Punish(ed)

A slight glow appeared on her arm but Mio did not notice. The pain from her previous fights were numbed the pain and feeling in her arm. What she did notice was the constant shaking of her arm.

Her marked arm that contained the seven seals was glowing. The same glow but it was weaker when she had the previous bout just moments ago.

She accepted her death when it was near but she was afraid of when it will happen. Her trembling arms and hands will move no longer after her lifeless body stops moving.

She closed her eyes holding the blade in front of her face.

A voice whispered in her ear.

Swing...Swing...

A glow of light changed the chaos blade into a longsword and the blade clashed with the chunk of floor. It did not stop the impact of the floor but she was able to cut through bits and pieces of it so that she could survive.

Goliath was not fazed at her attempt to block the floor so he tried again. The clamour from the blade can be heard throughout the bank.

Power was emanating from the chaos blade. Mio's hands stopped shaking and she could feel the strength returning to her arms. She rolled away from Goliath's view as the crumpled piece of floor that he was carrying begin to fall to the ground.

She faced the monstrous creature for a third time. It was but a moment of silence until they started to clash once more...perhaps for a final time.

Mio charged at Golaith with her blade pointed at the giant and she thrusted her blade and aimed it at his head. He sidestepped her thrust and swung his big meaty claws at her face. She got scratched across the side of her face and she began to bleed. She wasn't fazed by the slight injury and began to attack again. It was a flurry of exchanges back and forth but it looked liked Mio was running out of steam. She was able to get a couple of hits here and there but Goliath was too strong. Blood was trickling down her arms as she tried to continuously slash her opponent.

I can't keep this up... My arms feel like jelly and he's not stopping anytime soon. This is frustrating! Its pissing me off!!

With every slash she could feel a sharp pain in her arm. She could feel a rhythmic beating in her chest that sounded similar to her heartbeat. The pain continuously increased, as the fight drew on. Mio realized that Goliath was slowing down too, due to the overexertion of those stones. She felt that it was battle of who can last the longest.

Mio was caught off guard once again and received a blow directly to her face.

I hardly feel anything anymore..

She received another blow to the face.

Isn't it supposed to hurt...

And again.

Why??

Another landed and she fell to the ground.

Goliath picked her up and lifted her from her shirt. He was staring angrily at her battered face.

"I don't want to kill you.."

"Liar"

He slammed her on the ground. Mio began choking up blood, squirming in pain. As Goliath inched closer he fell to his knees.

"Not yet..."

He tried to get up. He lost feeling in his legs and fell once more. He punched the ground in frustration.

"Dammit. Move... Move...move."

Mio's blurry vision could see Goliath struggle on the floor. She saw the opportunity but she could barely move and neither could he. She knew that if one of them had the willpower to stand one of them will die.

Mio heard something from Goliath a slight murmur.

"mother..mother forgive me..."

He was slow to get up.

He lost feeling in his knees. Once more he slammed his fist into the ground.

He let out another roar that cut the trembling silence in the air.

This is my chance...He overexerted himself with the stones...

But Mio couldn't move. She could only move her right arm and every part of her body ached. The fights were catching up to her all in one blow. She began hitting her arm that gripped the chaos blade tightly.

Move, move, move. Shit, shit, shit...

"FUCKIN MOVE!!!"

She was glancin back and forth at Goliath then herself to see the amount of time she had left.

Goliath...my son... don't worry about Mom.. she'll be alright...

Liar.

Mother always lied. She was hurting because I wasn't strong enough. I didn't train hard enough to protect you..

It wasn't good enough was it?

People trampled over you while I covered my eyes. I hated it.

You smiled at me when you knew everything was wrong. That smile meant the world me but...

It was fake. A front to comfort not just me but herself.

[Partial Flashback]

A woman is hurriedly gathering her things. While her son is eating breakfast on the table.

"Mommy, what's wrong? It's not time to go to school."

She stopped for a second with her haphazard appearance.

