Drowning (2)

Rolling back to create some distance, he slipped and slid before managing to regain his footing on the grimy floor, careful to avoid stepping on any bones.

Atlas kept his eyes forward, avoiding the hollow-eyed faces that seemed to scream silently in pain. The bones beneath his feet appeared to crawl towards him, writhing in agony, begging him to join them.

Instead, he kept his eyes on the slowly approaching guards.

They stepped and crushed each bone that was unfortunate enough to get in their way, not caring for who they once belonged to.

Their white cloaks were smothered with demon blood with flesh clinging to their uniform. Atlas couldn't tell their expression at all, their mouth was drawn in an impassive line, and their eyes were covered by that weird white cloth.

Wouldn't that obstruct their vision? Atlas thought as they stood still, eyeing eachother quietly, motionlessly. The occasional clangs in the background as demon blood slowly dripped down from the ceiling were the only indicators that time was passing.

Perhaps their liege had quite the dramatic flair.

They repositioned their weapons, their axe and sword poised for an attack.

Ah.

Wasn't this a tad bit unfair? As far as they know, he was just a kid! Seventeen years old in fact. There was no reason for him to be ganged up on…right?

Right.

He slowly raised his hands and opened his mouth, in this modern age surely peaceful negotiations were allowed? Just as he was about to ask if they could talk this out and have a friendly conversation they charged.

The bones on the ground cracked apart as their form seem to flicker in and out of existence, shooting forwards at him with unprecedented speeds.

'Shi-'

The ruthless blades rushed forward, there was no hesitation, no remorse, and no warmth behind their attacks.

Thud!

Atlas who was in the middle of backing away stumbled, his feet catching on a boney hand he tumbled down, landing roughly on the floor.

Swish.

The blades that came flying toward Atlas missed, grazing over his head- if only slightly.

He barely had time to breathe when their harsh blades came crashing down on him again, each swing aiming to kill. Perhaps to add his head to their collection.

Atlas rolled, feeling the reverberations that echoed throughout the ground each time their blades hit the floor instead of his skull.

They continued their relentless assault, their killing intent visible through each swing. He was like a mouse, playing a game of dodging death's grip.

A few swings manage to land shallow cuts on his shoulders, and then his arms, and soon, almost his whole body was littered with them. His movements grew slower- more sluggish every second.

He knew he couldn't keep this up any longer.

'Damn Kai and his plans-!'

His shallow breaths echoed in his head, urging him to survive- to breathe through the water's surface that he was drowning in.

He could practically see the bright promise that was on the other side of the endless waves, each second he lived the closer he got to the surface.

Reaching out his hand he could almost feel the warmth.

It was then that a violent tide seem to wash him away, dragging him further beneath the waters.

The blade came crashing down beside him as the axe which seemed to carry electrically charged particles rained down from above him.

This was it. He couldn't hold his breath any longer, his legs felt tired from the constant fight against the ocean.

The darkness of the sea closed in around him, the light fading further and further away. It was as if it was mocking him, the distant light, that his struggle was pointless.

There was a sudden flicker.

A light outline of a card.

As a last-ditch attempt, Atlas activated his ability [Sole Wind].

It didn't matter if he could only use it for less than a second, it didn't matter that it was only a movement-based card.

He just needed to live that less than a second longer.

A second longer was everything.

Ignoring the biting pain that spiked throughout his body he rushed forwards on his back, sliding in between the guard's legs just as the axe came crashing down, splitting the floor almost in two.

Atlas reached his hands up, grabbing ahold of the handle of the axe as he continued sliding forwards, leaving the wind seemly in his wake.

With the assistance of his skill, the guard's legs buckled as the unexpected force, released his hold on the axe.

Atlas didn't dare waste a single moment.

As the head of the axe slammed into the floor, Atlas used the hilt to lift himself up as the sword made a shallow cut on his leg.

Atlas swung his leg, kicking at the back of the unarmed guard's head, causing them to stumble forwards toward the floor.

Longer- he needed another second, just another!

He swam upwards, ignoring the pain in his legs.

Landing back on the floor he swiftly spun around and swung the axe with all his might, aiming for the guard's head just as they had done to him.

The surface-!

'Hah- get a taste of this!'

The weapon- however, proved much heavier than Atlas expected.

Unable to hold onto the axe properly, he wobbled as the weapon came crashing down at the guard's midsection instead.

Slam!

The impact landed with a sickening thud, and the guard crumpled to the ground, a pained groan escaping their lips as their sword dropped to their side.

Apparently, the pain was so unbearable that they eventually passed out.

Even Atlas grimaced.

He had no time to ponder such things however as he felt the hair's on his end stand up. With a swift turn, he instinctively raised the axe, half haphazardly, attempting to block the fist flying towards his face.

Bang!

Only managing to bring the axe up to the hilt, the incoming punch smashed the weapon into pieces. The impact reverberated through his arms, leaving Atlas defenseless again.

'What the actual hell?'

The guard's fist, seemly unaffected by the axe had just shattered an axe charged toward's Atlas once more. They still wore that same impassive expression, uncaring for their fallen ally.

Atlas was being pulled back under the waves again.

Yet the waters around him seemed if only a bit less suffocating.

And for Atlas, that was enough for now.

As the guard lunged forward, sword raised for another strike, Atlas moved below, towards the ground.

The guard let out an annoyed grunt, bringing his leg around, aiming a vicious blow towards Atlas' chest.

Slam!

Atlas was a second too late and It hit true.

Atlas flew back, the brutal impact sending his form speeding through the air as he slammed into another bone-made pillar. Coughing out blood, he crumbled against the tumbling pillar, his form being hidden beneath the now pile of remains.

The world around him spun, a cacophony of chaos and pain that threatened to pull him into oblivion. But through the haze, Atlas clung to his consciousness.

If one were to spectate their battle they would say that it was a one-sided massacre.

In a fast second, the guard was before the pile of bones, aiming for another blow at where Atlas was.

Crash!

Bones and flesh flew away, revealing an empty space beneath.

The guard flinched, before tugging his head towards his back just in time to see Atlas.

Atlas- who had hidden amongst the flying pieces of bone and skull, threw something that was clutched in his bleeding hand.

A sharp piece of the broken axe that he had picked up when he had dodged earlier.

The sharp metal shard hurled toward the guard's face, slicing through the air.

The shard found its mark, impacting with a sickening thud against the guard's eye guard. A mix of surprise and pain flickered across the guard's features as they stumbled back, clutching at their injured eye.

The once-white bandage over their eyes bloomed red.

Seizing the opportunity, Atlas moved swiftly. He made his way to where the guard had dropped their sword, his fingers closing around the hilt. With a fluid motion, he brought the blade around, its steel gleaming in the dim light of the chamber.

He was going to break through that surface if that was the last thing he did.

The guard, wounded and blind, offered feeble resistance as Atlas put all his strength behind his attack. Bringing forth the sword that had once aimed for his head he thrust it upwards.

The blade made a welching noise as it sliced through flesh and sinew, the sound of its impact blending with the gurgling of blood that spewed forth, drenching Atlas in the ocean of red as he let out a sharp intake of breath, feeling the harsh sunlight against his skin as he looked out among the red sea.

Their body slumped against the bone-covered floor, the sword following them, still puncturing their neck.

Atlas stood over them, his chest heaving with each ragged breath. Blood stained his clothes and hands, and the taste of iron lingered on his lips. The ringing in his ears began to subside, the echoes of battle fading into the background.

He stared up at the blood-drenched ceiling.

The surface air tasted somewhat bitter.