Chapter 28: The Throne and the Knight
The towering figure seated on the throne behind the platform remained still, eyes closed, head resting on one arm. Only now did Ravi notice the gaping hole torn into its chest—dark, empty, and silent. It hadn't moved. For a moment, Ravi thought that this thing would also rise up from the throne as well.
The black stone knight, its armor streaked with dried red and black blood, moved first—closing the distance with terrifying speed that defied its size. With a roar of stone grinding against stone, it brought down its massive greatsword in a brutal arc.
Ravi and Waker split in opposite directions, the blow crashing into the floor where they'd just stood. The resulting impact created a crater, completely obliterating the headless statue that had once concealed them.
Without pause, the knight turned its gaze toward Waker. It lunged, slamming a heavy kick into Waker's abdomen before he could react. The blow sent him skidding across the hall like a ragdoll. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his body collided with the far wall.
Before he could recover, the knight was upon him, raising its greatsword for a finishing thrust.
With everything he had, Waker summoned his essence. Yellow-green grass shot out from his left palm, wrapping around the blade. He twisted his body, narrowly avoiding the thrust.
But his momentary victory was short-lived. The knight swung its sword sideways, using its sheer mass to bash Waker against the wall again. His defensive grass tore apart, and his vision blurred as blood trickled down his face. Consciousness threatened to fade.
Meanwhile, Ravi was surrounded by a horde of phantoms of dusty skeletons. A whirlwind of black storm spun around him, shrieking and screeching with every pass. Each sound stabbed into his skull like jagged shards. The mental toll was unbearable.
The large ghostly three-eyed skeleton with large tentacle like arms didn't attack them and went up as it disappeared above the arched ceiling, lost in the dark mist looming high. Its gaze fixed something unknown.
Ravi didn't hesitate to use his trump card at this moment as he muttered Bismillah inwardly and closed his eyes. When they reopened, his once onyx-black eyes now glowed violet, with a single white dot shining at the centre.
His mind, which was throbbing with never-ending pain, became clear as the pain in his body became low as well. He scanned the dusty black skeletons around him, his eyes quickly moving right and left as his pain receded and clarity returned to him. The shadow mask on his face disappeared, but he was unrecognisable due to blood and dust covering most of his face.
With his silver sword in one hand and its sheath in the other, he launched himself into motion, white light exploding from his form. Glowing arcs of energy slashed through the phantom storm, disintegrating skeletons with each precise strike. But still, Ravi felt that there was no end to them at all and his essence was draining dangerously low.
Elsewhere, Waker sat slumped against the wall. Blood soaked his hair and clothes. The stone knight raised its sword for a killing blow. But this time, Waker moved.
Before the stone greatsword could touch his head, it was stopped. Waker's right hand, glowing with a brilliant golden aura, caught the blade. He raised his head and stared into the visor, unflinching, with his glowing golden eyes. Without any hindrance, Waker stood up, and with a primal shout, he delivered a punch empowered by the full force of his awakened golden essence.
The stone knight summoned a black stone shield, twin-dragon patterns glowing faintly on it. Waker's punch covered with a golden aura hit the shield. The knight stumbled back. The knight didn't give up and took a battle stance with its greatsword and shield both ignited with black fire and its eyes—twin pinpricks of flame—blazed through the visor.
Waker smiled—feral, and fearless, and his whole body surged with golden energy. Every hair on his body turned golden as he lunged at the stone knight. The knight met him with equal ferocity.
And then, all motion stopped as if frozen in time. The swirling phantoms halted mid-air like a tapestry of horrors. Ravi, mid-swing, hovered in place, his blade and body gleaming with frozen white light. Waker and the knight, inches from each other, were locked in suspended combat.
A figure in a black robe wearing a ferocious white demonic mask, his features completely hidden from top to bottom, entered the hall through the archway.
He didn't look at the frozen battlefield and moved forward, completely unhinged while stepping on the broken remnants of the black mirror on the platform, approaching the throne.
He tapped a series of knocking on the base of the throne. After a while, intricate Indigo patterns appeared on the throne, and a door appeared on its base. The door opened, emitting a bright light. He disappeared into the blinding indigo light without bating an eye behind.
Moments later, the door closed. The indigo patterns disappeared as well, and time resumed.