*Vaskul POV; Somewhere in Sentora...*
...
Vaskul just looked absolutely pissed off as he silently floated around, furious at what he had discovered.
"Of course my body's taken over by Zoma. Oh, what else could possibly happen right as I am on the precipice of attaining godhood? One of the beings I loathe and detest the most tricking me and taking over my body, that's what! Damn it all..."
While he silently watched and observed many physical people simply exploring and seeing the world around them, Vaskul silently meditated on his new issues...
Right now, he was dealing with a Baramos and Zoma. Minor nuisances included Luka, Alice, perhaps Ilias and Eden if push came to shove. He may potentially have to deal with others, if things go further downhill, but for the most part those were the major and minor players in this little game...
And he was at rock bottom with literally nothing but his own mind. He was a joke now, and literally had no way to do anything outside of influence or possession.
Damn it... Damn it! he cursed, knowing just how much he had fallen, I was once the strongest person here who could easily wipe out this entire world if I wanted to... Now even Luka of all people can claim that he plays a bigger part in world events than I do!
So what the hell can I do to get rid of the others?... he silently thought over his predicament.
First he would have to gain a new body. That much was obvious.
I could possess someone, suppress their minds and use their bodies to further my goals... he could try to possess Chrome, as he knew for a fact she was a good Necromancer that had relatively good connections to negative energy and hasn't learned anything relating to exorcism yet...
Second, he needed to kill off Zoma as quickly as possible.
That's a bitch to do. First off, Zoma's damn near invincible with his Cloak of Darkness up, and I have nothing that remotely resembles the Orb of Light. Perhaps I can get Ilias to do it, but I'll need a way to assure her that it is actually me and not Zoma. Perhaps I can manipulate Luka into fighting him... Yes... He should be of angelic heritage... He should be capable of using the Light. I just need to push him in the right direction... Maybe I can get someone else to attack Zoma as well, help soften him up so I can kick him out of my body...
While the second thing was important, it didn't mean he could plan for the third, which was killing off or otherwise disposing of the other major players in this world.
Hm... I could convince other people to fight Zoma, and kill them off once they're sufficiently weakened, or I could curse and seal them away... Baramos Sigmus... Will be difficult to defeat, but as long as I have area and magical advantage, I should be able to kill him off; perhaps I can get Luka, Ilias, Alipheese, and the other fools to band up and at least weaken him so I can save myself the effort of finding a suitable area and creating new magical objects to help ambush and attack Sigmus.
The fourth thing was dealing with the minor players so they couldn't somehow get in the way when he's just about to find Estark.
That's easy. I can just kill Luka, Alice, and the others when I'm through with them. Ilias and her Angels... I suppose I'll have to spare them, if only for the Secret of Evolution.
Fifth thing to do was finding Estark and gaining the Secret of Evolution.
That's even easier, considering I already have Ilias willing to tell me the location. I just need to have my real body by then, if only for vanity's sake. I could probably make a completely new body to inhabit and claim as my own if I can't somehow reclaim my body from Zoma. I just need to take care not to awaken Estark.
Sixth thing was to inject himself with the Secret of Evolution.
Well I already know the Secret of Evolution's process like the back of my... Nonexistent hands, but I digress. I know that's the easiest thing to do out of all of this.
The last thing to do after that was...
Huh. What do I do after I achieve the Secret of Evolution? I could've sworn I had a plan for that by that point... But what was it again? Sleep? Cause havoc and chaos? I can't remember... Vaskul thought on it, and ultimately decided not to plan for that. He would be an untouchable and absolute God by that point, so he had no reason to fear if he had no plans for that point.
So right now, what he needed to do was find a new body, and fortunately, he knew exactly who to use for that purpose and where to find them...
... Yes... This should help to... alleviate, my current situation. I think I will be going now to fulfill that... Vaskul mused. Zoma might count me as helpless now... But that's just a fool's mistake... For now, the first part in my plan is to do the entire Multiverse a favor and get rid of Zoma, Vaskul decided. Now then, I should get going... I have more than a few ways to get a suitable body back. Even now, the shadows will come to me, and give me all the power I need to possess someone... Vaskul's presence vanished, and he was off to where he knew he would find Chrome...
*My POV; Ms. Alice's Castle in Hellgondo*
...
The delightful little fox I met on the road a few hours back was so nice. She told me that her castle needed magicians, ones that were smart and knew the same kind I did. It was quite flattering! But I could tell that there's another reason...
Her figure, while small, cannot suppress her posture, her eyes, her words; she is far older than she lets on. Ohoho! Nowhere near as old as me, no! But, she is old. And with age, comes wisdom, and with wisdom, comes power.
