Zeroth stopped sobbing the moment the split in the demarcation of both worlds appeared out of nowhere, and his eyes widened with every thud that revealed their adversary.
The one responsible for the death of his brothers and his bestfriend.
He took his gaze immediately to Val, who instantly tightened his grip around his weapon with eyes fixed on the immortal. He stood far a distance so one couldn't tell what he looked like.
Who was this?
No, what the hell was this?
Humongous was not enough to describe this entity. He was the actual definition of mighty.
Every step he took left the stones on the battlefield jumping from one position to another. Then, as he materialised prominently, his chiselled physique, which defined the word "warrior" in every way understandable, made him stand out as the leader, even though other giganosauruses built solely for war stood behind him.
He took a long hard sniff of air as though he was testing the atmosphere of another world. Then slowly, the side of his lips curved into a satisfied smirk.
"Ahh, Do you smell that?...". His deep monstrous voice remained on air for a while. "...Death". He took another long sniff, exhaling with his mouth before dragging his eyes to the two last standing figures left on the field.
Grinning from ear to ear as his eyes stayed on them. But mostly the tiniest figure... Val.
"Ah..." Closer, he moved towards them, leaving a dent of his footprints on the bodies he crushed deeper into the ground. Well, the battle field was covered with fallen men, so he might as well.
"... You must be the one". Curiousity in his eyes as he neared them, but his words directed at Val. "...The seeker".
"You have the glow the legends say they have, so you must be...".
Now, his face had became very visible. He was close enough. The first thing you would notice was the eye. I mean the one on his forehead glowing like sage.
It had Zeroth frozen in place and the attention of the Captain as he materialized in front of them, showing the clear difference in their size, height, and stature.
Upon looking at him, you begin to feel the chills crawl up your spine...
With a chiselled jawline and the skin of an undead, his sophistication was nowhere near the cockiness in his tone. He stared down at them as though he stood before rats, barely bothered.
One tall rat, and a tiny one. Was the look he gave.
Gently, he hunched lower to take a closer look at them, keeping his eyes on the smaller figure, Val. As though examining an interesting toy that had caught his eye.
"You must be the captain". He exhaled right above Val's face, expecting an answer, yet all he got from the tiny figure was an emotionless, cold, glare.
Val clenched his jaw. This was the monster who had murdered his brothers, his entire army without even touching them. He obviously wasn't an ordinary man considering all that confidence emanating from him.
So, then who is he?
He had fought several monsters all his life and none had such audacity on the field, let alone carried such powerful aura.
No, this being...
He was finally in the face of someone with higher experience on the field than him. He hadn't seen his skills though, so he couldn't tell his strengths.
Mundus's eyes widened with excitement to the Captain's reaction, still in that hunched position. "The legends were right about those eyes of yours but they never said you were mute. Hmm... too bad, I was looking forward to hearing you speak".
"Oh, how much they praised you... The mortal who turned every single immortal he ever battled with to dust". His lips lifted in amusement. "Yet a slave to Hezekiah...".
"I was curious to meet you in person". Mundus's eyes sized the man before him. "But a little bit disappointed at how tiny you are. You are no match even to my dogs, such a waste of time".
"Could it be why Hezekiah requested your execution? Hmm..."
What?!
Instantly, Zeroth cocked his neck to look at his captain beside him whose eyes widened. Disbelief displaying on his orbs as he struggled to secure his clugged gasps threatening to expose his fears.
But oh well, Mundus already caught a whiff of it.
He was enjoying the reaction from Val. The quick flicker of emotion that passed through his orbs just for a slight moment. Yet, disgusted by the man who stood beside his prey.
It was impromptu. Very unexpected... No one would have thought or predicted it.
The slow shift of his three sage orbs directed to Zeroth in disgust.
As though a sudden realization of a thorn he forgot to get rid of. A useless piece in the puzzle... Mundus's sages flickered as he stared into the eyes of Zeroth.
... He took his breath.
With no single sound leaving his throat, Zeroth gasped in a struggle to breathe.
Something... An invisible force wrapped around his neck and lifted him clean off the ground.
"Ack ... Val...!" His feet kicked violently in the air, fingers digging and clawing at nothing as his face turned red, then blue.
It was at that moment that Val made a sound.
"ZEROTH!" Val screamed, lunging forward in defence but just as he attempted, Mundus raised a single finger and Val's body slammed into the ground as if the weight of a thousand army pressed him down.
