Griffin sighed, watching the entire floor beneath the frozen platform break apart as his allies began to descend into the abyss below.
With heavy breaths he finally set his three passed out comrades down onto the cold floor, held up only by pillars of ice extending from the highest points on the tall walls underneath the completely blown open spiral ceiling.
He put his hands on his knees, lowering his upper body as he felt like he was about to puke.
Holding nearly four hundred pounds of weight while sprinting and climbing for his life had been quite a task, but he chuckled- using his telekinesis, he had been able to bring along his prized golden flute.
Clutching it in his arms like a baby he snuggled his cheek against it, not even bothering to doubt his teammates fighting to the death below the platform.
Then...
He frowned as a low hiss escaped from the lips of something sinister behind him.
He turned slowly, scowling at the mimic who had made its way up the frozen structure.
"You're kidding... Right?" He awkwardly said, scratching the back of his head with his left hand and gripping the arm of his lute in his right.
The mimic let out a low sinister chuckle.
"Don't know why I bothered asking."
Then the mimic began to shift and change unnaturally.
'Come on... Gimme something easy...' He pleaded in his mind, immediately eyes widening as the form began to take shape ten meters in front of him.
"Well... Even I know who that is..."
The elderly man now looking now at Griffin, but the three unconscious people behind him...
The man had golden hair... And a silver eyepatch, and even though he looked the age of seventy... The muscle fibers tearing apart his ancient fabrics, looked as if his physique was at the ripe age of twenty.
His fingers were covered in golden rings, showing the mighty wealth this man had once held in the time that he had been alive.
With a frown, Griff turned his head towards his fallen comrades.
"Why do you guys have to have such annoying connections..." He complained with a scowl, already knowing that his battle was inevitable, but that had been what he had feared.
He knew that fate had saved him for his own finale, which is why he had not bothered wasting any energy on the battles that he knew his allies could handle with ease.
But now he had something to protect.
Which made this so much worst.
Because he knew that he couldn't dare fail.
"Well... Leander of House Orion... I don't have any heroic ambitions or legendary dreams like the rest of my friends... And to be entirely honest I'm pretty new here. So I'd ask that you go easy on me... But I know that won't be the case, although... I find it quite disrespectful to the dead that you have taken their body so carelessly... Filthy mimic..." His words grew colder with every sentence he spoke, turning into an angered hiss at the end of his speech.
Griffin's left hand lifted upward, his fingers curling against his lips, that now wore a sadistic smile.
In all truth, Griffin had been waiting for this...
The chance to go all out... Ever since he had lost his duel in The City of Factions... Losing the right to marry the daughter of the king... He had been aching for a chance to show his growth.
And Leander of House Orion... Just so happened to be his first victim.
He gripped his golden lute, siphoning his Primis into the instrument, staring down Leander with a crazed gaze as the stringed musical object shifted with a golden light.
Turning into a sharp golden saber...
"I don't plan on fighting fair either!" He laughed aloud, as several golden lights began to rise from around the frozen platform.
"Behold! The grand finale... HAS FINALLY BEGUN!" His melodic voice boomed as countless different instruments filled the air surrounding the path between the two opponents.
He outstretched his arms, his head swaying as blood began to spill from his nose- showing just how much energy he had used for this final performance.
"Now play..." He whispered, as the mimic wearing Leander's body simply watched in awe.
"Play like the strums of victory had been brushed against by the hands of the most talented of musicians!"
Then his saber swung vertically, and the music began to blast throughout the colossal room, echoing into the void deep below.
His orchestra had been formed, instilling him with the power of countless buffs.
He dashed forward with a sonic boom left behind in his wake.
"Speed..." His whisper echoed throughout the room.
He swung straight at the throat of Leander, killing intent laced in every micro motion of his body.
"Strength..." His body began to vibrate from the affects his countless spells had placed on him.
Leander twitched, revealing that this would be no easy fight no matter how many melodic advantages Griffin was able to place on himself.
Countless golden magic circles filled the air around them, and then...
Golden chains shot towards Griffin from every direction, giving him no chance at dodging no matter how fast he moved.
"Durability!" He sang, his voice traveling through the air like the heart of an opera.
The chains crashed into his body with abominable force, breaking several bones.
But that was not the end... As every performance had its low chorus after a large climax.
His saber slashed through the flesh of Leander's thigh, having ignored the pain of the countless chains entirely, never ceasing to remove the sadistic smile from his appearance.
"REGENERATION!" He screamed, his voice echoing a thousand times before it could stop.
Leander grinned, watching as the spell seemingly didn't even bother to work on Griffin.
However, this was no song at all, much to the mimic's original assumption.
This was a game of chess.
And although Griffin's loss of the battle was inevitable, he knew that he was simply a mere bard.
He quickly leaned right, avoiding the slash of Leander's right hand that would have decapitated him easily.
"ENERGY TRANSFER!" He yelled, his voice becoming more and more melodic as his injuries got worst from all of the spells that Leander had been using.
At this point in the fight, the mimic possessing Leander's form had finally realized what was going on.
Its eyes widened, as another chain crashed into Griffin's back- throwing him off balance, yet he refused to fall, leaning backwards with a terrible bloodied smile on his face.
"AWAKEN! FOR MY SONG REQUIRES ITS FEATURES!" He sang, his voice becoming darker and more raspy by the second.
Leander's eyes instantly shot towards the three fallen figures...
"What?" The mimic hissed, its eyes shooting around the room as if his pupils were ricocheting off of the corners of his eyes.
Then... A large pillar of ice crashing into the platform from above.
Destroying everything in its wake...
This song... Had just gained several new performers... These ones much more unforgiving than Griffin.
The sadistic bard laughed, leaning his head back in euphoria.
"The perfect finale indeed..." He chuckled quietly, watching as the ceiling grew further and further away...