The Two Brothers (3)

"How… how did we lose?" I said as I leaned against the stone-cold wall behind me. I stared at the man who slaughtered three of my guys, while the fourth was most likely dead if that giant man is as strong as this monster.

The monster I speak of is a man who had a hunch back at first and spoke so dementedly. His first attack caught us off guard, and his following attacks were easy to block or dodge. We were able to get a few cuts and stabs in. But as we kept fighting, I slowly noticed that no matter how much this man bled, and no matter how much we cut his body. 

He did not die. He didn't even flinch.

Then everything changed when he said, "I'm bored."

Suddenly, the man disappeared, and the next thing I heard was screaming to my right, followed by James's head being torn off. His head screamed in agony as his headless body clutched the empty air that his head used to rest on.

We all backed away and activated our Echos. Lio could generate ice from his body, allowing him to make blades, spikes, and even armor. Micha could create golden stripes on his body that would allow him to increase his senses beyond the realm of man. While I could generate flames by using my blood, and the more I bled, the hotter my flames became.

This should have allowed us to beat this monster easily. But we stood no chance. Micha charged first, his blade slashing at the man's neck. But he stopped mid-swing and tried to jump backwards. From under the man's mask came thousands of centipedes all pink in color with red spots on their surface. He didn't even have time to dodge what these centipedes did next.

At first, they hovered and squirmed in front of the man's face just before they inflated and exploded. Small needles were launched from their bodies. These needles hit Micha, who was the closest to them. His body became a pincushion in seconds. Lio was able to block them by creating an ice cocoon around his body. I wasn't so lucky as these needles pierced my body like Micha.

Thankfully, the flames that coursed through my veins burned away the toxins hidden inside these needles. Saving me from a horrible fate. Micha wasn't so lucky. He at first stood perfectly still, then his body began convulsing, his skin started turning pink like the centipedes, foam came out of his mouth, blood poured out of every opening, and I mean every opening. His body collapsed onto the floor as his skin began to burst open, revealing tiny centipedes that slowly crawled out. Their shells were a dark purple with black spots on their backs. They tore through Micha's living flesh and even poured out of his eyes and mouth.

But Lio and I didn't even have time to see what else happened to him as the man lunged at us both. Using the holes in my body caused by the needles, I splashed my blood forward as they ignited into flames.

The man dodged that and raised his left arm. Thousands of maws shot forward like serpents as they bite into my flesh. I gritted my teeth as I tried to slash down at these maws and their necks, but was slammed into the roof before being tossed deeper into the dark hallway. 

I could feel my spine being destroyed and my organs being ruptured from the maw's jaws and the slamming as I rolled across the floor. I finally stopped when my body slammed against a wall behind me, and I felt my saber clash against the wall to the left of me.

I groaned as I slowly stood up, faltering as I used the nearby wall to hold myself up. When I finally opened my eyes. I saw Lio having his stomach stabbed by the man's hand, but the worst part was that hundreds of spikes were piercing out of his back, all spinning. The next second, these spikes were all moving away from each other, ripping apart Lio's skin and organs.

I could hear him cry out in pain as the monster giggled and made the process so much slower. I tried to move, but I really couldn't. I was afraid. I was scared of what would become of me if I allowed myself to be noticed by that man.

"How…" I spoke out loud by accident, catching the man's attention, "How did we lose?"

The man just stared at me, and I could tell, underneath the mask, that he was smiling, just like the Damnations that roam the rocky lands of the Devil's Maw. But at least the Damnations kill you when they see you. This man was torturing a man who was close to death's door out of pure fun. Compared to the monsters that try to devour our cities and citizens, he was far worse.

"I now see why my God told us to stop you from creating your God," I said as I coughed out blood, the blood splattering onto the floor below. I coughed a couple more times before wheezing, "If a God, no, if a being far worse than the Damnations is created by people like you and taught like you. Then this world is truly over."

I tried to grab my saber from the floor, but was stopped when a giant spine pierced my left hand and embedded it into the wall. I gritted my teeth as I grunted in pain. I tried to yank my hand free, but the spine had spikes all over it. Each time I tried pulling it, I was slowly tearing my hand apart.

"I'm back," a voice said. When I looked up, I could see the giant man who had taken my comrade away from us. He has a cut on his chest as blood slowly drips down. He also had a piece of cloth covering his face instead of a mask. But what was worse was that in his right hand was George, being held by the scruff of his cloak, a puddle of blood forming underneath his corpse.

George was a man who joined the church alongside me and fought alongside me since the beginning. He and I promised to fight side by side until death. Yet, he was dead.

We failed.

"I see you didn't kill all of them," the giant man said as he tossed George's body aside. He looked at the monster and then at Lio, who was still alive but in pain. The giant man summoned a giant mace out of nowhere and smashed Lio's head apart. His skull and brain splattered against the floor like paint.

The monster didn't react as it simply tossed Lio's body against the wall, making a splash paint on the wall's surface. As if he were just a doll that he was playing with, but now that it was broken, it needed to be tossed away.

"Now what to do with you," the giant man said as he walked to me. I tried to free my hand from the spine, yanking it and allowing it to tear my hand. After a couple more yanks, I was able to free my hand. But in doing so, I lost both my ring finger and middle finger as well as a big chunk of my hand.

I quickly reached for my saber and slashed upwards. Parrying a giant mace aimed at my head. I then splashed my blood onto the giant man as his robe quickly ignited into flames. He took a couple of steps back, trying his best to swat the fire away. But after noticing he couldn't even put them out, the man unsummoned his mace and summoned a glave. Its blade was curved, with the tip curving the other way like a scorpion's tail, with a spike at the back of it. Its shaft was made of a white wood with its deep cut marks on its surface.

The giant man slammed the base of his glove onto the ground, and a gust of wind burst forward. The flames were quickly snuffed out. I didn't have time to react as he rushed at me, his blade striking at my right hand that held my blade. I gritted my teeth as I quickly tossed my blade to my left hand, sacrificing my right to ensure I had a chance to strike.

The blade cut my right hand clean off, but it allowed me the chance to aim for the giant man's neck. In the corner of my eye, I could see the monster already charging at me, his head bulging as I could see in the corners of his mask, rows of crooked teeth protruding out of the dark corners. I might die, but I was ready to take this man with me to the afterlife.

I slashed down, and as I was ready to feel the feeling of red blood against my skin. A chill ran down my spine as I heard clinking. Suddenly, the dark hallway lit up as golden chains wrapped around my arms and legs, before snatching my blade out of my hand.

"Lord Messiah," the giant and the monster said as they both kneeled. 

I couldn't see the man who was standing behind me. But I knew just from instinct alone that I was no match for whoever stood behind me.