The Battle at the Temple

The beaming sun made traveling a lot more difficult. Phoenix led them to an old ancient city, the name has been long forgotten. They set up camp around the half sunken buildings. Some buildings were completely devoured by sand. Most of the buildings were mostly destroyed by scavengers and very solemnly they found a fully intact building. The temple was an exception. The scavengers respect the temple, mostly because Hunter told them to, and leave it alone. Legend says that the scavengers can hear the voices of the Atlas and the Illuminati and told them to build the portal many years ago. The Dunes may even hold the Almighty Artifacts, but that is just a Tall Tale. After many days of hard work setting up their camp, Phoenix gathers everyone to the temple. Waiting in the temple is Hunter Rina. Phoenix tells the people to relax in the shadows. Phoenix grabbed George and proceeded to walk over to the entrance of the temple.

"Where are you taking him?" asked Jessica

"I'm sorry. I have to do this." Phoenix said with sorrow, "Stay back, Hunter told the scavengers to stay away from the temple."

"Please don't take him away from me!" Jessica shouted

Carson grabbed and held Jessica back as Phoenix carried George into the temple.

The temple structure is very different from what the buildings look like in the cities now. The temple was designed to have many archways which weren't adapted into the newer civilizations. The temple is made of sandstone and it is a miracle that it still stands today. After walking up many flights of stairs, Phoenix reaches the main altar. The main altar has been replaced by this grand structure of a circle. The circle is made out of the darkest metal and also is the strongest. Standing in front of the structure is Hunter. Phoenix puts George down and tells him to stay there.

Hunter is not as tall as Phoenix, but is taller than most. Phoenix shakes Hunter's hand before speaking.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Hunter asked

"Yes." Phoenix said, "This divine portal will lead me to my father. I just have to sacrifice a small price."

"I don't know how this works." Hunter said, "It might do nothing."

"The scavengers made it so that Titans can cross between realms. It had to work. And now it has to work." Phoenix said

"What if you are right, and a monster crawls out of it and kills so many people? Then what?" Hunter asked

"Titans are monsters, but they have the ability to think. They are rational creatures." Phoenix said, walking closer to the portal and placing his hand on the ring.

"Death walks out of this portal. Only the scavengers and I will be safe." Hunter said

"How does it activate?" Phoenix asked

"It can't from this side. Only from theirs." Hunter said.

"It has been weeks since we came here! I cannot wait any longer!" Phoenix yells in rage

Phoenix unsheathes his sword and swings at the portal. Hunter grabbed his arm before he could land a hit.

"Don't be foolish! That metal will break your sword!" Hunter yelled, "We have not been here yet so maybe it activated when we were setting up camp."

"I'm sorry." Phoenix said

"YOU SHOULD BE!!!" someone yelled from across the room. Phoenix and Hunter turned around and saw a young man standing at the doorway.

"Who are you?" Phoenix and Hunter asked simultaneously

"I am Prince Jack Shard! First born of King Clover Shard. I am here to rescue my brother, George!" Jack claims

"Who is he, daddy?" George asked, looking at Phoenix

"What?" Jack said, feeling his rage build up.

"He is an enemy. He has come to take you away. Run! Find Carson and bring him here!" Phoenix said

Jack went to go grab George but Hunter dashed at Jack and began to attack him. Jack backed off and defended against Hunter's strong and fast attacks. Phoenix gets ready to fight Jack as well. Hunter is leaving Jack no time to attack and Phoenix is getting behind Jack. Jack reaches into his jacket and throws a knife at Hunter, causing him to deflect it and jump back. Jack quickly turns to Phoenix and strikes down at him. Phoenix overpowers Jack, but Jack has more sword skill than he does. Jack spins around Phoenix and slashes at his back. Hunter body slams Jack, throwing him to the ground before he could hit Phoenix. Phoenix loses balance and falls as well. Hunter, with extraordinary speed, rushes Jack and cuts a shallow cut in his right leg. Jack quickly gets up and randomly swings his sword at Hunter. Hunter blocks all of the attacks and elbows Jack in the chest. Jack swung up and almost cut Hunter's chin. Phoenix picks up the throwing knife and aggressively returns it to Jack. Jack dodges the knife but is hit by Hunter. Hunter slashes at his chest, but does no harm because of Jack's armor. Phoenix and Hunter begin to strategically storm Jack. Jack barely could hold up against them. He gets a lucky hit off and shallowly cuts Hunter's forearm. Hunter backs off for a bit, letting Phoenix take charge. Phoenix is more physically stronger than Jack and could easily cut off a limb with one strike. Jack goes on the defensive and parries all of Phoenix's forceful strikes. Jack quickly gets behind Phoenix and kicks the back of his knee, making him fall. Jack prepares his attack and goes for the back of the neck. Once again, he is stopped by Hunter. Hunter goes on the offensive and swiftly attacks Jack's sword. Attacking at the sword makes his weaker but also your own. Jack pulls out another dagger and chucks it at Hunter's thigh. Hunter yelps in pain but continues to attack, even though the dagger is impaling his leg. Hunter goes in for the kill but hesitates when he sees something in the corner of his eye. Standing there, watching them is Shadow. Hunter quickly sheaths his sword and begins to run out of the temple in fear.

