As the ferocious trio of werewolves roared and launched themselves towards Asher and Ceti, Asher’s cold, confident voice rang out, “Ceti, you handle the other two. Leave Serkan to me.”
Ceti spun to look at him, her eyes wide with confusion and disbelief. Serkan was not just the strongest among the three – he was the embodiment of the deadly ferocity and poison of the Rustblood Clan. A single swipe from his claws was enough to kill someone of Asher’s level.
“I am counting on you!” Asher’s firm voice brought her back to reality. He was already rushing towards Serkan, a cold blazing glint in his eyes.
Chains of dark shadows erupted from Ceti’s hands, weaving a deadly web through the air as she had no choice but to deal with this as he wanted.
They slithered like spectral snakes, fast and cunning, latching onto Raza and Lyra, dragging them towards her. Their snarls filled the air as they were yanked away and redirected to face the dark embodiment of Ceti’s power.
Meanwhile, Asher continued his death-bound rush towards Serkan.
Serkan watched his approach with a smirk, his feral green eyes glinting ominously, “Desperate to die?” Serkan’s voice was low and menacing, his grin revealing rows of lethal, sharp teeth.
Asher’s smirk did not falter as he replied, his voice steady despite the looming threat, “You’re asking the wrong person.”
A mocking scoff echoed from the Serkan’s maw, deciding to end him with a single attack. And with that, Serkan swung a massive kick towards Asher, a move that could rip through steel as if it were paper.
But just before the kick landed, a brilliant inferno seemed to explode from Asher, the sudden blinding light illuminating the cavern like a premature dawn.
The eerie emerald flames danced around him, his form shifted, the flesh reduced to nothingness, revealing the charred skeletal body within, an eerie fiery glow pulsating from the cracks of his now pitch-black bones.
The transformation happened in an instant, yet time seemed to slow down as Serkan’s eyes narrowed.
Yet he didn’t stop and let his feet hit Asher’s chest with a force that sent thunderous shockwaves.
The impact echoed through the silence, sounding like a dreadful melody of shattering glass as the skeletal bones crumbled into a thousand pieces.
“Asher!” A gasp tore itself from Ceti’s throat, a shout carrying his name being swallowed by the howling wind. She wanted to rush to his side, but Raza and Lyra, empowered by the sight of their leader’s easy victory, kept her occupied, “The Bloodburn Consort is dead, and so will you be,” Lyra said with a chilling low growl.
Serkan’s grating voice echoed, his feral grin twisted in mocking disappointment, “Bloodburn Kingdom really held this pathetic bag of bones in such high regard?” He turned his gaze towards Ceti, a wicked, salivating grin stretching across his face, “Don’t kill her just yet, you two. Traitors deserve more than a swift death.”
Ceti’s heart hammered in her chest at his words. The implication of his statement was not lost on her. Fury flared in her chest, her wrathful gaze meeting Serkan’s.
“You wretches!” She roared, her voice a tempest amidst the silence of the cavern.
Pure, raw power surged through her, dark and primal. The earth around her buckled and rose, morphing and solidifying into a suit of armor that clung to her like a second skin. It was dark and robust, providing a bulwark against their toxic claws.
With the earth’s protection at her command, she slammed her fists into the ground, sending a shockwave of tremors through the field.
The ground beneath Raza and Lyra convulsed, throwing them off their footing and sending them sprawling backwards.
Serkan’s eyes widened in surprise at Ceti’s brute strength. He watched as Raza and Lyra scrambled back to their feet, lunging towards Ceti once again with relentless ferocity.
Ceti, clad in her earthen armor, stood firm, ready to take on their assault.
She was cornered, but she was determined to not go down without a fight. If death was to be her fate, she’d meet it on her own terms. Her only regret was letting Asher and her queen down.
Yet as Ceti faced her foes and Serkan watched the spectacle, an eerie sound from behind him caused Serkan to stiffen.
The sound of grinding, shifting bones.
He turned slowly, his confident smirk morphing into an expression of disbelief.
The pile of shattered, charred black bones that were once Asher began to stir.
Each piece, each fragment, glowed with a renewed intensity, slowly pulling back together. It was as if an unseen force was commanding them, drawing each shard back to its rightful place. The shattered form of Asher was slowly, yet surely, reassembling itself and rising again to become whole.
