"You will not leave here with your life, Reaper of Earth!" he growled, his voice seething with malice. His words were final, a declaration, but his silence spoke louder than anything. He had no intention of answering my questions.
In response, I expelled a massive wave of dark, poisonous fumes from the swirling cloud around me. The thick, black mist spread rapidly, covering a 100-meter radius in a heartbeat. There was no escaping it at this distance, and I knew the sudden onslaught would catch him off guard.
The fumes surrounded him, seeping into his bones. Armando staggered, disoriented for a moment before he swiftly spun his rods. He used them to create a powerful gust of wind that blew away the toxins. Once the air cleared, he pressed forward, relentless as ever. But something was different now. The explosive speed and force from earlier had diminished, and his attacks carried less weight.
Still, even in this weakened state, his fury was enough to push me back. His relentless assault was nearly overwhelming. I blended Aikido's flowing, redirectional techniques with the aggressive, close-quarter strikes of Wing Chun, all while instinctively adopting the defensive, weapon-based principles of Kali—each attack and counter was a testament to my 2 years of training. It was enough to prevent any life-threatening injuries, but the damage to my body was slowly stacking up.
The feeling of being cornered, of not being in control—it gnawed at me. The pain of my injuries paled in comparison to the suffocating frustration that consumed me. I hated this. I loathed it.
'This... this feeling...' I thought bitterly. 'Backed into a corner, helpless... weak.'
It was a familiar feeling. Bringing my thoughts back to that basement. It hurt, not because of the injuries accumulating around my body, but because of the humiliation it stirred. The last two years had dulled me, softened me. I thought I had ascended beyond all of this. I believed myself a deity, above all others.
'I'm supposed to be untouchable, am I not?' I thought. 'No one should be able to challenge me like this.'
A wave of Greed suddenly passed through me, but it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.
Reality had a cruel way of shattering delusions.
"I am no god." I clenched my fists, feeling the bitterness calm down.
I hated the weak little boy I used to be, trapped in that basement, powerless. I never wanted to feel like that again.
"I need to get stronger." The words repeated, echoing in my mind like a mantra, drowning out everything else.
As I was, I could not protect my self-interests. The only thing that mattered now was strength. Strength would have gotten me answers and wouldn't have allowed my shadow to be eliminated. Greed creeped in ever so slightly, as I drowned in regret.
Armando's strikes were sharp, precise, and without hesitation. There was no grandeur to his technique, no flair. Just brutal efficiency. He wasn't in it for the finesse of it—he was after my life, and he would not relent.
In a last-ditch effort, I summoned a storm of poisonous fumes once more. This time, the fumes were even thicker, darker. I drew every last bit of energy from my body. But Armando, ever vigilant, was ready. He used his mastery of purple lightning to create a barrier around him, protecting himself from the decaying effects of the fumes.
It didn't matter. My aim was not to kill or injure him; it was to obscure his vision. In that moment of confusion, I opened a gate with what little remained of my strength. I teleported, reappearing above the planet, where Lilith and Azrael were waiting.
"Take us back to Earth, NOW!" I urgently commanded the tailed Lilith. With Armando's speed, he could get to us within a second if he wished.
The tailed Lilith wasted no time, opening a gate beneath us. The next thing I knew, we were above the old family farm—the place that had long since fallen into ruin.
I crashed into the middle of a dead cornfield, my body screaming in exhaustion. My limbs felt heavy. I dragged myself toward the barn, moving sluggishly. Each step was a battle to stay conscious.
"Tailed Lilith... It's too dangerous out there. Retrieve the low-grade shadows that aren't on Earth... before another one gets destroyed." I struggled to speak, my voice barely above a rasp.
Azrael, ever loyal, stood by my side, supporting my weight as we trudged to the barn.
"I'll get on it," the tailed Lilith responded, but before leaving, she paused, casting a glance back at me and Azrael.
The pitiful look in her eyes spoke volumes. We were both in no shape to even be walking, as our wounds worsened. She opened a gate beneath us, and in the blink of an eye, we were on the cold, hard floor of the barn, missing the withering haystacks beside us. The place had long been abandoned. Azrael, still missing an arm, carefully laid me down atop the old hay.
"Couldn't she have been more accurate with where we landed?" I muttered before slipping into unconsciousness.
