The never-ending chaos filled the labyrinth with keening and caterwauling sounds of pain, exasperation, and death. A scar of light hung in the pagan-black sky where a blizzard of arrows rain upon and mimicked a fizzing sound. The color of death can be likened to blood and night as the clinking and clanging of swords and other weapons continue. The dark elf named Selena relaxed herself on the high plateau with her new companion. She finds their battle to be entertaining that it brought her a rare kind of fascination. Dispiritedness and debilitation of companions and opponents, fuels up her plotted catastrophic conspiracy.
One by one, the abyssal creatures fall and meet their end. Freya and the others starts to lose their energy, their bodies were severed by their assaults. Strength ceases as the labyrinth bathed in blood that was drained out of their blood vessels.
"It's time for you to make appearance my abyssal shaman. I want those three to cower until their voice gone rough" Selena chuckled as her companion ran fast to enter the battlefield.
"I cannot allow fiendish creatures like you to exist!" Odette bellowed in agony. Her sword ended lives of abyssal demons and creatures as she slash it with all her might, leaving deep wounds that are fatal. She did not foresee that she'll be unleashing her strength in swordsmanship inside this despicable maze. In spite of being unsure about her skills, she insisted to use it regardless of the outcome.
For years that she had learned to use magic, she became reliant on her magical scepter alone. She reeled herself under the bottomless sea of dependence, and forgot the need to breathe.
Freya became astonished seeing how Odette can keep up with the pace of skilled swordsman just like her. Those blows and a strong-willed manner of wielding her weapon encrypt brand new events to the history book of the land of dawn.
Aldous came near them and felt sorry for their current state. He also attained pain and deep cuts from the demons he defeated. He saw that their team took down a massive amount of blight and true damage, leaving the weakened ones of a higher class when it comes to ability.
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight. Eight left" he said. The tone of his voice was partly meant to congratulate them. "Why don't you reveal yourself, Selena?" Aldous yelled.
"It's not her time to join the stage yet. Our reinforcements will be here any time sooner and I can say that you miscalculated."
"Who are you?" Johnson asked. Then they noticed how Freya stares at the abyssal creature that Selena brought with her. It steals away her focus, as well as her tranquility. "H-how----" she stuttered. "Hylos... when did you---" Freya shrieked in pain when Hylos landed a kick on her right leg, her back hits a sturdy rock formation and the impact weakens her. She struggled to raise her head to see if the centaur is really Hylos.
"H-he survived"
His white hairy skin was turned into a bruise-like shade of violet, arms clad in dull iron and hand has sharp claws like the other abyssal demons. His crystallized horn of an enchanted unicorn was turned into devilish horns that can be likened to the a ram in wild woods. He entirely changed; all his god-like features are gone; from white and gold to violet, red and black. Freya can't take her eyes off the black crystal in Hylos chest as the three engaged into a battle with him. It piqued her attention for the aura emanated from it was stained by surreal delusions.
She thought of one solution that is worth risking for; obtaining the crystal and purifying it in the Misty Mountains to get back the real persona of the Grand Warden.
"Freya" Selena called. Her voice depicts her thirst for delirium that tormenting them brings joy to her. "Do you like my friend?" The dark elf walked towards Hylos and caressed his nape. "Did you recognize her my abyssal shaman? Oh, I'm sorry who wouldn't forget the person who left us in the verge of dying just to save themselves, too selfish I must say." she added while with daggers of glare and a mocking smirk.
"You did a great hypnotism, dark elf." Johnson said. "Those eyes were an indication that he's half-conscious and living by the illusion you created."
"What did you do to him?" Freya asked. She urged herself to show no sign of weakness in her voice even it can be clearly seen throughout her body. "Why did you turn him into an abyssal creature?"
"Be careful Freya. I just did what you cannot. To save him from the ravenous ninja." Selena answered. "How about you, Princess Odette? Do you want to hear a story? A story of how I save people that she sacrifices to save herself." she giggled.
"T-that's not true."
"Fallacious tale? I think not Freya. My abyssal traps in the Eastern Forest work just fine and they saved this lone centaur whose body was maimed." Selena held Odette's chin. "If I hadn't set up those, bugs and termites were probably satisfied after festering his bode. Do you want to become another victim of her?" she asked.
"Don't listen!" Aldous bawled.
"As if I'll listen" she removed her hand from her chin, as if shooing it away. "Don't touch me with such filthy hands."
"You still have the audacity to call yourself clean after slaying my companions?"
"Decoys are meant to be dead" the swan princess said haltingly. "And if you think you'll turn me into them just like what you did with this centaur, well you're wrong" she aimed for Hylos' neck, she felt the need to lacerate his veins but before her sword gets near his neck, Freya blocked the attack by helding the edge of its blade making her own blood drip from her hand.
"You mustn't." her voice stuttered. She slowly helped Odette to lay down her sword and she lets go of its blade after she reassured herself that she's not going to point it once more unto her friend.
Selena snickered and she glanced to the goddess' back and whispered. "Between you and King Estes, I see no difference." she galloped to Hylos' left side and pet Hylos' muzzle and forelock. She glowered her eyes once again to them. "Too bad, time freeze duration was over, and I need to do a more important business. I'll leave my shaman here so you can play altogether until he brings each one of you to your deathbeds." grimness came from the dark elf voice, strident with intensity followed by a grating laugh.
