NOVEL ONLINE FREE XCIV. Out of Control
Lunalus: Do not kid yourself... Divine powers or not, you are still a child.
Lunalus' aura expands, covering the battlefield in a sphere of darkness that blots out most sunlight. Despite being blind, Virno is able to pick up on a sudden shift of in his body's temperature, due to the absence of the sun's heat.
Virno: You do realize I'm blind...? Light or no light, it's all the same to me.
Lunalus smirks.
Lunalus: The purpose of this dome I've erected is not just to block out the sun...
He conjures his spear, adopting an offensive stance with both legs slightly bent and his torso rotated sideways.
Lunalus: It's so your lack of control does not cause any further unnecessary harm.
Virno furrows his brow.
Virno: Lack of control...?
Lunalus suddenly dashes toward him at an incredible speed, catching Virno off guard. With a masterful cut, he slices his blindfold cleanly, revealing Virno's cracked eyes underneath.
Lunalus: As I surmised... You have already attempted to tap into power far beyond your ken. A terrible habit passed onto you from your instructor, no doubt...
Virno drives the sword downward toward the ground, piercing the earth as a blast of wind is produced from the point of impact, creating a forcefield of raging air around him.
Virno: My instructor? You mean Ballo?!
Lunalus turns around, thrusting his spear into Virno's forcefield as black lightning surges from his weapons tip the moment it makes contact with the shield.
Lunalus: Who else...? Lacerbus revealed to me as much in his final breath. Ballo, too, used strength beyond his understanding... A reckless act like that always comes with a cost. Loss of sight is typically the first and cheapest price one pays...!
Virno rapidly dispels the shield, causing Lunalus to be thrown off balance as he trips forward. Leveraging this opportunity, Virno swings the blade horizontally, towards Lunalus' unprotected side.
Lunalus: Hahahah! Amazing battle instincts...
Lunalus uses his left, darkness-imbued hand in an attempt to stop the blade, but the weapon cuts cleanly through his palm, slicing off half of his fingers alongside a portion of his forearm.
Lunalus: ACKKH...!
A viscous black liquid spurts from his injury, as opposed to blood. Virno recognizes it from Lacerbus' own magic.
Virno: I don't know what you guys are made of... But it's fucking disgusting.
Harnessing the momentum from his cut, Virno swings the blade once more. This time, however, Lunalus dodges the attack, stepping backward as the blade narrowly misses him.
Lunalus: So the legend is true... The blade can indeed cut through just about anything. What a nuisance...!
With his back practically touching the dome he created, Lunalus thrusts his spear into it, as the weapon effortlessly pierces its wall. With the spear now impaling the dome, Lunalus is able to control its movement freely across the dome's surface, using the spear as an elevator to rise high above the battlefield, sliding up the dome's inner wall.
Virno: Get down here, coward!
Lunalus: Coward...? Fight me without your blade, then, if you are so brave...!
As he slides across the dome, a barrage of tar is expulsed from the spear's trail, raining down on the battlefield. Anything it touches begins rapidly dissolving, and it isn't long before most of the ground is covered in black puddles.
Virno: Fine, then...
Thrusting his blade upward, a gust of wind sweeps Virno off his feet from underneath, flying him straight towards Lunalus faster than Lunalus himself could move across the dome.
Virno: Dodge this!
Charging up a sweeping cut, Virno prepares to slice Lunalus in half. Surprisingly, Lunalus did nothing to move out of his way.
Lunalus: How about you dodge, instead...?
In a fraction of a second, a torrent of black tar spits Lunalus and his spear straight downward, allowing him to effortlessly move out of Virno's way in the blink of an eye. At the same time as he is being spewed downward, the puddles that had spread across the battlefield shoot upward towards the spear's last position in the dome's surface, their trajectory intersecting with Virno's current location.
Virno: Damn...!
With barely any time to react, Virno attempts to block some of the oncoming projectiles with the blade, yet only manages to keep a small number from coming in contact with his skin. As he senses the tar latch onto his body, he immediately feels a searing heat eating through his flesh. Despite his skin having hardened due to his recent transformation, it could not keep Lunalus' tar from seeping into it.
Rotavitea: No...!
