Chereads / The War for the Realms / Chapter 10 - Ch. 10 The Maze

Chapter 10 - Ch. 10 The Maze

As the group enters the maze, the walls echo with the screams of the damned souls forever trapped within its winding corridors. Many foolish adventurers have wandered into this very maze, only to never be seen again. The air is thick with dread and the weight of countless lost souls. Adonis speaks in a quiet tone, his voice barely above a whisper. "I've heard stories of a tribe of hominoid creatures that use this maze as a rite of passage to becoming a man. They don't travel to the center but to a place they call 'the Branch.' It's said to be the only visible link to the Realm Tree, though I think it's just a root from one of the trees growing in the dark realm."

Nyx, matching Adonis' hushed tone, inquires, "How do you know so much about this place? You said you've never been here." Adonis glances over at her, his eyes betraying a flicker of mystery. "Do you know who the Watchers are?" he asks. Nyx replies with a hint of fear in her voice, "Y-yeah, I know who they are." Adonis smiles, a faint, knowing grin. "I was part of their organization for a long time before I got the name 'the man who fought God.' We traveled to many realms, but never this one. However, they spoke of it from when the war first started—a powerful being known as the Final Protector emerged from the deepest layer to state a prophecy to the warring armies. It spoke of a man who would bring balance, with immense destruction following him. He would be a villain to many but a hero to all. His words were confusing to them—for how could he be a villain and a hero to the same people?"

Nyx, now more confused, simply nods her head, deciding to continue their journey through the maze. Suddenly, Atlas stops, hearing a loud crash behind them. "A-a wall? Where did it come from?" Atlas asks, puzzled. The rest of the group, except Adonis and Athena, turn in horror as they realize they are trapped until they find an exit. Loud crashes fill the air as corridors slam shut all around them. In the darkness, Tana's flame barely gives enough light to see ahead, but Athena, in a shaking voice, calls out, "A-Adonis, what's that thing?"

The group freezes, hiding behind Adonis and Atlas. Adonis, hesitant to reveal his power, reluctantly creates a large pillar of fire to illuminate what lies ahead. As the fire rises, Tana is stunned by how powerful Adonis is. She questions, "Nyx, was he always this powerful?" Nyx, just as stunned, replies, "N-no… Well, he was powerful, but he was never able to control it like this when I last saw him." As the light reaches the creature, the group falls silent at the sight before them—a terrifying, mangled creature, its limbs cracking as it tries to stand like a human. Its features are elongated, its face sagging, and its arms drag on the ground. The creature's flesh tears as it tries to walk toward them, its hellish shrieks ringing out, causing everyone but Adonis to clutch their ears in pain.

Adonis stands tall, drawing his sword, then charges as the creature transforms, revealing its true form—a hellish wendigo. Adonis grins, saying, "A wendigo? Fascinating. Let's see which is stronger—the creature against God, or the man who fought Him." The two clash. The wendigo is fast, but not strong enough to break Adonis' guard. As quickly as they clash, it's over. With a swift kick, Adonis decapitates the creature. Its corpse thuds to the ground and bursts into green flame. The odor of burning, rotten flesh fills the air as the creature turns to ash.

Tana, interrupting, asks, "What the hell was that? The pillar of fire, the speed, the ability to kill an unkillable creature with a single kick—what the hell are you?" Nyx, angered by Tana's words, moves to speak but is cut off by Adonis. "I am the son of a celestial, brother to the Dark Emperor Odroduc. I am the man who fought God. I am Adonis Nox. Why do you think I would be weak?" Tana, caught off guard, stumbles over her words. "S-sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I was just stunned by your power." Adonis grins. "It's fine. The way you said, 'What the hell are you?' reminded me of an incident from my childhood."

Suddenly, a loud crash is heard close by. Symbols on the floor begin to glow. "RUN!" Adonis shouts. "THIS CORRIDOR IS CHANGING!" The walls begin to close in, and the group starts running. Just as they clear the area, the wall slams shut. "What the hell? I didn't think it would be that fast," Echene says, out of breath. "We need to keep moving. It's too dangerous to stand in one place for long," Adonis commands sternly.

