Face The King

Mazoku stood forward on his feet as he retransformed more to strengthen himself.

"No time to be weak. Time for the strong to dethrone a king..." He spoke looking at the tunnel they came from.

"He is most likely going to come over here before us," Akio added, "We're going to fight from here..."

"What about the birds?" Daichi asked cautiously for them.

"We shall have to evacuate them from there," advised Akio, "Emissary, get the adult birds to get the young birds away from here. We will have to do it swiftly if we seek to protect many lives."

The Emissary nodded as he flew up to tell the parents and while some panicked, he silenced them and with his authority got them to migrate out in the sky to some trees

"We must now wait-"

"No, we take the fight to him as well," Akari said, "If we fight on his terms he can have an advantage even if he doesn't know we know he's aiming to ambush us."

"So we need to go through the tunnel again? It would be best if we did not need to." Aldrif signified mildly annoyed.

"No, it's not eligible for an attack. We attack him from above while he's trying to break the tunnel and so then we make an ambush..."

"How are we going to get up and how will we be able to attack him if we can die dropping?" Elliot inquired, thinking to himself and quite sceptical.

"We do what happened last time. The girl can shoot multiple arrows at the cave to give us some platforms to attack him in on the cave."

"Ah yes. 'The girl' is my name, how did you guess so well? Do you have mind-reading powers as well as being able to turn your katana into a lantern?" Daichi replied with so much sarcasm that it could be cut by a sword.

Akari ignored her as he continued, "We can fly up by getting some birds to help us. It will be quick and easy for us then to find the Manticore's hideout and perform an attack. So then is that a plan?"

"Very well," Akio said nodding, "Emissary get some birds. Many, we need to get there quickly."

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Meanwhile, Alutzumal gritted his teeth with the despicable belief that Akari could be killing everything there. He had to get there fast or he would return into a massacre where their blood ran down like water in a well. What is a king who could not even keep half of his subjects alive? He cannot let that occur.

With determination, he slashed the tunnel with his insane strength and it crumbled with an immense attack. He continued to send strikes at the tunnel until it soon crashed away giving him space move through. He then descended into the haven but then saw the 'meant to be a haven of birds' was empty without a trace of anything there.

He looked at it in fear saying, "Where are they? Gone not even their blood has been left there..."

His face developed a point of shock ad horror as he looked down in shame. "I have failed. I HAVE FAILED!" He roared in grief and terror.

"Correct," Akari stated jumping down to attack him.

The group all leapt down with him as Daichi let her arrow go and as the arrow vaulted down in mid-air glowing and then a large platform made up of roots twisting, full of holes and lower platforms with vines on as well.

Akari jumped down from one of the vines and struck him down in the neck. He attempted to leave a gash but the manticore already saw that move occurring and slammed him into the ground with his paw crushing him down.

"You believe I will fall for the same attack made by you, AKARI!? YOU COME TO MY KINGDOM AND ATTACK MY SUBJECTS! YOU KILL THEM WITH MONSTROUS DAMAGE! YOU ERASE ANY EVIDENCE OF THEM! YOU WILL PERISH TODAY!"

"I don't believe that will happen!" Mazoku jumped down slashing at his arm and he slammed down his fists with rapid speeds down on theed fist giving Akari time to break out of that trapping fist. "That's sadly my job."

Akari went out backing away with Mazoku from the manticore, "This power is insane and we'll need more than just a demon and a swordsman to trounce on him."

"A thank you would have helped but that is all fine," Mazoku stated as he dashed over to the manticore. He smacked him in the nose with a punch filled with his raw power and he after accomplishing that he attempted to back away. However, as his punch connected he felt a disturbance in his mind as he experienced a flaming roar run through him.

Alutzumal however caught onto his retreat and slammed his jaws onto his legs, crushing his teeth into his flesh.

"Aaaahh!!" He shrieked as he felt his bones being macerated and was then thrown onto the floor again and again.

"Don't worry Mazoku!" Cried Akio plummeting down and used his falling force to pound onto his head and in reaction to that Alutzumal let Mazoku go who went out, his demonic body shattered.

Alutzumal didn't surrender and was about to slam his claws onto him but Akari stopped him with a scintillating spinning strike of lightning, distracting him and allowing Mazoku to jump off.

"We're even now...You saved my life... I saved your life," Akari stated, trying to find a place to find any attack points on him.

"Make an attack!" He commanded to Mazoku, "I'll find a way to take him on when he's distracted!"

"Do you think that'll really work? I am in no way able to fight and do not shout your battle plans like that-" Mazoku replied.

"I wasn't talking to you.." Akari cut in as he nodded up to a falling person.

Aldrif jumped down to strike down on the manticore and smashed her mace over onto it's back while it was being distracted by Akio's quick jabs at him.

Akari smiled at hearing the howl of the beast and dashed over to strike its eyes. Mazoku was met by Elliot dropping down to help heal him.

"I can heal alone..." Mazoku replied, "I promise you these flames are not going to work on me."

"Well then, I already dealt with that Akari boy for too long so I'll let you do your stuff," Elliot responded flatly as he walked over to begin his barrage of flames onto him.

Mazoku began to walk away to heal as scraps of his skin fell down. His bones began to crack from the pressure he had to face in that attack. What was that strange occurrence to him? He could never make an attack on him if he feels a disturbing spark like that whenever he makes contact with him. He looked at his hand for a second as he thought to himself. What was his demon and what powers does it hold? Also how much power does it contain? Finally, the most strange yet most sinister, what is the demon planning?

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Haruto strolled across the forest and smiled to himself as he heard the howl of the beast.

"He's out there... So are his people. This will be an easy demolishment. All the demons will die and if my guesses are right Mazoku and Akio are at there."

He then unsheathed his katana and, as it electrified with power, he threw it down as it broke down all the ground that was in its way as it descended in the ground.

"Hopefully you find the demons and then it can pose a headstart for me while I go to find the demons before there death," He said as he continued to walk bored out of it but he would not need to wait too long, the fun for him is about to start.

The charge continued to move across the cave floor demolishing everything in its way. The ground above them was shaking and ripping apart like an axe showing an electric spike in power.

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Daichi was shooting arrows to hold down the giant manticore. He easily broke past them and so she had to continue to attack on and on to hold on the battle with them and keep up with him.

Akari went on to keep on developing his continuing attack. He couldn't let himself to slip while everyone was fighting against that beast. He dashed from side to side when he had an idea that he could be at a chance of being attacked. Akari did not let himself slack on; there were lives at the stake of his failures.

"Don't let him get a chance on taking the advantage!" He spoke boldly to them.

"Of course..." Mazoku whispered to himself as he walked along waiting for himself to heal.

Suddenly, the katana shot out of the wall striking, looking at Mazoku dead in the eye. He looked back at his golden death...