Water Trial 3
To Castiel, this battle could be described with one word, boring. It was not that the enemies were weak, per say, if anything the fact that they were adapting and growing stronger is reason enough to concern, but the fact of the matter is that he had far too much of a natural advantage over most of them.
Fishmen karate is the primary weapon of them, it was made to control water in the ambient on his surroundings and the water inside the body of the enemy. The problem is that Castiel's body was far from normal.
His body's muscles were compacted and 'forged' to the point that even if someone were to try and control anything of it he could counter it perfectly, not only that but his blood was pure energy and his body was systematically different from any other there is. If anyone were to ask why he had never learned touki despite his gruesome training from young, physical training that would not lose even when compared to Sairaorg Bael, it was because touki would be achieved when someone trained their body beyond the limit of it, but the fact is that Castiel's body was absurd.
It was the perfect mix of the perfect creation of the Christian God and a human, the creature with the highest potential for growth, and considering that both his parents are just that amazing in the physical aspect it could be said that Castiel's body was a temple that would not allow for any half-assed attempt from the Fishmen to control what water there is in his body.
Not only that but Castiel also knew well how Fishmen Karate worked due to studying it during his visit to Poseidon's realm, Atlantis. He just didn't use it due to how he lacked the correct body type for it, to learn Fishmen Karate you must either be a fishmen or have some special bloodline related to a sea creature by some mean, it is the only way really.
Thanks to his knowledge, the knowledge that he had about all different areas from anatomy to magic and special martial arts and occult knowledge from dozens of schools of knowledge with some not even from his own world (he is the godson of Zelretch, that explains a lot really) it could be said that things he truly did not understand at all are fewer than those he understands, and one such matter he knew from studying martial arts of all sorts of schools and the Fishmen Karate was how to avoid all the more dangerous attacks. Right now he decided that he would take this as a chance to sharpen himself, he would use this fight to the express purpose to learn how to better use everything he had.
Thus the situation he was now, using the Blut Vene to harden his body as he jumped around while punching and kicking everything that moved. There was hardly any area of his body that he wasn't using as a weapon or helping the rest, his body was a machine of combat that was improving in the close physical combat area. It was to such a point that he even decided to start using his wings as blades by using reinforcement in them, learning how to maneuver them more properly by the second.
It had to be said that the effects it was creating was shown clearly by how his speed of slaughter was not slowing down even as the enemies grew constantly stronger. If anything it was getting faster and faster, but after a while, he entered a state similar to how he got during the fire trial when he lost counsiousness and simply analyzed his body's movements and how to better use it. He turned into a machine of slaughter that killed over 4000 enemies using only his hands by this point. It was to the point that even when enemies started using magic bullets to attack him he started using mana bursts to throw the bullets of course, but with the passage of time of this happening the mana bursts started getting more and more focused and controlled, it was to the point that he was managing to use mana bursts with each tiny point in his body that could release mana.
He was so lost in this state of fighting and comprehension that he did not even noticed when two more sub bosses appeared. One looked like a giant squid Fishmen and the other looked like a Japanese wobbegong fishmen, both exuded energy of around low Ultimate-Class and were strong in their own right, but as soon as they appeared they happened to be close to where Castiel was moving. His whirling of death was still ongoing and it showed no signs of stopping, even as these two appeared in front of him all they could do was defend themselves as Castiel focused in these two tougher enemies.
As the flurry of attacks continued more and more the two enemies suffered. Their specialties completely ineffective against Castiel since he gave neither of them time to use their skills. It was at this point that the two started eating some red pills, their energy soaring higher and higher as they finally managed t counter the puppet-like Casforcefullycefuly waking him from this state of comprehension.
"..The fuck? Who is the bitch that interrupted my comprehension? I was one step away to reaching a whole new level, so who is it that disturbed me at this time?" I asked, more irritated than most could understand.
Such special states of comprehension are hard to find, it can only happen by luck and not induced directly by the one that reaches it. I was starting to fully understand my body's current limitations and what I could do, with what I was learning I am sure I would be able to match Madara in hand-to-hand combat directly without depending on reinforcement that much or taking so much of a beating.
But these bastards stopped me just as I was close to the next step of my physical capacity, integrating mana bursts of different elements in my attacks as well as turning my entire body into a determined element much like what True Form works amongst devil-kind.
And just as I was about to reach this, these bastards got in the way? It is decided, they die.
"Huh, did you like my special attack super surprise stopper? With this you were forced out of your peak and now will die by the chain of me, Zeo-sama!" the Japanese Wobbegong Fishmen said while spinning a chain over and over again. The material for what I see is demon ore of high quality and purity, meaning that it would be a good ingredient for me to futurely use.
"How dare you ignore us-ch. We are the chosen ones that are destined to bring down you human scums-ch. I will pierce you with the lance of me, Ikaros-ch." The Giant Squid said, each of his arms holding a spear that I could see was made from Ancient Adam Tree, a type of wood that was very good in transmitting magic energy and adding its elasticity and impossibly hardness it made the perfect material for a sword handle or a spear shaft.
Well, at least these two are holding good stuff. It is just a shame that it is not yet in my hands, but that can be solved quickly enough.
As I smirk thinking that Zeo's chain hit the ground strongly, raising a wave of dust that covered both of them. It will not work, idiots! I use my Field to lockdown on everything around me and identify any and all attacks and things in my surroundings.
With my power's growth, I could finally start to show exactly why I spent so long researching and improving this specific technique while growing up. If before the area it covered was relatively small now it covered a 50 meters radius around me, nothing could move inside this that I would not notice as even space movement for teleportation would be noticed instantly. Not only that but thanks to my constant researches about bounded fields, one of the areas of study that I could learn more even after my power stopped growing, it now not only could change the course of any long distance attacks coming my way that are not absurdly too overpowered for me but an also create all sorts of unique attacking effects to my surroundings.
I decided to play with it by changing the area on the border of my field into a microwave hell that made any Fishmen dumb enough to try and get close to exploding inside out due to their blood turning into gas and expanding while inside their bodies. I also started using this limited area to release all the evil energy I could but that would not corrupt or taint the materials I want from my enemies. I smirk as I see the previously smug faces of the Fishmen in front of me curl up in pain and suffering, I take sadistic and guttural pleasure out of it really.
They that previously were acting high and mighty are now curling up in the floor and puking blood. I think that perhaps making my curse power into plague and releasing it in such toxicity may be over exaggerating, but I don't care. They disturbed me on the worse moment possible, they deserve what they get.
Ikaros started launching bullets of spit, all of them strong enough to pierce even 50 centimeters of pure metal as if it was cotton, but they all are subtly redirected to not hit me, instead, piercing and killing a few more of the Fishmen around us.
They then started eating those red pills as if they were candy, it was probably giving them just enough energy to survive and fight in this place as they manage to stand up again, their eyes turning red as Ikaros dashed at me. Neo disappeared from sight but I could 'see' where he is due to my Field activated, stealth that was not at least of Serenity's level was just as useless as it could be. Ignoring Neo that is currently trying to circulate me Ifocused on Ikarus.
The Giant Squid Fishmen used his six arms and six spears in tandem, he was controlling all of them with considerable skill and I could see that he was manipulating the water around the weapon and inside its tip (that coincidently looked like a squid but was full of very dense water energy and water) to make the weapon's cutting-edge stronger and increase the viscosity of the air to make my movements harder.
Tough luck, I trained in underwater in extremely strong pressures growing up too, this level is FAR from enough to faze me at all. Ah, fighting these Fishmen makes me think back to the time when I was younger and practiced with Poseidon's kid Fishmen karate, I was truly desperate to get stronger by any means and even if it did not work in the slightest it still was a great practice to make my body much more accostumed to deal with pressure.
I started avoiding his movements as I saw that his body was starting to look black and purple in the corners, a clear indication that the curse power is damaging his whole body by now and that unless I myself act he will die regardless of what happened within a few minutes. If he had ran away from my Field he could have avoided that, but I can see the anger in his eyes. He would not back down, and as such is destined to fall.
"Gotcha!" Zeo said as he threw the chain at my head directly, the speed and angle are perfect and it would be enough to kill anyone at my power level.
Well, anyone except me really. I simply took out Hruting and blocked the 'perfect strike' as I was already watching out for it. As I heard a good CLANK sound of impact I smirked as I pointed to Zeo and modified the area around him to lock down space, it was not so strong of a seal but it was more than enough as I focused a whole lot more evil energy upon him.
