Chapter 33

Mouth of the Storm

Loud booms of thunderclaps erupted across the arena before being followed by a blinding burst of red electricity as Set rained lightning bolt after lightning bolt down on Koschei from above. No longer were the bolts striking randomly, instead directly targeting the old man, following Koschei as he ducked and dove, always just one step ahead, hooting with amusement as he played tag with the deadly storm hovering overhead.

Feeling the hairs on his body prickling from the static in the air and the chill of Chernabog's breath, Koschei artfully swung his scythe overhead once more. Expertly partying an incoming electrical strike head on with his magically enchanted blade right on time, sending the bolt hurtling towards the ground instead, leaving a burn mark smoldering on the protruding cracks in the ground.

"Good, good! Koschei can use this!" Göll cheered, "By making his aim more focused, Set had sacrificed the unpredictability that his previous lightning storm had, which makes countering it far easier with Koschei's unique traits!"

"Don't forget though," Prometheus said, bringing them both back down to reality, "that relies on Koschei having perfect concentration and timing throughout. If there is even the slightest misstep in his play… I fear his wizened body would not be able to withstand a direct hit from the fallen prince's lightning."

Digging into the spot damaged by Set's missed attack using the tip of his scythe's blade. Koschei unearthed multiple chunks of rocky debris, sending them flying into the air. With one quick bat using the flat of his blade, the old man sent a volley of rocks hurtling towards Set. digging his right saber into the ground again, the fallen prince erected yet another wave of earthly spikes from below, shielding himself from the incoming projectiles.

As the desert shield retreated back within the ground, Set attempted to catch his breath, however, a dark shadow was soon cast over his eyes from overhead. Glancing upwards, the fallen prince was met with the form of Koschei high up in the air, his body blocking out the daylight as he held aloft his scythe and brought it down in one swift motion.

Set's eyes widened as a stream of red blood erupted from the front of his torso as Koschei's scythe ripped through any remaining linen wraps still clinging to his chest and the flesh beneath,

in an act of pure instinct. Set swung his left saber forward, nearly striking Koschei had the old man not backed away in time, instead neatly chopping through the clumps of gray hair that made up the tip of Koschei's long beard.

Landing on his feet, Koschei glanced down at his sheared facial hair with a mixture of amusement and slight disappointment, "Many centuries of grooming and proper care it took for that one," he mused cheerfully, "You're starting to make this one a wee bit personal, fallen prince!"

Set on the other hand, was less than thrilled, the fallen prince clutched his chest as blood oozed from between his fingers. His eyes were bloodshot, darting aimlessly from side to side as he drew short rattled breaths while his sabers lay flat on the ground beside him, now that they were no longer in his grasp, their elemental powers had been temporarily deactivated.

"Tch…" Koschei sighed, crouching down on the balls of his feet till he was level with Set, "Come on fallen prince, you've already shown off those fancy lightning and sand tricks. But I KNOW there's still more, bring out the big guns! Remove those final chains! Just do something, I want to see us both fighting with our full hundred percent!"

A sudden flash of red metal forced Koschei to leap backwards as Set, quick as a flash, grabbed a hold of his sabers and swung them towards the old man. "Well," the old man smirked, "at least you're motivated in trying to kill me now, that's a good first step I suppose."

Slowly rising to his feet, Set's eyes burned with animosity as a small amount of saliva foamed at his curled lips. "Annoying old codger… giving it my all? What a joke. But in the sole interest of getting your irritating ass off my back… I'LL GRANT THAT WISH!" As he said this, Set pointed the tip of his sabers towards the ground in front of him. The air crackled with tension as electricity and sand leapt from the fallen prince's two blades in bursts of elemental power, leaving behind only cold metal like how it had been when Set first entered the battlefield.

From Set's left saber, the streaks of electrical energy bursting forth, split into several smaller arcs of lightning. Twisting and coiling in the air until they formed the sleek, agile body of a canine creature, known as a Sha. Possessing long forked tails as well as long snouts and squared ears, its body was composed entirely of crackling red electricity, glowing with a brilliant light. The Sha's eyes snapped open, revealing electric yellow orbs that burned with a primal desire to hunt, opening its jaws revealed small waves of electricity constantly darting across the inside of its mouth and fangs.

