Observing this with his mouth wide open in bemusement was the mysterious man; Zazarah.
"What the hell?..."
["Oi… Kinkaru…"]
Through the unique process of the special thought communication skill [[
There was silence for a moment, and Zazarah bent down still trying to process what his eyes were witnessing.
["Zazarah what?!" Kinkaru aggressively inquired.]
["You won't believe it. I think pipsqueak and old bones are…" He tilted his head, in disbelief at the words that were about to come out of his mouth, "allies now?"]
["WHAT?! Zazarah!" It was clear Kinkaru wanted to pin the blame on him already.]
["Oh?! What? I did exactly what you asked. Down to the last detail," Zazarah retorted in his defense.]
["Wooh!~..." Another voice—deep, butted in; MikMik. "It seems pipsqueak got a nice mouth on him, eh?"]
["What the hell do we do?" Zazarah asked the pressing question.]
["... We just created a stronger enemy for the boss," Kinkaru said calmly. "What Do You Think We Should Do?" He shouted, the calmest overwhelmed by sheer furiosity.]
["Tch… Then come here and handle your plans yourself next time," Zazarah replied.]
His hand slid down to the handle of his blade.
["It's simple… go down there and—"]
Before the final thoughts of Kinkaru could be spoken, Zazarah drew his katana to parry an attack from an unknown individual.
"Well, well… Seems we have a friend?" He turned his head around slowly. "A stalker… a smart one at that… Hmph." Zazarah faced the individual with his body. "I didn't expect this… Collon right. I didn't take you for a fighter."
Collon lifted his large broadsword over his shoulder. The black spotted weapon glowed a purple energy that slowly subsided.
"Heh." Collon could almost laugh. "You call me a stalker? Just what were you doing?"
"Me? I just so happen to be here. Innocently taking in the beautiful scenery," Zazarah casually replied "You?"
"Ohh. Well, you see my blade accidentally slipped right from my slippery fingers, and I was merely trying to catch it," Collon answered, matching the half joking and sarcastic nature of this mysterious man in front of him.
"Ahh-Ha Ha Ha Ha! Really?" Zazarah laughed. "Man, those were some slippery fingers? Got that sweaty palm and all, huh?"
"Aha Ha Ha Ha Ha." Collon followed suit in his behaviour, while also scratching the back of his head. "My apologies. I'm just a clumsy guy."
"Good, good. Then I guess we're done here?" Zazarah asked.
"I guess so," Collon replied.
They were in fact not done… not by a long shot.
They locked eyes with each other, the cold gush of wind blowing through the area, shifting Collon's cape. This was a curious situation… Collon though prepared needed answers to his questions before he made his decision from where he planned to take this.
"So…" Collon's voice steadied. "Who are you? I see we've taken great interest in my little friend over there, Imuru. What piqued your interest so much, hmm?"
Zazarah smirked a little. "Me?... Ooh well—"
["IMBACILE!!!" Kinkaru's voice roared in Zazarah's head. "Finish him. Kill him. This is not the time for questions! And make it quick!"]
["Tch. Kinkaru, why don't you leave your comfy job at the gate and come here. I'd like to spend my time doing nothing," Zazarah replied in a casual dismissive tone.]
["There points to the reason why you're there and not here," Kinkaru retorted.]
["Hmph. Calm down Kinkaru, I'll kill him… eventually. Just let me have a little fun, besides this guy is not like the others." This was Zazarah's final decision and Kinkaru simply remained silent in response.]
Collon stared in confusion, Zazarah abruptly stopped speaking for a few seconds.
"Gone silent? Is the question that difficult? I was expecting something clever here."
"AH! My bad, I just got lost there for a moment… For your question I don't have any interest in that child. What's there to be interested in?" Zazarah raised his shoulders, "He's just a demon. A reckless, stupid demon. Next, you humans always have an obsession with names… your species are so weird; just call me Zaz if that makes you feel better."
"Zaz. Cute name," Collon complimented. ⟨We humans? This guy's not human is he?... And he spoke of Imuru like that, there's clearly some annoyance… maybe animosity in his voice. So whatever Imuru is doing must be good, if he has someone is going out of their way to kill him.⟩
"I guess we humans do have an obsession. You can call me Col in return, if you'd like."
"Col… Heh-Heh… I get to call you by a nickname too, well thank you," Zazarah said, continuing to match Collon in this battle of sarcasm.