"Who… is that?" Jack asked, catching his breath.

"I do… not know." Phoenix said

"I am known as Shadow. I am here to kill Phoenix." Shadow said

The cloak covered Shadows body and his face was concealed as well, no skin was visible.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend." Jack said

Shadow nodded and slid his daggers into his hands. Phoenix stood up and prepared to fight. Jack rushed in first and was followed by Shadow. After Jack attacked, Shadow would as well. This strategy worked well enough, but Phoenix quickly learned and adapted to this. Phoenix would dodge Jack's attack and then he would attack Shadow directly. Of course, this was not efficient because Shadow would dodge his attacks and attack anyway. Shadow was on a whole other level compared to Hunter. Shadow's strikes were faster and had more power to them. Phoenix knew that he had to take down Jack first before engaging with Shadow. Shadow jumped and tried to attack Phoenix from above. Phoenix punched Shadow and felt that he had no armor on. A smirk landed on Phoenix's face. He couldn't stop smiling as he violently swung at Jack. Phoenix began to attack faster and harder, as if he had reached a new peak. Jack used most of his energy just blocking the attacks. Phoenix had ignored Shadow entirely. Shadow would attack from behind and Phoenix would roll out of the way and focus on Jack.

Jack picked up one of the daggers that he threw and tossed it to Shadow. As Phoenix turned around to look at Shadow, Jack hastily began to strike at his neck. Jack stopped immediately when he heard a monstrous roar. Phoenix stared at Shadow. Shadow was just about to throw the dagger into his skull. All three of them turned to look at the gateway.

The empty void was filled with an extremely bright light like the sun. It shined a bright gold aura. They all turned their attention to it and prepared themselves for the worst. Somehow, they all knew that they needed each other to fend off whatever comes out of the portal. Fear filled the minds of Jack and Phoenix. But not Shadow, he could easily escape if he wanted to. They looked back at each other and then turned back to the portal. A monster slowly stepped out of the portal.

The monstrosity was a little taller than Phoenix but its muscles were massive. Its eyes glowed silver and had a dog like snout and had horns like a goat. It was the most terrifying thing anyone had ever seen. Jack began to shake, but had a good grip on his sword. The beast had two swords on his waist. On his eyes were the number "1" engraved on them. His armor was pitch black and made out of obsidian. The number glowes gold on the eyes.

"Oh shi-" Shadow started to talk but was cut off by Phoenix

"Who are you, Titan?" Phoenix asked

The beast roared and grabbed his right sword with his left hand and his left sword with his right hand.

"I am Leviathan! I am Upper Rank 1 of The Ten Kami!" Leviathan shouted, as he unsheathed his swords.

"We don't have to fight, Leviathan." Phoenix tried to reason

"Don't speak, insect!" Leviathan yelled

With god-like speed Leviathan was already an inch away from cutting off Phoenix's head. Shadow immediately intervenes and pushes Leviathan back.

"Incredible!" Leviathan said, admiring Shadow. A strange facial expression appeared on his face that could only be described as an attempt of a smile.

Shadow stood in front of Phoenix and face-to-face with Leviathan. Jack stood next to Phoenix. Jack dashed at Leviathan but Shadow stopped him. Shadow pushed Jack back and saved him from getting hit by Leviathan.

"What?!?" Jack said in surprise, "I didn't even see him move!"

"You two need to leave! He will kill you!" Shadow said, "This is the son of Kryptonick!"

"No! We all have to fight!" Jack said

"Shut up!" Leviathan shouted.

Phoenix and Jack both attack Leviathan at once, distracting him while Shadow gets ready for the kill. Jack strikes at Leviathan's legs keeping him off balance. Phoenix attacks him directly because he is strong enough to hold out for a short time. Shadow gets behind Leviathan. Leviathan licks his teeth. He kicks Jack, sending him across the room. He punches Phoenix and throws him to the ground. He turns around and tries to bite Shadow's face. Shadow quickly steps back and throws a knife at Leviathan's throat. Leviathan throws one of his swords and impales Shadow in the chest. He catches the knife and tosses it to the side. Jack groans and tries to stand but he is in too much pain. Phoenix forces himself to stand up. Shadow grabs the sword and pulls it out of his chest. Leviathan's eyes widen as he sees that the wound has completely healed.

"Who are you?" Leviathan asked

Shadow looked at Leviathan and raised his hand. In a flash, he was gone. Seconds later, Leviathan groaned in pain. He looked at his chest and saw his own sword impaling him. The blood dripped down his chest and back. Shadow pulled the sword out and swung at Leviathan's neck. Leviathan brought in his arms and thrusted them out, sending out a pulse of raw energy. The energy wave threw Shadow back before he could strike. Leviathan turned around and saw Shadow standing up. Leviathan held out his hand and summoned his sword. The obsidian sword flew back into his hand.

