22: Rupture

"What the hell?! What happened to Layd?!" Airys screeched.

It was the first time she had seen someone in that state. Not even the worst falls or burns from the blacksmiths in her village compared to the atrocity on Layd's face. Swollen, reddened, bloody, broken. She got dizzy and her insides twisted inward.

Sandy's deep silver eyes fixed on Garyon, he growled to warn his mistress of the danger ahead, the cause of the conflict.

"Eh? Ah…" Garyon reasoned inside his head." She is the summoner, no wonder her presence shocked me, she must have more than one at a time… what a problem. "

"Don't move!" Airys exclaimed just as Garyon raised his hand a tiny distance. "Natsume, Echsos, we have to get out of here!" she warned him and pointed a blade at Garyon.

"A leaf? Ah hahaha! That fairy was yours?" Airys's eyes were bloodshot, making the silver glow of her stand out just as much as her undeniable expression of frustration and contempt. "How many times do you think you can summon that little thing?"

While Airys was talking to that psychopath, Natsume wasted no time and did what made the most sense to save them all. In front of Garyon's eyes and as if Airys was ready for it, she mounted Layd on Sandy in the blue haired's arms and ran to grab Echsos.

It didn't take Sandy half a second to start to turn away from him, fleeing from him, however, Garyon's eye tightened with rage and vibrated at the moment.

"WHO GAVE YOU PERMISSION ?!" He stomped on the ground along with those words and a strange feeling washed over Airys that suddenly fell to the ground as if Sandy had let her go through him.

But it was worse than that, he had disappeared.

"DON'T IGNORE ME SHIT MOUTHS!" Garyon took a couple of steps closer to Natsume, who backed away in fear of being affected by that mysterious resonance. "I'm sick of them getting in the way, it's not like I'm going to hurt the boy if he doesn't resist." He calmed the tone of his voice like they didn't make him rip his throat out in his previous sentence, showed his palms and imitated the best fake smile he could imagine.

He advanced, she took a step back, he appeared calm, she clung to her stepbrother.

"Seriously… are you going to leave them?" Garyon didn't even have to roll his eyes to see them. As he had walked he closed the distance between the two couples.

It was a nightmare.

Echsos was shaking trapped by his own resonance, unable to reason, overwhelmed by the absurd amount of information Garyon expelled by using his resonance. Why did the resonance of his little brother have to work like this? Could this guy brainwash him just by putting a finger on him? She could still run away with him… Garyon's effective range didn't reach her and it wouldn't be hard for her to run away, abandoning Layd and that girl… Airys… No… no…

Garyon gave a little laugh.

"I see you understand," he wiped the blood that was coming out of his nose. "This world is unfair. But don't worry," he raised his arms to the sky. "I'll take care of changing/"

Garyon himself stopped his repetitive speech when he sensed the presences of those two. He turned his head suddenly which reflexively caused Airys and Natsume to look at the same place.

The boomerang noise came from the trees and soon the boomerang came over one of the branches and Maryon teleported into the exact pose to sit on the branch and catch his boomerang.

"What a hassle." He sweated nervously at the ridiculous situation he was witnessing. "What the heck is that kid's popularity?"

Natsume gave a doubtful face to Airys who did not know how to act, the truth was she was ashamed for bringing more problems, although she did not know well.

"Stop complaining, we're lucky," said a female voice from behind some bushes that disoriented Garyon. "That way we can hunt two rabbits at the same time, right Garyon?" Andra opened, walked calmly through the leaves and stretched her right shoulder.

"How I miss the days of yore." Garyon cursed the unfortunate fate that had plagued him since he was forty.

———————————————————————————————————

Anguish.

The position he was in gnaw his energies. The chains brushed and squeezed his skin directly; his shadow was useless, his clothing non-existent, steel against skin. Beneath that layer of "protection" Seng's muscles embarked on an impossible odyssey in order to buy his precious freedom... because Eheron made sure to sabotage and cut his heels at every step.

The atmosphere was drowned out by the sound of the strained chains, the trembling from the actions of those two, a harsh Requiem.

Eheron's face was covered in a red cloth of fury, his head was sweating as if it were the hottest day of the century and under those clenched fists the marks were embedded down to his bones. Horrible, that damn guy couldn't be stubborner.

