Chapter 2: Fire
Oh my God, Jayden grinned to reveal his bloody teeth, a bloody smile on his lips. They are so ugly!
Pity, not only did these ugly things outnumber him in number, but they also surpassed him in physical strength. He would be absolutely demolished if he tried engaging them in direct combat. He was inexperienced in hand-to-hand combat as they come; he didn't even have proper and cool magical weapons. And let's not forget, despite his divine lineage, he was only still seven years old psychically.
But he had nothing much to overly worry about. He didn't even need to engage in any direct combat with these ugly creatures.
Jayden had Magic, after all. To come out of this alive, he needed to try destroying all of the ugly creatures with magic at once and together. Ridiculous as that may initially seem, there was no other option, considering everything. Even if he failed at destroying some, it was better than facing all eleven of these creatures.
But Jayden wasn't planning on failing. It is time to bring out the big guns. The wound in his tongue still burned, giving him some clarity amidst the twisted voices of the Creatures. He could try casting a silent spell around him but decided against it in the end. He didn't want to risk the Creatures discovering him through that blind spot, or in this case, a deaf spot.
With that burning clarity, Jayden took a moment to clear out his thoughts, then he whispered in his mind. πῦρ!
It meant Fire in Ancient Greek. And Fire was a lot of things. It was one of the five major elements that make up the world, the spark that ignited genesis, the light which nurtures life, and the illumination of judgment that vanquishes all evil. While at times a gentle blessing given to men by gods, it is also a terrible curse which annihilates everything. It was a Life-giver as well as a Death-bringer.
Now what kind of Fire did he want? Jayden imagined destruction that burns everything to ashes as well as judgment that purges all filth. The intent had to be vague and ubiquitous like that since anything precise and accurate to was so beyond him at the moment.
With that intent, Jayden casted the spell. Immediately, flames bloomed into existence, blue and surging, forming a circle of brightness around him. It seethed scorchingly in its form like it wanted to destroy everything in its path but it also maintained its form in control without affecting anything around, waiting for his order to pass judgment only on the filths.
Shouts and clamours of the ugly creatures erupted as they spotted him through his burning spell. Some tried to immediately dash towards him while others tried to raise their guard at the sight of the burning blue ring.
There was no hesitation in the emerald eyes of Jayden as he pinpointed every one of the filthy beings through his extraordinary vision. He then brought judgment upon them without delay.
In Judgement, the ring of fire immediately separated into eleven parts and shot accurately towards the ugly creatures. As they neared them, without being affected or hindered by anything in their path, the burning fires melded themselves into swords with sharp and glowing tips that shimmered with terrifying intensity. Some of the creatures literally froze in terror at the sight of swords while others tried to raise their weapons and shields in defense but it was all useless.
The swords passed through all of their futile attempts at defense simply, unaffected and uninfluenced. Its target was the filth, and nothing else mattered to it other than bringing judgment to purge the filth from the face of the world.
And bring judgment it did, stabbing into their figures with destruction. The surroundings were lit up with blue hues as the flames consumed the ugly creatures utterly. Their twisted screams of pain and terror filled the forest, making any living beings throughout the forest drop dead to the earth.
Jayden had already cast the silent spell around him, right after bringing the burning judgment, so he wasn't affected by their horrible screams. But his face was pale as the moon and his breathing uneven as he dodged a dead bird and a bleeding squirrel that fell from the branches. That spell he used was nothing of ordinary. It almost reached into the realms of the Greater Mysteries. It was the culmination of his efforts in the last three months. The aftermath was heavier than he expected; the spell almost fully drained him. He still had much improvise and develop.
Still, as Jayden watched the ugly monsters burn away into ashes, it felt worth it. Magic was so cool!
However, soon his triumph turned into anger as he witnessed one of the ugly creatures successfully resisting his flames while all of its brethren succumbed to it within seconds. It somewhat looked like a Cyclops, with a single eye in the middle of its burning forehead.
Jayden took a breather to stabilise himself. He couldn't let himself to succumb to drain in face of this Cyclops offshoot. He suscpted it was leader of the ugly creatures, and probably a lot stronger than others, if its sheer survival under his flames were anything to go by. He needed all the remaining power to face it or even make a run for it if the situation worsens.
Just then, the Cyclops offshoot locked its eyes with him in such hatred and rage. It didn't speak or make any twisted sounds, as though sensing the silence spell, instead its one eye brightened abruptly, and to much of his horror, a beam of destructive energy shot out of the eye directly at him, growing in size as it neared it him.
Oh my god! Jayden didn't dare try to tank the laser beam, instead he raised his hand as he imagined a mirror that reflected everything that hits its surface. It was extremely taxing to use that spell again but he had no other option. Katoptikós!
The Ancient Greek incantation echoed in his mind as an impossibly smooth mirror materialised to tower before him just in time. The Cyclops Offshoot's beam clashed with the reflective surface, unleashing a force that shattered the silence, a terrifying symphony that made Jayden's ears ring. Yet, his magical shield held, deflecting the beam. Like shattered light, it fragmented and scattered into the surroundings, destroying everything in its paths. Some rays even rebounded, finding their way back towards the Cyclops Offshoot. However, the ugly entity seemed indifferent to the injuries, maintaining the beam with unwavering and dreadful intensity.