"You have powers?" Leviathan asked

"Yes… I do." Shadow said

"I should have guessed that when you dove in front earlier." Leviathan said

"We are equals." Shadow dared to say

"Ha! I have just been messing around with you!" Leviathan said, "I will show you the full power of an Upper Rank Kami!"

Within a fraction of a second, Leviathan had sprung forward and sliced at Shadow's neck. Shadow barely dodged in time. Phoenix swung at Leviathan. He dodged his attack and kicked Phoenix with an immense amount of force. Phoenix slammed into the wall of the temple, if he did not have armor on then his bones would have been broken. Leviathan began to laugh as he saw Phoenix struggling to get up. Leviathan turned his attention back to Shadow and Jack. Jack distracted Leviathan, while Shadow attacked. This worked momentarily, but Leviathan could not be outsmarted. Jack attempted to attack but was blocked by both of Leviathan's swords. Jack got kneed in the chest and fell to the ground. The power of Leviathan's attack almost broke his chest plate. Jack jumped backward to avoid being kicked. Shadow sliced at Leviathan's eye and was less than an inch away from making contact with it. Leviathan took a step back with a surprised look on his face. Leviathan shouted, "I'm just getting started!" Leviathan clashed his swords together and created a shock wave, sending them back with a strong force of wind. Leviathan was about to charge at Shadow when the portal's light began to dim.

Leviathan stood up straight and said, "You three are excellent fighters! Sadly, my time here is up."

"What?" Shadow asked

"The portal will close and it opens when there is enough blood spilled. As much as I like this realm, my home is elsewhere." Leviathan said

"Next time we fight, that will be your last." Shadow said with confidence and pride

"Ha!," Leviathan snarled, "I cannot wait!"

Leviathan sheathed his swords and bowed in respect. Shadow bowed as well, he was the only one left standing. Leviathan walked into the portal and the second he crossed, it closed. Shadow looked over at Phoenix and saw that he could barely stand. He then looked at Jack and saw that he was catching his breath. Shadow drew his dagger and slowly walked over to Phoenix. As he was standing over him, a man called out. "Stop!" Carson yelled from the entrance. Carson drew his sword and charged at Shadow. Before Carson could get to him, Shadow was gone.

The sun began to sleep and the moon awoke. The soft cool sand felt nice on the bottom of their feet. Phoenix was walking with Jack around the temple.

"Your brother has been brainwashed. He thinks that Jessica and I are his parents. If you took him back, there would be a war between us." Phoenix pointed out

"Why? Why did you take him and then bring him here?" Jack asked

"The thing about my father is a lie. I know what happened." Phoenix said

"Alright, I'll bite. What happened to him?" Jack asked

"He was taken by the gods when he tried to sail to The Sands of Time. Apparently, there is no other world beyond these seas. Just dangerous waters full of monsters. An empty world full of nothing. The Sands of Time are not in this world. They lay somewhere else, hidden from us." Phoenix said

"And your proof?" Jack asked, "How could this 'world' be proven?"

"Ask the Spider. He will tell you, he told me, for a price." Phoenix said

"What is in that world?" Jack asked

"Adventure, danger, freedom." Phoenix said, "I am truly sorry about your mother. She was not intended to die. I needed your brother for a sacrifice. I hoped that the Titan would accept him and take me to the world beyond the portal."

"You took him, so you could get freedom?" Jack stopped walking and placed his hand on his sword.

"I did. I am truly sorry." Phoenix said, stopping in place, "I know words cannot undo what I have done."

Jack unsheathes his sword in anger and charges at Phoenix. Phoenix opens his arms and allows Jack to stab him in the chest. Jack begins to cry and lets go of the sword. Phoenix falls to the ground and gets on one knee. He holds the sword in place. Jack fell to both knees and cried uncontrollably. A small soft smile morphs on Phoenix's face.

"This is what… I deserve… you need to leave… or they will… kill you." Phoenix said, "Return to your father… and tell… him that I am… dead… and that… I killed… George. Also… forgive me."

"I… I forgive you." Jack said, whipping his tears off his cheek.

"Thank… you." Phoenix said, falling onto his back with the sword still in his chest.

Jack stands up and kneels next to Phoenix's face. He closes Phoenix's eyes and says, "Rest in peace. I hope you find freedom in your salvation." He stands up and leaves the sword there. When he sneaked around the temple he understood why Phoenix said, "Return to your father and tell him that I am dead and that I killed George." The scavengers were fighting the rebellion. Jack knew that the rebellion would fall after tonight. With Phoenix dead and most being killed now, there wouldn't be any survivors tomorrow. Jack made his way back to the sailboat and without hesitation he began to sail back to the Kingdom of Dusk. His journey would take two weeks to reach the harbor. He hoped and prayed that the city still stood.