["Keh—Heh Heh Heh," MikMik laughed sinisterly. "Say… Zazarah… I like this one. I hate to put this on you, but… can you bring him back… Argh!~... I want to have a taste of his… flesh." MikMik was practically on the edge of salivating on his own words, just the very thought… the very thought of taking a bite of Collon was driving him insane.]
[Kinkaru growled, baring his razor sharp white teeth that were oddly visible in the dark. "Graaahh~... MikMik, there's no time for that. Hold your stomach. When Boss returns…" Kinkaru chuckled, and he inhaled deeply. "When he return, we will be able to feast all we want."]
["Mmm. How unfortunate. If Zazarah kills this one I might not be able to taste him, while he's fresh," MikMik said, feeling slightly disappointed.]
["Pff. With Boss you'll be able to eat even stronger people. Tasty saints, a human drenched in the stench of their own terror." Kinkaru put this forth like Mik-Mik's disappointment could be quenched so easily.]
["We eat differently, Kinkaru. I only enjoy what I take a liking to," MikMik clarified.]
["Wat cha worrying about?" Kinkaru butted in. "I'll keep a piece for ya MikMik. Can't promise it will be fresh. Which piece is it? Leg, an arm… I can probably preserve the liver, heart or some other internal parts."]
["Woooh~Yes." MikMik got a bit excited from hearing this. "Bring back an arm and the heart. I'll repay you with a favor of any kind in future Kinkaru, to show my appreciation."]
["How kind of you… just get the job done," Kinkaru said his final words.]
"Col. I'd love to keep this going…" Zazarah grinned, twisting his katana slightly, "but I'm afraid I can't let you leave here. No offense to you. I like you."
A small smile creased the corners of Collon's lips. The feel of the atmosphere between them didn't exactly change, nevertheless Collon sensed there was impending danger, and braced himself.
Zazarah drew a leg backwards; leaning his body forward, getting into stance. Their eyes met. Gazes sharp. Neither worried, just calm.
In an instant, Zazarah launched at Collon in one push from his front leg, the ground erupting underneath his feet. Zazarah's blade glimmered from the refraction of light, as he swung his katana; Collon reacted, to clash blades with Zazarah.
They circled each other in the taut, trembling, two predators testing the shape of the space between them. They moved like fighters who had danced in this situation before, clever and patient, each seeking that one precious slip, that single half-breath of advantage that would tip the scales.
Zazarah pushed hard against Collon, his shoulders locking, his boots grinding against the stone. But brute strength would not serve him here, he could feel it in the immovable wall of Collon, the rooted power that refused to yield an inch.
"Tsk." The click of Zazarah's tongue was sharp. He pushed off, disengaging with a shove that created a distance between them. His feet barely touched the ground before he exploded back in, a blue of redirected momentum. He threw a feint to the left, gaze flicking with practiced deception, the whole architecture of his body selling the lie. And then, in a breath, he attacked from the right. A strike like a serpent uncoiling from the shadow.
The blow met only steel. Collon turned it aside with a sharp, ringing parry that sent a jolt of shock humming up Zazarah's arm. In the same fluid breath as the deflection, Collon launched his counterattack. His sword came down in a brutal, singing air, the blade cleaving the air where Zazarah's body had occupied a heartbeat prior. It was a blow meant to end the fight before it escalated; to bisect flash and bone and leave Zazarah in two.
But Zazarah was no longer there.
A flash of motion. In one step. He was distanced from Collon's blade. But there was a slash right across his clothes.
⟨For someone with a sword like that, he moves well.⟩ Zazarah complimented. A thoughtful observation of his opponents power and skill with such a blade.
["Struggling Zazarah?" Kinkaru mocked his way of telling Zazarah to get serious.]
["Hey, I'm probing," Zazarah replied, calm, but a bit offended. "Give me a break. That must be a Mystical weapon he's wielding. If it wasn't, it would've shattered against my own.]
["Mystical weapon?" Kinkaru sounded intrigued. "Bring that back when you're done there."]
[Zazarah raised an eyebrow. "Now you want a souvenir? A favor for a favor you owe me one," He said this, but he wasn't specifically complaining.]
Zazarah raised his katana high up the air, and twisted in place. There was a click; an almost mechanical sound of activation. This sound was followed by the blade of the katana turning red, then swallowed up to the point in a thick coat of flames.
⟨I hope you don't mind it being a bit… burnt MikMik.⟩
" " "!?" " "
The air split apart.