I just love it though! The fact that she thinks she can trick me. The fact that, along with everyone else, she is blissfully blind to the World around her. The wretched, horrid, disgusting multiverse around her!
Ah, but I ramble when something important is about to begin! I do believe that we are coming up to the castle she mentioned, and so I say to her, "Ms. Tamamo, is that the castle you were referring to? It looks quite nice!"
The little vixen looks up to me, and smiles, saying, "Why, thank you Kyous! We don't receive non-noble or non-prisoner visitors that often, so it's nice when other people say it looks nice. I hope the inside's up to standard!"
Ahahaha~! How you misunderstand. I have no standards to begin with, so of course anything that has a roof is good in my humble and irrelevant opinion! But I digress.
The two of us come close to the gates, and the Guards look at me strangely, tilting their heads.
Before I could explain myself, Ms. Tamamo, nice girl that she is, goes on and said, "He is a visitor here. I brought him here to go so I could have a better understanding of... Human Magic, since it seems quite different from what I am used to."
The guards only nodded once before allowing the gates to be raised, and stand aside, letting me and Ms. Tamamo in.
Upon going in, I instantly smell something that can only be that of a Succubus. How unfortunate, that I must deal with one so soon into my adventure in this odd World, but that doesn't matter. She also smells of lead and paper, so that may be be a redeeming factor. I, personally, wouldn't count on it. Would you, oh dear person reading into this disgusting world's humble story?
"Hello Tammy~!" and with that unbearable stench of Man-Seed, came in a Succubus with long hair, and rather provocative clothing. At least she wore a cloak to help cover herself, which is more than I can say for many of the amazons, succubi, and other perverted freaks I have met. If one shows off all they have, then what's to imagine and desire? A perverted succubus of all lowly scum should know that, and yet many, with the exception of this one, don't. Curious, is it not?
"Hello Alma Elma," the little fox said back to her. How odd. A Kitsune and a Succubus, friends? What an unlikely friendship! But I have seen weirder, and I myself have done odder things, so I am not one to talk.
"Who might this person be~?" she said, looking at me.
Before Ms. Tamamo could say anything, I humbly introduce myself, claiming, "Oh, little ol' me?... Why, I have many names! From the Wandering Lunatic, to the Pride of Bleak Academy, to the Horror of Fang Rock, to even the King of Worms, I am many people all in one and one in all!" I giggle slightly at my somewhat inane introduction, and I can't help but note that several bugs and arachnids may have crawled out the orifices on my mask to get some fresh air.
Quite inconsiderately, the Succubus I know as Ms. Alma flinched, apparently freaked out by my wonderful insects. How offensive! We've only just met.
"... I see... Tamamo, where did you find him?... And what did you do to him?" she asked, blissfully unaware of the events that made me into me.
"I found him wandering the roads nearby. He claims to be a Wandering Magician, and I did nothing to him; I found him like this," Ms. Tamamo said, still put off by my words and the occasional bug that just wanted to get some fresh air. Honestly, is everyone so bigoted and hateful towards insects and other beauties like them around these backwatered parts?
"Okay..." Ms. Alma looked at me, almost as if she was debating whether or not she wanted to see what lies underneath my mask and robes, and if she would even want to have sex with me. Her eyes tell me that she would prefer not to see what lies beneath my robes and mask. A wise choice, if I do say so myself.
"Don't question it. All that matters is that he's a Human Mage that can help us learn more about Vaskul's Magic..." Ms. Tamamo said, attempting to cover her cute scowl from me with but a simple fan.
... Huh. Did she mention Vaskul? How intriguing!
"Oh? Vaskul? You know of him?" I politely say, interrupting the conversation.
"... Yes, I've met him before. He's a dangerous Wizard that possesses and uses magic unlike that I've ever seen before," Ms. Tamamo said, "I have good reason to believe that he wants to revive Estark for some purpose."
Ah... still after good ol' Emperor Estark my old Disciple? Good to see you haven't changed in the slightest since our last encounter oh so long ago...
"Hehehe... He 'just' wants to revive Estark?... Ahahaha... You misunderstand, Ms. Tamamo!" I cannot help but giggle at that. How foolish of her! Does she not know of the true nature behind the Emperor Estark's power?...
"... Then what is it? Why else would he want to resurrect Estark if not to see him rise back to power?" Ms. Tamamo inquired towards me, intrigued as to why I said that. Huh. I do suppose she doesn't know the reason after all! How stupid and ignorant of her!
