Chapter 86: The Leader, Part 1

Meanwhile, at the same time the Elites were fending off Zazel and Ennio, Stolas would be meeting eye-to-eye towards the very leader. Despite the chaos, they were silent. Despite the sounds and strong winds that picked up the sands, they were still. No words. no breath. Without any hesitation, Stolas would make his first move, charging forward, his hat and scarf covering the debris and shielding him from the sun, materializing stardust to create a makeshift gun around his own feathered fingers to fire at Meso. The Man held his ground as he'd have his attack come out again, his shadow concealing it, yet the Stellar Magician was keeping a close eye. Once again, it was deflected, the stars embedded within the sand burning it up, reaching to a high enough temperature to melt it into glass again, as Stolas aimed and fired what looked to be bullets towards the Sand Reaper's head. The man merely tilted it to the side to have the skull serve as the impact instead, tanking the shot without any resistance, before he himself went on the offensive, balling his hand into a fist and punching it within the loose desert.

Despite his near perfect reaction time, this attack would catch Stolas off-guard, as it would grab ahold of the boy's legs and drag him down, maneuvering the planted stars so as to burn him alive through it, letting it prepare to detonate and unleash a blinding explosion beneath the surface. The Stellar Magician recognized quickly what kind of magic this was, and as a result, would try to struggle to break free. He could feel the sand grabbing ahold of him, encasing him, ensnaring him into a man-made coffin so as to be cremated alive. Not willing to take that risk, he'd fire the bullets again, letting it transform into something else just before it would detonate.

BOOOOM!! FWOOOSH!!

Sand expelled outwards like a geyser, the explosion forcing it to careen like a wave to spread outwards, with the Sand Reaper looking onwards at the damage made. Despite this level of carnage that the normal man cannot survive in, he knows it well. Stolas was still living. Sure enough...

BANG!

A wound, one made right upon his body, damaged slightly through the burns, as it mainly penetrated his skin a few inches deep. The man was unfazed at this attempt, giving a small smirk when he knew his opponent still lived, his curiosity deepened. The Avian's feathers were badly singed, yet he still held a firm expression upon his face. His body was coated with the very stars that serve as his weapon, acting as his shield and adding a second layer over it to protect him further. Despite such protection, it wasn't without a cost, as he could feel his legs somewhat making it hard to keep himself up, with the layers going away once the child gave his realization to Meso himself. "Your magic...It's just like my Pops.....You can control the minerals in the sand, huh?"

The man simply went quiet, but nodded to answer his question. Such an answer was enough, as the boy gave a small smile, before attempting to fight back, applying the layer again to have it act a separate purpose, slowly detaching the layer from him, whilst still holding the boy's shape, essentially creating a body double out of the very stars made. He coated himself with two layers, so as such, two copies were made, both of which lunged forward and tried to attack by the man's side. Meso merely had the skeletal structure morph itself, the minerals that made up the bones congesting and spouting out, as if a chemical reaction has been caused, making the bones pierce and slice apart the clones with little effort. The Bones sprouted upwards like roots, shielding Meso, for he knows what comes next, as the Clones would start to seep within the bones and explode at such close proximity. Stolas, meanwhile, made sure to close in on the Reaper, having a hand constructed from such space dust to grapple and push him down into the desert, forcing him to undergo the same damages. A singular hand, however, wasn't going to cut it, and he knew that, so he made sure for every reaction the man gave to try and dissuade it, the hand would split itself apart, like a Hydra that lost its head.

More and more Hands would appear, ensuring the burial was a success, and the detonation being imminent. The man recognized this and would have the minerals within the skeleton act once more, concealing him within a strong cocoon to hold him steady as he dives deep within the sands. The detonation was imminent, the power was great. It would be near suicide to let this attack go through with one's bare skin. Stolas recognized Meso's plan and tried to crack the very bone that is encased around him, creating star-like appendages to barrage the man and not leave him a second to regenerate such bone matter. Cracks were seen upon its upper region and sides, but it wasn't enough, as the bones merely regenerated itself after each crack. Understanding this, Stolas went with an alternative, still doing his barrage, but now injecting his own stars within the cracks themselves, like a virus that infects the living cells of a human body. The stars spread itself across, so that when the burial was made and the explosion occurred, it wouldn't just be the bones being damaged, but also his very skin, cooking him alive within the cocoon as if he was a hard-boiled egg. "Gotcha...." The bird spoke, before pushing its trigger.

BA-BOOOOOOM!!!

An explosion stronger than the one Stolas Endured, the sands scattering like rats as a concave hole was made, the sand leaking downwards in a desperate attempt to fill it. The Stellar Magician stared down at the destruction, his guard still up. He wasn't about to be tricked again. He was already knowing this was a man built different than the others. A Man with nothing to fear, and nothing to lose. Just as when he believed he was sure the attack crippled him...

Low... Medium... High...

The Whistler's Tune...

He was still alive...