"This is how it ends. You regain your confidence mid-fight and then something unfortunate happens which causes you to fall to your knees and beg for mercy."
"That's not gonna happen."
Ryukushu's eyes flickered to the sudden gust of frost that Douma unleashed in his direction. "We'll see about that." The demon replied dryly.
The blonde took a step back and watched as Ryukushu sprinted towards him and nearly sliced his arm with the large sword.
From there, Ryukushu continued pacing back and forth across the hallways like a bolt of lightning, surprising Douma with an unexpected attack from every angle the demon reached. It was overwhelming at first but after a while Douma knew where to strike and when.
At the corner of his eye, Douma saw the towering samurai approaching him from behind. Steady, the figure came closer and Douma immediately spun around and plunged his golden fan into Ryukushu's torso, dragging him away like a fish caught on the hook of a fishing rod.
Ryukushu stared at his wound before looking up at Douma with a wicked smile on his face. "So you know what you're doing." He mocked the blonde, slowly getting up and swinging his sword again to maintain his composure.
Douma took a step back every time Ryukushu got closer to where he was standing. "Of course I do." He rasped, quite fearful of what the demon might do next.
A smile appeared on Ryukushu's grim face. "Sometimes your determination can become you're own weakness." He took another step closer, clenching his fingers around the handle of his sword tightly.
"That's not always the case. Maybe you just don't trust yourself." Douma responded, his lips slowly curving into a smirk. The demon was doubting his capabilities here which is a good sign.
Or so he thought because the minute he said that, Ryukushu's sword almost stabbed him in the neck, the angel moving away from the sudden attack within a hair's length. His expression contorting into one of shock.
"Talking isn't going to get you anywhere in this fight." Ryukushu said in a cold tone, glaring at Douma who shivered at his words. This angel really reminded him of a few foes he faced back when he led his clan especially one in particular that destroyed everything he stood for.
Of all people, he had to fight someone just as insufferable.
When Douma was about to get away from Ryukushu, the samurai plucked his sword from the cracked wall beside him and towered over the blonde who looked at him fearfully.
"You stepped in the wrong corner." Ryukushu snarled, grabbing Douma's shoulder and pulling him away from any form of support in the hallway.
Douma struggled in the demon's grip, watching helplessly as Ryukushu opened his mouth wide and sink his teeth into the blonde's shoulder.
Glass shards fell to the ground and shattered into pieces. Douma let out an agonizing scream as Ryukushu bite down on his shoulder further, holding his shoulder tightly so he won't escape. The demon continued sinking his teeth into Douma's flesh, making sure his regeneration doesn't catch up. Ryukushu looked like a rabid animal wolfing down its meal caught in its grasp. The samurai had completely lost his mind.
It's as though there was no humanity left in him. The demons within his very being had taken control of him entirely. No sane person would act this way.
After a few seconds of writhing around to break free, Douma finally got out of the demon's grasp. He clutched his shoulder wincing in pain and stepped back. He stood far away from Ryukushu who clenched his jaw a few times.
Douma crouched down, the pain was unbearable but he had to fight it. Those razor-sharp teeth of Ryukushu's were practically digging into his flesh. Tearing through every layer it reached. The blonde took a few deep breaths, he couldn't back down now. This wound will heal, he just had to be patient with his regeneration.
"That's why you should always stand in the right place. It matters a lot in battle."
He's not human anymore. The blonde looked at the wound on his shoulder. He never expected a person to be able to do such a thing, especially to someone like him. It was horrifying how someone with a warped mind and conscious could just pounce on anything and adopt some animalistic instinct out of nowhere. Douma couldn't even compare such actions to that of an animal's, they were too vicious to even have that kind of comparison. Ryukushu consciousness had been replaced perhaps even a long time ago.
Slowly, Douma got up from the floor and watched Ryukushu taking something out. They appeared to be several red orbs containing reflections. The more Douma looked at them, he noticed these reflections seeming off. Their images resembled nothing like the hallways.
Initially he thought they were just red glass orbs but once he saw a flower field beside a row of houses on one of the orbs, he knew something wasn't right with these items in Ryukushu's palm.
Watching Ryukushu twirling these red orbs in his hand made the blonde anxious. It kept him on edge. There was activity going on in those mirrored images. He saw a person walking outside a house and the other red orb beside it had an image of a sky with platforms and pillars covered in accessories and furniture.
That reflection had people in it too. But why were these orbs showing these things? Are they real or just films playing on a small glass sphere? It was an odd choice of items to have in one's possession.