Selena fleeted and left the place. Aldous apprehends that the dark elf plans something even more absurd. Worried that it will lead to further destruction, he decides to have a plan of action of his own. "I must go." he sprinted to get faster at the entrance of the maze. He wants to stop the reinforcement of Hylos and Selena. Judging from their conditions, another swarm of demons will be enough to end their lives.
However, during the duration of his transport, there are few who already managed to sneak inside the battlefield. Both allies and foes, and there's no escaping until someone claimed their trophy to victory.
During the astounding attacks and reverberating sound of battle cries, Odette noticed that Johnson gets weaker. Even nearly losing her balance, she jolted to block the energy wave that Hylos impelled to Johnson's direction. She received its full hit and her right arm turned numb. Freya dashed forward and aimed straightly for Hylos. Just when she's too close in grabbing the crystal, Odette held her arm. She noticed that the princess is looking down with a sullen look on her face and the hint of despair was written all over. "We need to retreat."
"Princess... " she grabs Freya and quickly gets in the car form of Johnson. Given the inflicted damage in his steel-type body, his pace was not too fast as it was when they escaped Aldous.
"You can't quit" Selena mouthed from afar and in an instant, groups of abyssal creatures followed Freya and another group rushed in front of them leaving no choice for Johnson to revert back in his normal state. "Sadly, swan song cannot be cast" the demon uttered in a shrill voice. The summoned abyssal creatures cornered them. Hideous laughter filled the place.
This is the end: helpless, frail, and useless, that is how she visualize herself and their situation. All her hard work ended up as a trash, being turned into ashes. Or so she thought. An abyssal creature who still perceives Odette as a threat attacked her. The princess is now disarmed and the only option left is to witness her sword as it flung through the black-pitched sky. Suddenly, she was lost in a daze, insensible condition when she saw a familiar figure claimed her sword in the air. "Odette!" a voice yelled and she caught her magical scepter that was handed to her. "We met again" courage was embedded in her smile as she casts a Blue Nova to their opponents. The creatures of lower tiers was easily taken down by an invincible presence as it uses his sword to slash their vital points, making them heave for breathe.
"Fencing? When did he---"
"It doesn't matter." A woman whispered at Freya's ears whom she recognized in a flash. Attacks stormed one after the other. Odette performed another ultimate to decrease the amount of enemies, but it used up a great amount of her energy making her fall dramatically. Other creatures managed to retreat and save themselves. All of them are showing no mercy. Her body was totally weakened. The knight dashed forward to catch his princess. Guinevere and Natalia showed themselves after successfully defeating half of the threats. Both of them felt sad for what their team has to experience. "We need to finish them, it's not fair letting them get away when they are the one who meddle with us." Natalia said.
"I have found the culprit. Let's have some chasing game." Guinevere said and left the place to grant her brother a time to deal with the princess. Freya and Johnson rested beneath the dense grass, recharging their energy for a short while.
Lancelot hates to see her in dire condition. He remembered the day he vowed to use his life to protect the woman he loves sincerely, the woman who saved him from dying, and the same woman who's currently in a near death situation.
"I was foolish to slack-off. I should've returned to the castle." he said. He admits that it is his fault to leave the castle knowing that the source of bad energy that they have been supervising for a long while has gotten more powerful. Yet, he neglected the thought. He saw how she struggled between their attacks for a while. Her ocean-blue eyes were churned with a burning desire to take on every creature she recognizes as her opponent. "You really are exceptional"
"Lance...." The princess smiled at him as she caressed his face with her shaky hands. Her clothes was stained with blood, deep cuts are highly noticeable from her skin.
"I understand." Lancelot said. He never wanted to hear her apologize to him for deciding based on what her heart wants to follow. He strictly believes that no one can rule one's life except them. "Keep calm, everything will be fine." Lancelot wears a ruby red pendant necklace to Odette. His head starts to hurt as a side effect of holding back his tears. "It's my fault, Princess. I wasn't able to protect you." For him he only had one job, one job he failed to fulfill.
"F-forgive....m-me" she heaved for air and held Lancelot's hand tighter. "y-your gift was used in vain." he wiped off her tears and tries his best to calm her. "That's not an issue for me but you need to listen closely." Injecting her would just torment her more. Given that these deep slashes raised her sensibility to a high level. So he breaks the container instead and rubs its formula to her slashes and watched as her skin absorbs it.
Meanwhile, the knight heard the words he expected already but he hoped to not hear it. "Lancelot, please stay---"
"I can't." he said the word that he'll gladly not. Odette demands an explanation from her expression. It is unjust for her to carve her heart with deep feelings in an instant.
"I can't fathom anyone to die here. And for the worst part, for them to be ended by our own hands."
"How?" she asked.
"You know the rules, Odette. Victorious heroes come in three-man team, not six. You can continue your battle but it is already game over for me, Natalia, and Guinevere." He looked intently in her eyes; the gaze was filled with unwavering affection. "We need to leave before it was completely activated."
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