To enlighten her, I do say, "Dreaded Necromancer Vaskul wishes not for the revival of Emperor Estark. He does not care in the slightest about the real Demon Lord himself. What he does care about is Estark's power... For you see, Estark's incomplete power came from an outside source. He used some unknown Secret to gain the power he did... And he took it with him to the grave. Dread Necromancer Vaskul wants that power for himself, and has the means to complete it, becoming an Absolute God infinitely above that of your adorable Elements Ilias and Alipheese, and I do say he has done many horrifying and disgusting atrocities with no regret nor remorse to secure the secret... If getting the Secret to Emperor Estark's power meant he had to slaughter a billion multiverses over, he would do it. And he would not care about the lives lost at all."
Ms. Tamamo, interestingly enough, paled.
"E-estark's power... It was incomplete!?" she seemed quite worried at that, almost as if she had met the demon himself before... "And Vaskul will do anything to secure it, give it to himself in a complete form of it..."
"Yes, you summarized my words quite well, Ms. Tamamo!" I laugh, amused by her reaction.
"... This... isn't good... I need to think on this," was all that she said, before giving me a map of the place with my room marked, and leaving.
"Hm... She seemed quite worried about that, didn't she, Ms. Alma?" I say to the Succubus, who seems equally as worried.
"Y-yes... What you've revealed to us... is quite... bad, to say the least," Ms. Alma stated, "... Oh! Look at the time. I think one of the Grand Noah Tournaments is about to begin. See you later!"
And with that, Ms. Alma flew off, suddenly leaving me alone.
Well, that was quite rude of them. Do they always leave new arrivals here all to themselves?...
Ah well, that's none of my concern.
Besides, it leaves me to do what I wish... Now, where's the library?...
*Luka POV; Grand Noah Colosseum*
...
It took a while, and it may have sucked quite a bit of money out of his pockets, but Luka managed to buy him and Alice some tickets to the Grand Noah Colosseum.
He took a seat in the stands, and looked at what he assumed were going to be fellow swordsman and martial artist enthusiasts...
Only to be confused by noting that the audience was filled with mostly young girls and women.
Huh... That's odd. Maybe most of the Men are actively participating in the games? Luka rationalized, sighing as he saw that Alice was already happily eating some food she got from somewhere, Alice, Alice, Alice... You always think and do things for your stomach rather than logic, he idly wondered why Alice was so obsessed with food, when he saw that a rich looking noblewoman was sitting next to them with a frown on her face.
She's probably angry at Alice. Or maybe she's angry at something else. Who knows? Luka, having inherited some traits from Vaskul's training, simply acted as if he didn't really have a choice but to be stuck with her, and pretended as if he was sorry for her being somewhat of a nuisance, No wonder why there VIP seats exist, they exist to keep children like Alice away from the people who actually want to see the games!
Returning from his mental muses, he saw that the games were finally about to begin, with one fighter being a Minotauros with a giant axe, and the other being a Centaur-Girl.
The Fight began, and the two Monster-Girls clashed, seemingly evenly-matched at first, though over time, the Centaur-Girl seemed to have won due to her greater speed, agility, and her ability to keep hitting the Minotauros multiple times and dodge the Minotuaros' heavy strikes.
... Though, he did note that the Minotauros did protect herself from major blows, and was...
"Hm... She's baiting her. No doubt about it. The question is if those light blows will add up..." Luka mused, carefully observing the battle.
"Mm. So you did notice," Alice said, now waiting for another chance to get some more food, "She's protecting herself from any serious blows, and is just waiting for a chance to effectively take down the Centaur."
Seemingly overhearing their conversation, the Noblewoman interrupted, "... Excuse me if it sounds like I am eavesdropping, but what do you mean?"
"It might look as if the Minotauros is being beaten mercilessly, but a trained eye will see that she's still fully capable of fighting. She's just faking it so she can take the Centaur down at close quarters, however, she'll need quite a bit of durability for that tactic to work," Luka answered, still keeping an eye on the fight, "However fast the Centaur is, seeing how strong the Minotauros seems to be, it'll probably take maybe one or two strikes at close quarters."
"Is that so? I can't see this match ending in the Minotauros' favor..." the Noblewoman mused.
They continued watching the match from there, and soon the Centaur got overconfident, getting closer than usual to land a stronger blow, but the Minotauros took this chance, and hit her, almost instantly knocking her down to the ground.
... I'd ask if she was okay, but I doubt anyone would try to kill in a Colosseum's games, Luka thought, watching as the Audience cheered on the Minotauros.
"My, my, it went exactly as you said it would," the Noblewoman said, "Are you a skilled fighter yourself?"
... Well, if you added underhanded-fighting and other things Master Vaskul taught me, then yes, I'd probably be able to beat plenty of people, Luka thought, "Uh... I suppose you could say that about me..."
"I see..." the Noblewoman stroked her chin in thought as the next fight began...
