NOVEL NEXT Chapter 406: Southern Corp's Final Fight Part 2
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/Step.../
/Crack.../
The Demon stepped forward, walking out of the dust cloud and into the view of everyone surrounding it.
Testros thought about when he first studied the traces it left behind when it killed the Commander within its Office now he would see for himself what the beast looked like.
/Growl.../
The stench of blood and iron followed the creature; it wasn't possible to tell if its skin was naturally reddish in color or if that was the blood from its prey.
Dark mist seemed to surround the creature, making it seem almost intangible.
To a certain degree, its body seemed ethereal, as if it was about to fade. It gave Testros the impression this creature shouldn't be there, as if the world was actively trying to banish it to whatever corner of existence it crawled out from.
Alas, it continued to torment them today.
As both he and Dale expected, the Demon was Humanoid, possessing two arms, two legs, and one head.
The Demon had no tail nor anything unusual attached to its body, and in a sense, it looked more like someone wearing a giant costume than anything. This deceptive appearance, however, was a stark contrast to its brutal strength and ferocity, a reminder that one should never judge a book by its cover, especially when it came to Demons.
Its legs were thick and muscular; its skin was rough and full of strange bumps, sometimes even thorns.
Its feet were broad and robust, perfectly matching the footsteps they saw that day.
Above that, lava seemed to boil underneath its skin as it shone with light, causing its flesh to steam and burn its surroundings, melting even the hardstone underneath its feet.
Above its waist, its arms weren't unique; their only eye-catching factor was the extensive nails each of its fingers possessed, which looked like knives.
Its chest was so broad and thick it looked like a piece of plate mail had been pushed inside its ribs.
/Baddum.../
The Demon's heartbeat shook their surroundings, sending shivers down the shoulder's back, powering the creature even further.
From its chest upward, the creature's skin began to grow out of proportion.
Around its neck, flaps of skin hardened into the shape of a protective high collar, so high it surpassed its own head.
Its face had all of the parts Testros expected to see, but for some reason, they felt odd...
A sharp mouth full of black teeth.
A hollow nose, almost entirely bone.
Dark eyes that flashed with strange lights...
Then, finally, in its forehead, a pair of terrific horns reached for the skies like spikes, each as extensive as the Demon's arms.
Everything together, including its overwhelming height of four meters, created the image of the creature that destroyed the Corps of the past. Its massive frame, covered in rough, reddish skin, seemed to radiate power and menace. Its eyes, dark and filled with a strange, otherworldly light, seemed to pierce through Testros' soul, leaving him with a chilling sense of dread.
To some degree... It was overwhelming, but Testros preferred it this way.
This was a true Demon, not just any run-of-the-mill ones he had seen before... Not that he had seen many nor that 'ordinary' Demons were easy to dispatch...
He didn't know the word to describe these kinds of Demons, he had never seen one before, but he knew that every once in a while, one of their kind would descend upon the world, bringing with it a wave of destruction and uncertainty.
But while Testros was unsure of what to call it, the others were very aware of the word.
A beast that crawled straight out of Hell, this was a high-ranking Demon that could not manifest into their world on its own.
Something strung it onto this very earth, allowing it to exist unbothered... Although it seemed its time was ending, that may be why it launched this massive attack. Given its personality, it may have chosen to continue attacking for another 100 years and weaken it to the point it collapsed independently.
This was a Demon connected to a particular region of the Netherworld, which could be explained by the unnatural power coming from its heart.
The power of an entire land and everything within it was channeling through it.
An Earth Demon, given this rank, when they can connect to their surroundings, the next step of this process is to take the mantle of a ruler and become one of the most dreaded beings in folklore.
Though, as ironic as it may be, the Southern Corp's job was to fight those same beings daily.
They were the unsung heroes, the ones no one wrote about.
They were the unsung heroes, the ones no one wrote about. And even if cursed, they would continue to fight; without them, the world would be plunged into chaos, left at the mercy of these monstrous beings.
Although there was a time long ago when all of the Imperial Corps were equally as important... Alas, times change...
But their spirit never did.
/SLAM!/
At one point, someone had to break the silence.
It began with a tall and burly man.
He approached the Demon and punched forward, intending to test its strength.
/Tremble.../
It wasn't a weak attack; it carried so much power that the wall shook to its very foundation for a moment, yet, somehow, the Demon remained in place, the stone underneath its feet cracking. The sound of the impact was deafening, echoing through the air and sending shivers down the warriors' spines.
It didn't even move its body, tanking the attack with its bare, armor-like body.
Testros only managed to see the end result as they were too fast for his mind to process.
However, he managed to see faint traces of power emerging from the rocks, and its source was evident: the Demon.
No matter how strong a being is, their foothold on the ground is only as strong as it is.
