Lohit exhaled, a shadow of disappointment crossing his face.
[Lohit]: It seems Sonavarnah is dead.
Yuwah lay nearby, barely alive, his body soaked in blood.
[Yuwah]: Doesn't that mean you've lost?
He asked with a raspy smile.
[Lohit]: Who knows? But I am certain he ensured no other enemies would disturb me.
Lohit's tone remained unnervingly calm.
Yuwah: Feeling sad for your brother?
Lohit stared down at Yuwah, his eyes flaring with sudden rage.
[Lohit]: I severed any emotion that grants a man a conscious mind long ago. Yet deep down... he was still my brother. My heart bears that sorrow. But I will not cry. I will not mourn—not until every last one of my enemies is erased. Once you are all eliminated, I will mourn his death by presenting the heads of every single slum dweller.
Lohit stepped toward Yuwah, his shadow falling over the fallen warrior.
[Lohit]: Let us end this here.
Pierce.
Something drove through Lohit's back, tearing straight through his chest.
Lohit turned, his eyes wide with shock, to find Kel standing behind him.
[Kel]: What's the rush?
Kel had grasped the plan perfectly:
Mala would destroy the magic spell shortly. Once it shattered, Lohit would regain his formidable Dragon Traits—making him nearly impossible to defeat. Kel had been waiting for this exact opening from the very start.
Kel ripped the sword back out.
Before Lohit could strike at Kel, Yuwah forced himself up with the last of his strength, grabbed Lohit, and slammed him savagely to the floor.
[Yuwah]: This is for my sister!
Grasping a heavy axe nearby, Yuwah brought it down with brutal finality, splitting Lohit's head in two.
Kel let out a long breath of relief as Lohit drew his final, ragged breath.
The battle was over.
The Tyrant was dead.
Deep in the core of the castle, Mala slammed her fist into the enchanted wall bearing the spell.
CRACK.
The entire structure shattered into dust.
The moment the spell broke, the Dark Energy Depletion Zone vanished.
Mala let out a sigh of relief as power surged back into the air; it had taken far too long to locate the anchor.
Sonavarnah and Lohit were slain.
The Royal Guards were wiped out.
Everyone was safe.
Or so they thought.
While the others drew breath, a nightmare was brewing elsewhere.
Pratik.
Two souls resided within a single vessel: Pratik's and Haidoro's.
Just before the zone had been cast, Haidoro had taken command of the body to wage war against Lohit.
But the physical vessel belonged to Pratik.
Trapped in a spatial deadlock, the body could not decide which soul held true domain.
Instead, it went berserk.
The raw malice coiled deep within both souls awoke, taking violent control.
As Dark Energy flooded back into the world, the twin-souled body animated once more.
But the entity steering it was neither Pratik nor Haidoro.
It was something far darker.
A swirling mass of shadow enveloped Pratik like suit of living armor—a killing machine radiating Haidoro's toxic malice.
Harnessing two souls in one frame, this dark entity could wield the lethal techniques of both fighters at 90% of their maximum output.
"You look weird."
A soft voice broke through the silence.
Pratik turned to see Lila staring at him, deep concern etching her features. But what met her gaze wasn't her friend—it was the face of a demon.
[Lila]: Are you alright, Pratik?
She asked calmly.
She had come to check on him, ready to heal his wounds.
But the entity before her radiated a killing intent identical to Haidoro's.
A sudden wave of PTSD hit Lila like a physical blow; she collapsed onto her knees, coughing violently as panic seized her chest.
When she forced her eyes upward, Pratik was already towering right above her, his fist primed to drive straight through her chest.
She couldn't react.
He was far too fast.
BOOM!
Before the blow could land, a heavy impact launched Pratik backward into the rubble.
Grimori had arrived, spitting blood onto the ground.
His severe wounds were already regenerating now that his Sorcery had returned.
Kel dashed in right behind him, followed by a shockwave as Mala burst through the ceiling from the castle core.
Out of the rising dust, the demonic armor strode forward untouched.
[Mala]: What happened to him?!
concern laced her voice.
[Lila]: He was like this when I found him!
Lila gasped, her heart pounding against her ribs.
[Lila]: I can feel Haidoro's malice leaking from him!
[Mala]: Grimori, Kel, Lila—get out of here.
[Lila]: No way! He's not himself, we can't just—
[Mala]: Leave! You're all heavily injured and need rest.
[Grimori]: We healed our wounds the second the depletion zone vanished! We can still fight—
[Mala]: Flooding your body with Dark Energy immediately after total depletion can cause instant cardiac arrest.
Mala snapped.
[Mala]: I was trained to handle that load by Sister Sunita. None of you were. Now GO!
She was right.
Arguing was useless.
Grimori, Kel, and Lila retreated from the field.
Mala turned to the creature.
[Lila]: Is something wrong, Pratik?
Pratik stared back blankly, measuring her power. It was staggering.
[Mala]: Can we talk this out? Starting with what Haidoro is doing inside you?
Her voice turned ice-cold.
[Mala]: Range Shifting: Speed!
FSHHH!
In a fraction of a second, both figures vanished.
A heartbeat later, a nearby mountain range imploded, pulverizing beneath a colossal shockwave.
[Mala]: "Wake up, you damn brat!"
Mala's voice echoed as her fist connected, launching Pratik straight through several rock formations.
A visible fracture spider-webbed across his black armor.
Smirking, Mala materialized behind him in mid-air and delivered a devastating axe-kick, sending him plunging back down.
Another crack shattered the dark shell.
Yet, before Mala could follow up, a blast of sheer force repelled her backward.
The dark armor on Pratik's body knit itself back together—and then, a blazing blue aura wrapped over the shadow.
Pratik's body had just activated Trigger 4: Plasma.
To be continued...
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