Huh. A Man versus what I think is a Dullahan. So that's where all the guys are... Luka thought, interested to see how a Human would fare against a Monster...
Needless to say, the fight was over very quickly, with the Man crawling to the Dullahan's feet, and at that moment, lights came on, as if a performance was about to begin. It didn't help that the majority of the audience jumped out of their seats.
... Dear Ilias, what the hell?... I just wanted to see a good fight... Was that too much to ask for? No wonder why Master Vaskul despises things like this... It's not fun to watch at all, Luka shook his head in disappointment.
"... I don't wish to watch this any longer," the Noblewoman said, getting out of her seat, "I'd like to speak with you, if you wouldn't mind."
Luka almost bolted out of his seat after her, not wanting to so much as hear the event that was about to unfold in the arena...
...
Soon enough, Luka, Alice, and the Noblewoman came up to the castle entrance.
"Um... Won't we get arrested if we just walk in?..." Luka said, confused.
Almost as if responding more to Luka rather than the Noblewoman, one of the Guards said, "Welcome back, your Majesty," he nodded in respect to the Noblewoman, and eyed Luka and Alice suspiciously.
Well, I guess that explains why she just came up here, Luka thought.
"They are my guests, let them pass," the Noblewoman commanded, and the Guard immediately let the case go.
Soon enough while the three were going down the hallway, Luka awkwardly asked, "So... Are you by chance?..."
"I am the Tenth Grand Noah Queen," the Noblewoman said, pushing past that as if it wasn't anything too important.
"I see," Luka didn't question it too much. It would explain why she needed to disguise herself to properly see the tourney.
Soon enough they arrived in the throne room, where they saw the Queen in her true appearance.
She began the conversation, breaking the silence, "As I'm sure you saw, our country's once proud colosseum has turned into something awful. The only real contestants and winners here are the Monsters. Occasionally a Human contestant joins in, but it always ends the same way. Ever since I took the throne fifteen years ago, there hasn't been a single Human who made it to the semi-finals, much less outright win. That is not to say I hate Monsters, but still..."
"... That is kind of disappointing," Luka finished, thinking something along the same lines, Wow. Not a single Human even made it to the Semifinals in fifteen years?... Now that is kind of odd. With people like Master Vaskul running around, you'd think there would be some respectable and powerful Humans out there fighting and having fun too...
"These days, Monsters even rape the Men right after winning. You noticed how the spectators of the Colosseum acted, yes? They don't care about the fight itself. Not anymore. They just come here to watch the rape and sex. There are even men that take part in the games just to be raped!" The Grand Noah Queen sighed, "That is what our once honorable and proud Colosseum has become, a cesspool of sex, rape, and humiliation. Nothing more, and nothing less."
... I can somehow tell that Master Vaskul would probably either beat the crap out of everyone in that tourney, or he would snap and somehow nuke the place with his spells... Luka sweated at the idea of that, "Mhm... That really does sound bad when you put it like that. A place where people should be fighting is now a place where people watch others have sex..."
"Indeed... But, if that's what the population wants, then I'm afraid I cannot change it," the Queen shook her head in disappointment, "I just want to see it once... Once, every four years, the Queen's Cup is held. Just once, I'd like to see a Human get to the Semifinals, maybe even become the Champion... I think you know where I'm going with this."
"Yes. I'm guessing you want me to go and partake in the Queen's Cup and make it to at least the Semifinals?" Luka said, thinking that, as long as he was smart about his fighting, he should be able to win against most normal Monsters.
"Yes, that's right. And, to celebrate the fifteenth year of my coronation, the Green Orb, a heirloom passed down through my family... I wish to give it to a Human Warrior that wins the Tourney. Can you please fulfill that dream?... And if not, could you at least become the first Human to get into the Semifinals?" she asked.
Luka weighed his options. Now, there was a high chance he could win this tournament and get... A Green Orb, whatever use that may have, and then there's just the typical rape as punishment for failing. Nothing too out of the ordinary. At least now he can't be eaten, enslaved, or anything else like that. Plus, it could make for some good practice against good fighters!
"Sure. I'll go ahead and do it!" Luka said, accepting the request.
"Ah, wonderful!" the Queen happily nodded as his answer, "I wish you luck along with the other Human Fighters in the Queen's Cup!"
Luka bowed respectfully, "I will make sure to do my best!" he said, leaving to enlist in the Queen's Cup.
*Karnax POV; Nearby the Noah Region?...*
...
The Black Slaad chewed on a bloody bone, sitting around and idly wondering just what the hell he let Kyous get him into.
