56 Chapter 56 - Failed Experiments.

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Don't forget to check the auxiliary chapter about Adam. It's like an info chapter.

Double release as promised.

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[Adam POV]

Gildarts: Wait, wait, let me fix this up real quick.

[Adam Clive POV]

Gildarts: There you go, much better! Now back to my tea time 

with my baby girl! Enjoy! But know that you won't enjoy as much as me! With my sweet princess!

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[Adam Clive POV]

I had been walking beside Erza through the jungle for hours, and yet I still had no sense of where we were going. Though perhaps that was because I was beginning to feel a strange sense of apprehension that was clouding my thoughts, a strange feeling that told me that something was lurking in the shadows, prowling toward us with each step we took.

I didn't feel any magic power.

Or spiritual for that matter.

But I still couldn't shake the feeling something was off.

Perhaps it was just me being paranoid, either way, I would keep my guard up.

As we continued venturing deeper and deeper into the dense jungle, the sound of chirping birds and rustling leaves was gradually replaced by an eerie silence that seemed to be almost unnatural.

Pushing the silence aside, we continued walking, until ahead of us the dense foliage gave way to an open clearing, where a structure was placed, rising up from the undergrowth like a ghostly apparition.

A temple.

Erza was the first to speak. "Do you think this is the place?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

I stood in silence, my eyes fixed on the ancient architecture as I replied with a noncommittal shrug, "I'm not sure, but according to the information we have, it appears to be..."

The temple's walls were made of rough-hewn stone, overgrown with vines and moss. The roof, once grand and imposing, now lay collapsed in a pile of rubble, leaving the interior of the temple open to the cruel elements.

The entrance was marked by a grand archway, its intricately carved details now worn and faded by time.

"Well, let's go and see," I smiled, patting Erza on the head, before taking a deep breath, and stepping inside the crumbling temple.

As we stepped inside the temple, we were greeted by a musty smell, and the cool damp air of a place long abandoned, and long forgotten. Soon enough with little to no difficulty, we found a secret entrance leading to a staircase that led to the lower levels of the temple.

"There's nothing above... so it must be below," Erza muttered.

I nodded. "Let's check it out then."

Smiling, we descended into the steep and winding staircase that seemed to go on forever with each passing second. We stepped carefully, the damp stones beneath our feet slick with moss, with a chill that seemed to go by the hand of the air around, as rays of sunlight warmed our faces beaming through gaps in the crumbling stone roof, dust motes drifting in their light like tiny stars.

The staircase eventually opened into a vast chamber, seemingly untouched for decades.

The walls of the chamber were adorned with faded murals and intricate carvings, depicting scenes of long-forgotten events, and the likes that seemed to go in theme with the crumbling pillars and fallen statues that littered the floor.

"I will find the relic, no matter the cost!" Erza declared, for some reason, the fire of her conviction accompanied by the faint sound of scurrying animals echoing through the halls.

I couldn't help but chuckle at Erza's enthusiasm, even in this deplorable scene she kept her attitude high. "I don't doubt it."

Erza beamed at me, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Let's split up and search the room. The relic could be anywhere."

Seeing this was her mission, I nodded in agreement, and we each took a side of the chamber, careful not to disturb anything in our quest for the relic. However, as we walked, I couldn't help but feel the sense of apprehension I had been feeling grow larger, to the point it was beginning to build up in my chest.

I had no idea what was happening, but the feeling of being watched was growing stronger with each passing moment.

Suddenly, as if confirming my suspicions, the sound of scurrying animals became louder, and a group of rats that seemed to appear out of nowhere, scuttled around our feet before running off into the darkness.

Erza jumped, her hand flying to the hilt of her sword. "What was that?" she asked, her eyes wide.

First time, you can call it paranoia.

Twice, call it fucking instinct.

"Keep your guard up, something it's not right, so let's be careful," I cautioned, drawing my Zanpakuto from its sheath.

Erza nodded.

With that in mind, we continued our careful search through the chamber, our boots clattering against the cold stone floor, with each footstep seeming to amplify throughout the huge expanse of emptiness.

Keeping my senses alert, I continued my search, when all of a sudden a stench hit me like a punch in the face. A sickening combination of rotting flesh, chemicals, and something else that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"What is that smell?!" Erza covered her nose with her arm, the one holding her blade, as a look of disgust took place on her face.

Now that I think about it, the stench seems to be stronger... around her location.

Fuck.

"Erza move!" I shouted, before blurring out of sight.