It was a sight both terrifying and shocking enough to make even Serkan stare at it with his maw opened wide.
How could someone who died come back to life?
What kind of Metamagic power would allow a living being to transform into something undead that can also resurrect?
As Asher’s shattered form pulled itself together, the spectacle caused all fighting to momentarily halt.
It was a scene out of a nightmare, his bones reforming himself piece by piece.
Ceti, even amidst her struggle, couldn’t help but gasp at the sight. Her heart pounded in her chest. She had seen Asher’s form reduced to a pile of shards. And now, he was standing tall, the fire in his gaze not dimmed but magnified. However, she wasn’t that surprised since she did witness something like this during his first trial in the Tower of Hell.
The only question was how long he could last like this?
Raza and Lyra froze in their tracks, their faces mirroring the shock that rippled through the tunnel, “The rumors…” Lyra muttered, her eyes wide with disbelief, “They were true…He really has an Immortal Bloodine?” Since these two couldn’t make sense of what was happening, they couldn’t think of any other reason.
Serkan shared the same stupefaction as his subordinates. Asher’s skeletal form, clad in black and imbued with an eerie glow, faced him with a defiant smirk. The ridicule in Asher’s gaze stoked the fury within Serkan.
rid of those two mangy mutts. Leave this one to me.”
“Your kick,” Asher’s voice, despite his shattered form, resonated with an undertone of scorn, “It barely tickled.”
Before Serkan could react, Asher turned his gaze towards Ceti, “Get rid of those two mangy mutts. Leave this one to me.”
Ceti caught Asher’s determined gaze, understanding the silent promise in his eyes.
He was planning to buy her time like he said before.
She didn’t know how long his mystic, hellish form would last, but she knew she couldn’t waste the opportunity. Steeling herself, she charged at Raza and Lyra once more.
“Enough of your tricks!” Serkan’s roar of rage echoed through the cavern, cutting through the tension like a hot knife.
His eyes flashed dangerously as he clenched his hand into a fist and lunged at Asher.
The punch connected with Asher’s skull, shattering it into countless pieces, and sending bony shards scattering across the tunnel.
As Serkan’s punch scattered Asher’s skull to the winds, he took a moment to collect his thoughts as he looked at his fist.
The skeletal form of Asher had been stronger than before. It didn’t make sense. How could he become stronger after coming back?
But his eyes widened and shook as the charred bone fragments once more began to move.
Like the workings of a macabre clock, the bones found each other, fusing back together to reconstruct the fallen warrior. The black skeletal form of Asher stood in front of a flabbergasted Serkan. Not even the most formidable beast he’d ever encountered could compare to the unease this spectacle inspired.
“Using such a power must come at a price!” Serkan sneered and added with cold killing intent, “I’ll just keep smashing you until you can’t rise anymore!”
A wicked smirk stretched across Asher’s skeletal face, “You can try,” he taunted, and the dance of Serkan killing and Asher coming back continued.
Meanwhile, Ceti was locked in her own struggle against Raza and Lyra.
Towering over her at seven feet each, the werewolves swiped and lunged at her armor, trying to break down the solid wall of protection.
Yet, it was as though the strikes only reinforced the earthen armor Ceti wore, the stones absorbing the force and hardening further, much to their bafflement.
But the two formidable werewolves remained undaunted, confident in the advantage they had with their numbers. It should only be a matter of time before they can wear her armor down and then make her succumb to them.
Ceti could feel their cold intentions as her primal instincts took over. Her heart pounded as adrenaline surged through her veins.
Raza was the first to strike, swiping with claws that could shred through steel. She narrowly evaded his attack, but his counterpart Lyra, was not as forgiving.
With a powerful leap, Lyra managed to land a heavy blow, scratching across Ceti’s protective earthen armor. The blow jarred her, a searing pain blooming across her side, causing a small spurt of blood to seep from beneath the armor.
But Ceti felt her body growing stronger, feeding off the pain and the injuries. She found the strength within her augmenting, the injuries making her faster, her senses sharper, and her strikes harder.
However, the constant onslaught was pushing her limits. Her internal organs felt bruised, but she had no time to worry about the injuries.
She was becoming more powerful, but at the same time, she could feel the fatigue creeping in and her mana dwindling.