Ikaros stopped attacking as he saw his friend be covered in a jet black viscous and evil cloud, and as if it was acid his body melted away to nothing as decay took effect on him. Honestly speaking my cursed and evil energy limits me a great deal, when I use it fully most of my angelic and holy powers are impossible to be used and I can't use the Vermilion Bird's flames since they are the highest level of purifying and divine flames, it is completely not possible to use them in tandem. It also makes my head heavier and I have to put up actual work in not letting my mind be flooded with evil energy or risk becoming a mindless beast, but while this all is true there is still a simple fact that can't be overlooked.
My evil energy is simply too OP. I can, just by existing in a place, damage everyone around me so much that no life can exist except my own. Create plagues, voodoo incantations, controlling man-eating insects, instigating dark emotions on others to make them commit terrible acts if I so desire, it is a power that could be classified as an anti-world level. And looking at this once lively enemy turning to dust just like that without being able to counter, it put on the whole definition of what I could achieve in need of serious evaluation.
I can't use it on a big area like this, if I was back in my dimension and something goes wrong I could end up destroying entire countries or continents if my control slipped for just a second. What I need is to focus it inside and around my body, it is similar to what True Form is but at the same time different since I will not try to change myself.
Well, at least Ikaros is already close to death enough since his body's blackening is close to completion. He only turns to glare at me, his hatred is still going strong so I decided to try something unique.
My left arm spirit bone can devour anything in existence while my evil core is a magnet to evil energy like none other, thinking that I decided to test to see how it would be as I moved closer to Ikaros. He was already kneeling on the ground since he could no longer support himself and the only thing moving him is his hatred for me and everything else.
I will devour it.
Avoiding a painfully slow jab with his spear I put my left hand in his head. A suction power started pumping and I could feel all his personal hatred and evil emotions being devoured away, all to be turned into energy that was promptly devoured by my evil core. I could see why he was so furious to the world, but only slightly. It was like he himself did not understand the reason WHY he was furious towards humans, like he could not understand why things were this way just that they were. And boy does he hates and curses humanity, his whole reason for being is this, he is nothing but an incarnation of anger by now and even his few good memories are surrounded by the anger. I took all of it away, he died almost as if he could not remember a thing since I took away all his dark thoughts, but a peaceful smile graced his face as if he was having a good dream before falling to the ground and leaving behind his spears that I promptly took away the evil energy of and guarded with me.
And just look at that, mister emo finally came back.
After recovering from the flash. Crimson Soul reverted back to his human form, becoming Nico once again. According to his senses, his Demonic Energy reserves weren't at their optimum efficiency, and right now what remains of the power in his Satanic Treasures were focusing on restoring it back to its optimum quantity. During that time, he'll take care not to transform till he was more or less recovered, as any sooner and he'd likely be unable to fight to his fullest potential.
The teenage DPU opened his eyes moments later, finding himself back inside the main water trial area. 'Whew, looks like we're back...' The teen mused inside his mind, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. That little side trip had been rather... trippy (he wanted to kill himself for that pun) for sure. Suddenly finding himself fighting a flock of superpowered Orcas with a much larger boss monster... it made him think back to some of the Abnormals he fought back home.
Just then, the male frowned as his senses picked up a large exertion of evil, sinister energy. He quickly picked it up as Castiel's energy, which caused him to wince as he realized that, thanks to his senses the energy had been released onto a large space similar to what had happened in the second trial. 'This energy Castiel has can be qualified as OP as all hell...' the male mused to himself, glancing towards the direction of said energy and noticing the corpse of some Squid Fishman. Poor bastard probably never stood a chance.
'Indeed, however you may want to look at your right arm again, Nico. There's a surprise for you there.'
'Huh?'
His thoughts got broken like a record suddenly screeching to a halt, when he heard that. Bikos's words made the male's eyebrows arch together in curiosity, prompting him to look down while not noticing how there were a group of Fishmen who, instead of trying to take out the wall that was Castiel Emiya, decided to choose him instead. Not really a better option considering how many other Fishmen met their ends at his hands, but meh.
When he looked at his right arm, Nico found himself widening his eyes in surprise when he saw the sea green, glowing Spirit Bone he had gotten from that Evil Spirit Orca King still latched onto his forearm, covering his Bracer. 'Huh... and here I thought these Spirit Bones would be limited to my human form...' the male thought. 'Guess not, then. Interesting...' At that point, had been the point when he noticed his incoming aggressors, and a sigh escaped his lips. "#SIGH#, and I just HAD to get a welcoming committee..." the male muttered under his breath. Raising his right arm, Nico summoned Rebellion and twirled around into a slash.
Now, here's the thing. When Nico made the slash as the Fishmen jumped at him, the male didn't think anything of it. Instead, he focused more on what he would have to do next, such as how to maximise his use of Hellfire despite the limitations. That battle had taught him that his previous training and methods would have to be much more... creative. Hellfire WAS supposed to be very aggressive and chaotic in nature, so Nico never really used it very much and instead relied on his Devil Arms. Even when he kept up training in it throughout these trials. If anything, when the slash was launched, Nico had imbued Rebellion's blade with his orangish red Hellfire as a means of increasing its offensive power along with its HF Technology.
Thing was... he forgot one thing.
That he STILL had that right arm Spirit Bone, the Evil Orca Spirit Bone, still summoned, which prompted it to activate.
In a second, a crimson energy got released from the Spirit bone, condensing around the blade of Rebellion as it slashed. It practically took over the Hellfire there, extinguishing it and becoming the dominant energy surrounding the blade itself. As a result, from its blade erupted a blade made from highly condensed, crimson energy that launched at the Fishmen faster than a bullet train. In a second or two, it reached the very end of the Water Trial Arena, cutting through the attacking Fishman as well as anything else unlucky enough to be in its path.
"WH-WHOA!" Nico shrieked in a startled manner, his eyes bugging out while he stumbled backwards, completely caught by surprise at what had happened. The moment that energy blade came out of Rebellion, he quickly recalled a similar blade of matching power and speed from that Evil Spirit Orca King he had defeated. Though he held no fond memories of it, the fact that he had just sent one out like that baffled him like all hell. 'Okay, WHAT was that?' he wondered, glancing down at the Spirit Bone on his Right Arm in curiosity and shock. 'Looks like this Spirit Bone has some power to it...'
'From what I can tell, this Spirit Bone surpasses that of the Fatalis and the Boar Spirit Bones by a wide margin. This one came from that Orca King, which according to my senses, has energy reserves and quality of a being which had lived for over 150,000 years. That attack just now is simply ONE of its abilities, the ability to compress the air or water around it into a crimson energy then fire it as a blade. Small or large depends on yourself. I sense that it has another ability, one which was used on us a fair number of times when we were fighting that creature's minions, but I must look into it further myself for confirmation. Perhaps you should refine this current ability first while I investigate, we're getting more guests.'
Right on cue, Nico sensed Fishmen coming from all around him, each of them wanting to get revenge for their fallen comrades. Over several dozen water attacks got aimed and launched at him, causing Nico to frown. The moment he saw them coming, Nico decided to... test out, this new Spirit Bone's ability by gripping Rebellion's hilt... and then launching a Quicksword attack whilst coating it in that pure energy the Spirit Bone created. As a result... several smaller versions of those crimson energy blades, but no less powerful or fast, erupted in all directions.
As a result, deeper into the battle Nico found himself utilizing this Spirit Bone in a multitude of different ways, such as combing it with his various Sword Techniques like the Quicksword, Vipersword and Windcutter. The Spirit Bone almost seemed to take great pleasure in those, and whenever he combined It with his SP Skills such as PHANTOPM EDGE or PHANTOM WAVE, heck any of those Skills, he noticed how they got a considerable boost which put them on par with his Demon-based powers. He even combined it with his Kagune itself, getting his Tentacles and Tails to launch thousands upon THOUSANDS of differently sized crimson blades that very few could avoid.
Nico, through the use of one Spirit Bone, practically became a whirlwind of death and destruction.
Meanwhile, Castiel saw this happening and noticed Nico's new spirit bone, a very complete one and OFFENSIVE one at that, so yeah, he was not annoyed by this. He was NOT annoyed by the fact that while he was fighting here for the two of them the guy managed to get an offensive type Spirit Bone, something that Castiel doesn't have as all his bones are mostly passive in nature and don't help directly in a fight at all.
