102 Timeless Purgatory
Deroc eyes widened as Nero was encased in a black, purple, and blue aura. As he was blown away by the force of the flowing energy, he retrieved his sword, reverting back to his original form.
"What is this…?" Deroc asked before the energy around Nero stopped and condensed into a pitch-black aura outlined in purple and blue.
Nero's figure was visible in the center of the aura but something was oddly different about him. There was a humanoid figure covered in black skin and scales, almost bare. His arms and his legs were reptilian-like, almost draconic, as they had claws and spiky protrusions. His body was splattered in glowing cracks; His arms and his legs and the large crack in his chest glowed an incandescent indigo color, representing the overflowing energy signal emitting from Nero.
But the most prominent feature was the head. It wasn't the head of a human or a creature, but a wicked skull with jagged, spiky edges and two long, slim, and jagged horns that were bent back, sticking out from each side of his forehead.
As Nero raised his head towards Deroc, he was covered in black, slim, and light-weighted armor which had glowing patterns. A mask would also appear on Nero's head, which had three eye slits on each side of the visor, granting view and covering the entirety of his head except where the noticeably jagged-shaped jaw was located.
When the aura around him had been absorbed into the glowing crack in his chest, the helmet eyeholes emitting a bright blue glow.
Nero cackled as he gradually pulled out the Altima sword still stuck in his chest. The Altima sword was also different in appearance. It was now a long, slim broadsword with a double-edged blade which texture represented that of obsidian. It glowed in the middle, and the guard and handle were spikier and edgier.
"What do you think?" Nero spoke in a heavily distorted voice. "Doesn't this power and form of mine suit me?"
Deroc opened his mouth to speak but he was too stunned for words.
'How… how is someone with dark energy able to obtain the Altima? This can't be true… I thought-'
Deroc gritted his teeth before swinging his sword.
"Don't think you've won!!" Deroc shouted as a piercing shockwave was launched from his sword. However, as it approached Nero, he simply swiped his arm, deflecting the shockwave away which carved into the bleachers. Luckily, no one was caught in the attack.
Nero stared at his arm and clenched it a few times before focusing his attention on Deroc.
"Apologies, I didn't mean to deflect your attack, my body just moved on its own."
He then pointed the tip of his sword at Deroc.
"Now then, let's duel shall we?" Nero spoke in an attempt to provoke Deroc.
"D-don't fuck with me!" Deroc shouted, dashing and swinging his sword which was aimed towards Nero's neck.
Nero quickly bent backward before performing a backflipping kick, striking Deroc's chin. He then snatched onto his leg and slammed him to the ground. Deroc braced the impact before he barely managed to block an incoming strike from Nero, sending him flying towards a wall.
'He's stronger… and faster!' Deroc thought, analyzing Nero's newfound strength.
Vwoomp!
Suddenly, Nero appeared in front of Deroc, grabbing onto his face.
"What are you slacking off for? We're fighting here." He said as he slammed him into the ground before dragging him along the side of the walls.
Nero then tossed him into the sky and as he reached the top, Deroc caught himself with his wings. He then looked down at Nero, gripping onto his sword tightly.
"Y-you can't get me up here!" Deroc declared arrogantly, not remembering that Nero was able to fly minutes ago.
Nero only shook his head before nodding. That's when black energy formed around his back before they morphed into a set of black bat wings with root-like patterns glowing both blue and purple.
With one flap of his wings, he appeared in front of Deroc and struck him down with his sword, sending him plummeting towards the ground.
Deroc crashed and was forced out of his Altima. As he rose from the ground, he began to regain some energy.
"Huh?"
"Now, now, don't die on me so quickly," Nero said, descending from the ground. As he landed, his wings folded down into the manner of a coat.
"Come on and try already, you haven't even put a scratch on me yet and I've still yet to embarrass you."
Hearing that, Deroc felt his anger building up and screamed, morphed into his Altima, and lunged towards Nero.
Nero waited till the sword was near him, then he flicked it, swept Deroc off his feet, and allowed him to land on his side before heavily kicking him in the stomach, sending him crashing towards the wall.
Fixing his composure, feathers began shooting out from his armor and towards Nero. As Nero walked towards Deroc, he weaved and evaded every one of his attacks effortlessly.
It wasn't until Deroc ran out of feathers to shoot that Nero appeared in front of him in a flash, then striking him directly in the chin with a sharp kick.
"Ack!"
Nero stepped back and watched as Deroc held onto his chin.
'M-my chin… it hurts…' He thought before receiving a heavy kick in the side of his abdomen.
As he rolled across the ground, Nero appeared and stopped him before placing his foot on his back, pinning him down on the ground.
The first action Nero did was grab Deroc's wings and tear them off. Deroc yelled in pain but he was interrupted as Nero stomped his head to the ground. Then he stabbed Deroc's arms but didn't cut them off. After that, he slashed his nape before kicking him away.
Deroc attempted to regain his composure but after receiving a heavy blow in the chest with a force that penetrated his lungs, he was forced out of his Altima and laid on the ground lifelessly as he struggled to even breathe.
Nero appeared in front of him and snatched his hair before lifting his face to his face. Nero's mask then dispersed, and Deroc was staring into eyes darker than the abyss.
"Is this all the 'Master Swordsman' has to offer? I'm disappointed…"
"Tch… why don't you just kill me now?" Deroc asked.
Nero gazed at the furious look in Deroc's eyes before he chuckled and brought him on his feet.
"I have yet to test my new skills on you."
Nero pushed Deroc away and tossed him his sword. As Deroc caught his blade, Nero dashed towards him and slashed at Deroc multiple times. Deroc managed to block Nero's strikes, but he was unable to fight back due to how fast Nero was swinging. He was also unable to negate the shockwaves emitting from Nero's sword as they phased through his blade, bluntly striking his torso.