From the right saber, the earth and sand produced smashed onto the arena floor heavily, before quickly gathering to construct the form of a second Sha, made from the mixture of desert rock and flowing sands that were constantly shifting and reforming. The coarse sand and sharp stone shards also gave it a rugged, armored appearance, making it appear slightly larger and bulkier than its electric twin. This Sha's eyes glowed with a deep, fiery red, much like the embers buried within the earth, and burned with the same savage light as its twin.

"Whoa! Who let the dogs out!" Heimdall yelped, "Set has just used the lightning and sand that previously surrounded his sabers and turned them into totemic animals to help aid him in battle. It seems like Koschei might be facing quite a bit of adversity if this is going to be a 3V1 battle now!"

Indeed the two Sha's seemed more than ready for battle, the Lightning Sha barked eagerly as it snapped it's jaws on thin air, whilst its paws scraped impatiently at the ground below. The Desert Sha meanwhile, arched its back and growled threateningly, lips pulled back as it sat on its haunches ready to rush forward at the old man standing in front of him. It was only due to their loyalty to Set, did the two beasts not immediately attack but remained rooted to their spot, obediently awaiting their master to give them the green light.

"Huh, odd little doggies Set had there," Huitzy commented as he gazed down at the two beings Set had just constructed, "But if he survives his match, you guys think he'll let me pet them? Though maybe not the red one, since y'know it's made of electricity… OW! AMY, QUIT IT!"

The Shinto Goddess by accident, had instinctively grabbed ahold of the Aztec God's arm in a rather bone crushing grip. After her encounter with Garmr, Amaterasu had developed a slight nervousness around dogs or anything else that vaguely looked like a canine.

"Oh, sorry Huitzy!" Amaterau exclaimed as she let go of his wrist, but it was not long before her sudden tenderness was replaced by the return of her usual aloof and haughty demeanor, "I-I mean… S-shut up! That's no way to talk to a woman. You're supposed to make me feel safe if I'm feeling nervous... Not that I am nervous right now of course! I was just… a bit startled by the appearances of those beasts."

"Right…" Huitzy said teasingly, obviously unconvinced by his partner's words as he rubbed his wrist, "You bruised me just cause you're startled, sure… And DEFINITELY not because dogs make your hair stand on ends."

"Are you calling me a liar?!" Amaterasu yelled as she bonked poor Huitzilopochtli on his helmet, causing the two of them to get into another of their usual squabbles. All while Ra still sat on his throne, slowly shaking his head whilst continuing to watch the match in spite of his subordinates' argument.

"I'm surrounded by idiots…"

Back in the arena, Koschei whistled as he took in the scene in front of him, "Ooh! I see you've brought in some reinforcements, eh? Well then, best not to keep sparky and sandy a-waiting! Sic' em on me and let us all have some fun, why don't ya?"

The Shas turned to look at Set, their eyes burning with eagerness to begin the hunt. The fallen prince in turn raised his saber, pointing towards Koschei with a look of disdain, uttering the single word of command that his two minions longed to hear.

"Kill."

With that, both Sha's gave a triumphant howl that rattled spectators to their very core. Breaking into a run, they bolted towards the old man who stood before them with their jaws open, showing off their sharp jagged fangs, made from lightning and sandstone respectively. As they drew closer, Chernabog let out a raspy chuckle as the Death Deity brushed his shadowy talon unnervingly across Koschei's face.

"What… You… Do… Now?"

Koschei sighed in annoyance as he merely brushed the sinister figure's hand away, "Honestly why can't you be more like those two, hm? At least they're actually helping out their master instead of being a humongous nuisance… Haiz, anyways, let's get to work!"

Swinging his scythe, Koschei caught the Lightning Sha, who was slightly faster than its desert counterpart, in the maw with his blade and sent tumbling across the ground. However, the moment his scythe struck the Sha, Koschei felt a small jolt of electricity surge through his arm and turn it numb. The old man cursed slightly, in his excitement, he'd forgotten about coating his blade in magic to nullify the electrical conductivity of its metal.

