The skultar charged at Kenny at full momentum, resembling a truck approaching at full speed. Kenny thought of ways to save his soul, but could think of none. However, he was not ready to give up yet.
"Roar!" The enemy crashed with the relatively twig-like body of Kenny and departed into the magma, as he could not control his momentum.
It felt certain that Kenny had perished in the molten liquid, but there was a twist in the story.
"I will not die so easily, you monster!" Kenny groaned as he clung to the skultar's trunk, preventing himself from falling into the magma which remained just a few inches below him. He saw the submerged feet of the skultar and wondered why the magma was not eating his flesh. "Just what are you made of?"
"Roar!" the enemy roared and grabbed Kenny's body, and pulled it away from his own. He was about to pitch him into the magma.
"Oh, wait, wait! Let me tell you something!" As Kenny felt death imminent, he struggled to free himself from the clutches of the enemy. "What the hell?" He could look at himself nearing the molten liquid.
"Is it the end?" he wondered. "No! Fart engine!" He used the momentum generated with his fart and kicked the enemy's face.
Just when the grip of his fingers loosened a bit, Kenny slipped away from his clutches. He leaped over his shoulder and hopped away. He landed on the open ground again while the enemy was still inside that molten hot liquid.
"My attacks do not have much effect on him. I have to think of a way to drag this fight as longer I can," Kenny thought. "It was good that my digestive system produced some wind for the time of crisis, but I do not know if it will work for long." He put pressure on his belly to check if he could exploit his ability during the fight much, and he found the result to be negative. "I knew it. I have to figure out other ways to engage him."
The skultar emerged out of the liquid, exposing his burnt skin to the air. It seemed there was some damage when it looked like there was not.
Kenny looked at the burnt skin and wondered if he could feel pain. He looked at the collar of the enemy and suspected if it was the reason for such insensitivity to pain. "Is that thing around his neck making him numb to pain?"
"Roar!" the skultar roared and charged at Kenny again.
Just when the enemy reached at him, he crouched and got away, dodging the full-body attack. "That was close," he reacted when he could see the enemy bracing himself for another attack.
But before the enemy could do much, Kenny jumped on his back and clambered up on his shoulders. The enemy reached to him with his hands and slammed him to the ground at his front.
Kenny coughed blood as it caused significant damage to his body. He could move no longer.
"Roar!" the enemy roared and raised his fist to pound him to death.
Kenny gave a disturbed smile, as he could see his end approaching while he spread flat on his back. "You would kill me, huh?"
The skultar unleashed his fist towards Kenny. It looked like it was the end. Cosant and Tangent too arrived at the scene through the elevator carrying bazookas and other weapons to bring the monster in control after it was over.
Tangent wanted to help Kenny before the enemy could hurt him. He aimed his large shock gun towards the skultar and was about to pull the trigger, but Cosant stopped him.
"Wait, it is not required," he said.
"Huh?" Tangent looked at the open ground and discovered the enemy's fist had halted midway, just an inch above Kenny's face.
"Hehehe, now you are free," said Kenny, his hand holding the detached collar which the enemy wore around his neck.
"Wait, he has undone the mind-distorting collar from the skultar," said Tangent in surprise. "We will need to restrain him."
"We will do it, but he is incapable of fighting anymore," responded Cosant, watching the skultar.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, the skultar cried out his lungs. "Waaaaa…" He grabbed his legs and dropped down, screaming in pain. "It hurts!" he screamed. "Damn you, f**ing terrorists!"
It seemed like he had regained his senses.
Kenny somehow mustered up his strength and stood up, struggling. He studied the mechanical collar in his hand. "I knew this had something to do with his senses being numb. I guess I was right."
"He is back to his senses. Just what does that collar do?" asked Tangent, as he recorded the scene in front of him.
"I am not sure, but I had once asked Pupu about it," replied Cosant. "She told that the collar is meant to suppress the rational faculties of a person, humans and skultars alike. It even numbs once's senses to any emotion, leaving only the beastly urges dominating. I guess this collar is the updated version, as I have not seen the model before."
"I see."
"I will kill you!" cried the skultar as he rose on his feet and was about to assault Kenny.
Tangent pulled the trigger of his shock gun as an intervention. The enemy received a sudden electric shock in his body, making his muscles temporarily dysfunctional. He got stunned and dropped to the ground. "Damn… you…" he hissed, gritting his teeth.
Cosant and Tangent reached the skultar. They made him sit up and shackled his hands behind the back.
"Have I passed?" asked Kenny when he wondered if his test was over.
"Not yet," responded Cosant, reaching to Kenny. He presented a dagger to him. "Take his life and you will succeed in proving your determination."
"What? But you have already restrained him." Kenny hesitated to kill the person, as he could see the enemy could no longer fight and hurt anyone.
Cosant frowned at his words. "Have you forgotten how he had put Marya at risk and nearly killed you?" He put pressure on Kenny to execute the bloodshed.
One could see the dilemma on the face of Kenny. "But…" He took the dagger unwillingly. "I…" He walked to the skultar and looked down at his face with an unsettled expression.
"Come on. Finish me, brat," spoke the skultar. "Do not pity me. I have killed a lot more people than you think. I am your enemy."
Kenny raised his dagger.
"But remember this," added the skultar, "the empire will find you and finish you if you fail to build your strength in time."
Tangent found it strange, as if the enemy gave cues of him being not a part of the empire. He felt the manners of his behavior odd.
"Do not worry about us," commented Cosant. "Your empire will fall soon." He prompted Kenny, "Come on. Finish him."
Kenny struck down his dagger towards the heart of the enemy. The skultar closed his eyes, anticipating his death, but he found it odd when the dagger did not touch him. He opened his eyes and discovered the dagger frozen just an inch above his chest.
"I refuse to kill him," declared Kenny.
"What the hell are you doing?" rebuked Cosant with a frown. "Do you not want to become a part of us?"
"He did not kill me when he had the chance," Kenny replied. "I want to give him a chance."
"Stop messing with me!" cried the skultar when he heard it. "Just kill me and get over with it! I told you I am a killer! Kill me!" He struggled while he kept shouting.
Suddenly, something startling happened.
"I will gladly fulfill your wish…"
Suddenly, Tangent perceived someone behind his back and pushed himself away reflexively.
"Kenny!" Cosant pushed Kenny away to save him from the blade that emerged out of the chest of the skultar. Kenny was in the proximity of the blade, and he would have got stabbed if Cosant had not acted in time.
"What?" Kenny was shocked at the scene.
The skultar coughed blood after the blade was pulled out of his back.
"No," Kenny reacted in despair.
"You… How did you get here?" demanded Cosant as the person who had erupted out of nowhere was none other than Scribble Mask, whom they had fought earlier.
The large skultar he had stabbed dropped on his face. Blood gushed out of his chest enormously.
"I will tell your decapitated heads," answered the masked man. He glanced at the three. "It looks like I will have fun."