Chapter 65: Clash of Fates
Fate shook the ground of the battlefield as two powers, one of destruction and one of defiance, faced off against each other, about to clash and decide not just the fate of their world but reality itself.
Jason was in front, his hand on his Chaos Blade, knuckles white as he clutched it tightly. It caught his heart when his gaze landed on the Apostles' leader, a very figure of maliciousness, just floating above the ground like a shadowy deity. He was aware that in the end it would come down to this-when the leaders crimson eyes eventually lay upon him, the whole weight of what they had entered settled in and they had them bleeding. They had injured the leader of the Apostles-proof that even such an entity, capable of unimaginable power, wasn't invincible. That, however, was just a small victory. It would be prudent for them to continue their efforts, catch their breath in this newly opened space before the Apostle became resilient against their attack.
Diane was by his side, her aura blazed gold with brilliant waves of light echoing through her veins from the will of the Forsaken Empress. Her gaze fastened on the Apostle leader, her eyes unflinching, cold, and set in determination. The power of her heritage coursed through her veins, but she knew more than anyone that it was not power that would win this fight. They needed more. They needed unity, strategy, and strength forged from every trial they had endured to get here.
Bruised but still standing tall, Lucas cracked his knuckles as the sparks of Mastrova Lightning danced around him. His spear hummed, filled with energy, as the weapon resonated with the storm contained within him, ready to unleash devastation. His face was etched with determination, the fight clearly wearing him down, but the fire of his resolve burned bright within his chest.
Joe crouched low, the shadows dancing around him like living things; his daggers shone ominously in his hands. The strike earlier had worked-he had drawn first blood, struck the Apostle leader, and proved it could bleed, that it was vulnerable. He didn't care about the blood. He cared about the moment when that vulnerability would open for a killing blow. He needed just one more opening.
The Apostle leader hung above them, unmoving, as if in study, its eyes crimson, shining with that eerie, calculating light. Jason felt the weight of those eyes, the ancient malice emanating from this being as it weighed its next move. He was always thinking, always looking ahead. And yet, for the first time, he felt… uncertain. For the first time, he seemed to realize he was not the only one with power here.
Then, without warning, it moved.
Jason barely saw the shift, but he felt it.
A blur of darkness lashed out-a black tendril of energy faster than thought, moving with the precision of a predator.
"Diane!" Jason's instincts roared, but he didn't need to shout. She was already moving.
In an instant, a golden shield erupted around her, a barrier forged from the depths of her inheritance, powered by the will of the Forsaken Empress herself. The black tendril collided with her shield, sending shockwaves blasting outward in every direction. The force of the impact shook the very air around them, but the barrier held firm.
Diane's lips curled into a smirk. "You'll have to do better than that."
The red gaze flickered in his head, almost with mild interest, or amusement, before vanishing once again into the dark, its form dissolving to nothing as if it had never been there to begin with.
Jason's breath caught in his throat, and his eyes frantically scanned across the battlefield in search of some sign of where the enemy might be. This was no time to slack off.
This time, the Apostle leader appeared right behind Lucas.
A blade of blackness, forged of condensed void energy, came screaming down toward his neck with an impossible velocity.
Lucas spun at the very last second, his spear hashing out in a blur of lightening. The two forces clashed in a deafening fashion.
CLANG!
As the black blade and the tip of Lucas's spear cut through, it produced a burst of sparks that went flying everywhere. The shockwave cracked the ground beneath one's feet and sent the concrete shattering to pieces, splintering in all directions, yet he would not yield one step. His Mastrova Lightning continued its wild, frantic dance amidst an electric hum. Roaring loudly, his body a bundle of lightning surging inside him, he pressed on and sent the Apostle back with one hard push.
Jason saw his chance.
With a yell, he sprang forward, the Chaos Blade raised above his head. Energy burst out from him, a shockwave of raw power as the very air around him vibrated with the intensity of the attack.
The Apostle twisted, its form warping and bending to counter—then Joe struck.
From the shadows, Joe moved like a phantom, his daggers flashing in the dim light. His aim was true-straight for the Apostle leader's throat.
But the Apostle was too fast.
Its free hand lashed out with terrifying precision, catching Joe mid-air by the neck, stopping his attack in an instant. The dark tendrils of energy coiled around Joe like a vice, holding him helpless in mid-air.