Deciding to turn the tide of the battle, she shifted into a form made of pure darkness that made both Lyra and Raza frown as they hurried to attack her, thinking she must be more vulnerable now.
But to their shock, Ceti was untouchable, evading their swipes with ease, and raced around them, sowing confusion and panic.
“Watch out!” Lyra cried out as Raza looked around with a confused look.
Ceti moved swiftly, using the disarray to her advantage, she managed to bind both Raza and Lyra in spectral chains of pure, inky darkness.
“These puny chains won’t hold us!” Raza growled as they fought against her binding, their muscles bulging in effort, and managed to snap the chains.
However, their eyes filled with surprise and fear as they realized how formidable Ceti truly was to put pressure on them despite her fighting alone.
“I am not finished!” Ceti said with a ferocious look. Ignoring the pain flaring up in her body, Ceti tapped into her newfound strength and drove it into a single, powerful blow.
*BOOM!*
It was as though a meteor had struck the earth, the impact sending the two werewolves flying backwards. A large crater formed where she’d struck, a mirror to her raw, devastating power.
She knew she was running on borrowed time. The physical strain of the fight was taking a toll on her. She could taste the metallic tang of blood in her mouth, and her vision was starting to blur around the edges.
In the face of Ceti’s relentless assault, Raza and Lyra could not help but recoil in fear. The strength and power she was exhibiting were far beyond anything they had anticipated.
She was like an undying force, her body cloaked in an almost impenetrable suit of earthen armor, and her fists were deadly weapons. How could someone who had their bloodline sealed to a certain extent be this strong?
They didn’t even dare to imagine how much stronger she would be if she was able to transform.
They were exhausted as all the mana and abilities they used were either dodged in time or did nothing to stop her. Their poisonous claws, which were their strongest weapon, were also ineffective because of her armor.
The ground trembled as a desperate Raza lunged at her again, his claws aiming for her throat.
With a swift dodge, Ceti sidestepped his attack, and swiftly, she retaliated.
Her fist, solid and heavy as stone, covered in that earthen armor, connected with the side of Raza’s head.
*Crrachhk!*
There was a sickening crunch as her blow landed, the strength behind it resonating with the strength she had gained from each wound she had taken.
“N-No…” Raza’s voice was barely a whimper, a feeble attempt to protest against his impending doom.
But it did nothing to diminish the killing intent in Ceti’s eyes as she drew back her arm, and with a swift, powerful blow, she slammed her fist into Raza’s head.
*Plshhhk!* 𝗈𝒱𝑳xt.𝗇t
A gruesome sight exploded under Ceti’s fist as she dealt a spine-chilling smash on his face.
Raza’s head collapsed under the pressure, the brute force of Ceti’s attack smashing it into a pulpy mess.
His body convulsed once, twice, before it fell limply to the ground, a lifeless heap of fur and muscle.
“Y-You!” Lyra, witnessing her companion’s brutal end, shrieked in terror.
Her eyes widened in horror as she scrambled backwards, but it was too late. The fear that now filled her was tangible, it seeped into the air, fueling Ceti’s determination.
“You can’t…” Lyra stammered, her voice shaking, “You…you can’t…”
But Ceti was relentless. She advanced, each step causing the earth to shake. With a speed that belied her injuries, she launched herself at Lyra.
Her hands, wrapped in that formidable earthen armor, collided with Lyra’s chest who tried defending, but in vain.
*Crachkk!*
The force was tremendous. It was as if a meteor had crashed into Lyra’s body, the impact sending a shockwave rippling through the air.
“Ahrg!”
Her chest caved in under the pressure, the sound of bones cracking and crushing filled the air, and a wet, desperate cough sputtered from Lyra’s lips.
Her heart was crushed, literally and metaphorically. Her eyes, wide with shock and disbelief, stared up at Ceti as her body fell limp. With a final, shuddering gasp, Lyra’s life ebbed away, her body joining Raza’s in the dust.
As the dust settled, Ceti stood amidst the carnage, her body drenched in sweat and blood. The earthen armor that protected her was cracked and chipped, revealing blood seeping from underneath.
The poisonous scratch marks on her earthen armor still hissed, though Ceti didn’t bask in the glory of winning this battle as she immediately turned to look in the direction where Asher and Serkan were, only to have her eyes widen.