius and hurled a dozen or so icicles at them. Arathorn was perceptive and quickly intercepted with a net of blue lightning that caught and melted the ice.
Who the hell are these guys?!
Be careful... they're not normal humans... Orebrul replied in a low and cautious tone.
I gathered that. But how do they have so much power?! I answered as I barely deflected a combined attack of a fireball and a giant sword of ice.
They mentioned the Gods... they could be worshippers?
I shook my head. No... they're too powerful for just worshippers... they must be higher, like...
Apostles!
I slapped aside a fiery fist but caught a knee to my stomach, sending me flying through a glass wall for a shop display. The floor was covered in soot and ash, the displays had been torn down, and the glass cases that should have had jewellery were shattered and empty. All the tapestries were ripped, and the till was broken and splintered. Decorative wood was tarnished and ruined, and the once full of life shop was now dead and nothing but an empty carcass of what it once was.
I pushed myself up slowly, and anger boiled within me. This shop... these people... my people... they've ruined them all...
A fist clad in red fire was on course for hitting my face and I snarled, "You fucking assholes."
Violet flames licked my hand and I caught Lysander's fist. "Burn, you brainless idiot."
Lysander's eyes widened, and his lips trembled as my violet flames ate away at his feeble red candle lights.
"What is this?!" He screamed.
"The true power... of fire," I replied emotionlessly. Our flames waged a one-sided war, with my flames winning to an overbearing degree. Our exchange was cut short as I had to let go of his hand as Lucius cut down at my wrist with a blade of blue ice.
Retracting my hand, I blasted a jet of flames at Lysander who scurried away. I followed up by closing the distance between Lucius and me and lashed out with a kick to his kneecaps. My attack was halted, however, as Arathorn aimed a thin laser of lightning at my heart. I saw him aiming and rolled to the floor as he fired, which led me to get a kick to my face from Lucius.
Blood splattered across the floor from my nose, and I wiped my face of the blood.
"You thought because you have a few tricks you could beat us?!" Lucius began laughing maniacally. "You're pathetic," he said as his face fell to a thin and straight expression. A dark tone fell across his words, "So be a good mortal and die."
I didn't know who they were. But I knew they were in some alliance with the same Gods trying to end me. In a quick step, I appeared beside Lucius and conjured a purple dagger in my hand. The dagger was sharp beyond belief, not to mention it was weightless in a similar way to the sword version. I swung the blade, but Lucius countered with a dagger of his own ice. We locked in a stalemate of clashing weapons.
"You disgust me... that ring... it's a cheap way to get power!" He snarled hatefully into my face.
"A bit like your powers? Borrowed? Yeah, I can relate to you on that one. But you work for some real bastards," I shot back with hate and venom.
"What?!" He yelled. That was all I needed. Lucius pushed harder, and I stepped back, letting his momentum carry him. He realised what I'd done, but it was too late. I dropped to a knee, and my dagger sliced in a quick flash of purple, cutting into his right knee and leaving a deep and bloody gash.
"AHHH! You bastard!" He shouted at me as I avoided a cage of lightning from capturing me.
Arathorn grimaced and dashed towards me. Lysander had recovered from our fiery altercation and was heading towards me, too. I cast {Telekinesis} and pinned Lysander, whose shout got muffled by the soil and dirt, to the floor as I engaged combat with Arathorn. I formed a blade in my hand in reverse grip, slashing downwards diagonally. Arathorn avoided easily and began charging a spell, but I let go of my grip on my blade slightly, and the sword dissipated and reappeared in the normal grip. I slashed in the same line but the opposite way and cut a thin line across his chest since he didn't expect such a combo from a one-armed man.
I grinned. "There a problem? Didn't think a mortal could do this?"
"Clever... you certainly are a threat... logic deems you should be eliminated, and I'm inclined to agree," he replied, stonefaced and clamer than any trained soldier. He was clearly a very calculating person. Efficiency must be his key point.
I agree... but you're using a lot of mana. Orebrul said concerningly.
I have a lot of reserves right now... I should be fine. I replied as Arathorn and I collided in an explosion of equal forces of lightning blasts. I was stunned. My full powered, purple lightning version of my skill, {Lightning Bolt}, was outmatched.
I backed away from Arathorn, but he didn't give me time for anything as he rushed me. My focus on my telekinesis slipped, and I forgot about it. Whips and coils of electricity crashed all around me and tried to snag me by my limbs, but I relented and avoided each one, rather awkwardly admittedly, but still efficiently.