Joe's eyes bulged with disbelief. So near, his blade had been-so very near-just that inch. He felt the cold grip of death begin to throttle his throat, to constrict his breath.
It was the low, taunting tone of the Apostle, a whispered voice within the void. "You depend too much upon surprise."
The circle of bone around Joe's throat began to shut, and his world spun into a maddening vortex. A fire of blind, uncontrollable rage burned hot within Jason.
With no hesitation, Jason plunged forward and swung the Chaos Blade down with all his might. The fabric of reality seemed to distort as his energy compacted into one singular, unstoppable cleave.
BOOM!
A huge wave of black-and-crimson energy erupted outward from the point of impact, forcing the Apostle to release Joe and retreat once more into the shadows, gone like a ghost.
Joe tumbled backward, landing with a roll before disappearing into the darkness, coughing and gasping for breath. He was alive—but barely.
Jason's eyes burned with fury. He turned his gaze to the Apostle, his voice low and deadly. "Touch my brothers again, and I'll erase you."
The Apostle leader tilted its head—an eerie, almost amused gesture—and then grinned. Its crimson eyes flickered with malicious glee.
"Amusing," it said, its voice cold as ice. "But you are all still weak."
Then, with one imperious movement, it raised its arms to the heavens.
The very air seemed to freeze, unnatural chill seeping into the very bones of the world. The darkness surged in from every direction, and Jason's blood ran cold.
And then the entire battlefield warped.
The ground beneath them broke apart in a yawning chasm into infinity. The sky ripped open, showing the abyss churning with swirling darkness at the break where it split as if it were the tearing asunder of reality itself.
They were no longer in the physical world. They were in the Apostle's domain.
Jason's heart beat rapidly in his chest. "A domain?!"
He knew of them-places forged by powerful beings independent of the rules that ordered their world. It wasn't an attack; the Apostle leader had consigned them into his own warped reality.
Lucas cursed under his breath. "We can't fight in this void! This space isn't even real!"
Diane gritted her teeth. Her golden aura flickered and sputtered as she fought to keep her power up amidst the unstable environment. Even the influence of the Forsaken Empress's will seemed muted in this place, a candle flickering in the storm.
Cold and mocking, the voice of the Apostle leader echoed through the abyss. "This is my realm. You have already lost."
Then, the slaughter began.
Tendrils of pure darkness sprang out from every direction, each seeking to pierce their hearts. A humming, like malevolent energy, started to wrap itself around them in such a way that with each passing second, it pulled tighter.
Jason's Chaos Blade parried three tendrils, his body ablaze with energy, but the fourth lashed across his shoulder, cutting through skin and flesh. A blast of pain detonated inside him, yet he clenched his teeth and held firm.
The dancing and dodging barely allowed him to avoid the fatal blow this time, too, but even as he leapt, his side seemed to erupt in blood. He didn't slow down. His Mastrova Lightning raged through him, crackling with power, but very much seeming the void itself fought him.
She blocked a tendril, and then another; the attacks never stopped, it seemed, and for every strike she deflected, two more took its place.
Victor, war hammer in hand, slammed into the void with an attempt to make the ground compact, but everything around him went awry and the ground beneath him started disintegrating to nothing. The enchantments by Cindy were running wild, with their effects just barely able to hold off the darkness. Even the fabric of reality was working against them.
They were getting overwhelmed.
Jason's heart was racing. This was no battle for strength. It was a survival battle.
He turned to Diane, his eyes burning with desperation. "Can you disrupt this space?"
Diane wiped the blood off her lips, her golden aura fluttering crazily. "I can try. But I'll need time."
Jason turned to Lucas, his eyes locking with his. "Cover her."
Lucas smiled through the blood pouring from his wounds. "Already did.
Jason faced the leader of the Apostles.
Then, he took a single step forward, his Chaos Blade raised, his energy surging.
"I'll buy you that time."
The Apostle leader chuckled, a low, mocking sound that echoed through the void. "You think you can?"
Jason exhaled, steadying himself. His Chaos Blade shook in his hands; his aura flared wildly, without restraint.
Then—he smiled.
"I don't think," he said, his voice low but full of conviction. "I know."
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Conclusion of Chapter 65
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