Nope, that was not true, and to prove that it was SSOOOO not true he did the mature thing and sat in the ground while letting the dark and evil energy surrounding him expand to cover a bigger area with the curse of depression. He noticed how when he himself feels a dark feeling and uses a corresponding emotion the curse generated gets a considerable boost, but the fact that the curse around him was extra strong was just a pure and simple accident.
And so, both continued their genocide. Castiel kept using his cursed and evil energy all around him to weaken his opponents and eventually ill them, whilst Nico himself kept unleashing his Spirit Bone's offensive abilities, combining them with his sword techniques and other Skills. as a result, the thousands of Fishmen who remained even after the onslaughts of the previous hours, got reduced to only about 2000. Not like either of the two noticed since they were so caught up in their own activities. It was funny how two people who normally would be civil could become so demonic-like and fall into killing so easily.
After this continued for more half an hour there was only ten minutes before the bubble fully exploded and they were submerged in the water, but there was only around one hundred or so enemies now for them to face. The problem is that EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. was very strong, in like they would be mid Ultimate-class or high Ultimate-class (close to Spec-ops level).
On Nico's end...
'Nico, look behind us. We have some new opponents.'
'Huh?' the teen thought, momentarily pausing in his killing spree to turn and look towards his rear. That was when his gaze set themselves upon 2 Fishmen approaching him with... some mildly intriguing auras around them. He'd say mildly intriguing, but the moment that he saw them, the teen quickly realized they were like those other sub bosses he'd faced, like the giant, that burrowing one and those ones Castiel's been killing left and right.
The first one looked to be a... tall looking individual with beige-colored skin, a rather slim build, and lanky limbs. What caught Nico's attention about him was the fact that he had four legs, though, making him wonder if he could use them to quickly make sharp turns on the move of a dime. The Fishman had a short, scraggly goatee, a long and wavy mustache with spiky edges, with similarly, long, wavy and spiky black hair. He also had some sharp teeth, though Nico had seen sharper on some of the Demons he'd faced. There were also bigger webs between his fingers than the previous fishmen Nico had mercilessly butchered, a very thin, pointy nose and a prominent hunch that put his head on equal level with his shoulders.
For attire, he wore three golden bands on each of his ankles, and two pairs of sandals. He sported green overalls reaching just below his knees, with ruffled edges and decorative buttons on both the straps, over a white shirt with ruffled edges. He also sported a yellow cape, also complete with ruffled edges, draped over his shoulders, and two massive beaded necklaces hanging on his chest. He had a yellow fedora with a purple band on his head, whilst his right hand was concealed by a crimson glove.
As for the second one... this one looked more threatening in Nico's opinion. Not really by appearance, but by demeanour. This one looked like a professional killer, unlike the other one who looked more like a buffoon than anything. Though, Nico wouldn't be underestimating him for that. This guy, though, took the form of an octopus merman, one which had six massive orange octopus tentacles in place of legs with large motifs vaguely reminiscent of eyes on them, making eight limbs with his two arms. He had a... somewhat standard, slim pink upper body and two human arms, with black medium-length hair in dreadlocks. The guy moved with this sleepy look on his face, though Nico looked and saw that was just an act to lead his opponents to let their guard down, though the large mouth that he had on his face definitely made him twitch a brow.
In regards to his clothing, the guy had a toothpick in his mouth, whilst he wore a blue unbuttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up, an untied tie hanging around his neck over his chest, and a jacket which is draped over his shoulders like a cape. His left arm looked to be pulled through from his shirt and, in his hand, Nico could see him holding a katana that lacked any sort of guard, sheathed in a sheath covered in elongated spot motifs. On the guy's left side, Nico could see a small gourd being strapped to his person there, likely to drink something from. Though, why he would carry something like that into a battlefield where someone could EASILY just shoot it to pieces was beyond him.
'So... looks like these two want to kill me...' Nico thought to himself as he fully faced them, holding Rebellion in a guarded position whilst his Kagune retracted into him (not before putting his Mask back on though), his Spirit Bone remaining however. His Kakugan also stayed active despite his Ghoul side not being used now, though as he focused on these two adversaries, Nico got the impression that the octopus one would be more of a challenge. "I'm guessing you two are some kind o officers or something?" Nico questioned, his voice deepened thanks to his Mask.
"Bahohohohohohohoho!" The one with the four legs exclaimed in laughter (though Nico nearly shuddered at the tick that came with that laughter). "So, this is one of those damned humans who has been giving us Fishmen so much trouble!" The man yelled whilst rummaging behind him... and pulling out a pair of large battleaxes the size of the guy's own torso. "Well, my master wants you to be taken down a notch, human! You should know your place beneath us, and I shall shove it down your throat!" Just after Nico heard him say that (although the teen nearly rolled his eyes at it) the guy... started to swoon like a lovesick fool. "Ohhh! The I can get back to wedding my beloved Ohhh! Shirahoshi, my darling You and I are fated-!"
BONK!
"Cut the nose, Decken." The one with the Octopus Tentacles stated gruffly, yet with an undertone of anger and exasperation to go with it. Apparently, he had used one of his Octopus legs to swat the guy upside the back of his head, nearly knocking off his Fedora hat in the process. Aiming a disdainful look towards the other Fishman, the man continued. "Keep yammering on about your 'obsession' and I'll make sure you won'; have your tongue anymore. It'd do the world a favour at least, probably as much as our conquest over the humans." After that, the one known as Decken, albeit begrudgingly (whilst fondling his own gloved hand as if it were a piece of fur on a cat's back), calmed down, and thus the octopus Fishman turned towards Nico. "So, yer the guy, eh? The one the boss wants to make an example of? Can't say you look like much..." he stated, before noticing the sword in Nico's hands. "Oh? But you DO have a mighty fine sword on you... maybe I'll take it from your cold, dead hands when this is over."
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… Oh, he did NOT just say that.
'This... MOTHERFUCKER...!'
The moment that Nico heard those words, the teen's hidden features turned into that of someone about to explode from sheer rage. Hell, one could tell that he looked freaking LIVID just from looking at his sole uncovered eye. He almost exploded like a nuclear warhead hitting its target right then and there, but just barely managed to control himself. How Dare he... how DARE he treat Rebellion like it was just another weapon! Acting so confident that he'd win before the battle even started.. that Fishman had just earned him one hell of a slaughtering by Nico's hands. He'd show that fucker no mercy, none!
Hell, hearing those words pissed Rebellion off as well, judging by the feelings he got from it. Even if Nico was the only one to know that Devil Arms only obey those they see worthy, and would kill those who don't measure up to their standards, hearing him say things like that about his sword really grinded Nico's gears.
With fury seeping from his words, Nico let a growl escape his mouth, his Mask deepening it as he snared at his opponent. Gripping Rebelion's hilt, Nico covered it in a spiralling mass of Hellfire, before condensing it further and further till the blade itself resembled that of a Khornate Hellblade. This was something he had been trying out during his slaughter, condensing his Hellfire into a solid shape was good enough, but doing that around another shape served to amplify both shapes even further. He'd say that at its current state, the Hellfire he was using would be at the same level as his true Hellfire in DPU Form. "Well then, if you think you can beat me, then come the fuck on then, no need for any speech bullshit!" Nico yelled out in rage. 'That fucker's gonna pay for insulting Rebellion like that!'
"Hoh? Confident in our sword skills, are we...?" The Octopus Fishman remarked with a cocky sneer, his previous lazy demeanour slipping away like flesh being peeled off one's face. All the while, he held his Katana in a quick-draw like stance as the one called Decken readied his Axes. "Well, you may address your killer as Hyouzou, the strongest fishman swordsman! And as a fellow swordsman, how can I not oblige your challenge?!"
In that moment, both Decken and Hyouzou broke into their own sprints and charged at Nico, who responded by charging back with just as much force.
Castiel POV
As Nico found two sub-bosses I turned, maybe he needs my help dealing with them. Especially that swordsman, a fishmen like that is quite troublesome to deal with since it is from a species that can produce a poison that can bypass any purely biological defense. After all, it is no so much a poison as it is a existence known as lust poison, the one who is touched by it needs to copulate with a female within three hours or his body melts from inside out.
It is nasty stuff, that is for sure.
But, just as I thought that, a sudden attack came for my back, directly from a 'blind spot' that could have killed me had I not been using my Field as a means of detection. Jumping to the side I managed to avoid the worse as the speed of the projectile was too fast for me to properly defend.
