Chapter 128: The Battlefield Of Monsters

The battlefield was no longer a place fit for the living. Numerous dead littered the land from one end of the battlefield to the other. Corrupted beings’ corpses lay in mounds along with the broken earth, severed limbs buried in the mud and blood. Blackened scales from corrupted beasts, matted fur, broken horn, shattered claws, and pitted monster hide were scattered along the trenches carved by thousands of soldiers and the blood that mingled with the rainless mud, giving the battlefield a red hue. The smell of iron was thick in the air.

Tanaka stepped over a fallen monster. The line between Eldoris and Varkesh was no longer visible. Only ruin and destruction stretched to the horizon. Varkesh’s first wave had been slaughtered. The second had been smashed by Eldoris’s elite. The third had nearly wiped out the healers and rearguard, but had been repelled by Tanaka and the others. And now the fourth had come. And after that, the fifth. Varkesh had thrown wave after wave of monsters at Eldoris, and time and time again Eldoris had stood, though not without loss.

Tanaka looked toward the west flank. Raizen was still fighting. The Star Wolf King stood amidst the mounds of the slain beasts with blood dripping from his fur. Raxolf and the Star Wolves had managed to push their line forward, but several of the wolves lay motionless on the ground behind them. Some were too injured to continue fighting. Others would not rise again. Raizen turned his gaze towards the enemy in front of him. Then he attacked.

The battle raged on around him. To the east, Razer stood in the middle of a field of fallen Orcs and Varkesh monsters. His breathing was slow and measured, only hitching occasionally as he fought. A jagged wound marred his chest, but Razer paid it no mind. Neither did the Orcs behind him. Razer raised his fist. "Forward!" The Orcs roared and surged forward over the field of the dead.

Near the center of the battlefield, the Kijin were locked in combat with the enemy. Raishin’s body was slick with blood, most of it belonging to his foes. His aura still pulsed outward, sending lesser monsters fleeing and lightning crackling up his arms. He said nothing. He simply moved. Thunder Fist. Lightning Step. Another foe fell. Another rose to meet him.

Raishin faded from sight. Another body hit the ground. Beside him, Raveana was cackling. The effects of her Battle Trance had numbed her senses to the pain. She stood over the broken body of a Monster Lord class being, her breath coming in short gasps. "You’re still alive?" The fallen creature moved. A grin stretched across Raveana’s face. "Good." Titan Breaker lashed out. The ground exploded around the creature.

Ryuken moved with a fluid grace through the battlefield, his body weaving between enemies effortlessly. His katana flashed as he drove forward, cutting through enemies, the War Blade pushing back anyone who got too close. Dragon Guard. Step. Turn. War Blade. Every movement was fast, but more importantly, they were precise.

Rogan was less graceful, but none the less deadly. The large Kijin grabbed anything that came near him and tossed it away. A great mass of beast flew through the air, colliding with another. Rogan charged forward, driving both monsters into the ground. The Kijin had become a scourge upon Varkesh, but even they now bore wounds, and exhaustion. And still they fought.

Tanaka turned his gaze northward. Drakar was a black blur as he moved through the smoky battlefield, his clawed hands ripping through the flying beasts below. His wings beat furiously, scattering feathers and ash with every stroke. Torga’s defensive field protected the wounded below. The Ironcarapace Turtle barely moved from his position, his enhanced defense skills taking brunt of the damage. The force field around him was pitted and marred, his body covered in fresh wounds, but it still held. Behind him, the injured warriors of Eldoris still fought, and that was all that mattered.

Grok and Sartel continued their deadly dance. The twin leaders had turned the battlefield into a veritable labyrinth of death. Grok would herd enemies into Sartel’s trap, where the poison master would make sure they did not get up again. Their combined attack had become so deadly that Varkesh’s monsters were avoiding the forest altogether.

Above them, Zephyr stood his post. The Sky Lord’s Heavenly Eye scanned the battlefield. "Enemy group moving west!" The information was passed along through Telepathy. "Three Monster Lord class enemies approaching Raizen!" Another warning. "Drakar, behind you!" Drakar twisted in the air, catching the flying beast before it could finish its attack. His claws ripped into the creature, tearing it open.

Zephyr continued his vigil. The mana birds responded to every command he gave. The sky belonged to Eldoris. But the battlefield was still littered with the dead. Tanaka glanced around. The war had been going long enough, longer than any sane person would have liked. And yet the battle had only grown more vicious. Varkesh still had numbers, and Eldoris still had fighters. Neither was willing to back down. Tanaka’s gaze swept the battlefield. Rhazek was no longer at the command post. Tanaka narrowed his eyes. Again he scanned the battlefield. Nothing. A strange feeling prickled at the back of his neck.

The battlefield changed. A Varkesh Monster Lord class was flung hundreds of meters into the air, passing over the heads of several warriors before exploding on impact with the earth. Numerous warriors turned towards the sound. Another explosion rocked the battlefield. Yet another followed. Rhazek appeared. The Demon Lord moved like a wisp of wind through the battlefield, his body little more than a blur. One moment he stood beside a formation of Varkesh, then he was gone. A monster was tossed into the air. Rhazek appeared beside Raizen. The Star Wolf King turned, but it was too late.

Rhazek’s fist drove into his chest, and the mighty wolf was sent tumbling through several trees. Raxolf reacted instantly, but Rhazek was already gone. He reappeared in front of Razer. The Orc leader blocked the first blow, but the second sent him tumbling into the earth. Once again, Rhazek vanished. A single Kijin turned to face him, but Rhazek sent him flying with a single punch. Raveana drove forward, but Rhazek was gone before she could land a blow. He appeared above Ryuken. The Kijin swordsman raised his blade, but Rhazek’s fist drove him into the ground nonetheless. Raishin’s lightning flashed across the battlefield, but Rhazek was too fast.

The attack fizzled out. Raishin’s eyes narrowed. He attacked again. Rhazek was gone. The Demon Lord was faster than any Monster Lord class, faster than any warrior of Eldoris. Tanaka watched as the battlefield changed before his eyes. The Demon Lord was no longer testing them. He was fighting, really fighting for the first time. Rhazek moved like a man possessed, his body a blur of motion, every movement a calculated strike, every breath a curse. Dozens, hundreds of bodies flew as he moved, scattering the enemies before him like chaff on the wind. Rhazek carved through the ranks of Eldoris’s elite warriors, faster than any of them could react.

Then he stopped. A hush seemed to fall around the battlefield. He stood at the center of it all, blood dripping from his claws. His crimson eyes turned towards Tanaka. He felt his body tense. The distance between them was far, but it did not matter. Rhazek vanished. Tanaka’s eyes widened. The Demon Lord appeared before him. A fist came flying towards his face. Tanaka barely reacted, jumping back as the ground exploded where he had stood. Rhazek smirked. "So." The Demon Lord straightened. "We meet again."

Tanaka’s eyes flared with power. His body began to change, bones creaking as it expanded. Wings burst forth from his back, and his very form seemed to grow larger. His head changed shape, and claws, scales, and teeth replaced familiar features. The power of the wyvern surged through him. Tanaka finished his transformation. He spread his wings, and for the first time, the two kings of the battlefield stood nose to nose. Tanaka lowered his head slightly. Rhazek smiled. Behind them, the warring armies continued their deadly struggle, but neither king turned away. Tanaka opened his mouth.

"Why don’t the kings fight one on one?"