After they move forward, they don't encounter any more creatures as they explore deeper into the maze. Eventually, they come upon a large doorway that opens into a vast chamber with a massive pillar in the middle, similar to those in the Lost Realm. Adonis speaks in a calm voice, "The top of that pillar is where the Dark Stone is held—at least, that's what the legends say." Just then, a loud, booming voice rings out, "YOU DARE RETURN… NOX."

The group looks confused. Nyx asks, "You've been here?" Adonis, with a psychopathic smile as he draws his twin swords, yells out, "I THOUGHT YOU WERE KILLED… Tēva Valstība!" Atlas mumbles, "F-Father Realm… he's real?" The group takes cover behind the walls of the opening as Adonis and the Father Realm begin to battle, their strength causing the maze to collapse. Rubble falls around them. Nyx shouts for everyone to run through the last corridor to the exit. As they run, the battle falls silent, then the ground shakes with violent force, causing Athena to trip.

The rest of the group is almost out when they see the ground glow beneath her as she's caught in the middle. Just as the wall slams toward her, a black blur flashes next to her, catching the enormous wall before it crushes her. The figure is clad in dark armor with spines coating its back, a mane of jet-black fur surrounding the helmet like a Native American headdress. Two horns spiral from each side of the helmet and curl around the edges. The figure speaks, his voice distorted, "Are you alright, Athena?"

Athena looks up, confused by how this figure knows her name, then she notices a familiar aura. "Adonis… i-is that you?" she asks sheepishly. The helmet on the figure vanishes in a flash of fire, revealing Adonis. Nyx, seeing this, is stunned. She just watched him catch a door capable of crushing titans in a single blow. Athena runs to her brother as Adonis lets the door close, stepping to the other side. The group stands, pondering how Adonis will find them when they hear a faint voice, "Devastation."

As the word is spoken, the entire wall cracks and shatters, revealing Adonis standing on the other side, his fist outstretched with smoke emerging from it. Athena screams out, "SO COOL! DID YOU SEE THAT? HE SHATTERED THE ENTIRE WALL!" Adonis begins to walk toward them, but then he sees a titan approaching from behind. His helmet reappears in a fiery flash as he draws his sword and lunges forward, vanishing before their eyes. As he breaks the sound barrier, he collides with the titan's fist. A shockwave shatters the rock around them.

Their powerful clashes shake the very realm they fight in, for this isn't just any titan—this is The Titan of The Dark Realm, the strongest titan in this realm, one of the few with magical powers and the ability to control them. As the battle draws near its climax, Adonis calls out, "Oh heavenly fathers, grant me divine matrimony!" As he finishes speaking, light illuminates the entire realm. A beam connects to Adonis' sword, and as he brings the blade down, he commands, "DIVINE RAPTURE!"

A powerful beam of divine energy descends from the heavens and eviscerates the Dark Titan. All that remains is a crater with the charred remains of the titan. Adonis descends to the ground, unconscious from overexerting himself with the final attack. He crashes to the ground, where Nyx runs over with tears in her eyes, pulling on his armor but unable to move it because of its immense weight. She pleads for Atlas to help, but even Atlas is too weak.

Just then, Athena grabs his helmet, causing it to turn to ash. She begins pounding on his chest, screaming in a tearful, shaking voice, "F-Father, WAKE UP! I-I finally have a real family! YOU CAN'T JUST DIE NOW, FATHER, WAKE UP!" Her words break through to Adonis, caught between life and death. He hears her voice and reawakens, his power surging, throwing everyone away from him. In the flash of fire, another being is seen standing over him—a thin figure with large horns, chiseled muscles, and large fangs silhouetted by its glowing mouth.

As Adonis regains himself, the fire ceases, and the figure disappears. No one dares question what they saw; they all run over to check on Adonis. Nyx and Athena jump onto him, holding him in their arms. Tana waits for him to stand before comforting him, while Echene and Atlas pat him on the back. But Atlas, forgetting his strength, accidentally slams Adonis into the ground. The group laughs as adonis jumps up and tackles atlas then they begin to Wrestle on the ground until tana interrupts them so they can leave the dark realm