Comfort Eagle

The sound of cries echoes through the hall, monsters celebrating on wooden colosseum stands, set up on flimsy walls, a massive creature, its neck craned up, looking down at the arena as beasts fight against each other, tearing themselves apart. The monster's eyes were beady and white, sporting a mane of black hair that spanned their entire body, one massive hand clasping the wall in front of them that they had sat themselves behind.

A man with long black hair dragged the corpse of an Ape from behind him, thin and tall, revealing himself to the gargantuan crowd of Apes screaming in celebratory applause.

The man was shirtless, wearing baggy, disheveled pants, a pelt tied around their waist, and even though the man was thin, the muscles underneath his skin was readily apparent, holding an exceptional amount of strength as the wired insides of his body intertwined with itself like thousands of taut strings straining against each other.

The massive creature smiled, showing its sharp, blood-crusted teeth, revealing a bit of its gums. It licked it's own teeth as if inspecting a succulent meal, leaning in with interest.

This was Ryuu, and his eyes carried a palpable madness.

Just before Ryuu could step forward, a hunched creature met him, sporting hauntingly white hair and a crazed smile on its face. One of the Lords of this underground realm. These creatures were called Cakranoids, and that massive creature at the end of the arena was the Cakranoid King, sporting Four Lords.

[Pirate King, Klejakx]

The smallest of the lords, a blindfold wrapped around their eyes, having a minimal amount of hair compared to their more animalistic compatriots, showing off a magnificent tail that was also just as uncommon compared to their peers.

[Vile Wretch of the Under Earth]

An insectoid Cakranoid with multiple, thin, spindly limbs that can grab and peel away at flesh at a rapid pace, the body covered by a thin black cloth that emphasized its monstrous mouth amidst the darkness of its hood.

[Cretin of the Deep]

An aquatic monstrosity with tapered guard hair that provides the creature with an ease of movement underwater, wielding a ginormous blade the size of its entire body wherever it went. The Lord, who now stood before Ryuu at this very moment.

[Pestilent Shaman]

Most likely the secret leader of the group, known for their cunning intelligence and bizarre and extensive knowledge in the magical arts. Said to be the reason why beasts prowl throughout the underground through brutal and grotesque summoning rituals.

Ryuu found himself interested in the only named creature amongst their midst, Klejakx, while, even their own King did not sport a proper name, but instead a title that represented their standing amongst the Cakranoids.

Ryuu looked up at the Cretin as they stared down at Ryuu with that same crazed smile, grabbing it's sword and quickly swinging it down onto his body.

Ryuu's body hardened almost immediately, the floor exploding out from under him as he was sent flying into a different layer of the underground, blood spraying out from Ryuu's nose the instant the massive stone sword made impact against his body.

Ryuu whistled through the air, slamming against a rocky slope on the level below, sliding across it. The cretin grasped the edge of the hole, using a singular arm to launch themselves forward, down to Ryuu's level, using it's entire body to swing it's sword once more.

Ryuu sped off to the side, moving to a more open area within the underground, the sword slamming against the stone, causing it to split open, shaving off a layer from the rockface.

On the flat of the blade, the creature caught the falling rocks, sweeping the sword through the air, causing the rubble to fly to Ryuu at incredible speeds.

Ryuu locked himself into the floor, his body hardening rapidly once again, pelted by an onslaught of stones slamming against his body, causing welts to slowly form across his body. He whipped one hand out, catching a stone, throwing one back at the Cretin, the monster catching it themselves and returning it to Ryuu.

Ryuu ducked under the rubble, breaking into a sprint, using a slope on the other side of the cave wall to propel himself forward.

The monster's sword is swung, Ryuu narrowly jumping out of the way, the wind of the strike causing his hair to blow wildly about. Ryuu was just about prepared to steel himself again before the creature spun their whole body around, grabbing a part of Ryuu's body with one of their feet, crashing Ryuu through another cave wall, throwing him into a massive pool of muddy water. His body aches as the creature quickly follows him into the new arena they had found themselves in.

Whenever heat was applied to an object, for Ryuu, it felt light, malleable, and faster. Whenever cold was applied to an object, it was heavy and cold. He wasn't limited to a small surface area; given the right environment, it was almost too easy to find yourself in an advantageous position.

The ground is chilled to an absolute zero, Ryuu's body becoming ice cold. And as this cold encompassed the entire area, slowly and insidiously spreading like a potent poison, so did the weight. First it was the creature's feet, next was the moisture in the air, and next, everything felt as if a large weight had been placed onto the Cretin's shoulders.

They extended their shoulder, breaking their sword through the ice, struggling to lift it above the creature's hips, limply falling to their knees, quickly exasperated.

Ryuu pulled themselves out from the ice sheet, letting out a long sigh as they stepped forward toward the monster in front of them.

The Cretin attempted swinging the blade back at Ryuu, slowly approaching him. Ryuu grabbed the blade, vaulted it over his head, and pulled the monster's body close, a fist digging into an arm of the creature, attempting to block Ryuu's assault. The Cretin staggered forward, flipping their arm around to push Ryuu away from it, following up with a punch against Ryuu's body, sending the top half of his body backward.

Ryuu pulled the Cretin's arm once again, biting down into the flesh, tearing at it and throwing their arm to the side and slamming a fist into one of the monster's knees, causing it to cry out in pain.

They both pause for the moment, injured and exhausted.

Soon enough, steam was being emitted from Ryuu's body. The cold went away and the Cretin's confidence returned, raising a single arm into the air, swinging down in one, heavy and violent motion.

Ryuu jumped off of the Cretin's knee, grabbing the arm, pressing his back against the beast, proceeding to kick off of the creature, squeezing the arm tight before throwing the monster over his shoulder and into the massive pool under them. The beast crashed into the sea of liquid, a look of desperation appearing in their eyes, the same look that Ryuu has currently, a deep trench of blackness found within.

A frigid cold once again encompassed the room, the weight of Ryuu increased sevenfold, holding the creature down as one weighted fist raised into the air, similarly to what the creature did before him.

Each hit sounded like a gunshot, the water rippling under each slam against its flesh. Ryuu persistently slammed against them until their ribs cracked and broke down from the pressure, until his chest concaved, until the beast was rendered a pile of gore beneath the sheer force of his punches.

[You have defeated a Lord of the Underground; from that, bountiful rewards will bless your senses! The User must choose one out of four rewards! The Selection: An Odd Talent, Common Familiar, Familiar Weapon, and an Odd Trait.]

[Odd Talent: Adapting Aegis. You gain resistance to an element from the last attack that you have received.]

[Common Familiar: A small beetle will accompany you on your adventures. It isn't especially strong, but it is incredibly durable, so it won't die easily!]

[Familiar Weapon: Sleek Stilleto. Very good for parrying, not very good for damage. Can be great at breaking weapons.]

[Odd Trait: Legendary Resistance. Resist an attack in its entirety, once per day.]

Ryuu stared for a good long while.

"Why would I choose anything other than the Legendary Resistance?" Ryuu's voice was more raspy, as if he hadn't spoken properly for months.

Clack!

Suddenly, the Shaman appeared, standing a distance away, their staff dug into the pool. "Son of a bitch."