Watching from the outside in, Rotavitea witnesses Virno's strength slowly escape him, as the tar weighs him down and causes him to fall toward the ground. Looking at the unconscious fox resting in her lap, she gently shakes it in an attempt to wake it up.
Rotavitea: C'mon... You've got to have more tricks up your sleeve right?! Help us out...!
The drowsy animal moves slightly, but still does not fully regain its senses. In the meantime, the scales seem to be tipping heavily towards Lunalus.
Lunalus: Pathetic. The one blow you landed was given to you on a silver platter... Your instincts are good, but as I said, you are still a child. You lack experience, especially when it comes to wielding your newly-acquired power.
Virno: S-SHUT UP!
Channeling a great amount of energy into the blade, Virno points it in Lunalus' direction. The runes rearrange themselves to produce a massive tornado, engulfing Lunalus completely and sending him crashing against the dome and the ground repeatedly as he is carried by the strong winds. However, the attack further saps Virno of his strength. He falls to his knees, struggling to find the strength to even stand.
Lunalus: HAHAHAH! You have no idea how much stamina you are wasting on your attacks, do you?! An impressive display of power... But incredibly ineffective.
Still caught in the tornado, Lunalus charges a powerful spear throw. As he releases his weapon, it is launched with sufficiently high speeds to wrest him away from the tornado's pull, with Lunalus latching onto it by producing a rope of viscous fluid, promptly coiling itself around the weapon's handle. The spear impales the ground right next to Virno, as the enemy is slingshotted straight towards the young man. With a devastating kick to the face, all of his kinetic energy is transferred to Virno's head, as he is projected backward, destroying the ground itself as he rips through it before coming to a full stop, finally crashing against the dome's wall.
Virno: N-nghh...
The tornado dissipates, as Virno comes dangerously close to fainting. Lunalus calls his spear to him as he walks in Virno's direction.
Rotavitea: VIRNO...!
She runs towards the dome, carrying the fox with her as it slowly returns to its senses, looking around confused.
Rotavitea: DON'T YOU DARE GIVE UP YET...! DON'T YOU DARE LET HIS DEATH BE IN VAIN, YOU HEAR ME?!
Lunalus: My, my... Such suffering in her little heart. I'll put her troubles to rest later, after you're dealt with.
Shaking, Virno manages to get back up on his two feet, using the sword as a crutch to help him stand.
Lunalus: Oh, don't bother. Stand down, you'll be with your mother and father soon.
Virno's eyes widen.
Virno: W-what did you just say...?
Lunalus smiles.
Lunalus: Oh... That's right. You mustn't know yet, but your mother is-
Virno: She's dead... I know. But how the fuck do YOU know?!
Virno's cracked eyes glow brighter, as sigils begin appearing all over his skin.
Lunalus: ... I will not fuel this sad little parade. You are running on fumes... Adrenaline's all that's keeping you alive. Stand. Down.
An explosion of wind erupts from Virno's skin, as the sigils become more and more pronounced.
Virno: Did you do it...?
Lunalus does not answer.
Virno: ANSWER ME...! WAS IT YOU?!
Lunalus thrusts his spear into the ground, holding onto it to prevent the strong wind from sweeping him off his feet.
Lunalus: STAND. DOWN...!
Virno: YOU MOTHERFUCKER...
Virno extends his arm forward, turning his sword towards himself.
Virno: WHATEVER PRICE I HAVE TO PAY... IT'LL BE WORTH IT JUST TO KILL YOU!
The fox finally manages to return to its senses.
Rotavitea: No... Not again... Why... Why?!
Rotavitea watches in despair, as she witnesses Virno trying to end his own life once more. The fox too, looks at Virno and Lacerbus, promptly jumping from a distressed Rotavitea's arms as its eyes emanate a grey glow.
Lunalus: NO...!
Virno thrusts the blade towards his torso.
Fox: YIIP!
The creature's howl reverberates across the forest, and the sword of Greed's advance is halted before it manages to pierce Virno's flesh. The leaves cease their rustling. The lake's waters come to a standstill. Even the birds that flew high in the sky, trying to escape the battle that was unfolding near their nests, stopped in their tracks. Everything around it, be it living or inanimate, froze in time. Rota, Virno and Lacerbus were no exception.
Fox: Yiph...!
The fox sighs in relief, as it approaches Lunalus' dome...