"Uhh..nothing...just finish breakfast before we head out."

"Ok"

The child finished his breakfast and they left to drop off her son at school.

At school the child will have a normal school day, playing with the other children. Until peaceful moments become eventful, but not in a good way.

In the playground two children were seen fighting each other.

"You're weak!! Just like your father!!" The first child said.

The second child in a fit of rage tackled the other kid.

"What do you know about my family!?"

He hit the other boy a couple of times.

"Nothing...absolutely nothing. You're just a pathetic piece of garbage."

Goliath got up and got ever so closer to Mio. It was silent once again.

He clenched his fist to hide the pain of the stones, but blood can be seen dripping from his fist.

Mio was still trying to find the strength to get up but her body refused to listen. As Goliath's ever looming presence had her almost struck with paralyzing fear.

As he was looking down at Mio he balled up his fist and swung.

It missed. Mio didn't duck out of the way Golaith just missed. It was strange. Mio let out a deep sigh of relief and edged away from Golaith.

He held his head with his hands and he covered his face.

Mother...

[Flashback]

A young boy aged, 13-14 was in his room staring at his ceiling.

What should I do?

He then heard a loud crash outside. He stumbled off his bed to look. He creaked open his door just a little bit to see what was happening. He heard shouting and screams of pain.

A vivid image of his vulnerable mother being beaten sent the boy in a fit of rage. His father in an angered state was hitting her without remorse.

"DONT EVER TOUCH MY MOTHER. YOU UGLY BASTARD!!!

He tackled the man to the ground and started punching him repeatedly. His mother in a state of shock was immobilized with fear and was constantly whimpering.

A couple weeks later my mother collapsed.

I ran to the hospital and saw my mother for the last time.

She was just laying there. Her heart rate monitor would beep in intervals. I was too afraid to go near her. Until a nurse bumped into me...

"Your mother was barely breathing when we got a hold of her. It seems she suffered multiple blows to the head causing her to collapse."

She started to reveal various bruises throughout her body. The purplish coloring of her skin and the blueish marks on the side of her face were clearly visible.

I was angry. I was frustrated. But most of all I felt helpless...

I couldn't protect you..

"Take a seat. You can stay as long as you like."

A few hours had past.

It was already dark outside. He could only see the dimming lights from the street lamps. All of a sudden he heard a rumbling from the bed. Then constant thumping and tapping. He looked to see his mother moving around at her bedside. The boy rushed to his mother's aid, holding his mother close to him to calm her down. She pulled on her son's shirt and heard an ominous voice.

The blade drawsss nearrrr.

The ominous voice disappeared. His mother was continuously grasping for air and she took this opportunity to whisper something.

"Be strong my son. My pain is only temporary and this heart will never break. So live...for me...My shining knight..."

The boy tried to hold back his tears. He could not say a word.

"Do not hold back..let your emotions run wild.. It will mold you into a better man... So cry, live and I will always be with you.."

She closed her eyes for the last time. The heart rate monitor beside her flatlined. The boy frantically shaking at the sight of his mother's corpse.

"DON'T LEAVE, Don't Leave, don't leave..."

He was sobbing uncontrollably gripping at his mother's body until a nurse came barging in.

"Sir, please let go. She's gone."

A doctor checked the boy's mother for any signs of life. He shook his head in disbelief.

"Time of death 2 am."

The boy sat in his chair and sobbed until his eyes were red and swollen.

A few days later he was able to bury his mother's body at a nearby cemetery. He was the only one there except some greasy guy working as a gravedigger. The boy couldn't stop crying.

"Boy lift your head up. Yous a man now. If anything the only way to show any sort of growth is to lift head up high and live for tomorrow."

He patted the boy on the back and preceded to walk away. The boy wiped his tears from his eyes and ran. He ran and ran and ran. Until he met a strange man that showed him a glowing stone that offered him everything.

"POwer I$ wut yois seek....Go Ahead and Take IT!!!"

[End of Flashback]