As out of nowhere, a grotesque creature emerged from the shadows, behind Erza, its face indiscernible and twisted with malice. Its bony fingers clenched into a fist, barreling toward her.

However, it seemed that I had reacted in time, using Shunpo just in time, to grab Erza by the waist, pulling her out of harm's way.

The creature missed its target and landed with a thud on the ground, its grotesque features now illuminated in the dim light.

Wasting no time, Erza readied herself for battle behind me, her sword at the ready as I assessed the creature in front of us.

Before us, now stood a grotesque monster, a mutated amalgamation of flesh and bone that by all natural laws, should not exist in this world or any for that matter.

No matter how hard my brain tried to make sense of what it was seeing, it was difficult to make out any discernible features, seeing as the creature's body seemed to be a random jumble of parts fused together in an unholy union.

The creature stood about ten feet tall, with arms that hang down reaching the door a foot in circumference.

Its limbs were twisted and deformed, with fingers and toes that were far too long and thin. Some of its appendages seemed to be missing bones entirely, replaced instead with writhing masses of something similar to tentacles or slimy pseudopods.

The monster's skin was a sickly shade of green, with open sores oozing pus and other fluids that I was afraid to even imagine what they were. Its eyes, if you can even call them that, were sunk deep into its skull, glowing with an otherworldly light that seemed to be beckoning at us.

Its mouth was a gaping maw, filled with jagged teeth that dripped with saliva.

The monster's body seemed to twitch and convulse, as if it was in constant agony, emitting a series of guttural noises, somewhere between a growl and a scream, that made my hair stand on end.

I had no idea what this thing was, but I couldn't help but wonder what kind of hellish experiment created this abomination, and what kind of twisted mind would find pleasure in such a thing.

Beyond its grotesque appearance, the monster seemed to have no magic, or rather, his magic appeared and disappeared, like a blinking light, only to be detected for a brief moment.

I turned to look at Erza, and despite the fierce determination that shone through her entire being, I could see the fear in her eyes.

I couldn't blame her.

"I will deal with this beast!" Erza said, her voice steady despite the fear in her eyes, as she stepped forward, her sword held high as she prepared to fight.

I suppose she has to learn

However, as she moved forward, the creature let out an ear-piercing screech that made her falter, its body convulsing for a moment, before lunging forward, its grotesque body contorting and twisting as it moved with terrifying speed. 

I moved.

Calmly, I stepped between the monster and Erza, muttering, "Hado #4. Byakurai." I pointed at the monster with my index finger, focusing my energy, before unleashing a concentrated bolt of lightning at it. The lightning crackled and sizzled through the air with great speed, before striking the monster with great force, pushing it back.

"Adam I-" Erza began, but I stopped her.

"Don't worry, it seems this thing is more than you can chew on right now," I said, my eyes locked on the monster as it slowly rose to its feet, its eyes empty of emotion. "Don't lower your guard, this thing might not be alone..."

The monster let out another screech, its limbs writhing as it charged toward us.

Deciding to end this before something else happened, I stepped forward, angling my blade in a swift arc that connected with the beast's belly, cutting it in half in a single swing.

"That should do-" Before I could finish that sentence, the blood in my blade exploded with a sickening roar, sending a shockwave that knocked Erza a few feet back, as a pair of vicious claws closed around my throat.

I jumped back, avoiding the attack, as I took some distance.

"Jesus fuck, what the hell is this thing?" I said, bringing my sword to bear as I prepared to face the monster again.

Its blood had exploded.

And it was still alive after being cut in half, that was... impressive, and not in a good way.

If I had lowered my guard, that thing could've gotten a good shot at me, despite being immensely weaker than me.

"Adam! There's another!" I turned around to see a second monstrosity, slightly smaller than the first, slowly moving toward Erza, while its eyes, however, remained on me.

It seems I was right... there's more...

And like before no magic power to be sensed before they appear.

Before I could ponder on that, pain invaded my body, pain without a cause, pain for the sake of nothing.

I looked at my body, my sword arm was slowly turning black on the tips of its fingers.

I was hurt...?

No...

That couldn't be, I hadn't taken any damage.

I had dodged the attacks of the creature despite there being no reason to.

Something else was going on.

And if the timing of this was anything to go by, it had to do with the other monster that had just appeared.

Explosions...

Pain...

No magic power for the most part.

I think I knew what I was dealing with...

Demonic experiments, and if the craftsmanship was anything to go by, these things... didn't belong to Zeref, at least not directly.

How... exciting.