Looking at the projectile it was a water construct in the form of a shark, it pierced the ground and went for more than twenty meters in extremely solid rock.
"Hehehe, to think that a human would dodge that. I would congratulate you if the mere sight of you did not make me sick." A raspy voice said from a distance away. Turning to it I saw a big Fishmen.
He is a grey-skinned great white shark fish-man. He had a large belly, with a tattoo of the New Fish-Man Pirates design on the right side as well as a long scar on the left, and muscular arms and legs. His facial features include glaring eyes, with long and distinctive eyelashes, a mouth full of sharp, triangular teeth, and a stub nose. He had long black curly hair, with a long tuft hanging on the left part of his face. His left arm is intricately tattooed with the design of a shark in it he also has some spikes protruding from his bare wrist and circling it all, possibly decorative piercings.
He sported a pink newsboy cap, with a little trident represented on the left side, and a massive scarf seemingly made from a dog-like animal around his neck, with the animal's head hanging on the left side of his chest. He was wearing a red open shirt with short sleeves, a wide collar and dark-red spots on the lower part, short blue trousers with a similar pattern but with light-blue spots, a pink sash tied around the waist, and sandals.
Overall, he seemed like the type that was closer to a hooligan that would cause more trouble than not on my eyes. But, this is not the most striking characteristic of his, no the true key characteristic is his hatred.
Since the formation of my evil core, I could sense dark emotions with some clarity, and his feelings are so concentrated and repugnant that I almost feel like vomiting just by sensing it. How can anyone live carrying this much hatred in his heart?
I would have long either killed myself or tried to kill whoever is my target even if I had to die in the way if I was in his shoes.
"Who are you?" I asked, my tone serious since I identify this incarnation of anger and hate as someone worthy of being my enemy. I am not looking down on this thing at all, we both look at each other as if predators looking for the chance to bite and rip the throats of those we consider the enemy.
"My name? Normally I would not give it to someone with your filthy blood, but I am in a good mood since today we finally got some guests after being captured by that old monster so I will tell you. My name is Jones, Hody Jones the captain and leader of the New-Fishmen Pirates and the one who will kill you!" He said, confidence in his voice as well as some degree of boredom, like he finds talking to me as something boring.
"Tough chance, shark bait." I said before using a mana burst and clashing with him directly.
He used his trident to block my strike with Clarent. Looking at the Trident I felt a chill running down my back as I identified what exactly this weapon is.
The trident of Poseidon. It is a weapon that if I were to compare is way above anything either me or Nico has in store. It allows the user to completely dominate the ocean's energy. Create waves, walls of water, water dragons, control and do whatever he so desires using the water around or even creating water, while also making the user much stronger as it can grant the entire energy of the ocean to the user himself.
If before using it the user has a strength of 10 when using the spear he becomes 10 thousand. I don't know how but this weapon is the real deal, I can discount this into my 'it is Zelretch's fault' archive as he is giving me one hell of a fight alright.
But despite that I could only smirk to myself, somehow I feel like this fight, fighting against an enemy of my size (almost) and having to be careful as I might lose at any time is what I need.
Only under pressure can I grow stronger. And I will become strong enough to make any idiot that might try to do anything against those I care for, my world is far too dangerous and the Tower's political position is getting complicated because of me. Unless I get strong enough I will be just a trouble for others, and I will not let this happen!
I am the Tower's heir, how could I ever let it comes to danger?
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! CLANG! CLANG! CRASH! BASH!
'Shit!'
Falling towards the ground, Nico cursed himself at the surprising speed displayed by the Fishman. The beginning of the battle him, Decken and Hyouzou had went like this. Him and the octopus Fishmen colliding rapidly in a bout of Rebellion vs that nameless Katana. Although despite it being nameless, Nico didn't think it would be a weak weapon, the fight against Okada taught him the mistake of thinking that way. Still, it felt like the guy had been holding back during those clashes, and Nico always trusted his gut.
Turned out that was what saved him, since this fucker proved himself to be one crafty son of a bitch. He had caught feinted slashing at him in favour of slamming a Tentacle into Nico's chest, something which he had managed to block with Rebellion in time but still got sent flying backwards. It looked like even with his guard up, that guy had enough power to send him flying.
'Fishman must have good physical ability, I see... if they were in my world, their abilities would let them be quite remarkable amongst the many Abnormals infesting Gamindustri...' Nico thought as his descent neared its conclusion. The male took the time to notice that his Kagune had receded into him from the moment that they had been sent flying, too, something which he figured be best. After all, launching it as a surprise attack could be quite the strategy.
Unwilling to crash though, Nico set about to save himself from that fate and quickly threw an Armoured hand out to slam it into the ground, pushing himself back into the air, flipping backwards several times before landing on a crouch. Because of the motions he had been in though, Nico had to slide to a halt for more than 8 meters. 'Okay, that was one fat strike. Looks like this guy has the speed department down pat...' the male couldn't help but think to himself as he finally halted.
Although, it wasn't ANYTHING compared to the speed Okada Izou held the last time they fought back at Halo Mountain, that guy felt like he could slaughter all these 100,000 Fishmen in a single night without taking that much damage. Probably even while drunk, too, knowing what little he did about him.
The very instant that he stopped his movement, a curse escaped his lips as the male had to quickly apply his Star Gods Broken Shadow technique to avoid a slash made by Hyouzou. An attack which had been launched without the owner ceasing his movement. seeing as how his 'target' had evaded his preemptive strike, the Fishman smirked in mild intrigue. 'Hmmm, so this human has some speed to him...' he thought, reappearing behind Hyouzou with the intent to decapitate him with his Hellfire-enhanced Rebellion.
However, before he could actually DO that, decapitate the guy or anything, Nico noticed how the man ducked beneath Rebellion's blade, causing him to miss his target. But, if that was not enough for the annoyed teen, his lone eye widened when he noticed a flying Battleaxe, spinning faster than a car wheel at full speed, heading towards... his own head. 'Oh shit!' the teen cursed, ducking underneath it just a SECOND before it could chop his head off. He only had a second to do so, exactly, any more and his head may have been decapitated (he got a feeling that like the Katana, the Battleaxe had the capacity to pierce through his Ghoul enhanced flesh).
'What the hell? Where did... oh yeah, I forgot about that other guy...' the redhead thought to himself as he flipped back several times to get some distance between him had Hyouzou. So far, Decken hadn't been taking much of a part in the battle the three were having, he mostly stayed on the side-lines like a vulture waiting for the corpse of his next victim to appear. The guy didn't do much save for observe and cackle deviously, his eyes shining with the insanity and psychotic glee building within them. Thus, Nico would deal with him now, so that Fishman wouldn't become any more of a problem, or an annoyance since so far Nico saw Decken as less skilled as Hyouzou.
It wasn't long before Nico locked gazes with the said Fishman, who made his signature laugher whilst jovially crossing his arms over his chest with each of his hands holding two fingers in a 'victory' sign, making the male twitch his brow. The guy literally had no sense of awareness, or any sense of danger, he simply acted more like a clown than an actual warrior. And it pissed the teen off greatly. "And WHAT is your reason for waving at me like that?" the male questioned with his sole Kakugan eye narrowing darkly.
Again Decken just laughed his signature laugh, keeping his arms in their crossed position. His mouth twisted into a grin, one which caused no small amount of annoyance in the teen as he responded to the question. "Bahohohohoho! Oh, its noting much, just that my dear, sweet innocent beloved is getting closer and closer to my grasp...Not like you would ever need to understand my love!" he replied, before Nico sensed danger behind him and reflexively ducked. Once again, the male avoided death by a hair when he saw the Battleaxe spinning overhead, and when he looked up, the sight of it curving back towards him like a boomerang met his surprised gaze.
'What the? Is this thing like a homing missile or something?' the male wondered, frowning as he quickly swung Rebellion and deflected the weapon away from him. If dodging it wasn't going to solve the issue, then perhaps deflecting would help. After all, blocking wasn't an option since the blade spun too fast and the momentum was nothing to scoff at. If Nico were to try and block it, the teen didn't doubt that the combined momentum would take a heavy toll on his defences, leaving him open for attack for Hyouzou who was currently circling around him, awaiting a possible opening. However, that wouldn't help much, as the Battleaxe simply curved around to strike at him again.