Disturbingly odd, because the person holding these items was Ryukushu and he flitted his eyes at the angel every now and then. Douma couldn't even lift a finger right now, his wound was holding him back.
But he fought through it and stood upright. About to question Ryukushu when...
He pointed his sword at the red orbs. Douma counted three in between his fingers. The other two orbs were active so was the third one that he was paying attention to now.
This has to be some sort of illusion in the form of matter. But there's- Douma's breathing hitched in his throat when he saw Trastevere in the reflection of the third orb.
Ryukushu let out a hum. He drew his sword closer to the three red orbs he was holding.
Douma panicked and held his golden fans tightly. His feet shuffled uneasily, he just had to get to those orbs. Those weren't some magical items. They were live images just as fragile as any glass object and if Ryukushu were to break them the consequences would be catastrophic. There's a reason he had them in his possession at a time like this. Douma narrowed his eyes at the demon who fiddled with the red orbs like toys.
One of the red orbs Ryukushu was holding caught his attention for some reason. He couldn't bring himself the glass spheres because of this unsettling vibe he got from them.
At this point, he thought he was contradicting himself. The demon knew what he had to do, but this red orb was speaking to him he couldn't hear it but he was certain it was trying to send a message, no a warning to him because just looking at it again made his glowing red eyes twitch in agitation; Staring at the red orb was similar to staring directly at the sun. This red orb's awareness was gnarling at him, telling the demon to think through this carefully. Ryukushu knew who was behind this it had to be him.
At the other side of this glass sphere, Chaos hung upside down from a tree branch. Observing Ryukushu's battle through those red orbs in his hand. The power of interfering with a specific location is one that he had given Ryukushu after the demon was marked as his potential host.
But that doesn't mean Ryukushu was fully in control of his own power, it belonged to the Chaos. He still had control over this power from a distance. Where he resided didn't matter. Ryukushu just borrowed this power, once the mark has no place on the demon's neck, his new power will fade away with it. Chaos is permanent but others are temporary in his presence.
"I told you to think twice about your decision whenever it comes down to this." Chaos spoke. his eyes turned to slits when the message got to Ryukushu's head.
The demon froze when he heard the entity's words. He remembered everything Chaos had explained to him about this particular power but he hadn't thought of it this far. He was always reluctant to try it out simply because of the warning he got from Chaos. This power could still be used as long as he made the right decision. That statement was tricky to understand, Ryukushu wasn't sure if he was even making the right decision because of what the Chaos told him.
Douma could tell Ryukushu was contemplating on slicing the red orbs. He began sprinting towards him, getting ready to snatch the red orbs away.
"The universe is in your hands." Chaos said to him the moment he got this raging power. "Not just one actually but a whole lot of them. Think wisely because the effects definitely aren't reversible that's all I can tell you. But there's one more thing that you should be wary about."
Ryukushu brought the sword closer to the red orbs, trying to push aside the fear telling him to withdraw his weapon.
If he slashes the wrong red orb, Chaos would come after him. The entity made it clear that his hosts were still out there and he needed them alive. Even though the destruction of their homeland wouldn't affect him, Chaos wouldn't want to lose his potential vessel. He knows everything that goes on with the power he gives others because they still continue to surge through him despite the detachments.
Chaos sighed and swayed under the tree branch he was hanging from in the forest. "Let's see what happens. It's your decision." The entity stayed in his position, laxed.
Running towards the large sword beside the red orbs, Douma leaped up and got ready to knock Ryukushu away but the demon made his decision right there and then, catching a glint of Douma's figure as he tossed the third red orb into the air and slashed the other two in between his fingers.
Douma nearly tripped when he saw the shattered pieces of the red orbs fall onto the ground. His eyes widened thinking about the destruction the demon had put those innocent lives to.
Not a pang of guilt found itself occurring to Ryukushu, he had no regrets about his decision. The only thing he thought about was whether the Chaos was coming after him.
The third red orb still in the air started moving downwards. Ryukushu got ready to slice it too. When he brought his sword closer to it, Douma fired an ice sickle that pushed the demon towards the wall behind him. The blade brushing against the surface of the red orb, carving a small cut. Enough to send the entire city into a jeopardy once they see the effects of the dent that may appear to be insignificant on the glass sphere but actually posed a huge problem.
Douma caught the red orb and held it carefully. He took a close look at it and saw the dent that was aligned with the sky now. It wasn't just a scratch anymore, the dent became a part of the reflection.
