Upon hearing the man was X-44, the subject name from a lab he visited back when he helped Yao and Tao regaining their memories.
Yet Akira knew he could not afford to lose himself in empathy. His gaze hardened, his posture solidifying as he prepared for the battle to come.
"You might as well give up," taunted Makia, an arrogant smirk playing across his face. "Your efforts will be in vains. But by all means... if you're so adamant to play the hero, why don't we see how you fight against your friends?" The malicious glint in his eyes was practically gleeful.
The sight that met Akira's eyes was chilling. His allies, the Raishoun Gang, were in a state of grotesque transformation, their bodies enveloped in a pulsating mass of flesh. Yet their faces remained unmarred, their lifeless eyes glaring at Akira with a murderous intent that sent chills down his spine.
"If you don't want to be a monster then don't be one!" Akira shot back, his voice echoing in the eerie silence.
"It's too late for me," Makia retorted, his voice cold and devoid of any human warmth. "Abandoned by those I trusted, I've been left alone by those closest to me. But I won't be the only one to suffer. I'll turn everyone into the monster that I've become!" With a chilling command, he ordered his brainwashed pawns to attack.
Akira moved with blinding speed, attempting to take down his friends without seriously injuring them. But this proved more challenging than he anticipated, as they still wielded their unique abilities in their brainwashed state.
Gakuto activated his vibration power, shaking the ground beneath them and throwing Akira off balance. Horka launched a direct attack, forming deadly, spiked tendrils from his wax magic. Akira retaliated with his blood slash, but Lilith was quick to counter, her bubble gum magic deflecting the attack and nearly catching Akira off guard.
The fiery onslaught of Kazuya's Fire Manipulation came next, a blistering wave of flames that Akira barely managed to evade. But before he could regain his footing, Yeru appeared behind him, his Space Magic primed to decapitate Akira. Reacting in the nick of time, Akira dodged the attack and sent Yeru sprawling with a swift kick.
As Akira touched the ground, he noticed something. Makia hadn't just seized control of their movements - he'd invaded their minds, manipulating their neurons and memories to transform them into his personal army of undead soldiers.
But they were weaker, their instincts dulled by Makia's control. Seizing this opportunity, Akira surged forward, invoking his Vampire skill to counteract the brainwashing.
The Vampire skill had a versatility, allowing Akira to draw their blood while simultaneously controlling theirs. It could paralyze, but it could also alter the very essence of someone's blood. Akira remembered reading about this: Blood Manipulation, also known as Puppet Mastery.
With a swift infusion of his blood into their brains, Akira was able to halt the brainwashing process. His friends remained unconscious, but at least they were no longer puppets under Makia's control. However, Akira knew he couldn't afford to waste more time freeing them just yet. The real enemy was Makia, and he had to be stopped first.
As Akira charged, Makia retaliated with tendrils of flesh, forcing Akira to dart and weave through the deadly onslaught. Makia's fury was palpable, the air charged with his malevolent energy as he fashioned a mace from his own flesh and laid waste to the area.
Undeterred, Akira countered, launching a relentless barrage of his blood slashes as he maneuvered around the battlefield. His attacks came from all directions, causing Makia to wrap his flesh around himself defensively, constructing a massive cocoon.
But Akira had no intention of letting him hide.
[Blood Magic: Giganta Blood Blade]
With a mighty slash, he rent the flesh cocoon apart, leaving Makia exposed. Seizing the opportunity, Akira lunged forward, sending a massive blood slash hurtling towards his foe. Caught off guard, Makia was forced to evacuate his cocoon, tumbling to the ground below. Akira followed in hot pursuit, landing next to his fallen adversary.
"Had enough?" Akira towered over him, his voice laced with defiance.
Makia, even in his humanoid form, was a pitiful sight. His body was skeletal, as though he'd been starved for ages. His limbs were so thin that he could barely stand, let alone fight.
"You will pay," Makia hissed, his fingers clawing at his face until blood streamed down his skin. The ground started to tremble, and Makia's voice took on an unholy timbre as his eyes began to bleed.
Suddenly, he merged with the flesh strewn about the area. His mana levels spiked dramatically, his power was on the roof. It was the accumulation of eight months of preparation.
"Eight months... I've been in this place for eight months, finally reaching the ultimate level to consume all the mana in the world! Now, you're powerless to stop me! I am invincible!" Makia roared, his form swelling into something even more monstrous. His frame grew massive, his presence more intimidating than ever. He was no longer a man, but a titan of terror.
In the face of an adversary far more formidable, Akira held his ground, unflinching and resilient.
He perceived the freedom of his allies, yet the lingering effects of the toxin held them captive within their unconscious state. Unbeknownst to Makia himself, he had tasted defeat.
Gripping his scythe with a resolve forged in the crucible of battle, Akira locked his gaze on Makia, the harbinger of chaos on the brink of unleashing havoc. He strategically retreated, enticing the raging Makia to pursue him. The beast's sheer magnitude caused the very ground to tremble under his weight as he lumbered forward, more ferocious than ever.
Makia unleashed a violent flurry of blows, with each fist bearing the weight and size of a boulder tenfold that of Akira. His onslaught was relentless, yet Akira nimbly evaded the devastating blow.
In mid-air, Makia's back sprouted tendrils, striking out like vipers to seize Akira. However, Akira's agility allowed him to dodge with an ease that belied the peril of his situation. Makia's fatal flaw was his inability to control his raw emotion, rendering his movements predictable.
Akira found himself pinned to a wall as Makia, driven by a bloodlust, clambered up it with the intent to kill. Makia's wild rampage posed a challenge to Akira, yet he maneuvered with precision, putting distance between the beast and his incapacitated allies. Makia's relentless assault was met with Akira's equally relentless evasion.
"What's the matter? Scared?" Makia taunted, his attacks unabated, mistaking Akira's evasion for cowardice.
With a smirk, Akira found himself cornered, Makia's massive form bearing down on him. A powerful strike threatened to reduce their surroundings to rubble, but when the dust settled, Akira was nowhere in sight. The nimble warrior had outsmarted the brute, reappearing behind him.
"All that bulk and no speed. You're slower than a your grandmother," Akira retorted, his tone dripping with mockery.
Makia's frustration was palpable as he whirled around in response to Akira's taunt.
"So you think you're all swift and agile!? Unfortunately for you, this could go on indefinitely! Keep dodging all you want, but one successful hit from me, and it's your end!" Makia snarled, his voice echoing menacingly in the air.
"Try your best. I'll bet you a million Gols if you can kill me." Akira approached closer to Makia following with a serious stare.
Makia, on the other hand, slowly backed away.