Just after Nico once again deflected the Battleaxe, Nico felt a strong killing intent coming his way, quickly making him react. He reacted by using his Star God's Broken Shadow to avoid a surprise attack by Hyouzou. The male reappeared by Decken's side, with a reverse slash already launched towards his neck for a quick decapitation. Nico scowled behind his Mask though, when suddenly Decken stomped his right pair of legs and tilted himself so his left legs could be raised, and from his sandals several blades slid out, much like the hidden blades on his Armour.
With those Hidden Blades, Decken swiftly blocked Rebellion's blade. Nico's lone eye widened at that, before he quickly jumped back to avoid that spinning Battleaxe, quickly deploying his Armour whilst Decken cackled in amusement. "bahohohoho! Sorry not sorry human, but that Battleaxe won't stop till it goes into that wretched heart of yours! That's my power for ya!" he exclaimed boisterously, continuing his laughing spree.
"Bahohohohohohoho! Since you so LOVE my Battleaxe's love..." the insane Fishman proclaimed, giggling whilst reaching behind him... and pulled out several more Axes, these ones slightly smaller but still large in their own right. "How about you have a whole harem to choose from? A lovely harem you'll likely DIE FOR!" he yelled, quickly preceding to hurl them with his non-covered hand at Nico.
As a result, the teen had to exercise each and every one of his evasion skills, practically abuse the movement skill he had obtained, as well as keep his senses sharper than ever to avoid being turned into a shish kabab. Some of the weapons showed that they could cut through his restorative Armour with ease like when an Axe sliced though a portion of Nico's helmet, and whilst it reformed, the redhead realized that these weapons would be DEADLY if he were to allow them to hit him.
His regen could take care of any wounds he sustained, but again he didn't like relying on such a thing. Its there when he needed it, but that was it. 'Tch, this guy's SERIOUSLY beginning to get on my nerves!' the redhead teen roared within his mind. Now, he regretted not going after Decken first, feeling like he had underestimated him because of his lack of any visual fighting prowess.
In response to Nico's actions, Hyouzou simply chuckled as he vanished into thin air in a burst of speed. Thus, not only did he avoid Nico's attack, but he pretty much escaped Nico's visual perception, to the redhead male's surprise.' 'Fast!' the male only had time to think before he ducked, just barely avoiding a strike which would have cut his head off. He could feel how the Katana nicked one of his Armour's horns, proving to him that it could cut through his defences should it be allowed to. The moment that Hyouzou appeared before him again, this time aiming to slit his throat, Nico raised the infernal Rebellion and blocked the attack, plating his feet into the ground and ensuring the two of them enter a deadlock together.
Sparks flew between their weapons, and Nico quickly noticed how Decken kept circling around him, pulling out more and more weapons from seemingly out of nowhere to hurl at him, all with that same uncovered hand. He had to rely on the release of his Rinkaku to deflect them all, eventually, its invisibility and high speeds proving to be damn invaluable in defending himself. Looking back towards the smug grin on Hyouzou's face, Nico mentally scowled, feeling like he wanted to rip that look right off his damned face.
'Jesus Christ, I already want to stab Rebellion through him...' the male thought to himself in irritation. He'd dealt with people like this guy before without much issue, yet how was it that this Fishman's smirk irritated him more than they ever could? Several moments later, both broke away, jumping back about 3 meters to avoid several flying Axes...
Before dashing towards one another again and entering a festival of slashes, slashes that practically left afterimages of each other. All the while, they deflected or evaded the flying weapons launched by Decken.
SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH!
They went, some slashes giving ground to each other whilst others took that ground away. Not only that, but throughout the slash fest one could see human sized explosions of fire and ash, which originated from various Hellfire attacks made by the redhead's Rebellion as it flailed about like a furious beast on a warpath. Its oppressive and tyrannical form constantly hammered away against the much smaller katana with extreme force, empowered by multiple different factors. The blade's aura and Hellfire coat constantly shifted as Nico repeatedly hammered away against his opponent, careful not to let any of the flying Axes hit him (although a few times he failed to avoid an attack and thus paid for it with some parts of his Armour. He'd been fortunate enough in that to be the extent of the damage though).
Still, even in this situation, part of him couldn't help but analyse and evaluate this ability that Decken possessed. It seemed that he had somewhat of an ability to hurl objects at his opponent, but enhance them so that they always hit their mark. For example, if he wanted to hit someone, then he would just have to throw a weapon and no mater how many times the person dodged it, that weapon would ALWAYS find its target, like a seeker missile locating its target through heat signatures.
It also didn't escape his notice how Decken had thrown these Axes at him using only his uncovered hand, which meant that there was some sort of limitation to this power, probably that his 'targets' had to be touched with one hand in order for the ability to work, and the thrown objects have to be thrown by that same hand. Nico wasn't sure on why he kept the other hand covered by that glove of his, but if he were to guess, then he'd say that it had something to do with this 'Shirahoshi' character this guy seemed to be obsessed over.
In essence, this ability could seriously be useful for those who have lots of weapons in their arsenal, since throwing them would guarantee them hitting their intended target.
Didn't make dealing with it on the receiving end any less annoying though!
'At this rate, if things don't change soon I may find myself in a spot of bother which Castiel might come in and pull me out... not going to happen! The humiliation would be immense!'
'Nico, quick, activate your Orca King Spirit Bone's other ability! Trust me, it'll help!'
Just as the male felt like things would go even further south, some timely intervention from Biko served to make him pause... which seemed to not be a good idea considering all the weapons coming at him from all directions. Curtesy of Decken, of course. He could have just used the Star God's Broken Shadow to avoid them all, but the interruption by his Demon Persona alerted him to a little something: he still had his Orca King Spirit Bone out. A weapon he hadn't used at all during this entire bout. Unintentional rhyming aside, Nico mentally smacked himself upside the head for forgetting a bout it, and as the weapons closed in... Nico quickly held his right arm out and had the Spirit Bone activate its other ability.
The effects became known instantaneously.
?!"
Decken gaped at him like a fish (ironic, huh?) when he, along with Hyouzou, saw how every weapon in the air became frozen in place, a faint crimson energy wave being released from the Spirit Bone which pretty much froze them all in motion. "Huh!? Wha?! What the hell's going on?! Is my power not working anymore?!" Decken shouted in dismay, looking down at his hands before trying to make the weapons move himself by waving them around. However, much to his dismay, it didn't work at all. "What's going on here?!"
Hyouzou on the other hand, narrowed his eyes when he noticed the Spirit Bone, remembering what it had done BEFORE the weapons started moving. "I bet... that thing has something to do with it..." he muttered under his breath.
Meanwhile, Nico himself lowered his arm and looked upon the Spirit Bone with intrigue shining in his eyes. "Well, I'll be... what the hell is this? I just felt something erupt from this Spirit Bone just now... Some kind of locking ability or something, like my Boar Spirit Bone?" he muttered as well, shifting his arm about so he could look the Spirit Bone over from multiple angles.
'No, Nico. It would be an affront to the Spirit Bone to compare it to something weaker than itself. This Ability wasn't used much on us during our battle with it, but the Evil Spirit Orca King DID have the ability to manipulate the space around it in a limited manner. By limited, I mean it could lock multiple opponents into one place, leaving them unable to attack or defend themselves for future attacks. Or, it can lock the 'space' of a set area around itself, effectively immobilising everything within that radius. Hmm... If I were to guess, right now I'd say that the Spirit Bone's maximum coverage would be up to 15 meters all around us, anything within that space will not be able to move. Its what immobilized all those weapons.'
'Huh, I see... in any case, this is one hell of a reward we got Biko.' the redhead Spec Ops Agent mused to his Demon Persona, awe clouding his thoughts. Hearing Biko's words made him instantly fall in love with this thing, already Nico could imagine the sort of uses this Spirit Bone could have for him on the battlefield, the possibilities nearly making him grin so wide that the slenderman would become terrified by it... beneath his Armoured Helmet of course. 'I'd say it was WELL worth the unplanned swim we made just to get this bad boy.'
Putting those thoughts aside, Nico glanced at the area around him affected by his Spirit Bone's area of influence, before he lit a Fireball of Hellfire in his free hand and threw it to the ground. The moment it hit the solid earth, the Hellfire ball instantaneously roared to life, becoming a massive expanding wave which concealed both the user as well as the weapons. It vanished seconds later, but when it did only Nico seemed to have been unharmed, as for the weapons... well, lets just say there was nothing left of them. 'There, now those things will not be as much trouble...' he thought, before glaring heatedly at Decken. 'Time for that guy to be eliminated before any more weapons can be launched!'
