"So?" Adam laughed, "Could it be that you are prepared to give me a chance?"
"That's it my lord!" Lena encouraged. "Keep him talking. I might not be able to do it anywhere else, but the space here has been corroded by the presence of the anti-life, leaving it just fragile enough for me to create a tunnel through it. But I require a little more time. No matter what, do not antagonize him further!"
Perses spoke. "Pledge your soul to me and let me become your master, and from now on be loyal to only me, then, not only can you live, when I become ruler over the entire world, you can enjoy wealth and honor to your hearts content, and perhaps I can even spare your women."
Perses said rather softly, "I have never once hesitated or became soft-hearted when it comes to killing someone; you are the first. This is the only chance I am giving you! Do not disappoint me!"
"Chance? Heh…" Adam sneered deeply, "Your so-called 'chance' doesn't mean shit to me! Even if the price I must pay is death, I will never pledge my soul to filth like you!"
For the first time since he'd known her Lena actually cursed.
"What the f*ck did I just say?"
"Very well." Perses nodded his head slowly, "Since you choose stupidity, then you can die!!"
Rumble…
All around them space crazily trembled, and enormous power pressed against the world. At that instant, it was as if both the heaven and earth were cowering in fear at Perses's might.
Because of the extremely terrifying suppression, Adam almost suffocated, his legs turned to jelly and couldn't even move. He also wasn't able make a sound from his mouth.
Two streaks of dark red light shot out Perses's finger and dove mercilessly into Adam's eyes.
A dense dark light began wantonly pouring out of his pupils. Then, Adam violently convulsed as if he felt something like a thousand swords hacking at his body, or innumerable needles penetrating his flesh…
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH"
Adam screamed like his soul had been set on fire and writhed and twisted until his body looked completely deformed.
"What did you do to him?" Athena asked as she stepped protectively over Adam's body. Something that resembled concern crept into her eternally indifferent voice for the first time.
Another bloodcurdling scream tore itself oit of Adam's throat. This one sounded like it came from the depths of purgatory itself and rang across the whole landscape in waves.
"I planted a curse into him for his insolence. One that forcefully carves a pathway through the eyes to let out one's soul, life, and energy until they became a desiccated husk. And for every moment this happens, he shall be begging for death.
And you. . .are no better off!"
Then Perses rushed Athena.
Athena drew her sword and spear and attempted to a parry him, but she was powerless against his raw explosive power and only managed to hold him back for a few seconds before he knocked her down.
But at that moment, several large ripples unstably spread through space and a dark vortex appeared and began to expand to frightening speed. After reaching a satisfactory size, the vortex swiftly pulled in Adam's writhing body and also began to pull at an unsuspecting Athena.
Though suprised, Athena let herself be carried from under Perses by the vortex's gravity.
"NO!!
If you dont want to belong to me, then so be it!." Perses leapt towards the escaping Athena threw a vicious blow at her.
The blow was meant to strike her heart, but the unpredictable attractive force of force of the vortex oriented Athena in such a way that it land squarely against her back...
Ugh!
Athena let out a deep, suffering moan as her spine fractured beneath the force and coughed out a mouthful of golden blood. But fortunately, the next instant, the figures of her and Adam disappeared into the vortex at the same time.
——————————
AHHHHHHH… AHHHHHHHHHH!!"
"UUAHUWAHHHHHHH—"
In just a few short seconds after he had been transported to an unknown place, Adam let out a horrible scream. His entire body had been drenched in cold sweat and all the veins in his body had popped out and writhed agonizingly under his skin.
His kept on smashing his fist against his head madly like he wished to pummel himself to death to escape the dreadful pain.
"My lord Adam!"
As she witnessed Adam attempting to bash in his own head, Lena hurriedly sent currents of electricity into his body and across the synapses of his nerves to dull his senses to the pain .
'Crk...crackle...' Electricity fiercely arched through and impacted Adam's body, causing his pupils to dilate and even causing the spasms wracking his body to halt briefly.
Lord Adam, you listen here…" Lena's cold impassive voice took on a fierce tone that brooked no argument, "Have you forgotten that you were the very first successful Artificial god experiment? And not just the first, but also the most powerful? Did you forget the entire armies you annihilated, the kingdoms you destroyed? The hells you survived?
You are Adam(the first), not the kind of trash that would be defeated by this measily curse!
All those years ago, you became the terror of you enemies and survived countless trials… So what reason do you have to completely collapse here like a weakling!"
"Did you not say that you would conquer this world?… were you not the one who said that a man has to do even what does not exist in the realms of possibility? If those words were not just false bravado but truly meant something, then you will get up on your feet this very instant…"
Adam's body was still trembling with torturous pain, and the features of his face contorted with the extreme agony.
Cold sweat matted his forehead and freely poured out of every pore on his body.
But some of the heavy darkness in his gaze had started to slowly lift as his previous sharpness returned, and he even started to fiercely suppress his screams. His veins still bluged, and his jaw was tense as he ground his teeth together, but slowly .. . He actually started to lift himself up until he stood shakily on his two feet.
His voice was raw with pain when he spoke. "Lena, what is wrong with my body?"
After seeing Adam slowly regain control over himself, Lena let out a sigh of relief. "There is no scientific explanation for what is happening to you: somehow. . . it seems your vital energy and your very life force are pouring out of your body through the lens of your eyes.
I'm sorry. . . I currently have no way to stop what is happening, or even reverse the damage that has been done. I have fail-"
"Stop, Lena." Adam rasped. "You have done more more than enough to protect me. Even now, the fact that I still draw breath is entirely due to your efforts. If I die now, it is simply my fate. Where are we?"
Adam asked while he looked around. They were in a very dark place without even an ounce of light. If not for the special properties of his enhanced eyes he may not even have been able to see his own body. And after searching with his eyes for a while Adam saw a battered figure.
Athena was lying quietly on the ground, like a celestial fairy cast out of heaven.
"And what is wrong with her!?" Adam immediately rushed to her side, but the moment he saw her clearly, his breath left him.
The armour that had covered her body was completely destroyed, as was the mask she'd worn on her face. At this moment, all of her features were laid bare before him.
And they were more exquisite than he could have ever imagined. Here skin glistened and sparkled, and was clear to the point of being translucent.
Even the dark abyss around them was suddenly illuminated by her features.
Adam stared quietly and dazedly at her. His body seemed to be eternally frozen in it's spot and his pupils constricted into needles.
Time seemed to have completely stopped in his perception as Athena's countenance sucked him in like black hole— an one with gravity so terrifying that he would never be free for a lifetime.
Adam closed his eyes and violently jerked his head to the side. He took ragged breaths, and his chest rose and fell heavily, as if he had just experienced a life and death trial.
It took him a long while to calm himself, then he he bent down and pressed a hand on her snowy white neck.
"Lena?"
"Anatomically, the fith and sixth columns of her thoracic spine have been heavily damaged and her spinal cord has been compromised — she is paralysed from the neck down . . ."
"Don't…touch me…" Athena, upon feeling Adam's light touch on her neck, opened her eyes and resisted weakly. No matter how precarious her situation was, she was still the sworn virgin goddess of wisdom. Avoiding the touch of men was a habit that was ingrained in her marrow, and she'd instinctively reacted.