Jayden was at his limits, straining to uphold the trembling mirror with hands that felt like they were ablaze. His lungs burned, as if ignited by an internal fire, and his legs quivered on the cracked ground. The once forested surroundings now transformed into a blazing and melting hellscape, threatening to consume him as well. In the end, the mirror, his last defence, began to crack under the relentless assault of the beam.
"Look, demigod, look," the Cyclops Offshoot cackled with gleeful malice and fury. Its voice twisted through the air, carrying the weight of judgment. "This is True Judgment! You should feel honoured to meet your end under the Evil Eye of Balor!"
Evil Eye of Balor? Jayden wanted to laugh at such a cliché title but couldn't once he felt the power behind the title, especially behind the name of Balor. There was so much terrible power in that name that he immediately had to concentrate his thoughts away from the title so as not to lose himself. One thing was certain, though – whoever this guy Balor was, it surely wasn't this Cyclopes offshoot.
"Die for your sins, demigod!" the Cyclops Offshoot hollered.
Jayden knew it was absolutely stupid, but his emerald eyes widened in rage. "My sins? MY SINS?" He spat out blood amidst the blazing inferno, a weak smile on his trembling lips. "You talk too much for an ugly little creature you are!"
The Cyclops Offshoot's face twisted in burning indignation, like Jayden just managed to poke its sore spot. It roared with an almost mad and feral quality, finally acting like the monster it truly was, as it put even more power into the beam, which then turned into a colossal pillar of destruction shooting towards him.
Jayden knew once the pillar hits his mirror, he was done for. It wasn't worth regretting his reckless words as Death was nearing his doorsteps. But wasn't he going to give up? Absolutely not! He was going to drag this Cyclops offshoot back into whatever hell it crawled out from.
In the last moments, all of the pain and fatigue assaulting him faded away as his thoughts turned clear and faster in an impossible quest to find a solution. No matter whatever his plans and ideas streamed through his head, all of his magic was already in defense against the terrible beam, which was on the verge of collapsing. Think, Jayden, Think!
Cracks filled the towering mirror as waves of scorching heat assaulted his figure. What else did he have other than magic? Like a bolt of lightning, an inspiration struck his mind, and he had only one chance. He had to put all of himself into it if there was any chance of success in his current condition.
The haunting determination returned to Jayden's green eyes as he stopped supporting the mirror and grasped that inspiration without hesitation. Immediately, his gut twisted with the foreign yet familiar feeling. It was contradictory, like another limb that he didn't know he had.
CRACK! BOOM! Without his support, the cracking mirror shattered utterly into pieces of magic. The beam broke through, beginning to fill his vision in the opening embrace of Death. But what do you say to Death?
"Not today!" Jayden grinned bloodily.
At that moment, the clouds in the sky abruptly dispersed, allowing the Moon to grace the world again brightly.
His mother, Hecate, wasn't just the Goddess of Magic and Mist. She was also the Triple-Moon Goddess, controlling all phases and aspects of the Moon!
And oh, how glorious the Moon was. Its silver light brightened everything in serenity and purity. Under its silver embrace, all filth was purged. From the Cyclopes Offshoot to the beam it launched to the burning hellscape, everything melted and faded away into nothingness in purity—all the while Jayden felt peace; the fatigue and pain didn't immediately return doubled. Instead, he felt like he was pushed into the most comfy bed in existence. He wanted to just give in and let himself get some sleep in serenity.
But Jayden held himself on. It was a sheer miracle that he still hadn't fallen, but he tried not to push his luck. He didn't try to move his place, only looking around to confirm that the ugly creature had really fallen. All around him was destruction. The lush forest filled with life was nowhere to be found, nothing except scorched ground and sooted remains. Among the remains was the head of the Cyclops offshoot, half of it gone, and the rest were fading like it was nothing more than illusion. Its eye, though, glared at his direction with horror and hatred. Soon even that faded away into nothingness.
Only the silver moon remained shining on everything, but the serenity in its light was beginning to fade away as well.
I succeeded… I really succeeded…Jayden's breathing became heavy. His legs gave out as he knelt on the ground, blood streaming out of his ears, and his eyes were crimson. Have that, you ugly little thing! His hands were covered in burned wounds, his fingers were almost completely black. I can't… I can't fall. I need to leave this place before the commotion attracts anybody. I can't. His body didn't obey his thoughts though, falling to the sides. No… No…
Suddenly, a goat appeared right before him out of nowhere. Its intelligent eyes looked down with concern.
Jayden only had the strength to wonder whether he had so fallen that he started to hallucinate.
The goat turned behind and called in a hurry. "Baah,"
Behind the goat, blurry figures were making their ways toward him. Then he found out, it wasn't that the figures were blurry but it was his own vision growing blurry. Still, he refused to give in. I need to… I need to…
But Jayden was defeated at last. The last thing he heard before darkness consumed him was a girl's voice shouting in urgency. "Luke, hurry, he is still breathing!"
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