Immediately, Nico vanished via Warping, catching both Fishmen by surprise since he hadn't used it in their bout until now, and appeared right behind the four-legged Fishman. Decken, sensing that there was danger behind him, swiftly turned with his quad-like legs to try and deal with the threat, only for all his mobility to be halted. The culprit, Nico's right arm Spirit Bone, briefly glowed when this happened, and Nico swiftly finished the Fishman off by slicing him into several pieces with Rebellion, having unleashed a Quicksword attack at close range.
Poor bastard never stood a chance.
'Phew, now that that Fishman's dead...' Nico thought after pulling his sword back into a defensive stance, before getting into position to face off against Hyouzou, who slowly approached him with his Katana at the ready. "Now, to deal with you, fuckface..."
At this, Hyouzou gave off a sick, evil cackle as he examined the infernal sword which had been holding out against his sword skills. His eyes shined with contemplation when doing this as he gave his opinion on their bout so far. "Well I'll be, looks like you DO have some tricks up your sleeve after all. Few would have executed those movements as well as you di under that kind of pressure." the Fishman commented, before shrugging his shoulders. "Alright, I will admit that you're not terrible at swordsmanship. Our fighting so far, when that buffoon wasn't using is weapons to interrupt us, shows you're at least somewhat trained to handle a blade. But your style lacks the refinement of a master swordsman." he stated, something Nico didn't visibly react to since he knew it was the truth thanks to his battle with a certain Manslayer. Compared to back then, he felt like his swordplay had improved somewhat, but he wasn't exactly sure until this battle.
"Still, I'll give you credit where credit is due noise-maker. Your skills aren't bad and you've lasted this long against me, despite my so-called 'support'." Whilst speaking about that, Hyouzou reached into his pocket... and pulled out a handful of red and white candy. The moment that Nico saw that Candy however, the redhead quickly got a bad feeling, like something real bad would happen to him should he let this Fishman eat that candy. Yet, before he could do anything, the Fishman pushed him backwards and broke the deadlock, before wolfing down all the candy pieces at once. "But now I think I'll FINISH THIS WITH A BIT OF A BOOST FROM MY ENERGY STEROIDS!"
'S-STEROIDS?!' Nico shrieked in his mind, shock and fear spreading through him as he held Rebellion defensively and had his Rinkaku go into an equal defensive position. 'Shit, is he for fucking real?! Steroids may give you a boost in power sure, but there are side effects afterwards! Doesn't he know that?!' Even as he thought that however, something told him this guy would be crazy enough to not care about any of that shit.
Something which got proven correct in the next few seconds.
At once, the changes began to take effect, for his body underwent a rather... mild transformation. At least, in comparison to the transformations Nico had seen in the past. The guy's black hair, swiftly turned into a white colour whilst swaying like grass being blown by the wind. His skin color turned from a pale pinkish tint, to a deep crimson red with veins pulsing throughout his body. His body also bulked up till it was twice as large as before, whilst the sclera his eyes had turned from pure white into a sinister, glowing red. Not only that, but his eyes lost their grip on sanity as they gleamed menacingly towards Nico, only bloodlust and the desire to maim, slaughter and rend remaining.
'Tch, this is not good, it looks like he's completely lost it. Those drugs seem to have the side effect of eroding away his higher brain functions. This situation is getting worse, Nico.'
'Yeah, tell me something I don't know.' Nico responded to his Demon Persona, quickly dashing towards his opponent. The teen had to think of something to turn this around, whatever those Steroid things were about, prior experience with Daruma told him that they work like Drive Skills, amplifying power beyond its limits. However, there had to be the drawback of straining the body, power always came at a price no matter the form. Nico's own power came at the cost of his humanity and began his constant struggle to stay in control over his emotions.
Before they collided, Nico's Rebellion blurred forth as a result of its wielder activating the Quicksword technique. However, just as the technique set off to slice into the crimson Fishman, all of a sudden dozens of blades erupted from him, lashing towards Nico like a whirlwind of blades. Instinctively, Nico Warped out of the way, but not before feeling one such blade slice right through his shoulder Armour and into his shoulder-blade, causing the teen to wince and grimace when he reappeared 10 meters away.
Looking back to his opponent, the redhead soon saw what it was that had hit him, the sight being how Hyouzou had lots and lots of saber-like blades now within the grasp of his Tentacles. Not to mention he had a second Katana in his other hand, the Fishman laughing loudly like he had already won the battle between them. "NOW THEN, PREPARE TO DIE BY MY SUPERIOR BLADE, NOISE-MAKER!"
Castiel's P.O.V.
This battle, it is weird.
When I found out that Hody had a Trident of Poseidon I figured he would be monstrously strong, but I was wrong.
As I avoid a stab from him I feel like he is just a kid playing with a stick. He has no finesse and his capacity of using this godly weapon is embarrassing. Heck, if it is just a matter of technique I bet I was already superioror to him when I was 6 years old.
Seriously, he is pathetic.
It is like I am fighting Berserker-sensei without him being able to use any technique and with zero experience against anyone that can actually fight back. Even the trident in his hand is being used wrongly and he doesn't take advantage of it at all.
"Stop avoiding the inevitable, human!" He yelled as he simply forgot he had a fucking super weapon in hand in proll of pushing me with a Fishmen Karate strike that completely lacks in true content as only the superficial form is there. If he did not have an absurdly high physical strength he would possibly be no better than the soldiers I killed.
Ignoring his remarks I jumped to the side as he launched a wave of water in my direction from that one punch. Jumping at him I focused holy energy from Argetlan into Clarent to then focus it all on the edge of my great holy sword.
"Divine Separation." I said as I executed the cut. Giving names to specific attacks may hint the enemies that know me well what to watch out for, but despite this demerit it also helps me in visualizing the attack in my head by associating the name of the attack with the method of using it, accelerating and refining its usage.
My sword cut him from the hip until close to the stomach. It was quite dangerous but I feel like it won't be enough to kill him. His body just has too much vitality and his hatred is too strong, taking him out needs me to behead him or remove his heart while destroying his other organs.
Thinking that I did not wait as I went for the neck. I must behead him now while I have the chance.
CLANG
As I was about to hit him some swords appeared in the way. Before I could look at who did it I felt a pain in my gut as I was kicked back before a magic bullet of the size of a basketball hit me almost straight to the face.
"Kyaahh, to think he would fall for that. Pure humans really are dumb." an effeminate queer said. He looked quite human but his teeth and pair of horns said another story. He was wearing a long-sleeved green shirt with a giraffe-like design on it, blue shorts, and dark purple stilettos that I think are probably reinforced with evil diamond, the toughest material of the evil element. It is not the type of material I enjoy due to how heavy it is, how expensive, how little there is, and how it is far too tough making it impractical for a long weapon since it would vibrate when hitting something and the strength of the vibrations could shatter my arms.
If he can use it on his feet it means his body or at least his legs are impossibly tough.
"Humph, don't get so full of yourself just because you are half Fishmen, Dellinger. You are still half dirt." Another one said. He had dark blue skin with a lightbulb attached to the top of his head. He was looking down at the effeminated queer who was smirking his way. He also had a curved blade made of deep water stone, a type of stone that could only be found rarely in the deepest points of the ocean. It is not overly strong as a material but when combined with others it can help harmonize different natures and help hide the blade's innate power.
Basically, it is prime material for the production of a good assassin dagger, which means Serenity would do great with it.
"Don't go speaking to me as if you are stronger, Noro. Don't underestimate my Fighting Fish heritage." Dellinger said to the dark blue skinned Fishmen, his eyes turning sharp as his energy was showcased for all to sense. The energy in Dellinger is easily much greater than anyone else here excluding Hody, but I feel like Dellinger can actually put his power to good use.
And finally the last one was closer now. He is a slim-looking bright yellow skinned Fish-Man with medium-length, puffy orange hair and a long and squarish neck with a small beard. His facial features are quite sinister: they include a long and sharp beak-like muzzle, razor-like teeth, and dark, glaring eyes. He was sitting on top of a golden chair being carried by... I can only think they are slaves.
My blood runs cold as I see this, slavery is something I can understand until a certain point, but cruelty for no good reason towards these workers is NOT amongst the things I can let it pass. I can see many whip marks on the backs of those slaves and some are even missing an eye or a hand, there are many cuts and it is obvious that they have not eaten for days now.