It wasn't that he hated this world, no! He always preferred women's flesh. They tasted sweeter and were less sweaty and chewy than men, and this world was chock-full of them!... It's just that he honestly had no real plan or a list of things to do in this world. He didn't care about Orthalamas, he gave no damns about the Baramos, Zoma could go fuck himself, and Kyous was too busy being a psychotic sack of shit wherever the hell he was at to help give him a list of things to do.
And it wasn't like he himself, a beast of Chaos and Entropy, could just somehow make a steady and reliable list of things to do.
"Fuckin' hell... What's a Slaad to do 'round these parts?..." Karnax muttered, picking apart some of his victims. Some were men, some were women, some were children, some were Monster-Girls, and a rare few were a cross of in between. He didn't care honestly. They all tasted practically the same with their small differences with a few exceptions.
The Nightmarish Toad-Shaped blot of Darkness noted a small piece of paper, some sort of advertisement...
"'Queen's Cup being held soon in Grand Noah Colosseum...' Now that sounds a bit fun..." Karnax muttered, taking a huge whiff of his surrounding areas.
He narrowed his crimson eyes, and gazed off where he smelled out the largest city in the region.
"Heheheheh... Ready or not, here I come, prey!" Karax smiled from one side of his face to another as he got down on all four of his long, beastial limbs and bounded towards the City faster than any normal being should be able to run...
*Luka POV; Grand Noah Colosseum*
...
So far the Tournament had gone fairly well; Luka had beat both Dullahan and Cerberus, some of the strongest fighters here, and by some miracle of Ilias, made it all the way to the finals.
Of course, now everyone was advising him to forfeit before he fought Kyuba, the apparent Champion who's always won whenever she participated.
I feel as if fighting her is a bad idea... But fuck it. I can't back out now when I never even met this person before. Who knows? She might not be as bad as they say, and nobody's ever gotten far in life when they ran away from a hard challenge... Luka rationalized as he stretched and prepared himself.
Soon enough, Alice slithered in, "Hey, idiot. Interesting news, Kyuba dropped out, so you'll be facing against somebody named Karnax."
"Karnax?..." Luka raised an eyebrow. Kyuba was one thing, but Karnax?...
"Yes, Karnax. They probably aren't as bad as Kyuba, but if they made it all the way here, you'll probably be in for a hard fight," Alice said.
Luka nodded as he prepared for the impending fight, "Alright. Thanks Alice, I appreciate the news."
Alice just slithered off, probably in search of more food to eat.
...
Soon enough a Guard came to notify Luka that his match was starting now, and Luka walked out into the hallway leading to the arena, both excited, and somewhat nervous of whoever Karnax was.
Squinting from the bright sunlight, Luka tried to see who was at the other exit, wondering who else was skilled enough to make it this far...
Only to see nothing but pure darkness.
... Where are they? Luka idly wondered. He heard murmurs amongst the audience if Karnax would reveal themself this time... Do they hide themselves from sight?... Or do they attack so fast nobody can see them?
Sylph rang out in alarm within him, Luka, quick! Get ready and summon us! Something is horribly wrong here... Gnome seemed equally alarmed as well, silently urging him to do the same as well.
Eyes widening, Luka quickly summoned their powers, sword at the ready. He didn't know what Karnax was, but if both of the Spirits were telling him to immediately use their power, then something was definitely wrong here...
Several loud and heavy thumps echoed around the exit Karnax was supposed to be at, yet... they seemed to distort, as if one that came earlier lasted longer than one that came after.
Luka tried to discern what was hiding in the Darkness, hoping to get a basic idea of what he was facing...
He saw... Something odd. He could just barely see the outline of it, and he knew that it wasn't a Man nor a Monster...
The audience leaned in, hoping to finally see Karnax's true form as well...
Soon, Karnax stepped out, showing their true form.
Almost immediately Luka and everyone watching stepped or otherwise leaned back away from them in either fright or disgust.
Karnax was an extremely tall, abominable and chaotic thing that could only be described as a vaguely toad-humanoid-shaped blot of pure darkness. Not a single detail graced nor scarred it, and the only things Luka could see other than its normal limbs was a pair of claws sticking out right where its knuckles should be at, above its normal webbed digits.
After some silence, two small, pinprick blood-red lights shone where its eyes should be, and an equally bloody-red mouth opened, smiling from one side of its face to an another.
... At this point, Luka began to realize just what he was dealing with...
Master Vaskul always told me that there were certain things I should never consider fighting... These things were apparently called Beholders, Aboleths, Atropals, Elder Evils, and Slaads... Slaads, something he described as a vaguely Toad-shaped beast of pure entropy and chaos... Is that what I'm facing right now?
Almost as if losing its patience, Karnax vanished almost instantly, and slammed Luka into the ground.
