Chapter 15 - Chapter 15- Blood Moon Pt. 2

The monkeys around Helios froze in fear, their instincts screaming at them to retreat. But the sight of their fallen champion twisted that fear into rage. One by one, guttural growls echoed through the jungle, shaking the branches as the pack tightened its circle. A smirk tugged at Bow's lips. He cracked his neck, loosening his shoulders, almost bored. "Well, I can't just let him show me up like that," he thought. His stance shifted low and firm, his aura starting to simmer like magma beneath the earth. He looked up at the blood-soaked moon, the crimson glow dancing across his face. "The moon sure is pretty tonight," he said calmly, his voice dripping with mockery. "I'd rather be relaxing under it… than wasting my time with a bunch of you monsters." The monkeys howled and pounced. Bow's grin widened. "Guess you're not giving me a choice." The first monkey lunged at him, but Bow met it head-on with a single straight punch. The force was so overwhelming that the monkey's ribcage caved in with a thunderous BOOM, its body skipping across the dirt like a stone on water. The rest of the pack hesitated for a split second, then charged together. Bow slammed his fists together, releasing a shockwave that flattened the grass around him. "C'mon then! Let's dance!" One monkey leaped from above, Bow didn't even look. He snatched it out of the air by the leg and slammed it into the ground so hard the earth cracked, dust shooting up around him. Without pause, he swung the limp body like a club, smashing it into two more monkeys and sending them flying into the treeline. Another beast came from behind, claws extended. Bow's grin widened. He spun on his heel and threw a haymaker so explosive it created a ripple in the air, shattering the monkey's jaw and knocking its teeth out in a bloody spray. More swarmed him, but Bow didn't falter. He fought like a wild beast, headbutting one so hard its skull cracked, grabbing another by the throat and tossing it into the crowd, stomping down with such force that the ground beneath them split open. Every move was brutal, efficient, and devastating. The monkeys' attacks barely slowed him. Claws raked his shoulders, teeth dug into his arm, but Bow only laughed. "You call that a bite? My grandma hits harder than that!" With a roar, Bow wound his fist back, mana crackling around it like a storm. He plunged forward and drove his punch straight through a monkey's chest, leaving a smoking hole where its heart had been. He ripped his arm free, blood dripping, and turned to the rest of the horde. His voice boomed like thunder: "LINE UP! I'LL CRUSH EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!" And with that, Bow charged, a one-man avalanche, fists and fury tearing the entire circle of monkeys apart with unstoppable brutality. The battlefield fell silent for a heartbeat. Bow, bloodied but smiling like a madman, crouched low, his fist clenched so tight his knuckles cracked. The monkeys hesitated, their instincts howling at them that something worse than death was about to happen. With a grunt, Bow leapt into the air, soaring like a cannonball. Mana flooded into his arm, his veins glowing, the atmosphere trembling as though the world itself was being wound up for destruction. His fist became a miniature sun, blazing with compressed power, each pulse making the monkeys shriek in terror. "BIG… BANG!!!" Bow came crashing down, and when his fist met the earth, the ground didn't break, it erupted. A cataclysmic blast tore outward in a 0.3 mile radius, flattening the jungle. Trees splintered into dust, stone shattered into powder, and the earth caved in like glass under a hammer. The shockwave rippled through the air with enough force to hurl beasts off their feet and leave their bodies broken before they even hit the ground. The monkeys at the center were simply gone, erased in the instant of impact, their bodies obliterated into nothing but ash and echoes. The crater stretched wide and deep, a smoking wound in the world, glowing faintly with molten rock from the sheer heat of the mana release. The smell of scorched earth choked the air, and black smoke rolled upward in a column that could be seen from miles away. At the center stood Bow, his fist still buried in the ground, chest heaving, sweat dripping. He spat, then cracked his neck, grinning like a mad beast who had just reminded the world what true strength looked like. "Pathetic… and here I thought you'd last longer." Out of nowhere, Helios and Bow felt it, an immense, crushing weight pressing down on their shoulders. The air itself grew heavy, their lungs straining as a sudden burst of mana ripped through the forest from the direction they had just fled. The ground beneath their feet lurched and trembled, splintering the roots of ancient trees and tearing apart the soil. They both snapped their heads back. A colossal dust cloud surged into the sky, swallowing the horizon, with entire trees being flung upward and raining back down like shattered spears. The forest groaned as if it were alive and dying at once. "Bow! We need to keep moving!" Helios barked, his instincts flaring. Bow's usual grin faltered, his face pale with unease as he glanced at the storm behind them. "Yeah… I don't like how that looks at all," he admitted, fear glinting in his eyes. As they sprinted through the underbrush, they realized the monkeys weren't chasing them anymore. Instead, the beasts had turned back, screeching wildly, barreling toward the explosion's origin as if being called to reinforce their kin. Helios and Bow reached the river, the water thrashing violently from the aftershocks. Without hesitation, they pushed downstream, boots splashing hard against the rushing current. "So what exactly are we supposed to be looking for?" Helios called over the roar of the water, his eyes darting between the trees. "I have no idea," Bow panted, his tone clipped and urgent. "All they said was to meet them downstream." The earth trembled again, harder this time, the shockwaves following them like the footsteps of a god. Every quake rattled their bones, a constant reminder of the chaos consuming Shidan and Malvek's battlefield. As they kept running, the river finally split off toward the town by the ocean. Their lungs burned, their legs heavy, but the sight of rooftops in the distance gave them just enough will to slow down. They stumbled along the worn path, catching their breath. Overhead, the moon had begun to sink lower, its redish light began to fade into the dark horizon. Both of them were drained, not just from the fighting, but from the endless sprint through the forest. The silence between them was broken only by the crash of waves in the distance. "Helios…" Bow finally said, his voice rough, "what even happened back there when you were fighting?" Helios's eyes stayed forward. "I have no idea what you're talking about. All I did was calm my mind like Malvek taught me to do when things get bad." Bow frowned, his tone sharper. "You're lying. That wasn't just you being calm. You changed the way you were fighting mid-battle like it was nothing, like you'd done it a hundred times before." "Still," Helios replied evenly, his voice flat but his jaw tight, "I don't know what you're talking about. All I did was fight a monkey that kept learning my moves, so I figured out how to counter the damn beast. That's all." Bow studied him for a moment, his eyes narrowing. But he didn't press further. The only sound was the ocean wind brushing against the trees, carrying the tension between them. They froze when a rustling noise came from the bushes, both their heads snapping toward it. "Oh, thank god," Bow muttered in relief as Shidan and Malvek stumbled out. Both were covered in dirt, their clothes streaked red with blood and dust. "We didn't exactly expect the monkeys to start using mana," Malvek said, brushing off his sleeve with a tired grin. "So… we kind of had to go a little overboard." Shidan stretched, his hands resting behind his head as if it were no big deal. "Got so bad I had to pull out one of my moves. Tsk tsk… those monkeys are dangerous." Helios and Bow exchanged a nod, too tired to respond with much more. "Well, we should find somewhere to rest," Bow said, rubbing his shoulder. "I'm beat after all that." "Good thinking, Bow," Helios agreed. The four of them dragged themselves into town, searching for an inn. Bow and Helios could barely keep their legs from wobbling as they walked. By the time they found a room, Helios had nothing left in him. The moment he stepped inside, he used the last of his strength to collapse face-first onto the bed, burying his face into the pillow. "Ugh… I really thought I was gonna die," he mumbled, his voice muffled by the fabric. His eyelids grew heavy, and before long, he couldn't fight it anymore. His body gave in, and sleep claimed him instantly.