Some unseen pressure knocked the air out of his lungs, cracking the bones beneath his back as he coughed, struggling to rise with his teeth clenched tightly in anger.
"He speaks!" Mundus revealed his canines for a brief moment before replacing it with a frown.
"You had your chance to speak. Now stay put and watch the last of your comrade attain enlightenment." He said lazily. Not even looking at him.
Zeroth struggled harder now, eyes bulging out, veins popping along his neck as he was held midair like a dangling doll and Mundus watched. His sword which was once on his grip clattered uselessly to the ground below as his eyes remained on his captain.
This was it.
His death...
Valentine kept struggling to get up, roaring with all his might, fighting to set himself free but it was all futile. Whatever held him was an unbreakable force.
Mundus on the other hand stood mightily, towering over Zeroth, finally granting him his full attention.
"So loud... Your heartbeat". He spoke casually, tilting his head. "Your fear is finally your reality. Humans are fascinating that way... You get what you desire so easily".
Zeroth shook his head violently, tears streaming down his face as he tried to live... desperately, he fought to breathe. "C-Cap...tai".
"Pathetic". Mundus watched him with a scoff, clenching his hand by his side into a fist.
... And that was all it took.
That unmistakable sound... The sickening crack that ends it all. The one that causes silence.
Zeroth's body went limp instantly.
His head lolled to the side, his eyes glassy and still, and his mouth frozen wide open in a silent scream that never finished.
Just like that, he was gone.
Mundus held him there for a moment longer still with his eyes, just to be sure before releasing his grip by his side.
Immediately, Zeroth's corpse dropped to the ground like discarded meat, landing in front of Val's face with a dull, loud thud.
BAM!
Eyes still staring at his captain.
Val's vision blurred. It was then the tears began to fall.
No.
... No.
It can't be...
His hands trembled as he cried bitterly, eyes still on Zeroth's lifeless body. The last of his brothers. The last man who had stood beside him.
Zeroth was dead.
"... Jkjdhein". He whimpered unreasonable words weakly on the floor. There was no one beside him anymore. There was nothing left.
Nothing!
... Everyone was dead.
His teeth were pressed tightly against each other as veins popped from the sides of his head, accompanied by droplets of sweats. Warm tears dropped from his eyes.
Hezekiah...
It was all Hezekiah.
... A setup.
A betrayal from his own king...
Where did he go wrong?
What did he do that was so wrong?
His brothers were dead because of Hezekiah.
No... It was because of him.
His brothers were dead because of him.
Valentine wept.
Because Hezekiah wanted him dead he risked losing an entire army.
Just Because of one man, the innocent lives of over a thousand strong men were lost.
Families and loved ones who awaited the return of their sons, fathers and brothers would weep bitterly because of Hezekiah.
And now, in the hands of a greater being, in a strange land, in the middle of nowhere, he was about to lose his life, still because of Hezekiah.
His son would have to live without a father because of Hezekiah.
His wife would have to raise him by herself because of Hezekiah.
He fought all his life to secure a life he wouldn't be a part of because of Hezekiah!
It all went wrong because of Hezekiah!
Everything spun.
This was a hit he never saw coming. He was good at predicting the move of an enemy... Just not when the enemy was a trusted one.
His emotions were very unstable now.
No, It wasn't rage... Not yet.
It was just... something hotter. A pain he couldn't explain.
Mundus inhaled again, clearly pleased. "Ahh… yes. That's better. The smell of despair suits this place."
Slowly, he took his eyes back to Val, staring down at him intently.
"And now," Mundus said, smiling wide enough to bare his teeth, "We are finally alone, Captain. Now I can tell you about my intentions without interruptions".
He took a step closer and crouched before Valentine.
"You see, I plan on wearing your heart as an accessory," he continued calmly, "I plan on delivering your head back to your king."
"But mostly importantly, let's see if the legend himself scream". Mundus's eyes lit up with excitement, an obvious triumph over Astheimoth as he watched the Captain struggle on the cold ground. "... I want to hear you scream".
Mundus exposed his canines.
But down there, Val's fingers twitched. His heart ached, he just couldn't allow defeat without putting up a good fight.
There was no way he was leaving this world after the promise he gave to his son. Not after he had told Hannah he was going to return safe and sound.
The betrayal stung, and his brothers were all dead, yet, he just couldn't give up. Not yet!
Not when Hezekiah still owed him an explanation. Only the thought of Hezekiah fueled a new wave of anger...