Ryukushu dragged his sword along the floor, walking briskly to Douma who was looking at the bright red orb in his palm.
Turning around, Douma saw the demon approaching him and stepped back. He got into a fighting stance however, when he was about to keep the red orb in his pocket, it melted into a pool of red liquid on his palm, scorching his skin at the same time.
The blonde jolted and flailed his arm to get the liquid off his skin. It just so happens that Chaos knew he was in possession of it now and didn't want the red orb to be under anybody's control. Not his enemies' that's for sure.
"Genkakuna Jiritsu-sei Style Two: Tamashī no naka ni aru kyōfu!" Several purple entities appeared in the air and dove towards Douma with their mouths wide open and claws ready to rip their target in shreds.
"Freezing Clouds!" Douma unleashed clouds of ice and frost at these entities. Two of them bolted away from the clouds and continued flying towards the blonde, sometimes shooting purple streaks at him. The aftershocks on the ground served as a distraction for the angel but he wasn't going to let that slide.
When the two entities got to him, Douma stood there as the monsters raced through him. Douma immediately grabbed the entities and froze them until they resembled immobile ice sculptures and threw them to the floor.
Ryukushu appeared at the corner of his eye, raising his sword at the angel. Douma took a deep breath and moved to the back in an attempt to stun Ryukushu which worked because the samurai hissed in annoyance when he figured he'd have to make his way back to where he came from; Towards the end of the hallway.
"You might have survived this battle long enough but do you have what it takes to handle the next ounce of terror that will dawn here..."
Douma raised a brow. He wondered what Ryukushu meant by that.
Two more purple monstrous entities appeared on each side of Ryukushu, however there was another guest taking his time to emerge from that portal above the samurai's head.
Squinting his eyes, Douma watched as a larger bulkier figure appeared from the portal. It had jagged spikes on its shoulders and back along with two large horns on its head that resembled a rhino's but threatening enough to scare herds of animals away from a distance.
The metallic plates and armor it wore was latched onto its joints and that mortifying face with another row of horns on the bridge of its nose. The entity's eyes similar to that of a hawk's. Displaying every thought it had in its mind.
A sheer amount of heavy accumulated power swept over the hallways when the entity got out of the portal. Douma covered half of his face with his golden fan, the air stuffy and gusts of wind pushing him off his feet each time they flew in his direction.
The entity hovered above Ryukushu, staring at Douma with its arms crossed. The surroundings went still as if time slowed down, Douma glared at the large beast who grinned when it saw the blonde's acknowledgement of its presence.
This disoriented vibe he was getting from this entity's presence. It reminded him of a few encounters he had in other dimensions. Douma could guess what this entity was...
"Who do we have here?" The entity spoke, lowering his head to get a better look at Ryukushu's opponent.
A smile crept on the beast's face, "Oh an angel!" He said in an amused tone.
Douma gave both Ryukushu and this newcomer a stern look. It seems the towering samurai has invited his friend from hell to back him up. How pathetic, halfway through the battle he calls for reinforcements. He can't handle a fight on his own can he?
"I know what you're thinking Douma, this isn't a fair fight." Ryukushu spoke, gesturing for the other two entities to cover him. "But what's wrong with incorporating some additional features to make our fight more engaging I'd say. That still makes it a fair fight."
The blonde clenched his fist. He's never felt this furious before, Ryukushu was really testing his patience this time. Bringing a demon into the battle when he knows it counts as two and not one anymore. Talk about fair when it clearly isn't.
The intimidating entity glanced at Ryukushu and grinned. "So we're fighting against this guy at once?" He questioned his summoner. "I don't have a problem with that, but how does he feel about it? He seems rather displeased by this arrangement. Can he handle two foes because I think you're being a little cruel here." He sneered.
"Oh he'll be fine Vascalidon. I think he's eager to jump to the conclusion of this battle more so than dealing with the rest of it. So let's give him what he wants, not in a nice way of course." Ryukushu stood there, his purple monstrous entities slowly slithering towards Douma who stood a few meters away from the samurai and the rest of his teammates.
Vascalidon laughed and turned to look at Douma who was listening to every bit of conversation they had among themselves. "I'm looking forward to it then. Do your best Ryukushu, you don't get opponents like this all the time. Not around here."
Ryukushu and his alliance began walking towards Douma getting ready to strike anytime from now. The blonde got his golden fans ready and braced himself.