"Prepare to die." Zeke rolled up his sleeves and punched Rufus so hard he was lifted off the ground. He fell heavily from the air and landed with a dull thud. Rufus vomited blood and struggled to regain feeling in his legs, but he could not stand up again.
"What about Jessop Clifton?" came Orion's voice, narrowing his eyes as he stared down at Rufus.
Rufus only looked at Zeke, extreme hatred in his eyes. They glared at each other coldly, each desperate to destroy the other.
"Commander, why are you wasting time talking nonsense with this man? Just kill him! Wherever Jessop is hiding, we'll find him. He won't be able to escape us." Jax stepped forward, poised and ready to kill.
"It would be too easy to just kill him. I want him to suffer," Zeke said.
He stretched out a finger and gently touched the top of Rufus's head. Beads of cold sweat rolled down Rufus's face, and he clenched his teeth.
Suddenly he felt as if thousands of insects were biting him all over his body. The itching and pain continued for a while. In some ways, it was worse than death.
"Just kill me," Rufus gasped. His face was twisted in pain, and he could hardly breathe.
"You think it's up to you?" The priests laughed.
Suddenly, a loud noise rang through the hall. The gate opened, and then Jessop and Alex quickly entered.
"What's happening here? " Jessop was extremely frightened. He could no longer keep calm. He ran around the hall, looking at one side, then the other. The bodies of his family were spread everywhere, some unconscious, others moaning lowly as they tried to pick themselves up. It was terrible.
"No, please no." Jessop's voice was hoarse and his eyes were closed, shutting out the horrible scene. "Will my family survive?"
The Clifton family had been strong for many generations. He was overcome with shock and grief at the sight of their home being invaded in this way. Just as he was about to faint, Alex grabbed his arm, stopping him from collapsing.
"No," Alex whispered firmly. "You can't fall."
Feeling a powerful force flow into his body, Jessop stood tall. He looked at his family, heart-clenching as he saw a group huddled in a corner, crying. Then he turned to the priests. His voice was sad but indignant. "You'll pay for what you've done!"
"Jessop Clifton, you've finally arrived. I'm sorry, but you'll have to die now." Zeke smiled evilly. "This is what happens when you are unfaithful to the gods, understand?"
Jessop laughed, a knowing smile stretching across his face as he held up the white, round Phoenix stone from the family vault. As soon as the stone was raised, a faint light came out of it. A halo of light surrounded the stone, and as the light grew stronger, another glow across the room grew to match it. This new glow emanated from Debbie, radiating through her skin like a beacon. The pair of lights grew brighter and brighter until finally, the halo surrounding the stone dissipated, breaking off into spots like starlight.
Watching all this occur made the priests shiver. They couldn't believe what they had witnessed. "The phoenix has verified the identity of the saint," they murmured. "There's no doubt that she's the chosen one. The time has come after all."
Jessop sighed with great sadness and anger. "How can you hurt innocent people?" he asked, but he was ignored. The priests had been given their sign. Now they could get rid of the Clifton family.
"It's time to finish this." Zeke quickly gathered himself and focused on Jessop. He leapt into the air, his body seeming to soar, and he stretched his arm out, reaching for Jessop's throat.
Jessop knew that the Black Orchid fighters were powerful and well-trained. He closed his eyes, preparing himself for his imminent death. Therefore, he did not see the sudden flash of light, or that Alex had sprinted forward and pushed the priest away.
There were loud claps of thunder and a roaring sound. The wind blew violently and covered the ceiling in dark clouds. The priest stumbled backwards from the force of Alex's push, rolling several feet away before he regained his footing. Alex, however, remained firm and unmoved.
"What's this?" the old priest exclaimed. He looked at Alex, stone-faced, his heart full of anger. Jessop hadn't come to the meeting alone, and he had brought an expert fighter with him. Even so, Jessop had miscalculated. Even with this fighter, they were four priests, and they were all invincible. Jessop had made a careless mistake.
"You'll pay for what you've done." Alex repeated Jessop's word, his voice was cold. He stood in a fighting stance, his hands stretched out and his face contorted with rage. His razor-sharp eyes focused on the priest and started to glow.
The light glowed like stars in the night sky and gave the Clifton family courage. Those who were huddled in the corner weeping, turned their heads and dried their tears, looking hopefully at Alex.
"Alex, be careful!" Jessop's eyebrows were raised, furrowed in fear and worry.
One of his grandsons approached him, frightened and pale. "Grandfather, let's take advantage of this distraction and get out of—"
"Shut up!" Jessop was furious. They couldn't abandon their friends and family at a time like this!
"Is that the best you can do?" Alex taunted Zeke.
"Let's fight then," the priest growled. He had forgotten about everyone else and was solely focused on Alex. He felt an unbridled rage at Alex's disrespect.
His sentiments were shared by the other three priests, as they all felt that they had been greatly insulted. They were famous all through Canada for their skill. But they were also impulsive and careless. Alex knew that if he implied that their martial arts weren't good, he could take advantage of their recklessness and defeat them.
Without hesitation, the priest jumped and extended his fists, pouncing at Alex like a fierce tiger in pursuit of its prey. His black clothes billowed and whipped in the air as he punched, the momentum of his fists pushing gusts of wind toward Alex's head. Using all of his power, the priest relentlessly attacked. Even his fists sparked as he moved. He had mastered the art of destroying his enemies and intended to crush Alex like a bug in one quick move.
His boxing was fast as lightning and he managed to push Alex back, but Alex had no intention of giving up. He lifted his fists, ready to fight his opponent again.
Alex grabbed Zeke's hand, and the hall began to shake as if it was being hit by an earthquake.
"You dare grab me, young man? Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Zeke raised his other arm as if preparing to strike.
The ground shook under their feet, the ceiling lamps swinging and flickering. Smoke and dust rose off the ground and surfaces, spreading everywhere.
"Mr. Alex!" the crowd yelled. Everyone was worried, unable to see what was happening through the dust and smoke. Will Alex be able to defeat Zeke? They feared.
The smoke and dust-covered Alex so much that they could hardly make out his figure. As it slowly dispersed, he became more and more prominent, to Jessop's dismay. Alex now stood several heads shorter than his attacker, almost as if his legs had been cut off.
Jessop dropped his head, tears threatening to fall when Alex spoke out.
"Don't think too highly of yourself!" his voice rang through, clear and penetrating through the fog, silence, and cold.
"How can this be?" Jessop watched, stunned, as Alex wiped the blood from his face.
As the smoke and dust settled again, Jessop could make out what had happened and saw that he had been wrong. Alex was not injured at all. In reality, he was standing in a deep pit, looking up at the priest. Zeke stood above him, bleeding and holding his stomach with his hands.
Alex had managed to turn the force of Zeke's attack on him. Although it had pushed him to the ground, Zeke was the only one who had been hurt by the attack.