From the distant battlefield, a massive eruption of flames tore through the veil of night, swallowing the darkness in a sudden, voracious bloom of orange and crimson. The shockwave followed seconds behind, reaching even the throne of the Undead King.
Both Huln and Imuru twisted toward the eruption.
"What—t?" The syllable fell from Imuru's lips like a breath of pure confusion, unguarded and small.
But Huln did not look confused. It was recognition.
Down on the battlefield, the world had become a furnace.
The land was set ablaze, scorching flames devouring everything they touched. Visibility for the most part had collapsed, heat shimmering in suffocating waves. It was a landscape pulled straight from the pages of some forgotten hell.
Zazarah tracked forward through the inferno with measured confidence, his silhouette cutting through the smoke like a blade through silk. He paused, right at his foot lay a cape, or what was left of it.
⟨Whoops. Seems I went too far. My bad there, MikMik.⟩
Then the flames moved. Not the natural dance of fire, but by a force with intent. The swell of searing orange bulged outward, and from it burst a figure, weapon thrust forward.
Zazarah was not one to be caught off guard, so easily, this would not be a success. In the movement of speed so fluid it read as instantaneous Zazarah pulled behind Collon.
He reached and grabbed him by the by of his neck, to the astonishment of Collon; he wasn't able to move his body fast enough to prevent the sneering flames of Zazarah's blade from piercing through his body.
"AHHHH!!!" Collon's scream tore through the air—raw, guttural, pulled from somewhere deep. Zazarah didn't flinch. Didn't pause. He finished it with a kick to his side, precise, brutal, the impact crackling through flesh and bone.
Collon's lower rib fractured.
Collon was sent tumbling on the ground, through flames, until his body dragged to a stop. Cough! Cough! Cough! Collon released the blood stuck in his throat, he held his wound from Zazarah's blade, reaching for his weapon, his hands shaky.
The sequence was over.
"Oh-Ooh… Collon." Zazarah called his name in a taunting manner, feigning worry for his injury. "You don't look so well. Y'know, that's the saddest thing about you humans… you're all so fragile."
Collon chuckled through the pain. ⟨… There it is. Seems I lost my edge.⟩ He staggered up to his feet, using his weapon to help push himself up. ⟨I'm not cut out for this.⟩
"From the way you talk… if—if I have to guess… You're a demon, aren't you?"
Zazarah fell to the silence again for a few seconds. "Demon… don't I look human. You should call me a human." Collon was correct in his assessment, but Zazarah wasn't willing to simply admit it… he wanted to continue the game.
Zazarah raised his weapon… held in the air, it felt like finality. "It was an honor to meet you, Collon… you were fun."
Giving his final words Zazarah brought down his weapon; with the state that befell due to his injury Collon remained unable to launch a counteroffensive.
At a time where he braced for the force. The sound of connecting blades shook the earth and rattled his bones… In time.
"Wha~..." For Collon it seemed time had slowed at this instant, until his mind finally caught back to the scene. "Imuru… Imuru!"
For the first time enemies from afar locked eyes.
⟨He's Strong!⟩
⟨He's Strong!⟩
Was both there thought, as their blades screamed against each other. Imuru leapt back, grabbing Collon as he made some distance.
At the scorching battlefield, Imuru cradles the injured Collon in his arms; resting him on the ground as gently as he could.
"Collon!" Imuru called out his name, trying to keep him awake.
Collon blushed, Imuru's words coming as hushed words despite the bass in his voice. ⟨She's beautiful… This wouldn't be a bad way to go, but…⟩
"Are you okay?" Imuru asked, concerned. "Don't worry, I'm gonna solve this, don't push yourself."
"Your weapon." Collon pointed out, as what was left of Imuru's blade crumbled, leaving only the handle that remained.
"Sorry. This is my fault. I should've confronted him… Argh!" Collon clutched his wound. ⟨Yeah… no good.⟩
⟨Hmph.⟩ Zazarah smiled almost painfully, this was not what he was expecting. ⟨Well shit.⟩
Imuru looked to what was left of his weapon, then to Zazarah. "This is him. I'd prefer if this was only a part of your paranoia, but this issue is right here," Imuru addressed Collon.
"I'm not sure who you are, but if you get in my way I will crush you." Imuru spoke his words with calmness and conviction, this man whoever he was would not be given mercy, not after hurting Collon.
"AHA HAA HA HA HA HA!!! There it is. Lucky me. Look at you all serious and all. You came to save the day just in time."