To beings that can shatter mountains, fighting on rocks is as stable as fighting atop a castle of sand. They spread their energy around to disperse their powers and reduce their environmental impact to counter its imminent collapse.
In this mere fraction of a second, the Demon spread the entire force of the impact around the Southern Wall; it was a form of control that Testros couldn't even believe possible.
It remained completely motionless, scanning everything around it like everyone observing it.
Demons were intelligent creatures and often possessed their own plans and moral codes.
There is a chance this Demon attacked them merely for the pleasure of it, however, for as often that may be, given Demons see other species in the same way children look at ants, there is a very undeniable chance that this Demon has something on the back of its mind, a goal to achieve, something it wished to attain more then anything.
Testros thought about the thorn embedded in the Commander's heart; he couldn't see anything like it around the Demon's body; where was it? The object that ended such a great person's life?
/SLAM!/
While Testros brainstormed just like his student, the man before the Demon struck again, this time with such force it finally managed to shake the Demon off the ground, sending itflyingback to the battlefield.
/JUMP!/
Immediately, a dozen people ran after it with haste, leaving behind Testros with the Priests, the Elite soldiers, the Commander, and the General who struck the Demon down.
"Huff... This hurts." The tall man said as he looked at his mangled arm
At that fraction of a moment when he struck with greater force, the Demon lashed out at his arm, tearing it apart before accepting the strike.
He was bleeding heavily, but he would befinewith the Priests.
"You did well, Lemor. We now know much more about its limits." The Commander said as he walked past the man and stepped onto the edge of the Wall
"Rest well, I'll leave the command of the forces to you."
/Jump.../
"Huff... He sure loves to overwork me... I didn't sign up to be a fighter." He said as he got up from the ground
As strange as it may seem, Lemor was the Division Commander in charge of Logistics, hewas another Division HeadTestroswas unsure of how he met his end.
While most Division Commanders were good at fighting, a few others were only there to ensure theWalland its structures were adequately maintained and within their ever-dwindling budget.
Even then, Lemor's talent was evident; he wasextremely strongphysically, so much so that he was once recommended to the Department of Infantry and not Logistics.
But that's a story buried in the past...
"Huff..."
He turned to look at the Elite soldiers and Testros, immediately issuing their orders:
"You all heard him, takepost in all defensive positions and be ready to assist the Commanders if needed."
"I need a small group to head to the bunkers and issue the deployment of all air units now that communications are back up. It would be far too late to not make use of them if we wait too long..."
"..."
He spoke quite a bit, and once he was done, the soldiers saluted before running around in different directions.
"Phew... I wasn't meant for this." He said as he got up from the ground, making the priest healing him upset
He turned to look at Testros, smiling.
"That must've been pretty scary to you, don'tworry,you'redoing pretty well yourself."
"When I was a recruit, my Unit was deployed with the Infantry Division; it was meant to be a pretty simple deployment, but... We met a few complications."
"I pissed my pants that day; it's not something I'm embarrassed about as it mademethe man I'm now today."
"You're doing much better than me, but you should work on your trembling; you've been shaking for a while now." He said with a chuckle as he walked past Testros
"!"
'I was shaking?'
Testros looked at his hands, theywere indeed trembling heavily...
"Take a rest, recruit; we wouldn't want to lose you... Nor anyone else..."
The Commander walked away afterhe washealed, leaving Testros with the Priests.
And just as quickly as they were done, they moved to the edge of thewallto watch the fight in the distance.
While they talked,theyfight was pushed quite deep onto the battlefield, but its vibrations and echoes reached allthe wayover here.
"... We did what we could; we should leave." The Archbishop said as he patted Testros' shoulder
"No... I'll stay here."
"... Very well."
The Bishop did not retort, turning around after a moment of hesitation.
He wasn't his superior, and telling a soldier to do something else would take the time he didn't have, so he moved, walking to where he was needed.
"..."
Meanwhile, Testros remained in place, watching over the fight.
/Boom.../
/Tremble.../
It echoed in the distance, the realm of legends...
Heroes fought against Demons, a timeless and pure poetic tale sung across generations, a simple display of the essence of mankind's fight for survival in these harsh lands.
Testros kept his eyes open wide, focusing on the fight as if he would never have this opportunity again.
Today, they were his teachers, and they taught him a valuable lesson that would last a lifetime.
Like embers in a bonfire, their let out their last lights as they fought to remain lit against a storm.
The true spirit of the Corps, lost to time...
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Notes
This chapter was a bit iffy; this and the last 3-5 I have been writing without much of a guideline, as in the first place, it wasn't my intention to add any of Testros' character development now, but I ended up doing since I saw the chance.
I never did anything like this before, so it's a learning experience for me.
Anyhow, peace!