He gritted his teeth, his fingers trembling in rage, his eyes spilling out fresh batch of tears as he stared at Unguis Draconis just beyond his reach, half-buried beneath blood and grass.
Its blade glistened as though it was an ordinary weapon that didn't matter. Waiting for him to speak in his language.
An order commanded by a spoken word, yet, val said nothing.
Instead, he laughed. Spilling out blood in the process, with head faced down.
Laughing not because he was in a pathetic situation, laughing not because he had a certain plan that would suddenly deliver him from the hands of this entity.
No, no...
He was laughing because for the first time in his life, the urge to genuinely cause havoc burned from his guts unremorsefully.
For the first time in his life, he wanted to really take revenge! His eyes burned for revenge! His body craved revenge!
He chuckled like a mad man.
Suddenly, Mundus's words became hilarious.
Scream?
The monster wanted a scream? Haha...
Oh, he had screamed before though...
The day his father's head rolled across the stone like an unwanted chunk of beef.
He screamed when his mother's blood dripped into the floorboards while her guts scattered everywhere, completely exposed.
He screamed when his sister stopped breathing in his arms after being beaten mercilessly by soliders seven times bigger in size.
So, screaming?
Yeah... He had screamed.
But when had screaming ever changed a man's fate?
Intrigued by his sudden behavior, Mundus tilted his head with furrowed brows. "You laugh at death?" He questioned, watching in curiosity at the tiny man who seemed less bothered now.
He no longer smelled despair. It was just something else...
Slowly, Val's laughter dissipated as the tears in his eyes slid sideways into the soil.
"No...," He muttered, exposing his teeth that was covered in blood. "I laugh at how pathetic you suddenly look."
Mundus's furrowed... just slightly. It was the first time confusion flickered on his orbs. An emotional distraction that came just at the right time.
Because while he was busy getting confused, Unguis Draconis awakened.
He felt the tremble... The sudden quake out of nowhere.
It didn't come from him. It came from below.
Mundus's eyes trailed down to the metal vibrating fervently as faint blue veins of light appeared along its edge.
Instantly, He froze. His orbs glistening in fascination. "…Interesting." He watched the weapon as though staring at a toy. Still, he stood unbothered.
"Just wondering... Captain, did you suddenly acquire all of this bravery because of that... glowing metal?" Mundus asked in a mocking tone, directing his gaze to his armies behind, as series of deep laughter filled the battlefield.
Yet, Val remained silent.
"Look behind you, Captain. Your armies are but fallen ants, and you, as weak as a toddler". Mundus taunted. "Do you really think such an irrelevant needle could deliver you out of my hands?"
His voice echoed throughout the battlefield but aired as a muffle through Val's hearing.
None of the things he said made sense.
Because the seeker sprawled on the cold ground was no longer on the same frequency as them. Something was happening to him.
Something the legends would call "The seeker's soul binding"
... Memories that weren't his collided with his DNA.
It was more like a vision of a thousand battles... A thousand wielders who had broken, screamed, surrendered themselves to rage.
What was happening? He thought, feeling the electrocution that slipped through every fiber in him.
His ears buzzed from the deafening whispers of over a thousand voices, screaming, speaking, crying, laughing as he shuddered in pain, with fingers trembling.
"... Make it stop... Gahh, hah... Make it stoppp". His words came out in whispers... Completely unreasonable that anyone who heard would mistake it for cries.
It made Mundus very satisfied.
"Yes, crying is the right thing to do, Captain". The sides of his mouth remained lifted. "... All those wasted words when you should've been begging for your life".
"Who knows? I would've spared you... If I didn't hate the look in your eyes".
Slowly, Mundus raised himself from the crouched position he settled in, standing tall on the battlefield. With a scoff of triumph, he faced his army of mindless beasts.
"Now, it would be said of me in the legends that I, Mundus, doom ringer of hell caused the so-called son of Verhemoth to surrender in tears".
Mundus declared, and his entire armies cheered in agreement.
"And I would say, the legends lied. The so-called son of Verhemoth possessed no such powers as they claimed, he..."
Mundus paused in his words. He couldn't even complete his words...
... He felt it.
The air...
... That smell.
Where was the despair?
He inhaled deeply in confusion, cocking his neck to the side. Every emotion he created dissipated gradually.
What was this?
Hope?
He furrowed fully for the first time.
And just as he turned around, behind him stood the captain of Astheimoth with his weapon of war on his grip.
Blue flames oozing from Unguis Draconis which had grown the same size as the man who held it.
Val's eyes were in blue flames.