Return of the Demon Sovereign (Book 1) [MxM]

92. Titans and Sovereigns (2)

A'Teh's movements increased in speed. He moved faster than the lightning that Erebus had once tried to navigate through when fighting the Djinn. Erebus pushed his mana to the extreme, creating a domain to strengthen his and Leo's attacks. However, they could only dodge and defend.

Leo saw A'Teh coming for him. He tried to defend himself but was slammed against a wall. A'Teh raised a hand to attach, so Leo lifted his sword to block. The blade caught A'Teh's claw, but this only made A'Teh grin. He wrapped his hand around the sword, causing it to screech, and snapped it in two. Leo gasped as A'Teh's claws ripped at his chest. 

"You will not touch him!" Erebus yelled.

Thousands of black tendrils snaked around A'Teh's arm and stopped his momentum. Erebus stood behind A'Teh, holding on to the other end of the ropes, his feet planted deeply into the ground. His arms were straining, and the wound on his shoulder started to bleed heavily. 

His eyes searched frantically for Leo, unsure if A'Teh's claws took his life. He felt his world was crumbling while waiting for the unknown. He couldn't feel the pain that was searing his body, nor could he feel the tears streaming down his cheeks. 

Leo had to survive. All would be for naught if Leo weren't with him. 

"Leo!" He cried out, his voice hoarse with emotion. 

A cough sounded that made Erebus almost stumble. 

"This bastard," Leo groaned. 

Leo didn't discard his sword but changed his metal blade to one made from his shadow mana. He used all of his strength and sliced downwards on A'Teh's arm that was pierced into him. The pressure made his claws rip down his chest. He clenched his jaw until his teeth cracked but found himself smiling when he successfully sliced through the arm, and A'Teh's hand fell to the floor.

A'Teh snarled and sliced down with his other claw. Leo threw himself out of the way, but the claw still clipped his ear, leaving a deep tear.

Erebus wanted to check on him, but he knew he couldn't stop attacking. He had to trust Leo would be fine. 

Erebus jumped on A'Teh's back and pierced his blade into his neck. A'Teh trembled, and a large pulse of energy pushed out of his body, throwing Erebus across the room. He crashed into the platform that held Aboros' body and destroyed it with a reverberating bang.

Aboros' body fell onto the ground, and his head rolled several meters away. Erebus groaned, realizing his arm was now useless and barely holding together. He pulled a rope from his spatial ring and tied it around his arm to keep it still.

He looked around desperately, but the collision had stirred up the old ash and dust, creating a thick black fog. He cursed inwardly and closed his eyes to focus his energy. He could see Astra was in the same place and unharmed. He scanned and found Leo. He was weakened but alive.

However, Erebus couldn't afford to relax because he couldn't find A'Teh. His posture was defensive but taut with tension.

He scanned again, but the ash seemed to be causing some sort of interference. He was going to call out but felt a spine-chilling sensation. He jumped as high as he could. He felt an intense rush of wind under him and shuddered as he saw the glimpse of gold and black.

Erebus cursed, knowing they were at a disadvantage because of the fog that hindered their sense. He released his mana to force the fog to collapse to the ground. It condensed, resembling a black pool of water that was knee-deep.

He hoped to remove all the fog but was already at his limit and felt the Phonoi Heart scratching in his mind.

Although he removed the visual obstruction, it was a short-lived victory because A'Teh was on him again—rising from the settling ash. He grabbed Erebus' good arm and slammed him against the wall, cracking the wall from the impact.