"That woman, to treat the master so poorly…truly a witch!" Azrael's words were tinged with annoyance. Still, he seemed to find some odd solace in his new role as caretaker.
Unbeknownst to us, the dark cloud slowly countered and adapted to Armando's lightning. After a while, Azrael's injury was no longer worsening, and his arm began to heal.
For the next six months, I remained lifeless, my body a mere shell, riddled with scorch marks, fractured bones, and burnt skin. The dark cloud around me never left—its presence the only indication that I wasn't dead.
*Six Months Later*
"Son of a..." I groaned, gripping my aching head. The pain felt like it would split me in two.
"Master! You have finally awoken!" Azrael's voice rang with excitement, but I could barely make sense of his words.
"Aaah! Stop shouting. My head is spinning," I grumbled. The tailed Lilith suddenly appeared, rolling her eyes at my condition.
"Oh, you're awake? It's about time," she said unenthusiastically.
"Tell me what happened... and please don't shout," I managed to say.
"Lilith has been deeply concerned about you, only leaving your side when absolutely necessary. She took it upon herself to explain your absence to Anna and the company, and she's been managing your other business affairs as well. Not to mention, she also…" Azrael began to explain, but was swiftly cut off when the tailed Lilith's furry tail lashed out, swatting him sharply across the back of his head.
"No one asked that!" she snapped, earning a sharp look from Azrael.
"As you can see, she is still a witch," Azrael muttered, only to be smacked again.
It seemed like some things had changed—Azrael, once the stoic enforcer, was now a punching bag.
"So, where are we now?" I asked the tailed Lilith, trying to push past the haze clouding my thoughts.
"One of the safehouses in New York," she answered.
"How long have I been asleep?" I asked.
"Almost six months," she replied sharply.
"Only six?" I chuckled, though it sounded dry. "I imagined it would take longer... given the state I was in."
"It would have, I suppose, but something unexpected happened." Her tone shifted.
"What happened this time?" I asked, my voice hoarse but steady.
And so, she explained.
After I had lost consciousness, she had gone to retrieve the low-grade shadows. When they returned to the barn, they stood outside like lifeless statues. Only Azrael could command them, and even the tailed Lilith couldn't control their actions.
Eventually, the tailed Lilith took me to the safehouse, and the shadows followed. They didn't do anything else within this time other than wait.
A week later, something strange occurred. One by one, the shadows began to move, each walking into the safehouse, placing their hands on my chest before turning into a cloud. Using their essence, my wounds began to slowly heal.
"They sacrificed their lives…" I murmured, piecing it together. "That is quite strange. They went from not moving at all to suddenly making this decision on their own?"
"It gets stranger... I sensed Theós' presence within them. It was faint, but unmistakable," Lilith's voice dropped to a near whisper.
"What kind of game is Theós playing?" I growled. "He can even control my shadows now? I don't understand. What advantage does he have by doing this?"
"Come on, we are heading down the narrow path," I said, getting up, my resolve hardening. "I need to see how I fare against Theós now."
I opened a gate and stepped through, with the tailed Lilith and Azrael following closely behind.
We then appeared at an intersection, where two roads split—one wide, the other narrow.
"Wait here," I commanded, turning to Azrael. The tailed Lilith would never follow me down this path, so I didn't worry for her. I then walked toward the narrow road, my pace steady at first.
'Last time, I could barely take fifty steps before Theós' power restricted my movements. Surely my resistance has improved since then,' I thought, pressing forward.
The thirtieth step...
The fortieth step...
The fiftieth step...
The pressure became more unbearable with every passing moment. Each step felt heavier, as if the very space was pushing back against me. I pushed my body to its limit as I made the fifty-first step. My body screamed in pain, suffocating under the weight of the invisible force crushing me.
"Impossible... one step! After all this time, just one bloody step!" I struggled to mutter, gritting my teeth in frustration. I began to retreat, the pressure easing slightly as I moved back toward the intersection.
'What have I been doing all this time? I thought I was growing stronger. I even thought nothing but Theos could harm me. All I've managed to show for these past 2 years is a single step! I've become too comfortable. My plans have taken a backseat to my complacency...!' I thought bitterly, walking toward the tailed Lilith and Azrael.
"I've delayed my plans long enough," I said, my voice steady. "I need to grow stronger to defeat this new reaper. There are likely others out there, and we have no idea how powerful they might be. It's time I focused on increasing my strength. Phase three begins now!"