A fireball came rushing at me, as did multiple tendrils of lightning. I focused all my attention on the spells and activated {Telekinesis}. The spells froze in the air, and I tried forcing them down, but the will of Lysander and Arathorn was strong, and I couldn't force the spells away. Instead, I carefully redirected their velocity and sent them back to their senders.
The two of them easily avoided their own spells and rushed in close to me. I caught a punch from Lysander and blocked a kick from Arathorn with my shin. In a fluent motion, I ducked under a swung arm and flipped over Lysander's caught fist, wrapping myself around his arm. Then, using as much brute force as I could, I threw Lysander over my body and slammed him into the floor, which in turn made Arathorn back away from being collateral damage.
Lysander grunted but grabbed my wrist tightly, and my face paled. How does he have this much physical strength?!
I was thrown over and slammed even harder into the ground. I heard a breaking sound and assumed it was one of my ribs that had cracked. A fit of coughing came about, and I couldn't breathe as I dodged an ice spear that penetrated through the floor and tried to impale me.
My breath was laboured, and I couldn't think properly. This is stupid... I thought grimly. My situation wasn't ideal. It was far from it, in fact. The three of them seemed relatively unharmed, aside from maybe Lucius, who had a sliced knee. Lysander had a slightly scorched hand due to my fire, and Arathorn had a thin line cut diagonally across his chest from my astral blade.
What can I possibly... My thoughts trailed off as I avoided another onslaught of dozens of icicles, tens of fireballs, and even a jet stream of lightning tendrils. I had only one option: The Ultimate Spell.
Avoiding all the spells, albeit barely, I made my way onto the roof of a crumbling building. Thankfully, this area had been evacuated and was empty. The smell of sulfur and burning wood filled my nose and made it wrinkle. I could hear the creaking and cracking of the wood and all the foundations of the buildings under the intense strain they were experiencing.
I raised my arm and prepared to click my fingers as I raised my hand vertically upwards towards the sky.
"How is this taking us so long?! He's just a boy!" Lucius screamed at the other two. I laughed, and they all looked at me. "Something funny to you?"
"Yeah, actually. The fact that this is the best the Gods could do? How pathetic." With that statement, I clicked my fingers, and a ripple of air shot up into the sky. My mana instantly drained, and I fell to my knees. Dark and ominous clouds began to swirl and spiral above me, creating a whirlpool of black and dangerous clouds miles above me in the air.
There was a pressure, a heavy one, as the clouds parted and giant balls of rock emerged from the clouds. It started with half a dozen. Then there were dozens of them. Eventually, there were at least 4 or 5 dozen meteors rushing down towards this area of the city. I could see the shock and surprise in the three men's faces as they watched me unleash a torrent of meteors the size of an average bungalow. Trails of fire began to form behind them as they rushed towards the earth, and they began crashing around us.
The earth shook with the sheer volume of meteors that were hitting the ground. One fell right next to me, and another was rushing straight for Lysander. He punched through it and grinned, but Lucius wasn't so lucky. With his injured leg, he tried hobbling out the way but got caught in the after explosion of the impact and shrapnel and chunks of flaming rock broke off and fired at him like bullets.
I watched the carnage with a victorious smile as I sat down, now out of mana. If this didn't stop them, it was over. I knew that well enough. But I trusted that my mana reserves were large enough to create a powerful enough spell. And right I was.
More meteors arrived, and these ones targeted my opponents directly. They were all constantly on the move and couldn't find a single opportunity to attack me. Arathorn was whipping and cracking the rocks with lightning, which, for the most part, was working well. However, it was becoming increasingly difficult for him to keep up as meteor after meteor rained down in him. Lysander was having the most success as he broke through them all and even tried to attack me. I threw myself backwards into the toppling building to avoid his attack, and I just listened to the destruction around me.
I looked around me, trying to see if there was anything, and spotted a small sword.
That will do, I think... I thought
What? You're going back out there?! Orebrul replied hastily.
Yeah, I've got to get rid of at least one of them. They're strong... I can win in a one on one... but not a 3v1... I sent back as I picked up the nearly shattered sword and stumbled my way across the room to the ceiling opening.
You're insane! They'll kill you if you go out there! He shouted to me in my head. His panic and concern could be said through his words, let alone the actual feelings seeping into me.
I'm aware... but I have to take that risk right now.
No, you don't! You don't even have any mana remaining! This is ridiculous! You've done enough... just run away...
