Finale fall

The devil girl watched as Perses approached her. The fear was now wiped from her face. Only the glistening of a few tears remained as she smiled at him conceitedly. A sense of ecstasy flooded Perse's limbs. After witnessing that smile, his body physically lightened, and gravity pulled him towards her. He could feel a connection. This surge of essence and strength flooded his body and mind.

The beast's hindquarters had now reached the enclosure's ceiling as it tilted its head with a cunning, savage curiosity. Leering at Perses, its head moved closer and closer towards him as it cautiously approached. As the giant paw of the beast threatened to trample the girl, she vanished from sight.

Now close enough to see the beast's true nature, Perses noticed the rugged black fur that clung to the creature's skin was in disrepair. Heavy tufts of hair littered its body. However, other places were left scant, damaged even. The dishevelled state of the beast only served to amplify its terror as the bright red spheres of light fixated on Perses. However, rather than opting to escape from the beast with all his might, he stared with a focused, indifferent defiance.

This awkward stalemate in the pitch-dark room continued. Until the creature ferociously lunged at Perses as its jaw closed around him. He could only attempt to pry the creature's jaw open with his child-like arms to avoid being torn apart.

Caught in the mouth of the creature, Perse's skin was assaulted and punctured by hundreds of small razor teeth, far more numerous than any typical canine. As the teeth threatened to tear him apart, Perses felt his very bones begin to fragment under the intense pressure of the giant jaw.

"Crunch"

At the same time, rows of the beast's teeth violently snapped. Shocked, the creature let out a yelp as Perses was released and promptly dropped from the beast's maw.

Staggering back, the creature couldn't resist bearing its teeth. Instead of snarling, however, the beast's crazed red eyes observed what little of its jaw it could see, thanks only to the triangular-shaped head it possessed. What it found were rows of missing teeth of varying proportions.

The shattered teeth inside the beast's mouth left fragments that it attempted to spit out. Enraged, the crazed creature desperately salivated and spat chunks of teeth and spittle a short distance from Perses.

"The hell is that thing."

Perses was in a worse state; his entire body was covered with wounds. Despite being shallow, the blood that leaked from the wounds presented an awfully macabre image. Though the injuries were not severe, he was not used to such wounds.

Dazed Perses looked around the stone enclosure, finding only the disorienting state of the beast that thrashed around wildly. The small devil girl had once more vanished. Rather than question where she might have gone or mull over some idle sense of longing, Perse's nonchalant face changed.

His face did not resemble the cocky grin of Lugh, the swordmaster, or even the potent cruelty of the sturdy old man. Instead, an intrigued, jovial smile revealed itself.

"So this means I'm like Machia now."

The beast did not miss this odd sensation. As if intelligently aware of the atmosphere of the enclosure, it pointed its full undivided attention towards Perses. Without hesitating, it leapt at Perses with its jaws in vindictive rage.

Perses didn't panic. Instead, he embraced the creature's jaws. Not only was it too dark to dodge, but the beast's jaw was also too large to escape from. Encased in its maw again, he lifted the upper mouth with both hands. Despite resisting being torn in half, he failed to account for the massive force at which the creature lunged with, as they were sent flying through a stone wall.

'Heavy'

What had previously been a single grand hall opened up to an even larger room. The new building's height appeared boundless, allowing the massive beast to roll and tumble across the room's floor, scattering heavy chunks of concrete. Despite the room giving the beast space to move around, this room also happened to be full of torches. The same ghostly blue glow from Circe's office permitted better sight.

Still enveloped in the creature's snout and slowly succumbing to the creature's bite, Perses used his free hand to punch the beast's snout, launching it off its feet, even if only a few mere centimetres.

"I'm stronger."

Dazed, the creature's mouth remained open, allowing Percy to fall out. This time, ignoring the lapse in adrenaline, Perses rushed to his feet and wrestled with the beast's jaw as he slammed it straight into the concrete floor with superhuman might.

A shockwave of force, unlike anything yet, echoed around the endlessly large building, forever marking it with irreparable cracks. Perses wrapped his arms around the creature's snout that lay buried in the concrete, locking its jaw closed.

In turn, the creature could only writhe on the floor, attempting to free itself. Using its hind legs, it kicked at the ground with unparalleled ferocity. Surprised, Perses was inevitably lifted into the air. Dangling helplessly from the creature's snout, he was lifted as he rose higher and higher. 

Perses was helpless as the beast lifted him. Suspended in the air, Perses clutched the beast's snout desperately. The creature's hind legs appeared to contort and extend as he was hoisted higher. The beast was larger, taller than he had ever imagined. He was now higher than he had ever been. The floor loomed below him, reminding him of his encounter with the old man.

Suddenly, he was slammed back towards the concrete ground. Perses clenched his teeth tightly as he was driven into the ground with indomitable force. As the creature's weight crushed him into the stone ground, he was reminded of the searing pain of being winded as his mind paled. 

Slowly regaining his senses, he watched as the creature above him stalked the deep compact crater Perses lay buried in. It tried scratching at him with its thick, sharp claws. Fortunately, the creature lacked the range, opting instead to stare down with deep red eyes of hatred. After a short while, it ended its attempts to pursue something else, leaving Perses alone and disoriented.

Slowly turning his head to the side as he lay immobile, he noticed a large rock slam into the ground beside him. His eyes soon began to close.

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Navigating from atop a large cliff, pencil in hand, Machia looked around callously. Behind him, he could hear the racket of someone rummaging around, and in front of him, he eyed the extravagant view that was currently submerged in water.

What had once been a modest lake had evolved into a magmatic lagoon. This alteration gained Machia's full attention as he stared at the water with a manic yet tense focus, small shadows loomed in its depths. It seemed like nothing could tear his eyes from the eerie sight before him.

Just then, a cluster of shrieks erupted as birds flew from out of the surrounding trees, frantically escaping into the sky. But Machia was unfazed. Finally, he tore himself away from the lagoon and turned to stare aimlessly into the distance, a frown decorated his features.

His scant expression gained the attention of the short woman who entered his vision.

"Is something happening?"

Machia eyed her cautiously as he considered his words. "I don't know exactly. I don't have the eyes to spare for it. A pest finally woke up, is all."

"Do we need to go back?"

Ignoring the woman, Machia looked indifferently back towards the encroaching lagoon that seeped and ebbed away at the cliff face. Many of the shadows beneath the depts had gathered and circled below him within the depths. With a pale conflicted face, he sighed.

"No."