Episode 3 part 2: Will Ember City survive the night ?
The ground shook under the pressure blasting out of Cloaked 2. Stones rolled across the cracked street. A crushed bus beside him snapped apart, metal chunks spinning through the air.
Cloaked 2 tilted his head, black aura flaring around him.
Cloaked 2: "Don't get cocky just 'cause you tagged me once."
The street vibrated under his feet.
A few meters away, Megalodon floated above the rubble, his shadow covering half the broken street. Smoke drifted off his armor.
Megalodon: "Fine. Let's fight, shall we?"
Oblivion's laugh cut through the noise—sharp, loud, almost playful. He stood on a tilted slab of concrete, one hand raised, chaotic energy crawling around his fingers.
Oblivion: "Its not personal you've played your part… and the plan's over. Now it's time for you to die."
Black Mentis tightened his stance. His shoulders tensed. His jaw set. He pulled in a shaky breath. His armor was cracked, blood dripping down his ribs and soaking the lower plates.
He didn't move back.
Black Mentis: "I'll beat some sense into you… you need to snap out of it, Moon-light."
Oblivion blurred forward and swung for Mentis' jaw.
Mentis shifted to the side, missing the hit by a hair. He grabbed Oblivion's shoulder, twisted his body, swung behind him, and kicked him hard in the ribs.
Oblivion shot upward, then flipped his body mid-air, landing on both feet. The asphalt under him caved inward.
Mentis bent forward, hands on his thighs, breathing rough.
Cloaked 2 rushed Megalodon.
Cloaked 2: "Oblivion! Stop screwing around! End that guy already. Follow the boss's orders."
Oblivion scratched the back of his head, annoyed.
Oblivion: "Yea, yea… relax. I just wanted to test him. Wanna see how I stack up to the 'big guy' over there."
He nodded at Mentis.
Oblivion: "Still good at hand-to-hand. Even while you're fucked up like that. Kinda impressive."
Cloaked 2 slammed a fist into the air—multiple portals snapped open behind Megalodon. Each punch shot out from a different angle.
Megalodon moved his head slightly—every hit missed.
He shifted once.
Suddenly he was nose-to-nose with Cloaked 2.
Megalodon threw a punch.
His fist passed through Cloaked 2 like smoke.
Megalodon: "…What?"
Cloaked 2 grinned and pressed his palm against Megalodon's face.
A black explosion ripped out point-blank.
Megalodon's head burst—chunks of skull, flesh, and black blood splattered across the pavement, splashing in thick strings across broken cars and rubble.
Megalodon's body flew backward and hit the ground, headless.
Cloaked 2: "You're no king. The only one who deserves that title is OUR master."
Black Mentis stared wide-eyed.
Black Mentis: "Seriously!? He managed to take him down with ONE attack!?"
Oblivion lunged at Mentis.
Oblivion: "Eyes on meeee!"
Mentis blocked with both arms, but the hit numbed them instantly. He slid back on his heels, boots scraping across shattered stone.
Mentis thrust both hands downward—jagged stone spikes shot toward Oblivion.
Oblivion: "That crap doesn't work on me, old man. You know that."
He waved his hand. Invisible panels formed—each spike slammed into them with sharp cracks, breaking apart piece by piece.
The ground shook.
Cloaked 2 turned slightly.
Cloaked 2: "…That was too easy."
A wet sound echoed.
Megalodon's head reformed—bone knitting, muscle stretching, eyes reigniting with red light.
He stood up straight.
Megalodon: "Is that supposed to hurt? Come. Show me what you can actually do."
Cloaked 2 let out a frustrated breath.Cloaked 2: "Hn… Great–you're annoying. Are you immortal or somethin'?"
He raised his hand.
Megalodon flash-stepped—
Dozens of afterimages burst outward, rushing Cloaked 2 from every angle.
Cloaked 2 formed layered shields around himself—and summoned his own illusion army.
They shattered instantly.
Megalodon's real body cut through the illusions and slid straight through Cloaked 2 again.
Cloaked 2 smirked.
Cloaked 2: "You did all that just to go through m—"
He choked.
Six heavy strikes slammed into his torso, jaw, ribs, and side—fast enough to blur. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he flew backward, rolling over debris before crashing down.
Megalodon: "Knowledge is power. I know you hide your physical body in multiple dimensions. I'm not born yesterday, child."
Mentis rushed Oblivion, fists flying. Oblivion blocked each hit, parried, ducked, slipped inside his guard, and drove a fist into Mentis' stomach.
Mentis spit blood, stumbling forward.
Oblivion grabbed his hair, yanked his head down, and charged an energy ball at his gut.
Oblivion: "It's over."