This mistake proved disastrous as the Desert Sha, not too far behind it's twin, charged towards the distracted Koschei, slamming head first into him with all it's rough and rocky surfaces. Koschei wheezed as he was sent reeling backwards, the sandstone beast quickly followed through with a powerful swipe of its forked tail, launching half a dozen jagged stones that would have skewered the old man had he not fallen to the ground due to the Sha's own previous strike.

"Someone outta put you two in the kennel!" Koschei said as he rolled over to one side, dodging a pouncing Lightning Sha, which dug its sharp claws into the ground where his head previously was, the beast snarled in frustration as it realized it had missed. Its frustration soon turned to pain as Koschei manifested another dagger in his hand and stabbed it in the shoulder, yowling in agony, the Sha loped over to the side of its twin. After the Desert Sha had helped to extract the dagger from its clavicle, both turned to face Koschei with bared fangs and devious grins.

"You… Forget…" As the sinister voice of Chernabog entered Koschei's ear, so did the hiss of blades being drawn. Tossing his scythe and grabbing it behind his back, the old man caught Set's sabers just a few inches before they could bury themselves in his back, turning his head slightly back, his one good eye met Set's, green eyes that were once devoid of emotion, now burning with vigor.

"HOO-WEE! Looks like someone can be quick when he wants too! Though when I said fight more seriously, I didn't mean playing dirty, y'know? Sneak attacks from behind? Where's the fun and honor in that?" Koschei chuckled whilst the two were locked in a stalemate.

Set tilted his head, "And so what if I didn't? What awaits either of us at the end of this match? No reward, no thanks, just death. So why bother? In the end, all that honor, all that effort… It's MEANINGLESS!"

Whilst their master had Koschei trapped, the two Sha's let out baying howls before moving forward in tandem, ready to hunt. Running outwards in a V shape, the Lightning Sha was swift and elusive, moving like living bolts of lightning, while the Desert Sha was silent and methodical, keeping up with its twin despite movements that were heavy with the weight of the earth. Their swift movements and constant zigzags intersecting between one another, made it difficult for even Koschei and his senses to keep up with them, they were without a doubt the…

"SANDSTORM HUNTERS!"

In response, Koschei threw his left leg backwards, catching Set with a kick straight to the gut, forcing the fallen prince to relinquish his hold and freeing the old man as he fell back in pain.

"Like you said, effort and honor doesn't matter compared to the outcome, no?" Koschei said as he manifested a dagger in his hand and threw it towards Set in an attempt to keep him further distracted. Turning back, the old man readied his weapon to face the Sha's, but to his shock. Only the Lightning Sha leapt forward to strike.

"Now this… is the fruit of all your labor." Set growled, in a tone that made him sound almost sorry for what was to come.

No sooner as he said this, Chernabog's crushing grip and the sound of pattering feet from behind, soon alerted Koschei as to where the other Sha was now at. But by then, it was already far too late.

With a loud "WHUMP!" The Desert Sha slammed its head into Koschei's back, the force of the blow sent the old man stumbling straight into the awaiting jaws of its electric twin. To the horror of the human audiences, glowing fangs dug straight into the old man's arm as the Lightning Sha channeled all of its potent electricity straight into Koschei. The old man's body stiffens, muscles seizing up as the electrical current surges through them. His eyes widen in shock, pupils dilating as the intense pain courses through every nerve, sparks fly from the contact point before the current finally dissipates. But rather than crumple to the floor, Koschei still stood tall and upright, the air around him thick with the acrid smell of ozone and burned cloth.

The audience drew their breath as the old man's eye quivered before opening. His breathing was shallow and labored, stumbled slightly before propping himself up with the support of his staff. And for those who could see, Chernabog was now closer than he had ever been, the Death Deity's arms almost wrapped entirely around Koschei's body as his curled up wings did the same, all eagerly awaiting for the moment that the Death Deity could finally close in and claim his prize.

Yet, plastered on Koschei's face was not fear, nor was it his usual jubilance. Instead he wore perhaps, the first serious look he had worn since the very beginning of the match, "Remember what I just said?" He said rigidly to Set, whose eyes bulged in disbelief, lips trembling in rage. "Fight at your full 100 percent, because I'm not dying until I'm content with your performance. Now… hit me… HARDER this time."