I can't. I said firmly before blocking off our link. It was a shame to do this. I'm sure he'd forgive me. I hoped he would.
I climbed out of the building and looked down at the devastated area. I saw Lysander and Arathorn, who were still blocking and deflecting falling rocks. A crazy and ill-intented smile spread along my lips. The corners curved up into a devious grin as I saw a hopeless and stranded Lucius lying on the floor, his legs missing. I jumped down and walked towards him.
"Hello... Lucius..." I said icily as I stabbed the sword beside his head. His eyes slowly looked up towards me, and I saw true fear in his pupils. Good. Remember that in your next life. If you get one, that is.
Pulling the blade out of the ground, I circled around Lucius. "You're going to tell me what you know... OK?" I said calmly.
"Piss off!" I spat at me. Physically spitting on the floor at my feet.
"How rude... usually... it's the victims who say that... well, I guess you will be a victim in a second."
"W-what does that mean?!" He cried with a slightly fearful tone. Without responding, I stabbed the blade into his thigh, and I listened carefully to his screams.
"We can do this for as long as I want... or for as long as you can last..." I told him in nothing but a whisper. I wriggled the blade around and drove it deeper into his leg, cutting his nerves.
"Fuck you!" He shouted. I silently took the blade out his leg and immediately penetrated his lower back at an angle with it. I added some extra force this time, and it went right through. I felt the flesh part to make room for the blade and felt the metal stab his back and lower area. His scream was high-pitched and painful to the ears. Tears streamed down his face, and the sword was covered in blood. His blood.
"What is it that you know about the Gods?" I asked. He tried to speak, but he shut his mouth and shook his head frantically. Looking at the blade, I went to move it, but...
"Stop it please! I'm an apostle! I was given the power of the Goddess of Ice. We were told to find and kill someone with a ring like that!" He grunted through the pain, tears and blood he was choking on as he pointed at my ring.
"OK... and? That it?" I urged.
But I was too late. I'd expected this... but not to this kind of scale.
His body began to freeze, and suddenly, an explosion of ice spikes shot from his chest and killed him instantly. His insides and blood were sprayed everywhere, and I had to take quickly cover behind some debris to avoid the initial spray. Flesh and blood lay scattered everywhere, and not a trace of his body remained. The ice was sturdy and had a ridiculous potency of mana within it.
I should leave... I thought as I quietly and carefully slipped back into the building. With no mana left, my signature was hidden as I watched Lysander and Arathorn discover what very little remained of Lucius. It was a grotesque sight, even for a war veteran like me.
"The mortal did this?! How?!" Lysander muttered angrily as he looked at the remains.
"No... it was the curse that did this. I don't think the mortal had any power left after he used that powerful spell," Arathorn deduced. He was spot on. Of course, I wasn't going to tell him that. My brows came together in a frown at the mention of a curse, and I released the block on my mind.
You asshole... blocking me out when I was trying to save you. Orebrul scolded.
Sorry... but I got rid of one of them. I replied as we watched them.
"We should report back... this is getting out of hand now," Lysander stated in a calm and collected tone. But I knew he was furious inside.
"Perhaps... though Glacis cannot choose another apostle for years due to this... especially longer because the cause of the death was the curse. That means Lucius let out some info... no matter how small it was, that's betryal. He deserved this."
I shuddered at his heartlessness and let out a heavy breath of relief as they collected what little they could find of Lucius and vanished into a summoned portal.
Crap...that... was hard... I thought quietly as I looked at my body. Cuts were all over my legs and arm from Lucius' ice. Burns and blistering skin from Lysander and my nerves and muscles kept cramping no thanks to Arathorn's lightning. I'd expended all my mana in a last-ditch effort in using my ultimate spell. It was a big risk, but worth it in the end as one of the 'Apostles' had been killed and the other two had fled. That said, it was clear from the start of our encounter that Lucius, the one I'd killed, was the weakest, and the other two had clearly been holding back. It seemed I was wanted alive or at the very least extremely incapacitated. For what reason, I could only speculate. But they did say 'kill him'... so why didn't they go all out? Did they underestimate me?
Using the wall as a support, I pushed myself up to my feet and dragged the rusty steel sword across the floor. "Whatever, let's go find everyone else..." I muttered as I wandered, bruised and batted, out of the flattened area. Behind me, as I walked, was a decimated land littered and filled with craters the size of modern homes.
Guess they'll have a lot of rebuilding to do... not that it matters to me right now... just gotta check and make sure everyone... is... alright...
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