Luka grunted in pain, and tried to slice at it...
But, something changed, and suddenly, the Slaad was gone, appearing somewhere else...
Karnax's mouth twisted into a cruel grin, and it punched Luka sharply, sending him flying away.
Luka tried to use the powers of the wind to divert it, but it seemed to almost laugh at the feeble attempt, and dug its claws into the ground, pulling a large chunk of Earth up, and throwing it at Luka.
Quickly using Gnome's power, Luka shattered the boulder-like projectile, but now didn't know where the Slaad was in the clouds of dust that covered the arena... He cursed himself for falling right into the beast's trap.
A sharp pain slashed its way through Luka's back, and a near-unstoppable force pushed him away again into the dust, stomping on his injuries.
D-damn it! I can't win this fight if this keeps up... Luka cursed mentally as he stabbed at the force behind him, trying to fight back.
Luka! You have to rely on me to deflect that thing's attacks! Gnomey can't save you from his strength! Sylph said into his head, begging him to dismiss Gnome and focus solely on her.
R-right... Sorry Gnome, but there's nothing you can do to help me get through or harm him... It's like he's harming me as if I had nothing at all, that I'm taking all of his hits right to the flesh, with no amount of Earth Power or Enrikan Shirts stopping him... Luka said, apologizing to Gnome as he dismissed her.
Gnome just nodded sadly as her power stopped straining Luka's power away from focusing on Sylph. She just hoped the Hero Apprentice would survive...
Luka now focused on the defensive, trying to subvert or move the Black Slaad's attacks to miss him to limited success, but the beast's attacks always hit right through Luka's Wind Barrier, slamming right into him and sending him skidding into the ground.
I'll die at this rate... I'm going to truly, genuinely die... Luka thought in pure terror as he tried to get up, and steady himself.
Even Sylph's Wind Wall at full power isn't affecting his accuracy... Gah, damn it! Think! What can I do!? What else about the Wind will help my chances?... Luka thought in desperation, seeing Karnax zoom closer and closer to him in small, erratic bursts, at speeds he doubt even Alma would be able to track...
... Wait... Speed! That's it! But how do I achieve that?... Luka thought, focusing on what he was doing wrong with the Wind...
He felt the Wind trying to... communicate, to him, in some sort of way, and he felt that he was controlling it too much, trying to force it to be something that it shouldn't really be...
Maybe... If I-! Luka's line of thought was interrupted by Karnax pouncing and pinning him to the ground, wildly throwing his arms and claws at Luka without a single care, sometimes Karnax hit nothing, and sometimes he tore very big chunks of flesh out.
Needless to say, Luka's cries of pain were music to the Slaad's ears, and soon it jumped back, and faded into dust, almost as if... playing, with him...
Playful... Sylph is rather carefree and childish... Maybe that extends to the Wind as well? Do I need to just let it... do as it pleases? To guide me rather than the other way around? Luka thought as he let his active grip on the Wind fade, and the walls subsided... And, shortly after, he felt the wind... infused, into his body, as if his movements had been enhanced by a Playful Wind...
Karnax snorted, wondering what the hell Luka just did, before jumping back in to slash at the Hero Apprentice, only for Luka to just barely avoid his attack.
"I... I did it? I dodged his attack?" Luka said in a brief disbelief, before avoiding another of Karnax's attacks... And another... And another...
Finally, Luka tried to attack himself, and barely missed the Slaad.
Damn it! So close!... Luka thought, knowing now he had a very slight chance against Karnax...
Until the beast got angry and stopped playing with him. The Entropic Beast was initially getting more and more furious at missing Luka, before suddenly stopping and deeply growling in an odd way... And then, Karnax roared, dispelling the dust clouds and making Luka stagger slightly from the pain in his eardrums...
And the Black Slaad was but a blur of afterimages as it quickly jumped and drop kicked Luka into the ground, beating down and twisting in a berserk frenzy, yet still sometimes missed or grazed Luka as it went on its rampage.
Luka just tried to keep his cool and slashed away at the Slaad, trying to get a hit in while dodging the Black Slaad's furious attacks, yet, as Karnax began to hoot and gibber, and continued making large impacts on the ground, sand began to puff up into dust clouds again, and began to make it extremely hard to see and discern where the Slaad was...
When the dust clouds fully enveloped the arena again, Luka's strikes didn't seem to ever touch Karnax, and if it seemed like it was going to, the Slaad just... Appeared, somewhere else, as if reality just moved it out of the way of Luka's strikes, as if reality broke for a few fleeting moments that allowed it to move out of the way. Either that, or Luka struck what seemed to be just a simple shadow, and not the real thing. He couldn't tell anymore. Reality seemed to be breaking apart, with some things lasting longer and going slower than they should, and some things happening nearly instantly, when they should've taken hours to occur.