The blast shoved Mentis back, his back scraping hard against the pavement. His arms shook as he tried to hold it off.
Black Mentis: "Sh-shit—shit—s-shit—I d-don't have enough—power to—push it—!"
A hand slapped the energy aside.
It shot past Mentis and exploded inside a collapsed building, blowing dust and shards of concrete into the air.
Mentis stumbled and clutched his bleeding side.
Black Mentis (panting): "Why… why the hell did you help me?"
Megalodon stepped beside him.
Megalodon: "My fight isn't with you. Not anymore. I need to show you the truth."
He extended a hand.
A pulse of energy washed over Mentis—his wounds closed, blood dried, bruises vanished. His breathing steadied.
Megalodon: "This should give you most of your stamina back. Not all… but enough to fight at a fraction of your earlier peak."
Oblivion rolled his eyes.
Oblivion: "Aww, cute. You two bonding now?"
Cloaked 2 stood up, brushing dust off his tattered cloak. Blood dripped off his jaw.
Cloaked 2: "This mission is taking longer than I expected. I underestimated that wannabe king. I hate wasting energy on clowns."
Oblivion cracked his neck.
Oblivion: "We're having fun, aren't we? But think about it… if this guy's still standing after what Megalodon did to him… imagine what the big boss's full power looks like."
He snickered.
Oblivion: "Terrifying, right?"
Cloaked 2 ignored him and vanished—reappearing in front of Megalodon. Their punches collided, shockwaves ripping tiles off rooftops.
Oblivion appeared in Mentis' face.
Oblivion: "Sike."
He teleported behind Megalodon and fired a thin beam through the Demon King's knee. Flesh tore apart before it reformed instantly.
Oblivion: "You owe me one, man."
Black Mentis grabbed him by the face and punched him. The impact launched Oblivion through three destroyed buildings before he stopped.
Cloaked 2 reappeared at Megalodon's neck and clamped his hand around his throat.
Cloaked 2 (sighs): "What a fool. Letting your guard down."
Cloaked 2: "So tell me—who are you really? Did that Almighty being send you? Or someone like Omnithon?"
Megalodon's eyes widened—then narrowed.
He crushed Cloaked 2's wrist. The bones cracked.
Megalodon: "Really? You think too highly of yourself, worm. Remove your hand."
The air grew heavier.
Megalodon: "If I get exposed… I won't just erase you. your small feeble mind won't comprehend what I'm capable of doing."
Cloaked 2's eye twitched. He tried pulling back.
Cloaked 2: "Sh—shit—!"
He summoned an energy blade and sliced off his own arm. The severed limb hit the ground, twitching.
He staggered back, gasping, then forced a new arm to regrow. Blood seeped through the fabric of his cloak.
Megalodon stepped forward.
Megalodon: "My fight isn't with you, human. I know you work under the person I seek. You are one of his lackeys, aren't you."
He leaned in close.
Megalodon: "You reek out of his powers. (Scuffs) both of you. So why he's hiding from me and not come forward to face me?"
The rubble cracked beneath their feet as his aura intensified.
The cloaked man tilted his head under the hood, voice low and rough.
Cloaked man: "Too bad, false king. You deal with us instead. Our king's in hibernation. He doesn't have to waste his precious time on the likes of you, but since he's asleep… we are more than enough to handle you."
Megalodon rolled his shoulders, muscles grinding, aura steaming off his arms.
: "Fine. Then I have no choice but to kill the both of you and fix everything."
Cloaked man: "Sure. Try it… if you can."
Across the field Black Mentis cracked his shoulders, flexing his fingers, knuckles popping.
Black Mentis: "I'm not at my best yet… but I feel better than earlier. This will do."
A sharp snap of compressed air burst from where he stood—Mentis reappearing inches from Oblivion, boots grinding into the broken ground.
Oblivion: "(giggle) You think you can land a hand on me?!"
Oblivion swung left. Mentis twisted his head aside, the fist brushing past his cheek. A kick whipped toward his skull—Mentis ducked, sliding under it. He rammed his fist up into Oblivion's stomach, lifting him clean off the dirt. Before Oblivion could land, Mentis drove an uppercut into his jaw, snapping his head back.
Mentis spun mid-air and slammed his heel into Oblivion's neck.
CRACK.
Oblivion's body hit the ground head-first, his skull twisting sideways like something shoved into the dirt by force.
Black Mentis: "That should be it… now the other one."
((Thanks for reading this chapter, if you enjoyed it, please leave a comment, I could use suggestions, feedback or ideas. If you want to support me. Then I accept red stones or gifts etc… it keeps me motivated, plus with enough support your OC could appear in future arcs just dm their info))