The Fishman scum was holding a bazooka in his hand while many other guns laying around. They are probably all made of rare materials but I couldn't care less right now.
"Keh, to think this human trash would survive a shot from the bazooka of me, Hammond. I guess he is somewhat capable in the end."
He is gonna die. No, everyone here is going to die.
Thinking that I launched myself towards Noro. His sword blocking mine as I went for a sweep but as he tried to pull me in I smirked as I gave him a good headbut, shattering the lightbulb in his face as well as damaging his eyes.
I jumped back by kicking him in the belly as Hammond's bullet hit exactly where my head was milliseconds ago. My field helping me keep track of him while I had greater matters to take care off.
Matters being the kick by Dellinger that almost pierced my neck. The power of the kick is such that I noticed how a rock about 30 meters away was pierced by the wind pressure alone. Well, if his kicks are this strong the best way is to run for now.
He is strong enough for possibly defeating me but if he cooperates with the others I don't think things will end up any good for me in the slightest. Besides, I have a time limit and I can see Hody taking those red pills as if they are going out of style. Taking him out is needed before he becomes an actual threat, but the moment I show my back to these three things will definitely end badly for me.
I ran from Dellinger, but not from the battle since I ran towards Hammond directly.
KICK
Suddenly a kick hit me on the back, sending me flying away. I felt like at least one or two ribs are broken even as I used Blut Vene to raise my defense in that area by instinct. The power truly is no jocking matter.
"Kyaahh, don't go running away like this, idiot. If you turn your back to me I will end you." Dellinger said as he went for another kick. I am laying down on the floor as he did that due to how he hit me.
Not that it connected since I used a mana burst on the floor's direction to make me be launched above. Dellinger looked surprised as I took aim at Hammond. He aimed at me at the same time and as I used my Execution Arrow he used two of his bazookas.
BOOM
The two hits collided and unbelievably the two ended up matching one another and nullifying themselves.
These guns he is using, I must obtain them and take them back to the Tower. With luck we will be able to reproduce them in large scale and give them to every Sister there.
On Nico's end...
His predictions came true.
Though, Nico would not find this any more amusing than he did when he first fought a Demon Prince back when he was ambushed. The Teen currently found himself on the receiving end of an unyielding, unending barrage of slashes from the berserk Octopus Fishman Hyouzou, using only Rebellion to block and parry each slash which came his way. Because of the unending assault, Nico didn't have as much time as he would have liked between strikes to use his Orca King Spirit Bone to lock the guy in place, nor did he have much time to do anything other than swordplay. Something which Nico suspected that Hyouzou had intended from the start as the teen hopped about and parried his attacks, attacks which came from either those slimy Tentacles carrying those thin sabers, or his twin katanas held in his hands.
After a while of blocking and parrying, Nico foresaw that if things didn't change soon, then he would likely end up becoming worn out before long. Nico held great confidence in his stamina, however he didn't like the thought of draining it all before being able to fight the big boss where Emiya was. As a result, Nico finally managed to utilize the Star God's Broken Shadow to get some distance between them, holding Rebellion in a defensive stance before slashing and sending a wave of Hellfire towards his opponent. Hyouzou however, simply vanished into thin air before the attack could hit, and when alarm bells rung in Nico's mind, the teen quickly flung his off hand downwards, shooting a single blast of Hellfire to the ground beneath his feet, resulting in him being propelled upwards to avoid a horizontal slash from behind. Although, Hyouzou didn't let up as he appeared before the airborne Spec Ops Agent once again, swinging t him to try and cut him into tiny chunks of flesh.
Nico however, Warped out of there before his blades could touch him, appearing further away whilst frowning to himself. 'This isn't good, both for me and for this guy, though I can hardly say I care about what happens to him. Whatever these Energy Steroids were, they've REALLY boosted his ability to fight by a large margin. His strikes carry much more weight behind them than what they should, and those swords seem o have been built with a metal which can handle this newfound strength. Therefore, its obvious this guy knew what he was getting into beforehand. Still, this strength has to have some form of price to pay at the end, which in some cases can be crippling. Still, this state will make it impossible for me to restrain him with CHAINS OF HAEPHESTUS Skill due to the sheer power it has, and my Demonic Abilities need time to recover. I'll have to rely on my Spirit Bones, Devil Arms and my Ghoul Side for this one.' The teen thought to himself, before becoming beset by Hyouzou's attacks once more.
This time, to better respond to his opponent's attacks the teen released his Rinkaku Kagune and began using it as a means to parry his opponent's sabers whilst he dealt with the Katana slashes himself.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
The sounds of metal meeting scales resonated throughout the battlefield as Hyouzou's Sabers collided with Nico's Kagune, which constantly launched several attacks in less than a second, with Hyouzou's attacks meting the Tentacles head on. Though, what he noticed was that, due to the berserker state that Hyouzou had apparently entered when this transformation occurred, he didn't seem to notice that his invisible Kagune was deflecting his attacks, instead just kept slashing at him. Likely, he didn't care though, something which Nico felt was more true, due to how the guy kept laughing like a crazed lunatic... and he'd dealt with enough of those people back home to last a lifetime.
'Jeez, this guy's tenacity is nothing to scoff at...'
'It would be wise to retreat, however you will likely only have a second to breathe at most, Nico. Perhaps you could try slowing him down with the Spirit Bone the moment that you disengage from him this time, make the first move before Hyouzou can counter.'
'Not that easy to accomplish, but i'll try...'
Eventually, Nico did Warp away from his opponent, and this time before Hyouzou could strike him again, Nico had already aimed his right arm (which held Rebellion) at him, activating the Spirit Bone it had. Instantly, the effects became known, as Hyouzou suddenly found his ability to move, become restricted instantly. Like chains had sprouted forth within him to hold him back completely, even in this state he had entered. "Hooooh? I seeeee… a reestriiicting Speeelll, Ehhhhhh?" Hyouzou commented in a speech manner not unlike that of a drunken slur, like a bar customer who had WAY too much to drink and no longer could be considered even the slightest bit coherent. "Nooooot baaaaad, I will saaaaaayyyyy thaaaaaattt…"
Just then, one of the Tentacles jerked into motion, since under the restraining power of Nico's Spirit Bone, that was all it could do. That jerking motion however, served Hyouzou well since it allowed him to toss one of his Sabers in Nico's direction. Surprised, the teen's eyes widened behind his Armour's Helmet before he jumped to the side, cutting the spatial restriction on his opponent. 'Sh-Shit!' he cursed mentally as realization dawned on him when he gazed upon his Spirit Bone, noticing that its shine wasn't as vibrant as it had been before. 'Looks like this guy's on its last legs...'
He didn't get a response from Biko, since he already got beset by the guy, and didn't get to parry many strikes before getting whacked upside the head by on of the Tentacles. Sizzling sounds erupted from were he got hit, resulting in Nico looking down to see the spot he'd been hit by being covered with this greenish coloured liquid which seemed to be eating through his Armour just as fast as his Tentacles moved. 'Tch, looks like I was right to be wary of those Tentacles, then...' the male thought to himself when he had about only a quarter's worth of Helmet left. Fortunately, he just managed to use his Hellfire to burn the liquid away before he could lose his Helmet completely, resulting in the Armour quickly beginning its restoration process.
As he slid to a halt, Nico looked up, one eye concealed by his damaged helmet and the other bare for all to see, when he saw Hyouzou already on him, a mad smile and a crazy look on his face whilst prepping to strike with all those blades at once. Nico however, mentally prepared himself for this as e held up Rebellion, quickly unleashing a PHANTOM BLADES Skill to thwart Hyouzou off. Sadly for the redhead, Nico saw his opponent vanish before the blades could even touch him, his senses quickly alerting him to killing intent at his right side as he puled off a Star God's Broken Shadow to avoid what could have been his end...
Only for his opponent, in one ABSURD display of luck, to guess where he was by instinct and appear there, knocking Rebellion out of Nico's hand before making to stab his head off.
Pale faced, Nico quickly responded by summoning Ouranos as Rebellion vanished into his Void Storage once more, the extra Tentacles being deflected by Nico's Kagune... before they got shredded to pieces by a series of saber slashes. 'Crap! Those swords will have the power to cut through a Fatalis, if they can cut trough my Kagune...! Got the feeling those Steroids help make that possible, but still!' Using his Boar Spirit Bone, Nico drained some of Hyouzou's energy (the berserker state letting him take a LOT), before using his Fatalis Spirit Bone to kick a line of explosions the octopus Fishman's way. Even with the deficit of energy though, Hyouzou managed to dodge it with ease, appearing a further distance from him before dashing towards Nico just as quick.
