It took me a few moments to take in what Mark had said. Why was he in the middle of a clash with the deadly Trikallous whispering to me, "Victory to the DELTAs!" That too with a smile!
By the time, I could relate to it as Lily's last few words, Mark had already turned his head. The monster had his mouth wide open, about to eat Mark. Astonishing it was, when I saw Mark obliging and jumping into the mouth of the creature.
'No!" I yelled but it was too late. Trikallous had large fangs and I should have brought the pieces together. But immediately. I heard a large roar from inside the creature's mouth. Mark used his grappling hook and tore through Trikallous's face!! That was one of the deadliest (maybe even gross) things I had ever seen. The monster grabbed hold of Mark as he tore through. But the DELTA used Porticallius, his crossbow and shot on the monster's eye. Again, holding Quester in his hand, he kept tearing through every part of the creature.
Even as he did so, I could see that the fangs of Trikallous had penetrated Mark. There was a large hole in his stomach and right shoulder. It was common sense that Amanda would not be able to heal the wounds. At last, Mark thrust the grappling hook into the chest of the creature. Trikallous fell dead. But along with him, Mark too landed on a boulder nearby. Everyone except me rushed to him. They made him sit up with head resting on the rock.
I had no words to speak. Everyone was silent including the monsters who stopped attacking us. But Mark still had a happy smile on his face – a smile of satisfaction. He seemed to be wanting to tell, "Make this one count!" He closed his eyes and all the DELTAs stood up. Mark passed away.
It took me a few moments to process all that had happened. A few weeks ago, Lily, one of the best DELTAs sacrificed her life to buy us time to flee and to kill Raptor. I was present right in front of her yet didn't help her. The guilt used to haunt me sometimes during the night; so much so that I used to dream about that particular scene and wake up, sweating. But now, Mark, another one of the DELTAs sacrificed his life; this time not to help us in fleeing, but to buy me some time to lift the battle-axe. When I look back at it, he died for such a small cause. But he killed the legendary Trikallous, one of our greatest threats. It almost felt like people died to make me feel bad.
My hands were shivering as the other DELTAs looked at me. Everyone was in tears. When I finally came to the realization that my dear friend had sacrificed his life, the first tear showed on my eye. The tear immediately fell on my hand which was grabbing Magnum who was fixed inside the ground. That tear moved my hand and I came back to life and out of silence. I started hearing the war cries again. The DELTAs started fighting the monsters again. I heard Wade firing bullets on the creatures riding the Vehemonts. I saw from the corner of my eyes, Master Polwern magically gliding in the air and defeating foes by just his esoteric powers. I saw large crocodiles and deadly gorillas – some of the units in Phantom's army – slaughtering the opponents. I watched as the warship resumed its merciless firing.
The war had to continue. Everyone had resumed their duties. I kept thinking of the last few words of Mark as well as Lily, "Victory to the DELTAs!" I couldn't take it. The guilt, fear, nervousness, bravery, skills, strength, hatred, anger and the desire for victory – all these feelings burst out! I couldn't stop them anymore from pouring out. I roared like no other monster; I screamed war cries like the bravest person; I held the battle-axe like the most confident warrior; and I pulled out Magnum from his bondage.
People around me noticed this change in me and stopped. I roared and held the battle-axe high up with one hand. More warriors stopped fighting and gazed at this phenomenon. I didn't care. I held up the battle-axe and yelling at the top of my voice. I was blinded by the radiant light coming from Magnum. By then, every single warrior – ally and foe – had their eyes on me in awe. Wade looked at me from a distance and showed a sign of disbelief. Master Polwern had wide eyes as he looked at me. Adonis, who was quite near me, noticed and smiled.
He told himself, "I knew the weapon had great potential. At last! Magnum's final stage!!"