... But soon, a sharp light, almost as if the Darkness and Dust around the Slaad inverted, shone, highlighting Karnax's outline.
Gotcha! Luka attacked at the outline, and finally made contact with the Slaad, marking his first attack on it.
The Slaad just grunted, slapping Luka back into the ground. It didn't seem pleased by Luka's minor strike, but treated it like a game lost, and was now creeping slowly onto Luka, claws at the ready.
Luka got back up, and stared at it, still refusing to back down.
Snorting, or perhaps snarling, Karnax picked Luka up easily in one of his claws, almost crushing him.
Luka wheezed and gasped for breath, but remained resolute, vainly trying to break out of Karnax's grip.
Seemingly shaking with anger that their prey refused to break for them, Karnax threw Luka, hissing in fury as he quickly came down on Luka again and grabbed his leg, using Luka as a human-flail of sorts as he slammed the hero into the ground, giving a good shake to ensure Luka was still alive, and then continued on bashing Luka against the floor and walls, until finally tossing him aside and roaring.
Luka landed roughly on the ground, and coughed out, feeling that quite a few bones were broken by now... and realized something was missing from his finger...
His Mother's Keepsake Ring! No! It's missing!
While Luka was desperately looking for the Ring, Karnax began to beat its chest and roared, the arena... distorting, glitching, twisting into another landscape...
Luka looked up briefly to see the Black Slaad, grinning evilly as he saw they were in the ruins of a frontier village, the bodies lain and strewn about like lifeless toys, their limbs and organs tossed around like the stuffing of a pillow...
He was too horrified to even make a sound, and looked back at Karnax, to see the Entropic Beast had in its jaws the head of a child... Which it crushed apart into pieces by snapping its moth shut.
Luka looked around in abject terror, all courage leaving him as he saw that he could do nothing to stop this... thing, from doing as it pleased... Until, he recalled something... And realized, that he would never become strong enough to defeat Karnax if he ran away in terror, if he just gave up and let this freak do whatever it wanted...
Fear turned to Anger, and taking a final look around what Karnax had done to the village around him, Anger turned to an emotion he almost never felt...
Hatred. Spite for something as savage and disgusting as the Slaad. Blinding Fury.
And, unknown to both Luka and the Slaad, due to Luka losing his ring, a bright and unbearable light emanating from him, the light shining through even the dust clouds, and directly at the Slaad.
Karnax roared in pain, blinded by the sudden light, and stumbled around, unable to see, and Luka charged, jumping up with Angel Halo in both hands, and resummoning Gnome and Sylph to him at full power, he cleaved down on Karnax's back in an outrage for what the Slaad had done to the village, causing the creature to fall down slightly.
From there, it was almost as if Luka had simply beaten back a usual animalistic predator, for Karnax skulked back away from him, seemingly thinking that Luka wasn't worth the effort to beat, and hissed one last time, "I will return, prey... No matter where you run, I will track you down. You will not be spared. You will not be saved."
With that warning uttered, Karnax vanished out of sight...
Luka sighed as he started to regain rationality, and looked around to eventually found his Keepsake Ring and put it back on just as he started to note the bright light was coming from him.
But when he put the ring on, the light vanished. He didn't know what just happened, but he assumed it to be one of Karnax's mental or reality-warping tricks, of which he noted he was back in the Colosseum instead of the burning village, where...
Nothing had happened?...
... Indeed. It seemed that all the craters and scars left on the arena wasn't reversed, it seemed to be as if they never happened to begin with. All he could see were the Slaad's footprints near the gate, still left in the sand. Even the Audience didn't seem too sure as to what the hell just happened to the arena.
Eventually, when it looked to be that Karnax would not return, the Announcer said, "... Um... Since Karnax appears to have forfeited via... Whatever they did, Luka wins by default!..."
Despite that being his win, nobody cheered or clapped. They just seemed... Confused. Luka couldn't blame them. He himself had no idea what exactly the Slaad did to him...
Was the whole fight an illusion that everyone fell for? Or were they really fighting this whole time, and Karnax just used his powers to seemingly undo everything that happened?...
... Master Vaskul was right. Slaads are dangerous creatures... I couldn't even tell what was reality and what wasn't when I was fighting that thing... Luka thought sadly, I need to improve and train fast, otherwise I'll never be able to fight back against that thing...
At least he had legitimately won against everyone else, and fulfilled the Grand Noah Queen's Wish of a Human Victor to take the Green Orb...
At least I won this tournament for the most part, and I learned how to properly use Sylph's power. I can take pride in that, Luka thought, before slowly getting up and trudging off to wherever he was supposed to go.
