The battle became explosively difficult. The Demon of Frenzy wielded flame and ice as if they were his very limbs and fought with mastery over mind and body.
"Dodge!" [Ryse]
Askyros bent down in order to evade a bolt of lightning Ryse had thrown from behind. Unfortunately, their opponent anticipated it and side stepped it.
"How shocking!" [Demon of Frenzy]
Askyros was engaged in close combat, his hairs becoming singed by the heat and his armor freezing from contact.
"Minde Val! Slow!" [Tida]
The Demon of Frenzy felt his body slow down, but it was deemed insignificant.
"You like to play games? Let's play!" [Demon of Frenzy]
Raising a hand, embers started to form at Tida's feet.
"Huh?" [Tida]
"Move!" [Ryse]
Running towards her, Ryse tackled Tida before flames erupted where she once stood.
"Agh!" [Ryse]
Though he managed to save his comrade, his left leg was hit.
"Ryse! I'll heal you!" [Tida]
Witnessing what happened from the corner of Askyros' eye, he felt rage.
"You've done far enough." [Askyros]
He swung his sword with enough strength to make the wind itself sharp. Askyros swang and swung, until the dirt he stood on was minced into fine grain. However, the Demon of Frenzy was able to flawlessly evade it.
"You've got some power packed into those arms! Too bad you're too slow! Speaking of which…" [Demon of Frenzy]
He waved a wall of flame at Askyros, then vanished like a magic trick when it faded. Askyros quickly glanced around, but his opponent was nowhere to be found.
"Over here~." [Demon of Frenzy]
Calling from behind, Askyros turned to see hands wrapped around Ryse and Tida's necks.
"You despicable…!" [Askyros]
"Tsk tsk tsk. One step from there and your friends will turn into a piece of charcoal and an ice statue." [Demon of Frenzy]
As if to prove it, embers started to dance on Ryse's clothes while frost accumulated on Tida.
"...What do you want?" [Askyros]
The Demon of Frenzy tilted his head.
"That's a good question. What exactly do I want?" [Demon of Frenzy]
Askyros gripped his sword with anxiety. He had never come across an opponent as unpredictable as this.
"Ah, I know." [Demon of Frenzy]
He smiled a sinister smile.
"Maybe I just want to piss you off~" [Demon of Frenzy]
The embers and ice started to form quickly.
"Say goodbye to your friends." [Demon of Frenzy]
Having said that, Askyros moved faster than ever before. So fast that his opponent couldn't react as a sword pierced his chest.
"Begone, you monster." [Askyros]
The momentum built up allowed Askyros to take the Demon of Frenzy far with him, keeping his friends far from danger.
"Urgh…!" [Demon of Frenzy]
He gripped the sword as they moved, blood gushing out of the wound.
"Achos Xisi, Risen Stone!" [Askyros]
A stone rose before him, allowing him to ram the Demon of Frenzy into it.
"Ack!" [Demon of Frenzy]
Askyros then pushed the blade deep into his opponent, pinning him into the wall. Askyros then released his blade and began pummeling the boy with enough force to shake the ground.
"Ha… Haha…!" [Demon of Frenzy]
Even when getting beaten, he still laughed. Askyros was striking with enough force to tear limbs off, yet all he heard was the boy's haunting laughter.
"Is this it?! How much rage do you have?!" [Demon of Frenzy]
His body lit aflame, regenerating the injuries he accumulated. Is what would normally happen if Askyros didn't continue to batter him. The injuries remained, maintaining a balance between the damage and regeneration.
"Today, you will learn what it means to harm those I hold dear." [Askyros]
The Demon of Frenzy attempted to fight back. He erupted in flames, thinking that would make Askyros back off.
"..." [Askyros]
The flames were surprisingly hot. Hot enough to make even the lava during his duel against Nikal seem cold.
"...Huh?" [Demon of Frenzy]
His eyes widened as he saw Askyros' veins shine blue.
"What… is that…?" [Demon of Frenzy]
Within the burning heat that seemed to start melting the earth around them, Askyros adapted within mere moments.
"How about this?" [Demon of Frenzy]
The flames changed to cold winds. It was such a low temperature that the melted earth hardened.
"...That's amusing." [Demon of Frenzy]
Once again, the lighting of Askyros' veins helped him adjust.
"Try as you might. There is nothing you can do before me." [Askyros]
"Agh!" [Demon of Frenzy]
He then wound up his arm and struck with enough force to shatter the earthen wall he made.
"Not enough." [Askyros]
As the boy fell, Askyros retrieved his sword and raised it. He then took a familiar position where everything seemed to slow down.
"Unyielding will." [Askyros]
Cutting slowly, but blindingly fast. His technique bisected the Demon of Frenzy, leaving a lasting trail in the earth.
"..." [Askyros]
He stared at the unmoving body.
"..." [Askyros]
A few seconds passed.
"..." [Askyros]
There appeared to be no signs of movement of regeneration, so he sheathed his sword.
"You thought you killed me, didn't you?" [Demon of Frenzy]
The split body somehow stood on its own, quickly regenerating without flame.
"I must say, that gave me a "splitting" headache. Get it?" [Demon of Frenzy]
Askyros quickly drew his sword and adopted a defensive stance.
"Did you get everything out of your system?" [Demon of Frenzy]
"..." [Askyros]
"Not a talker, eh?" [Demon of Frenzy]
Askyros remained silent. Speaking with this lunatic was akin to letting your guard down.
"...That's boring." [Demon of Frenzy]
The Demon of Frenzy inhaled deeply, causing his veins to shine blue.
"You…!" [Askyros]
For the first time in a very long time, Askyros was in disbelief.
"I wanted to try copying what you did earlier… but it seems flawed." [Demon of Frenzy]
He then shrugged.
"Oh well. I'll just have to fix it myself later. How about we continue?" [Demon of Frenzy]