After watching Nero's movements, Deroc intercepted and went straight for Nero's heart, the same place where he had stabbed him. However, as soon as Deroc's sword was about to pierce Nero, he simply just vanished.
That's when he appeared behind Deroc who quickly spun around, only to receive a barrage of Distorted Fists at once, the shockwaves not only hitting his face but his entire body as well. Instantly, after the first wave, a second wave was fired from Nero's hand. This time, they struck every Deroc's every pressure point. The force of these many Distorted Fists was so powerful, they managed to pierce and shatter Deroc's Altima armor. As an aftereffect, they can twist and dig into the spots they have struck. This attack sent him flying.
"How was that?" Nero called out. "Normally I can't fire more than one Distorted Fist from one hand but now that I have Altima, I can launch more of them at the same time. However, I can only do this when I'm in my Altima form. I call it Twisted Chaos Dance."
Nero then appeared behind Deroc, kicking him directly in the spine before teleporting in front of him and blasting him with a high-speed combination of punches and kicks, battering him from all sides before kicking him into the air.
As Deroc flew in the air, Nero stabbed his sword to the ground before his Altima armor shed. Nero was now bare. This method of shedding his armor allowed for a greater speed boost in exchange for a sacrifice of strength. Though it is safe to say that he was already fast, to begin with, this only makes him more of a breakneck predator.
Deroc caught himself before staring at Nero who then appeared in front of him.
"J-just kill me already," Deroc said in a tone that sounded like he wanted to give up.
Nero looked at the noticeably beaten Deroc. Though he was already damaged severely, Nero shook his head before holding Deroc's face in his hands. He then pulled him closer until the only thing Deroc could see was his pitch-black eyes.
"There are fates worse than death."
Suddenly, the pitch-black eyes Deroc stared at began to glow. Then-
He was in the middle of a black sea…
Deroc looked around before he felt something tap his shoulder. As he turned around, he was met with a large, skeletal, beast-like figure with multiple appendages representing sickles, draped in black tattered rags which moved ominously, a face completely inhumane with 2 slit eyes, jaw containing multiple sets of razor-sharp teeth, and a long tongue that was shaped like a centipede.
"Wha-?" Deroc began but was abruptly interrupted when one of the sickles decapitated him, his head dropping to the ground.
Deroc blinked and suddenly, he was standing up again, his head still connected. Deroc gulped as he held his throat. The feeling of it being sliced off was still there.
"What? Wha- what the hell?" Deroc stuttered as he attempted to figure out what was going on until sickles emerged from the front of his torso. That's when blood spat out from his mouth.
"Ghluh!"
Deroc limped but was held up by the sickles. The sickles began to raise Deroc into the air before he was split into multiple pieces.
But Deroc was alive again, standing in the black, endless sea.
"What is going on...?" Deroc muttered as he couldn't move. His body still stunned by the pain that had occurred even though the wounds were nowhere to be seen.
"I... I swore I died... two times already..." Deroc said before he felt an intoxicating, sinister presence.
"I dragged you into my soul. In here, I can kill you and revive you as many times as I wish. In this ability of mine, time is put to a halt so by the time you return to your body, you'll immediately go insane and all the pain you've endured will instantly be shouldered onto your real body. So then, let's see how many times you can die before going delirious. This is Timeless Purgatory."
Deroc looked over his shoulder and met with the sinister eyes of Nero's Primal form before his head was completely swatted off from his body.
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Deroc's 12th death: Hacked into two from the waist up...
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Deroc's 41st death: Butchered into multiple pieces...
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Deroc's 86th death: Impaled countless times before being left to rot...
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Deroc's 101st death: Eaten and dissected alive...
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By the 194th death, which was when Deroc was smashed into bits, the light in Deroc's eyes was gone and all he could do was stare into the blank sky.
"194 deaths? I must say I'm a bit impressed you've endured that much." Nero said, before grabbing Deroc by his neck.
"You will be the first victim that has experienced Timeless Purgatory. Now then, let's return you to your body."
Deroc was eventually wrapped in black energy that emerged from the ground and his vision was completely dyed black.
Then, as Deroc's consciousness was returned to his body, the pain from 194 deaths was all splattered across Deroc's body and he yelled in pain.
Nero watched as his body fell to the ground before exiting his Altima form. He then picked Deroc up and appeared in front of his grandfather.
"Your grandson... I'd say it would take him a few months to recover. So, if you don't want to end up like him... well, I think you know what I mean."
Deroc's grandfather nodded as he placed his shaky hands over his grandson.
"I-it hurts... it hurts so much... ithurtsithurtsithurtsithurtsithurtsithurtsithurts-" Deroc continued to mutter as his eyes became bloodshot.
Deroc's grandfather looked up at Nero and stared into his eyes which overflowed with sinister intent. The sadistic smile across his face was enough to overflow Deroc's grandfather's spine with chills.
Nero eventually turned around and landed next to his sword, picking it up and placed it onto his back, a force holding it in place which acts as a sheath.
Nero turned to direct his attention to Celestia, but he was quickly tackled to the ground by Kiyomi and Ravyn.
"Nero!!" They all shouted as they hugged him tightly.
"You idiot, why did you leave?" Kiyomi asked.
"We were so worried about you," Ravyn added.
Kiyomi and Ravyn looked at Nero but then they noticed he was knocked out.
"Nero?" Kiyomi shook Nero who's eyes flickered.
"I'm... tired..." He said weakly before passing out again.
"Due to awakening Altima for the first time, it has consumed all of his stamina, and not only that, but he was also extremely weak. His body temperature also began to heat up. Looks like he's going to need some rest." Celestia said, appearing next to the girls and placing her hand on Nero's forehead before stroking it.
"You did well... Nero."
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