Afterwards, Nico swung Ouranos back towards Hyouzou with the intent to cut into him, whilst Hyouzou responded by lunging forth with his many swords. The Sabers/Katanas and the large blade clashed, resulting in a 10000 slash fest which happened in less than a couple seconds, Nico's speed being enhanced by the Lightning which originated from his current demonic blade.
'G-Goddamnit, that's a first! Having my sword knocked away from me like that... if I didn't have so many weapons, that could have seriously been my end! My body has insane poison defense thanks to what I've got, but I'd rather not experience what this guy has to offer in terms of poison anyways!'
Afterwards, the teen Warped further away, switched Ouranos out for Rebellion again. To him, Nico truly began to feel the pressure as his Rinkaku began regenerating itself. He couldn't keep going like this, if he did then Nico would be in a bigger disadvantage when he finally got a chance to defeat the big boss whom seemed to be fighting his companion at the moment.
Still... what could he do here? Waiting for his Demonic Powers to recover from his previous battles did NOT sound very promising, his full power wouldn't be accessible for a while even with all his healing items in his Void Storage. Not like Hyouzou would let him use any healing items in the first place, but still. So, what could he do right now? What other options did he have at the moment besides his swordplay? Something which the male felt like was one of his weaker suits in comparison to the rest of his powers...
For some reason, Nico got the image of a certain manslayer in his mind, and...
Whether it be consciously or not...
The Redhead imagined his base stance, remembering the movements that the guy possessed and fought him with. He remembered the way hes truck,the finesse, the footwork, the sword position, everything. Nico remembered pretty much everything he could about the opponent known as Okada Izou he had fought at the Halo Mountain incident. As a result of these actions, the male pretty much assumed the same battle stance that warrior had taken during their bout, a bout which he had pretty much burned into his brain as one of the most important fights he had ever had. Now, Nico honestly felt like he'd likely suck if he were to just imitate that guy's style, since he had never imitated another's style before. Not to mention that in comparison to that guy, Nico could very well be considered a child trying to swing a stick about and calling it a sword. But, even so, Nico felt like his swordplay would be the only thing he could properly rely on aside from his Ghoul Side. His Rinkaku would be best utelized here, since his Bikaku specialized in widespread annihilation and not in single combat, whilst his Koukaku still had that 'fear' afflicting it so he couldn't display its full power until he could deal with that.
'Alright, hope this works...'
("Awww, hell no..!")
'Huh? Wha-?!'
Nico blinked behind his Helmet as he soon found his entire body tensing up, like a serpent had coiled around every muscle within him. The second afterwards, the teen felt like... a bucket of water had washed over him, the 'splash' pretty much smacking his consciousness into next week...
"Ehhhhhhh?"
Hyouzou, in a moment of clarity which didn't come often, noticed something which caused him to give pause in the midst of l his motions. The Octopus Fishman looked upon the form of his human Armour Clad opponent. It had only been for a short instance, so short that he almost didn't notice it, but he did. And as such, Hyouzou briefly felt a wave of energy, energy belonging to something not of this world pass through the atmosphere. It originated from his opponent, who now had his arms hanging in front of him whilst his head hung low. The Helmet itself looked to be pretty much restored already, so he couldn't see the kid's expression...
So he just decided to ignore it and go in for the kill. Not like that worthless human could stand up to someone as skilled with a blade such as himself!
Thus, Hyouzou arched his torso forwards, before he broke into a mad sprint. His form practically burst into a blurred state as he charged towards the motionless Nico, cackling all the while. His eyes, wide and crimson in sclera, shone with madness and bloodlust while a matching grin formed on his mouth as he neared his prey, Katanas and Sabers at the ready. But, just before he could swing...
PARRY!
In a flash, the kid's sword jerked upwards, moving with a speed unlike anything of which he had demonstrated before. The sword arm practically broke through the sound barrier, making a small 'BOOM' sound while accompanied by a shockwave. Thus, at the moment of collision with Hyouzou's Sabers and Katanas, Nico's sole Rebellion sword managed to perfectly block each and every one of them. Not a trace of any extra exertion to show him having difficulty holding Hyouzou back, either. "Huuuuhhhhhhh…?" The Octopus Fishman drawled, looking upwards towards Nico's helmet-clad head, which now was looking up into his own eyes as wel like the attack had woken him up from whatever stupor he had entered.
"So, this is the brat the kid's been having trouble against..."
The moment that Nico spoke just then, alarm bells rang inside the crazed Fishman's gut, sending irreversible chills down his spine as he backed off faster than the road runner and got some distance between them. "Hoooh? Now thiiiiissss is interesting..." the Fishman mused, holding his weapons at the ready to make his next attack, all the while Nico (?) seemed to shrug his shoulders. Not even caring much about him to give him a second look
"Whew, been a while since I last walked the earth ina body like this, wonder how rusty I am. Maybe I should do some stretches first... Ugh, this Armour's way too foreign for me, back in my day we didn't need such stupid things. Whelp, not like I need it anyways, so... just a little peek at the kid's mind..." The redhead before him mused, groaning in annoyance at the Armour covering him. Raising his bare hand a second later, Nico (?) clicked his fingers and thus, the Armour Vanished into its Module on his chest. At the moment it did so, the redhead groaned again, this time in relief, as he proceeded to stretch his arms. "Ahhh, that's better..."
All these features served to unnerve the Fishman even more, to the point where his previously gleeful expression born from his transformation got replaced by a look of bewilderment and confusion. What the hell just happened right now? One moment this foolish human looked to have been on the ropes from his successive assault, nigh caught in the jaws of death for his folly in defying the superior Fishman race. Now? Now the kid looked to have completely changed his demeanour, his persona and rhythm. Everything about him changed, like he had become an entirely different person. It felt... wrong to him, way worse than using energy steroids, that's for sure. Every instinct in his body, born from years of assassinating Targets for the highest bidder, told him to run for his life. Only his own arrogance kept him rooted in place, though.
Seeing this guy's continued dismissal of him, caused Hyouzou to develop a twitching eyebrow, annoyance and anger at being so casually dismissed like no big deal rearing their ugly heads within him. "My, nooow thiiiiiissssss is some... change of baaaaaalllllllllllssss… to blatantly ignore me, ME, the strongest fishman Swordsman, like this. You must have some form of death wish, brat!" the Fishman yelled in a slurred manner, tossing some of his Sabers at Nico's vital areas. Now that he hadn't dismissed his Armour for whatever reason, with the speed he had thrown them at Hyouzou felt certain that they would hit their targets and end this fight. Teach that kid to treat him lightly in the middle of a fight!
Just as the blades neared his vital areas though, once again the kid (although a growing part o f him was beginning to doubt that he was really a kid. Had he been holding bac all this time?) swung his sword in a series of well-tied, flawlessly executed slash attacks, each one deflecting one Saber away from his main body and letting the blades impale the ground around him. Gaping with hock, Houzou could only watch as the redhead Spec Ops Agent paused his stretches to look him over, as if he had forgotten that Hyouzou was even there. "Oh, right, yeah...kinda forgot about you. Been a bit busy doing stretches, so could ya wait a bit? Ah, actually never mind..."
SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-SLASH!
In an instant, Nico suddenly blurred forth and appeared behind the Octopus Fishman before he could even register the kid moving. "Guh… Ugh...! Wha…?!" Startled sound of choking escaped Hyouzou's mouth, a small spec of blood escaping as well. His eyes widened, trembling violently as a feeling of numbness spread throughout his entie system, not even being able to feel the energy Steroids coursing through his system anymore. All across his body, across his Tentacles and limbs, slash marks appeared like they were drawn by a masterful yet savage artist, soon leading to each of his Tentacles being severed at their roots whilst Hyouzou's limbs and neck got hopped to bits, letting the dying Fishman fall to the flood in a crumpled heap. "H...H...H-How...?" The Fishman muttered with his dying breath, the last thing he saw before the cold grip of death claimed him at last being the way the kid flicked Rebellion to the side to wash it clean of the blood, in a way only accomplished by a master swordsman.
Well, that and a slightly insane cackle which escaped Nico's lips. "Sorry squid-legs, but compared to a prodigy like myself, someone like you is nothing but a child holding a toothpick... or toothpicks, in your case."
