Chapter 164: A Wonderful World

The Puppet was quick to notice at the situation. It could feel the shield slowly wrapping itself around, and reacted heavily. It would extend its roots deeper and deeper, reaching down to his bones and infusing such plant-life within his very skeleton, not only providing ease of access to control and manipulate Harvard's body, but also allowing it to evade the barrier from fully absorbing the roots, less it results in a fatal accident even more than before, possibly even having a high chance to kill Harvard outright. It would force itself to make a smile, almost being jovial at the fact such juvenile tactics would work, yet it stopped itself as Solomon himself made a smile, a wicked one. "You think just because of a few setbacks, I'm still not gonna pull it...?" The words would make the puppet stare lifelessly, trying to take in the information. The Marrow, however, would have a different expression altogether: One of Fear. One of Whiplash. Solomon would speak further, cementing his option. "I'm still gonna do it. Even if Harvard would die in this scenario, I'm still doing it. I'm pretty damn sure he would've done the same thing. Your control is worth nothing, Monster..." The Marrow would instantly try to react by pulling the boy away, hoping to plant more roots so that, if the first batch was ruined, his second would still remain firm.

BAM!!

A Left hook. A Left hook by Stolas, being the very roadblock to prevent him from advancing his manipulation further. Stolas looked on at Zazel's direction, noticing he was still watching. "HEY! ZAZEL!! GET PRIA OVER HERE AND DEAL WITH THE SPIDER WILL YAH?" His words would be heard as the Demon left almost immediately, shifting his focus back to the Marrow, delivering a string of strikes to ensure it wouldn't follow. A Punch in its stomach, an uppercut across its wooden jaw, a knee to its chest, breaking through and having his leg coated in the sap, feeling its burn due to the heat it sustained throughout the fight. The Marrow would try to bite down on Stolas shoulder, opening its makeshift mouth to stab such wood into him, yet Stolas simply grabbed his mouth and tried to tear it in half, causing more sap to pour down, acting as its blood. He'd finally finish his string by punching it square in the face, sending it towards a tree, barraging it with a cluster of stars, creating Gemini once more to continue his jumping.

The Marrow would try to use the roots to grip at Stolas' bird-like legs once he would land, yet he'd simply ignite the floor with some more stars, yet such a reaction would cause him to be worn down a bit. He was starting to feel its cost. The more the stars were casted, also, was when more of the forest started to burn down, relieving ash and smoke in its wake, making it harder to breathe as well. The Marrow was quick on seeing this, thanks to the lack of lungs needed to survive. It grinned to itself as it saw such a pathetic state being laid out before him.

SHIKK!! SHIKK!! SHIKK!!!

The perfect opening for the perfect strategist.

The Marrow would be quick in its magic, utilizing the same technique of the falling leaves as blades, scattering them amidst the smoke and air, spiraling more and more, a literal barrier of flora to prevent Stolas from leaving. He could feel his skin being sliced by the centimeter, his feathers being plucked out, the heat burning him up more and more. That was when the Marrow began to speak, being exempt from the strikes as he'd make short work of Gemini, ripping them asunder into nothing but a cluster once more. "Feather by Feather.....Skin by Skin....Bone...by Bone... I will ensure...your death is certain..." Once it spoke such words, giving a cocky smile once more, it expected to hear screams beyond comprehension. Screams and yells of pain, ones of suffering, ones of anguish. It expected to hear the child cry for its parent, to be free of such a nightmare scenario.

BANG!!

And yet, it would be struck down in the same manner, being shot straight through its chest, igniting his body once more. The Marrow would be affected in the same manner without warning, seeing the stars that were once split apart to invade the very leaves, expanding its striking range, making it so that the Marrow was also in danger, feeling its body ripped apart in such small increments. It would see Stolas still standing, now taking even further abuse thanks to such a trick. "Really...?" He'd start, slowly getting himself up, despite the severe damages. He'd start to slowly approach forward, taking in the abuse further, stopping himself once he gets a good look at the Marrow in front of him. "That's how its gonna happen....? Alright...I'll bite...! I'm going to do....the same thing to you then...Branch by Branch....Splinter by Splinter.....Sap by Sap.....until you're a walking stump."

"Let's dance, Freak...."

His voice was unclouded. His resolve was prevalent. He wasn't crying, nor screaming. He'd simply stand there, staring towards the wooden-like monstrosity, showcasing his lack of fear or pain. He was getting motivated, and such motivation was proven further when the Marrow came at a similar revelation. Outside of the leaf-like tornado, it could see his puppet, being incapable of used. Its body lied limp, its consciousness unable to react further. It quickly realized that, because it has to focus on surviving on its own, it cannot manipulate it further, rendering it near impossible to fight back. It wasn't a mere fight...

But a Distraction. Solomon would be quick to grab a specific card hanging around his suit: The Potion. Its eyes widened as it realized its position was locked in place. It was going to suffer a humiliating loss.

The worst part of it all, was that it did it by its own hand.