The air around the battlefield grew tense as Onyx charged towards Garshnak, black blades hovering around him. His eyes glowed with abyssal fury. Garshnak, the towering warlord of hardened flesh and scarred muscle, grinned like a beast ready to maul its prey.
The ground cracked beneath Onyx's first strike. Shadows writhed at his command, slashing wickedly like wild wolves that pulsed with hunger. With a flick of his wrist, they surged toward Garshnak like a storm of obsidian fangs.
But before the blades could tear into flesh, Garshnak roared.
"Blood Roar!"
The air vibrated like a struck gong. A crimson wave of energy exploded from his chest, forcing the black blades to shatter into harmless wisps of shadow. Then, he slammed his fist against his chest, his veins lighting up like molten rivers.
"Unyielding Will!"
The crimson aura hardened around him, making him look less like a man and more like a walking titan of war. The force of his defiance alone pushed Onyx back several steps.
Kairo's eyes widened, his composure cracking. "What—? He forced Onyx's blades to collapse…"
From the sidelines, Jacks threw his head back and laughed. "Hah! Don't look down on Garshnak, he is more stronger then you average ork! That monster isn't so easy to take down."
Garshnak's booming laughter joined Jacks' mockery. "I expected more from you, shadow-walker. But since you're here wasting my time, I'll end this quickly. One strike is all I'll need."
He gripped his massive axe, its double-edged head gleaming with the menace of countless battles.
"Titan's Grip!"
His arms bulged, thick cords of muscle surging like coiled steel. The weapon seemed twice as heavy, but he swung it as though it weighed nothing. The ground quaked as he charged, his steps making the earth tremble.
Onyx darted aside, barely avoiding the devastating arc. The axe passed through his cloak, tearing a long rip across it, the edges smoking from the sheer force of the swing.
A hiss escaped from under his hood. "Not bad."
He extended his palm forward, and a lance of concentrated shadow surged into existence, sleek and piercing.
"Lance of Nightfall!"
The dark spear shot forward, cutting through the air with shrieking velocity. Garshnak swung his axe sideways, intercepting it with a burst of sparks. The ground split where the energy struck, a deep fissure opening.
The two closed in again, and the battlefield erupted into chaos.
Garshnak's axe fell like thunder, each strike sending shockwaves through the dirt. Onyx met him with fluid movements, weaving between attacks like a shadow unbound by flesh. Black daggers appeared in his hands, parrying the axe's monstrous edge at impossible angles. Sparks scattered like fireflies in the night.
"Too slow," Onyx hissed, slashing upward. His blades skimmed Garshnak's chest, carving shallow lines across the hardened aura.
"Too weak!" Garshnak bellowed, bringing his weapon down in a crushing vertical swing.
Onyx sidestepped—but not fast enough. The axe glanced off his chest. A sickening crack echoed. His ribs bent under the force, dark mist leaking from the fissures in his skeletal frame. He staggered, breath hitching, his body creaking as if ready to collapse.
Kairo clenched his fists. "That blow…! His frame's nearly broken—Onyx can't keep this up!"
Garshnak smirked, emboldened by the strike. "Hah! You're nothing but brittle bone wrapped in shadows! I'll shatter you into dust."
He raised the axe high, crimson energy swelling along its edge. "This will take your arm—and end this fight!"
Onyx's head tilted, his single visible eye flaring with unnatural light. For a heartbeat, silence fell.
Then—his soul screamed.
The ground rippled outward in concentric waves of black energy. A suffocating aura erupted from his body, so dense and vile that even Garshnak stumbled back a step.
"What… is this?" Kairo whispered, his pulse quickening.
From the sidelines, Shiri—the naga with scales glimmering under the faint torchlight—froze, his voice trembling. "No… That aura… It's not mortal. It's… darkness incarnate!"
Even Jacks' mocking grin faltered as he leaned forward.
Kairo's eyes darted to Onyx's status plate. His breath caught in his throat.
A new word had appeared.
Skill Unlocked: Black Berserker
The shadows that had exploded outward now receded, flowing back into Onyx's body like rivers rushing into a void. His aura compressed into a terrifying density, making the air feel heavier with every breath.
Onyx stood straighter. The cracks in his body sealed with dark energy. His movements sharpened, his presence doubling in ferocity.
"...I see," he murmured. "Strength for stamina. Power borrowed from the abyss itself."
Garshnak steadied himself, trying to suppress the unease crawling down his spine. "So what? You're still nkthing against the mighty me. I'll crush you regardless!"
Their eyes locked. Then they clashed.
Onyx vanished in a blur of speed, reappearing behind Garshnak with black daggers aiming for his spine. Garshnak twisted, his axe whistling through the air in a wide arc. The collision cracked the earth beneath their feet, shockwaves knocking loose stones into the air.
Shadow lances rained down like spears, forcing Garshnak to deflect with wild swings. Each one rang like a war drum, sparks painting the dusk. Onyx pressed in, his movements faster, sharper, every blow threatening to slice through Garshnak's defenses.
But Garshnak fought like a mountain with a heartbeat, refusing to yield. His axe carved furrows in the earth, each swing carrying the might of ten men.
Their duel became a blur of rage and shadow, crimson and black colliding again and again. The battlefield felt smaller, the world reduced to two titans testing each other's existence.
Then—Garshnak roared and brought his axe down in a final overhead strike.
Onyx didn't dodge. He stepped forward. His blades crossed, catching the axe in a shower of sparks. Shadows surged through his arms, feeding into the weapons.
"Fall," Onyx whispered.
The shadows detonated. A wave of black force erupted, blasting Garshnak off his feet. He slammed into the dirt, his aura shattering like broken glass. His axe flew from his hands, embedding itself deep into the earth several meters away.
Garshnak coughed, blood spraying, his massive frame trembling. He tried to rise, but his body gave way, slamming back into the ground.
Silence followed.
Kairo exhaled, relief washing over him. "He… won. Onyx actually defeated him."
Jacks' grin returned, but this time tinged with disbelief. "Tch… That bastard. He actually pulled it off."
As promised, the defeated lord's words still held weight. Jacks turned to Kairo, his grin sharpening. "Well then, s deal's a deal. I'll tell you what you've wanted to know—the truth of the fallen continent."
Kairo nodded slowly, but his mind was elsewhere.
(That skill… Black Berserker. What are you, Onyx? What darkness lies in your origin?)
He resolved to watch his shadowy ally closer than ever.
The silence broke with a sigh. Claymond, ever composed with his grey hair and glinting glasses, stepped forward.
"Enough of this," he said, adjusting his frames. "Now, I will tell you the history of our continent—how the world was divided in the battle between the Sun and the Moon."