*Vaskul POV; Haunted Manor*
...
Chrome was simply enjoying life as usual in the Manor, idly wondering when Vaskul would return to teach her more about the specifics of Epic-Level Necromancy and the such as she commanded Frederika to continue monitoring the lesser undead servants that wandered the house.
"... Sheesh, how long does it take to deal with whatever it was you're dealing with? Your trip to San Ilia didn't take that long, and you dealt with Granberia during that time..." Chrome muttered, trying to make sense of the spellbooks Vaskul gave her to study.
She continued reading, unaware that her Master had already returned...
The Room got slightly darker, as a dark mass of shadows congealed behind her...
She remained blissfully unaware of what was forming behind her, still reading her spellbook.
Soon enough, a vague being with a somewhat silvery mask fully formed behind her...
"Hello Chrome," Vaskul rasped in a deeper and far more threatening tone than usual, "I do believe it is rude to talk about people as if they aren't here to listen, when they are in fact right here..."
Chrome almost immediately bolted out of her seat, scared, "Wawawa!? What the hell Vaskul! That wasn't..." she looked at him in both fear and interest. "... What happened to you?" she asked.
"Hm? This?..." Vaskul laughed, "This... is merely just a shield for my Spirit... Nothing to worry about."
"Shield for your Spirit?... That's implying you lost your body..." Chrome muttered, unsure of what was going on.
"You could say that..." Vaskul chuckled, shuffling closer to her.
"Okay?... So how are you going to solve that problem? I don't think you want to be an incorporeal ghost until I can make a new body for you..."
"Ah, you're right. I'm not patient enough for that, especially when my plans are at risk..."
"So what are you going to do about it?" Chrome tilted her head, confused.
Vaskul began to dissolve into a more gaseous state, "Simple. Possession. I'm sorry Chrome, but you quite frankly hold no use to me anymore. You're not worth risking a chance for the Secret of Evolution."
Before Chrome could even respond or react, the shadow-like gases flooded the room, quickly entering her body through her orifices, slowly taking over...
Her pained groans and moans were drowned out in the end, and soon...
She opened her eyes again, showing that instead of their usual purple pupils and white sclera, they were now a striking yellow, with black sclera.
"A-A-Ah... B-B-Be... C-C-Ce..." Vaskul slowly recited the alphabet and basic numbers, slowly growing used to their new voice.
"Hm... Ah, there we go! Proper high-pitched tone and level of brattiness!" They laughed, now imitating Chrome's voice perfectly.
Wh- What happened!? What's going on!? Speaking of Chrome, it seemed that she was still aware of what's going on, just unable to do anything with Vaskul possessing her body.
"Ah... Chrome. I wondered whether or not you would live on as a part of my subconscious," Vaskul scoffed, slowly adapting to their new body, "I have to say, while your body is good for magic by this world's standards, it is absurdly tight, especially around a few certain areas..."
C-come on! This is just a joke, right? You're trying to lead me into the next lesson with this, right? Chrome mentally said, scared of what was going on.
"I'm afraid not. About the best chance you have of survival is keeping up your individuality from me, continue talking to me as if I was a separate person. Of course, it doesn't really matter if this winds up being a long-term possession," Vaskul idly answered, testing their new powers and abilities right now.
B-but... I thought... I thought we were friends... Why?... Chrome was genuinely scared for her existence now, trying futility to retake her own body.
"Hmph. We were, but I value having a body to immediately combat Zoma rather than waste a few more years and risk a chance at gaining the Secret of Evolution waiting for you to get competent enough at Necromancy and magic in general to make me a suitable body. After all..." Vaskul chuckled softly as they went through Chrome's memories, "Shirome always did chastise you back then for being so incompetent in Necromancy afterall..."
Wh-what!? How did you...?
"Please. Reading you is like reading an open book. Simple and pathetic. But, in, the end, you did surpass her, so at least there's that. Now, shut up already. I'm not exactly happy about taking your body either, and cutting your hair short in an attempt to look like a guy would not make it any better. In fact, it would only make it worse."
Chrome remained silent. It was obvious she felt extremely saddened and betrayed by this...
"On the bright side, if this is only short-term, and I am able to get my own body back by then, you'll have control of your body again."
Chrome seemed a little bit happy and hopeful at the idea.
"For now? Just sit back, and learn from firsthand experience how a true Master Necromancer approaches life..." Vaskul laughed softly as they began to adjust to their new body...
Author's Notes:
I am back again! Finally got over Writer's Block for another chapter!
Anyways, don't forget to leave a review and tell me what you all think!
And without further ado, I bid you all a good day!