"Yo. Demon Imuru," Zazarah called Imuru's name like he was a bothersome afterthought. "I'll give you a chance, stop this heroic nonsense. You don't belong in the Sacred Forest, no need for such distasteful behavior, you are a demon are you not?"
"Are you a demon yourself?" Imuru squinted his eyes. "Who are you working for?" He inquired, his tone calm and demanding.
Zazarah's face contorted into a mix of emotions; a forced smile, shock, irritation, and above all dumbfounded. This overconfidence, from someone below his evolutionary level was absurd beyond belief.
"Child…Do you know the difference between my existence and yours. I stand above you in evolution, my Perivállon is far greater than yours. You have no weapon, and you are inexperienced. By the laws of the demons, we respect only str—"
From behind a force separated a space in the flames; Huln, ready to take action.
"Oi!"
Before Huln made a move, Imuru extended a locked arm with a firm, upright palm that commanded an immediate halt. "Huln. This will be your first task. Protect Collon. I want to take this guy on alone."
Huln exchanged no words, a silent approval of Imuru's decision and position in this relationship.
⟨Then come. Come and face me… little demon.⟩ His thoughts seeped into the air like poison, and then the aura hit. An intense, crippling wave of pressure flooded the battlefield in an instant, radiating from Zazarah like a collapsing star. The very atmosphere seemed to thicken, pressing against his opponents.
The effects of what a demonic aura was capable of were well known to Imuru at this point. He was no master; not yet, but he had gained enough knowledge to understand how to deal with it. And now, he planned to perform an immediate counteroffensive.
The strength of one's aura is naturally supplemented by their perivállon pool. For the average person, that determines the potency of its effects.
Through his skill [[-Analyze And Assess-]], Imuru could see it clearly: Zazarah had more perivállon. By all logical measures, he should hold the advantage; his aura possibly affecting Imuru with its effects even with his resistances.
But logic or simply luck had a way of bending in Imuru's favor.
Without a word, Imuru released his own aura.
It came forth not as a trickle, not as a wave, but as a crushing, all-consuming pressure more overwhelming than anything he had ever unleashed before. The violent flames that had been licking at the air, were snuffed out like candles in a flood.
Zazarah didn't fear any better his aura, consumed by Imuru's; a small flame against a hurricane. Zazarah's eyes widened, the first genuine crack in his composure.
⟨Wait, what!?⟩ Zazarah's entire body began to stiffen, not from fear, but from something far more unsettling: his aura, his pressure, his overwhelming, his overwhelming presence... was being crushed. For the first time in a long time, he felt small. ⟨No! There's something else at play… this extra power can't be his ow—⟩
And in that moment of distraction and incapacitation, Imuru cleared the distance between them.
WHAM..
Imuru's fist connected with Zazarah's jaw, a clean, brutal punch that snapped his neck to the side, his vision dulled as the impact echoed through his skull.
⟨That was for Collon...⟩ Imuru held a grin on his face—not cruel, not mocking, but satisfied. He was already winding up for another.
⟨And this...⟩
He shoved his fist into Zazarah's chest; a drive, the full weight of his momentum and kinetic power behind it. Zazarah's body bent forward around his arm, feet lifting off the ground as the force carried him backward.
⟨Is for my sword!⟩
Zazarah was left flat on his back in the end, bleeding profusely from the impact in his chest cavity.
⟨Keh… How?⟩ Zazarah stared up into the sky, his expression deadpanned… impressed. ⟨That's a surprise. Was it possible he could conceal his true strength that even my eyes can't see past it? I might need to use that?⟩ Zazarah picked his back off the ground, smiling. "Not bad, kid… you'll do well as a demon. If you weren't my enemy, I would've taken you in." Zazarah picked his katana up, and stood to his feet.
"You chose the right path. As a natural demon to the one who chose to follow this evolution path; welcome. You should know, there's a huge starting difference between us naturals and you. You need time to adjust to what you are. A demon, the Dark Spirit type; and become a Soul lifeform, I need neither body nor mind to survive with my true form." As he spoke his skin began to melt off his body. "I really liked this human body, but ah well. I'll discard it and take my true form."
Once the last bit of flesh melted away, dripping, sizzling, dissolving into the air like morning mist. What remained was a crimson red demon. The shape was there. But all over his body were body parts; eyes and mouths, scattered without pattern, blinking and murmuring and twitching with a life of their own.
One thing remained from his previous body: those yellow eyes. The X.
Zazarah reached out a hand. "Come, now hit me." He invited Imuru without malice. His voice was different now, like a teacher to a student.