He applied a greater force and —to that end, he applied every ounce of his body —pulled like an Egyptian would the pyramids. Not even Seng's powerful soul had a chance and gave in to the relentless pressure. His hands twitched in agonizing request for help, touching the chains was ridiculous, not even the thickest nails in his life would make a real mark for dusk. His legs weren't working either, the hope of running away was countered by an identical tactic on the part of his jailer.

His fate was sealed.

A still, focused target with no movement options. Seng lost.

It doesn't have to be fast, but constant. He should not be vigorous, just tough. There was no reason to be impatient, as long as he manages to strike with the chains he will be able to decimate that monster.

That's right, Eheron dedicated himself to using every single opportunity that —in which his enormous freedom of action and stance relative to the diminutive Seng —emerged to whip the boy with the locks anywhere possible.

Crack

Pas

Tan

During those endless seconds, Seng did not stop using his shadow to stop the impacts, without any change in the results.

"Give up" Eheron demanded.

Seng's neck sagged and he dropped his head forward. Now that he thought about it… why was he fighting? If it was to be able to help others, then his body was no longer in condition. To take a load off others? Actually, that isn't like it affects anything, Garyon must have an overwhelming advantage and the only one who would be able to escape would be Natsume... if she abandons Layd... in that context Eheron doesn't paint anything, a mere face to leave behind with her speed.

So…?

Seng's head began to shake, suddenly those aggressive movements made sense in the form of a laugh, a psychotic and sincere laugh. He raised his face and with a smile of happiness he understood that he was fighting for...

NOTHING.

"Fuck you!" he exclaimed and received another chain blow to the mouth.

If his fight was without motive in the beginning... of course it now has it! Surrender and bestow victory on his adversary?! Left him with the satisfaction of claiming that he defeated him?! Never! No way! He is Seng! The chosen one never loses!

"I'M THE CHOSEN ONE!" he asserted inside his head and increased the volume of his laughter.

And that noise only increased. Eheron didn't understand how he sounded so loud, his throats must be burning, the pain was supposed to force him to shut up. But he wouldn't stop.

"It's the same as before... his damn resonance!" he theorized it in his mind without stopping the torture. Seng's strength was almost nil, each blow was easier for him to execute, did he sacrifice the well-being of his body to throw a tantrum?!

A strange click sounded in Eheron's right ear and a tiny but hot drop of blood slid up to his chin. Aaah... yeah... of course... that's what he's all about...

"SHUT UP NOW!" Eheron roared, suffering and ignoring the collateral damage immediately and doubling the amount of damage he dealt to poor Seng.

A still, focused target with no movement options. But that, above all, he does not fall apart….

"Do you think I care to go deaf?!"

A still, focused target with no movement options. That he lets himself be blinded by his goal, he is careless and falls into the game of his rival….

Suddenly something was altered. A cold sensation entered his body and nausea covered his entire being. Eheron stopped the attacks and turned his head down in fear.

When he did that, he discovered the source of his sudden weakness, however, before he could be shocked at having a thick ice stake driven into his crotch, a couple more were violently inserted into his face.

First in the right eye. He released the chains and stepped back, vulnerable.

During the course of the fight, both Seng and Eheron made several mistakes blinded by their confidence, which led them down a dangerous path with no exits.

However, simply making more mistakes is not what leads to defeat. No, no, it is not bearing the consequences.

"Another… resonance…?" Eheron stammered as the chains fell around Seng.

All that show Seng put on at the end was for the purpose of distracting him from his winning move. Seng stopped using his soul to squeeze every ounce of force out of his body not because using his sound resonance along with his shadow was difficult, not at all, he did it because he used his three resonances at once for five different motives.

With the shadow he tried to stop the attacks so as not to draw attention to his lower body, things in movement are always distracting. He also used it to avoid falling to the ground and losing his little window of opportunity. Finally, at ground level, near his feet, he used his shadow as molds to create the ice stakes he generated and then throw them.

He'd created half a dozen stakes just in case he missed it, but they weren't needed anymore, not all. Eheron paled. Seng forced his body forward like a beast using his shadow.

He barely saw it coming, Eheron, unable to react, with his last breath he cursed that the eyes and balls could not be powered.